How was your Sunday? Kind of short?
That will be the Winter Solstice. Traditionally the time for the real estate market to curl up and die.
But there’s still life left if you know where to look. Just last week $25m changed hands (yes, really, real money and everything) and there are a couple in the mid-$7s quietly happening and still more in the works.
Why No Death?
Well, if you’re not wintering in France or Britain or even Byron and there’s no footy worth a look, what else can you do for entertainment?
The real thrill of the chase is top end real estate. Never a dull moment.
It’s A World Of Convenient Truths
A certain world leader has re-defined truth. It’s whatever fills the immediate need.
Numbers of our local agents are no sluggards in that department. “Whatever suits” is having a great run.
That’s too-easily supported by a myriad accounts in the media.
Depending on the quoted soothsayer, the top end can be up 30% or 20% or up or down 10% or…
Too many of those who profess to know never get out to the coalface and take the pulse of the market first-hand.
Reading a weather report is nothing like getting caught in the rain.
Mirror, Mirror…
There are agents kicking goals, making sales, doing great work by respecting buyers’ intelligence.
And there are those who need to take a long look at themselves.
Right now there’s a quote nudging $50m that will be lucky to come within $20m of that. There’s another that started out close to $30m then dropped to $25m and is now rumoured to be close to where it should be: in the high teens.
Who benefits? Is it agents using their clients’ promotional budgets to keep their own names in lights?
We wonder what would happen if some of those clients were to take over-promising under-performers to court.
$10m Bubble
There it sits. Desirable, desirable, desirable. And only priced $10m above sense.
People, you should know better. You’re not helping buyers or your vendor.
There it sits.
My Left Arm Is The Buyer, My Right Arm Is The Selling Agent
An agent bidding on a home he listed as the selling agent?
That’s nice. Nothing could go wrong with that.
No, really. Nothing.
Cup. Lip. Slip.
“You’ve got an offer of $14.5m?” the agent said, “I can do better for you than that.”
“Really? Go for it!”
L.A.T.E.R.
“Sorry. The best I can do is $10m.”
“Forgive me for saying this, but I’m not happy. Really, I’m not happy at all.”
“Just Wait ’til Spring.”
There are vendors who have not been rushed at the altar who believe that their overpriced offerings will become more attractive when there’s more competition.
That makes sense.
Surely, it must. Mustn’t it?