Sunday Blog

We’ve traditionally referred to secret sales as off-market sales. Our business has consistently tracked at around 25% for off-market acquisitions over the past years, but COVID-19 changed the real estate selling environment considerably. Our secret sales are now sitting at 50% since COVID-19 struck our shores. The interesting change relates to how agents are now…

In this current climate, we have experienced an adjustment to the way in which we use data to measure the state of our property market. Traditionally, we have always been able to rely on a combination of; auction clearance rate, days on market, median house price movement, and transaction numbers. With auctions only just resuming,…

This week I finally managed to coordinate my industry friend, Mike Mortlock to join me on a quick zoom interview. Mike is a Quantity Surveyor and runs a national tax depreciation business, and aside from being a numbers guru, his self-depricating jokes and quick humour make him one of my favourite ‘think-on-their-feet’ presenters. So when…

Many buyers turn to off-the-plan, high rise apartment purchases for several reasons. Low deposits, enticing extra items thrown in, and that amazing feeling of sparkling new are just some of the reasons. For investors, the depreciation benefits can be significant for cashflow and holding costs. There are some issues for buyers to be mindful of,…

Lately we’ve been fielding increased enquiry from property purchasers who are considering the regions. These enquiries aren’t restricted to investors, either. In fact, the majority of these enquiries are home finders. We are currently searching for homes for clients in Ballarat, Geelong, and Castlemaine. We’ve had recent enquiries spanning Kyneton, Woodend, Drysdale, Red Hill, and…

I remember Friday 13th March well. We all woke up to the p-word. Pandemic. The world health organisation had declared it, and it wasn’t until that point that things really started to feel more serious for us. In the real estate world, our introduction to the pandemic was the elbow-touch. As a relatively friendly and…

This week we have spotted some ‘forecasted’ price drops in the media with claims of some 20-30% likely to impact our markets. We are not seeing any such signs in our current markets. There is no doubt that COVID-19 will have an impact on segments of our market, but it is important for us to…

In the midst of the COVID-19 shutdown, our challenges in the real estate industry in Victoria deepened when Consumer Affairs issued a notice to all agencies on the eve of our Easter long weekend. The message was clear; no private inspections with consumers were to take place in any owner-occupied or tenanted properties. The only…

Five years ago, while inspecting a line up of properties in Ballarat for a client, the agent I’d asked to show me through the properties stopped outside the second one, turned to me and said, “Cate, I need to tell you this. Something not-so-great happened in this house. I know how much you care about…