VZ REAL ESTATE

Always interview at least two agents. (The only exception is if one agent is highly recommended by people whose opinion you respect). If you do not like either agent, call a third. Keep going until you find the best agent. If you have to interview a dozen agents, do so. Do not underestimate the importance of choosing the best agent. And do not do what many sellers do – select the agent you dislike the least. Good agents exist. When you know what to look for, you will find one. When you meet agents, look at their personal presentation. Do they appeal to you? Do they seem like nice people? Listen to your instincts. Show each agent around your home. Watch their level of interest by seeing if they ask questions or make notes. After agents have seen your home, make them feel comfortable and then ask the question: “What will you do to get the best price for my home?” Some agents will say, “How much do you want? or What figure did you have in mind?” Do not answer these questions. Not ...

Real Estate is an incredibly lucrative and competitive business and some Real Estate Agents will do almost anything to get listings in the search for commissions. Unfortunately reputations have been battered in the process. But just remember that not all can be tarred with the same brush. The reality of Real Estate is that agents don’t have to rely on repeat business, so if a customer feels badly treated when selling their property, many agents won’t care and take the attitude ” the disgruntled seller left the area anyway. I will not have to deal with them in the future”. A relatively new phenomenon in the form of online ratings systems and review sites does allow for a degree of exposure and for  testimonials  to be readily available, but sometimes Real Estate Agents do stretch the truth to get business. “We need money upfront to advertise your property” One of the toughest tasks facing Real Estate Agents is getting listings (properties to sell) so this te...

You mention you’re buying or selling property to one person and the next minute, you have everyone knocking on your door with advice. If buying and selling your home a few times made you an expert, we’d be out of a job! There are so many tall tales and outdated assumptions being told that it’s hard to know what is fact and fiction, so we’ve set out to bust some of the more common real estate myths we hear every day:   1. Never sell in the winter This is one of the most common myths that has been circulating for as long as I can remember. The assumption is that the only people who put their homes on the market when the weather is coldest are poor, desperate souls who will accept any price to pay for some firewood! This is simply not true. There are not specific months or seasons to sell property as Australia’s property market is active year-round (even during footy season!).   2. Young adults have no hope of home ownership This idea that it’s ‘impossible’ for yo...

If you are like most sellers, the thought of selling your home can be daunting. Selling your home is not usually something you do more than once or twice in your life. So how do you know what to expect or more importantly how to sell for the highest price? When it comes to getting the highest price for your property, there is a tool that will optimise your chances of success. The Buyer Price Declaration is a concept developed by economist, Sir William Vickery – one of several ideas that earned him the Nobel Prize for Economics. This negotiation tool is demonstrably better than a public auction for sellers. With the Buyer’s Price Declaration, no competing buyer is privy to another buyer’s offer. This means that each buyer must offer their highest price without being influenced by what somebody else may have offered. At a public auction the auctioneer declares the property will be sold to the highest bidder.  As a seller you want to sell for the highest possible market price....

Written by Andrew Trim                  Many in the real estate industry speak highly of open homes. This tactic has become so common that many sellers are under the impression that open homes are the only way to sell a property. What many people are unaware of is that open homes typically have more benefits for the agent, rather than the seller. Security Issues A major problem with open homes is that it tends to attract the nosy neighbours and those researching rather than legitimate buyers. Open homes allow anyone to freely walk into your home, from curious neighbours to thieves. There have been many cases of thieves attending open homes to scope out potential targets. Open homes attract a lot of strangers, which makes it hard for the agent to keep track of everyone. Many agents don’t take personal details from attendees, so if a prized possession was to go missing you ...

1.       Not doing your research When purchasing an investment property, it’s important to do your research about the location, local amenities, rental yields, vacancy rates and the property itself. While it may not always be possible, you should aim to know as much as you can about the neighbourhood you intend to invest in. Be wary of ‘booming markets’ such as mining towns and tourism centres. These may produce excellent returns over the short term, but how will the investment stack up long term if there is an industry downturn? Remember, a good investment is not one based on speculation. 2.       Not having a professional property management team in place Many people assume property management is simple and think they can do it all when it comes to taking care of every aspect when managing their property. This can quickly become a stressful and tedious task, not to mention the ever increasing legislative r...

Real estate agents across the country are increasingly moving toward off market transactions. An off market transaction is defined as one where the agent only markets the property to their database and known buyers rather than listing on prominent media websites. Given the sophistication of industry Customer Relationship Managers (CRMs), it is plausible that an estate agent can expose a property to the vast majority of active buyers in the market. But these CRMs have existed for quite some time. Whilst they facilitate the effectiveness in off market sales, they are not the cause of the recent spike in transactions. Off market transactions have spiked because agents and consumers are looking to avoid the high cost of real estate websites. Start up companies that were started in a garage less than 20 years ago are now billion dollar companies on the back of real estate advertising. The price that agents and home sellers have been asked to pay for a web listing has increa...