By Tony Booth

The Holy Grail of property investment is a 'distressed seller' - someone who is under severe pressure to dispose of a property and prepared to reduce the asking price to sell it quickly.

Desperate people will do desperate things - but very few will admit to it when potential buyer meets potential seller for the first time around the negotiating table.

So how do you spot a distressed seller at the outset and save yourself from submitting too high an offer upfront?

It may seem callous and perhaps even underhand to take advantage of someone else's difficult financial situation, but that's business - and don't be under any illusions - a property investor is in business to make money. It's how the commercial sector operates.