
Property Investment
Property Investment
7 min read
As a financial adviser, people often ask me: âOpes vs Property Factory - Whatâs the actual difference?â
Itâs a good question because, on the surface, we seem similar.Â
Why? We both recommend New Build properties to investors.Â
So, if youâre thinking about buying a New Build, you might wonder, âShould I use Opes Partners or Property Factory?â
There are key 4 key differences that you should know about before you make your decision. Because there are differences in what you get as a customer and how the companies operate.
Now remember, you are reading this on the Opes Partners website. And Iâm about to talk about a competitor. So Iâve got an incentive to say: âDonât use Property Factory. Use us instead!â
Iâm not going to do that. Because here at Opes, we believe in being upfront and honest. And hereâs the truth: Some investors are better off using Property Factory rather than us.Â
It depends on what kind of service youâre after. So my approach is simple. Iâll explain the differences as simply (and as unbiased) as possible. Then Iâll take a step back. That way you can decide which is the right company for you.Â
And if you think Iâm being biased. Let me know down in the comments section. That way you can keep me honest.Â
Property Factory is a Kiwi property investment company. They refer to themselves as a âspecialist company.â In other words, they are real estate agents who specialise in New Build properties.Â
The company officially started in 2010 and has changed its name a few times. It officially became Property Factory in 2016. That was back when the company was run by Campbell Venning.Â
It was later sold to Andrew Wilson, who now leads the company.Â
Their team has 16 staff. And they work with developers like Wolfbrook, Golden Homes, and Mike Greer.Â
You donât pay a fee to work with Property Factory. They are paid by the developer.Â
More from Opes Partners:
The Property Factory and Opes Partners both help investors buy investment properties.Â
And both companies are âfreeâ to use (we both are paid by the developer).Â
So, letâs go through an honest review of the differences:Â
The most important difference is how each company approaches property investment.
When you work with Property Factory, you work with a real estate agent. Their sales team are registered with the Real Estate Authority. They are individual real estate salespeople.
However, they are real estate agents who focus on New Builds. Thatâs why they refer to themselves as Investment Sales Specialists.Â
Whereas, when you work with Opes Partners, youâll spend the most amount of time with a financial adviser.Â
Our financial advisers are not real estate agents. You can find all our financial advisers on the Financial Service Provider Register.Â
Whatâs the difference?Â
When you work with Property Factory, you start by diving into the properties. And they wonât provide financial advice.Â
Whereas when you work with Opes Partners, you start by creating a Wealth Plan (a financial plan). Then you look at properties.Â
I called Andrew Wilson (the director of Property Factory) while writing this article. He agreed. He said his company was âproperty first, financial-side secondâ. Whereas Opes is âfinancial advice first, properties secondâ.Â
To be clear, here at Opes Partners we do also have a real estate team (Opes Property). But youâll primarily work with your financial adviser, rather than a real estate agent.
So to figure out which company to work with, start by asking yourself â âDo I primarily want to work with a real estate agent, or a financial adviser?â
If youâd prefer a real estate agent â then Property Factory may be the right fit for you.Â
If youâd prefer a financial adviser, then Opes Partners may be a better fit.Â
There are also big differences in the service you get.Â
For instance, Property Factory primarily focus on finding the property from their stock list.Â
You can go on their website and look at their properties. You can even request a contract right there on the website. Thereâs one main service.
Thatâs good for people who want to go on a website, have a conversation with an agent and then buy the property.Â
Opes Partners works a little different. We follow our five-step Wealth Plan process, and provide a lot of wrap-around services. So we have:
This works great for people who want to work with one company to sort your investment portfolio out. Even though, you donât have to use all our services. You can use one or as many as you like.Â
But, some people donât like this. They prefer to work with lots of different companies and have a sense of independence between their professionals.Â
So if you are just looking for a property â then Property Factory could be the right fit.Â
If you want more of a wrap-around service, then Opes Partners could be the right fit.Â
Both companies recommend New Build properties. These include houses, townhouses and apartments. Â
But, there are big differences in how and when you see the properties. So if you go on Property Factoryâs website, most of their web-pages are property listings. They run a few webinars too.
But, the focus of the website is looking at properties. So the buying experience is you look at properties on the website, talk to a Property Factory real estate agent, then buy a property.Â
But, if you go on the Opes Partners website â most of website is content and education. There are a few properties weâve recommended in the past. But, you canât see any properties that are currently available.Â
Instead, we give away data, podcasts, videos, webinars, and articles. Then, when youâre ready to invest, we create a Wealth Plan and then start looking at properties.Â
You might think: âWhy is Andrew talking about websites?âÂ
Well, because some investors will prefer Property Factoryâs approach.Â
They might think: âIâd rather just look at the listings and buy a property.â
Whereas other investors will say: âYeah, give me the data and content, create the plan, then we can start looking at properties.â
So itâs up to you. Would you prefer to dive right in and look at properties? If thatâs you, Property Factory may be the right fit.
Or, would you prefer to do some homework first before diving in? If this is more you, Opes could be the right fit.Â
There are also differences in the properties you can buy.Â
To keep things fair, I looked at Property Factoryâs publicly available stocklist and compared it with Opes.
At the 31st of January 2025, Property Factory had more properties available on their public stock list, compared to our internal stocklist here at Opes.Â
We can see that both companies are strong in Auckland and Christchurch. But, Property Factory have more properties in Wellington. While, Opes has slightly more properties available in Queenstown.
A good part of this is by design. Here at Opes we deliberately say no to developers and locations if we donât think they are the best investment.Â
For instance, we have far fewer properties in Wellington and Tauranga compared to Property Factory. Itâs not because our team canât find properties in those areas.Â
Itâs that we are deliberately turning developers away because we donât believe those are the right areas to invest in. And we believe weâve got the data to back it up.Â
Some investors will say: âI donât care about that. I just want to see as many properties as possible.â
Thatâs a legitimate way to think. And if thatâs you, then Property Factory might be a better fit.
If on the other hand, you think: âI donât care as much about looking at lots and lots of properties. Just show me the best ones,â then Opesâ approach may suit you better.Â
Ultimately, the right choice depends on what service you want, and how you want to find properties.Â
If you are looking for a one-off property transaction â you just want to buy a property. Then, Property Factory may be the right fit for you.Â
If, youâd prefer to create a financial plan, get wrap-around services and have an ongoing relationship with a company, the Opes may be the better fit.Â
So now that you know the differences between the two companies â itâs your turn. Which do you think is the right fit for you?
Managing Director, 20+ Years' Experience Investing In Property, Author & Host
Andrew Nicol, Managing Director at Opes Partners, is a seasoned financial adviser and property investment expert with 20+ years of experience. With 40 investment properties, he hosts the Property Academy Podcast, co-authored 'Wealth Plan' with Ed Mcknight, and has helped 1,894 Kiwis achieve financial security through property investment.