Let’s face it, we all hate going to the clothing store only to find the size range depleted, especially when it comes to the one size, you’re after. Same in property when you procrastinate by not making a move, and when you do choice is not what you hoped for. Worse still the advice your receiving is low stock availability is unlikely to change in the immediate future.

In real estate the service obligation and expectation requires the sales agent be in regular communication with clients. My advice would be buyers also need to be proactive to expedite regular contact with their go to sales agents to be first in the know. To be passive and wait for email alerts, Facebook posts to update on the latest listing is all well and good, except for the fact the buyer pool in your area are also receiving the same property push updates.

First day of spring, and it will be interesting to report back in 30-days if the historical lift in property stock has occurred in 2020. Historical trends would suggest we should be able to report back in the affirmative, however in these times past performance is no longer the yardstick to predict what will likely play out this month.  

The following showcases dwellings (excluding land) available to purchase on Trademe over the past two months in my city. July 1^st to September 1^st there has been a -24% shift in available stock of dwellings (all types). Waiting for reemergence based on past indicators especially if one is in the market to purchase right now, may end in disappointment unless you are confident you are market ready.

Do yourself a favour to stop, take five and read your real estate bio on the companies ‘our team’ page. Yesterday’s performance in some instances may not correlate to how you are travelling today.

I’m currently undertaking some prospect research across multiple brands to build and information asset to support my new BDM role. Following are some observations.

• I felt truly inspired and in awe of many award-winning salespersons, that year after year have consistently achieved high performance rankings for their brand. They clearly possess talent, skills, and leverage a systemised approach to their business, being the busy people.  In many cases they have layered up with PA’s and or sales associates forming a team to create market momentum. A quick look at their current listings and they are well stocked and their bio’s match reality as high performers focused on positive outcomes.

• There are other bio’s with salespeople promoting historical agency awards from 5 years and longer ago, yet today they sit on one and often no listings at all. The reality is these agents need to think like a start up to reignite their careers. Hopefully their sales managers are having upfront discussions, offering guidance and support to stop further regression. Their bios should be reviewed and dialled back to reflect reality as the embellished wordsmith spin needs to be earnt to be credible. The public can quickly assimilate how the salesperson is travelling and their sometimes-negative perception can be hard to shift. Bio content that’s clearly passed it’s used by date is neither helpful nor credible.

• There was clearly a strong intake of new salesperson’s back in February and March looking at their licence issue dates. Naturally they haven’t been active long enough to be recognised by the company and peers at annual awards. Reading their personal and career pathways highlights just how deep the talent pool is from which the sector draws new people to a real estate career. What staggers me is their agency company will hang them out in the public domain with no listings against their name. Some agencies attempt to mask reality by assigning the one property listing across multiple salespersons to show they have stock to sell. Why onboard new salesperson’s if they can’t be actively coached to consistently carry 1-2 exclusive listings. I hope next time I review these bios there are happy vendor testimonials dominating the script and listing levels have moved up.

Prospective vendors just like me research, and bios need to be kept fresh, current and credible.

I’m getting good at reading the individuals bio first, then clicking their ‘latest listings’ button only to find my perception is more accurate and a mismatch to the words of their bio.

Maybe the sales manager at every performance review meeting could start by passing over a copy of the salespersons bio and asking them what needs changed (if anything). Things just got real in this scenario and that’s not a bad thing unless that conversation is handled poorly.

10am -11am today, a rollercoaster hour packed with some really good stuff—-

Just off a great Zoom event along with colleagues from across the Professionals group with one of Australasia’s best real estate luminaries Mr. Lee Woodward presenting and sharing.

Here are some random take-outs.

• New is great, and do not expect to revert back to the old default way of doing business.
• Salespeople consider connecting with fewer people for better reasons
• Delete ‘buyers’ from one’s vocab and substitute with ‘purchaser community’ and connect with continuous planned marketing.
• Communication styles have changed. The goal now is to be connected with the right people at the right time, with the right info.
• There is a powerful difference between a client being known to us versus a new client. Existing client’s needs and wants should be known and can acted upon real time, versus the time required to truly discover and validate new client needs.

Well done Lee!

Check out the presenter Mr. Lee Woodward: https://www.realestateacademy.com.au/profile/Lee-Woodward

Watching the half-time huddle at the rugby in the weekend made me think about who supports and trains the captain and the senior leadership players. Like their teammates they have been in the thick of the game, yet it is all eyes and ears on them for what needs done or improved upon before the whistle blows game on again.
In real estate, the agency principal and branch manager are key leadership roles. The Professionals board recognise this and convene a ‘huddle’ for the leadership team to gather from across the country to connect and share. The really smart aspect of this event is an invitation is extended to a select number of future leaders from within the group. Recalling my first attendance at the 2019 event, the chatter was constant over the two days; so, bring on Rotorua 2020.

Having made the recent transition from the management team with Professionals Invercargill to a green shoot role as BDM with the Professionals Group I’d like to think it should be straight forward in terms of my ability to clearly convey brand benefits.

The talent pool seeking a brand change and or to go next level in their real estate career through ownership, should expect I can share a brand narrative that communicates both hard and soft brand assets. Brand fit naturally is key for both parties.

Promoting the intangible elements associated with the Professionals brand values, culture, and persona; well let’s face it there is there is nothing to see and a tad trickier, requiring thought. One thing I have observed is that as a non-franchise model Professionals people are not corporate cloned which is nice.

The tangible or “hard” assets, such as business process, compliance, technology enablement, recruitment/ retention, sales strategy etc. have delivered long-term operational success across the group since brand inception in 1976.

Having met several member owners, their unique leadership styles have created an earthy, grounded, and real culture that is great to be part of. I do not expect I can package this up and put a ribbon around it, hence I will be encouraging prospective new members to fact-find by talking to our people.

“The Southland region saw a 19.8% increase in median prices from $283,750 in June 2019 to $340,000 in June 2020. Additionally, the REINZ House Price Index increased 12.2% year-on-year, the largest increase for the South Island. Sales volumes also increased 27.7% annually, the second highest increase in sales volumes across all regions and the highest June sales count in 13 years.

The market has been particularly busy this month with approximately 50% more attendees at open homes compared to last month. New listings also increased significantly by 59.0%, the highest increase across all regions. There have been similar number of investors in the market, likely attracted by the low interest rates.

The increase in activity across the market is likely due to the post-lockdown catch-up currently occurring. It will be interesting to see how the market will react in the coming months as we near election time.” Bindi Norwell REINZ CEO

• Median Sell Price June 2020: Invercargill City $348,000 and Southland Wide $320,000
• Current Days to Sell of 33 days is less than the 10-year average for June which is 40 days. There were 24 weeks of inventory in June 2020 which was 13 weeks more than the same time last year.

Known as the “pie house” in Chicago I never cease to be amazed by the shape and form dwellings can take.

At 148 square metres of living space, two bedrooms, two-and-a-half bathrooms and an open floor plan on the main level.

Check out the interior pictures here: https://bit.ly/2CEta4Q

Source: NBC Chicago

New Zealand GDP is our country’s total income: if we add everyone’s income, from household wages to business profits and government surpluses we get GDP. GDP can also be measured as the value of all the goods and services produced in the economy. In New Zealand this is the preferred the measure of economic activity.

To measure the value of goods and services is to calculate the total expenditure on consumption, investment and exports, less the spending on imports. This is probably the most intuitive way to think about the economy: our production is determined by how much people are willing to spend.

As per below it is interesting Australian Reserve Bank economists consider public sentiment around real estate and property ownership as an indicator not to be ignored as a potential flashpoint for dragging down their economy.

Source: ABC News-By business reporter Daniel Ziffer.

“Reserve Bank economists considered urging the Federal Government to shut down the real estate industry, “pausing” sales of established homes to avoid perceptions of a coronavirus-inspired housing market crash.”

Read ABC News story here: https://ab.co/3fQRi2B

Source: Stuff online:

“Southland is still the best performing region for residential property investors, according to a Real Estate Institute of New Zealand report.

The Capital Gains and Rental Yield Report says capital gains in Southland has increased by 22 per cent for the three months ending March when compared to the same time last year – the second highest capital gains in the country. Southland also holds the second highest yield in the country, which increased 4.8 per cent year-on-year”

Read full article on Stuff here: https://bit.ly/3fqu0Aa

Steve’s commentary—–A quick bit of desktop research on Trademe shows there are currently 62 rentals available to let across Invercargill City with 33% of this total listed to let 10-17 June. It will be interesting to track tenancy uptake on this broad range of inventory. Conversely listed FOR SALE  on the same property portal there are 331 residential dwellings in the city available to purchase representing an excellent cross-section of price points and geo-locations affording choice for investors.

Now more than any time in the past you should expect a level of customisation and customer service that makes you feel truly exclusive and a preferred customer of both the listing salesperson and the agency.

What I would look for in an agent–https://youtu.be/9Tvz-z5_coo