Dane's Doorway North Shore – Real Estate

The signs of a busy summer market have emerged, with renewed activity from both buyers and sellers.

With a flow of new listings coming on after the holidays being complemented by an increase in buyer enquiry, the local property market is currently vastly improved from the stagnant conditions in 2008 and much of 2009.

Media reports of recent “higher” sale price medians are interesting in that they fail to mention the obvious reason (fewer sales were happening in the lower end of the market!)

However expect that to change, as we are finding the first home/investor sector is experiencing a burst of activity not seen for some time. This may be temporary as people get in before expected interest rate rises – only time will tell.

Auctions are more popular, and even companies who dismissed this method in the past now seem to be enthusiastically promoting it! Sellers should be cautious though to choose an agent with the skills to manage this highly specialised process to a worthwhile conclusion.

Sometimes in a more active market sellers may become complacent and think their property will “probably” sell anyway so it ‘doesn’t matter’ who they pick to look after their sale, when in reality this can be a potentially costly assumption to make.

Demand, supply, and therefore values can all change rapidly in evolving conditions, and more than ever owners need to choose a real estate practitioner they trust who will work on their behalf to secure the best possible result from the market, with the minimum of stress.

We’re looking forward to seeing how things shape up over the rest of summer. In the meantime,

Have a great month!

Dane

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Interesting to note QV Online have launched a new “service” where property owners can keep track of their property’s (estimated) value via a rolling graph.

Resisting the temptation to use my five free tries for some of our own properties, instead I compared some client’s homes I have recently sold, to see how the QV estimates stacked up with real market results:

Example 1:    Just sold for around 660,000, QV estimate graph had it in the 590,000s range

Example 2:    Just sold for around 380,000, QV estimate graph was in the 340,000s range

Example 3:    Just sold for around 440,000, QV estimate graph had it in 380,000s range…

You get the picture. And no doubt there will be many other properties selling either way above or way below the figures this website is giving out from their computer generated estimates.

I understand a business such as QV wanting to expand their income, and offering random reports such as this at $25 a pop will no doubt gain some added revenue from the Kiwi public, given our country’s insatiable appetite for real estate information.

However, it just goes to show that a little knowledge can really be a dangerous thing. The figures from the random sample we tried were so far from reality that I would be very concerned at any potential seller giving reports such as this credence in trying to gauge what their home or investment might actually be worth.

If the clients whose homes I have just sold had used these reports as a benchmark – and not taken our advice on what the market is doing in their local area, and the best strategies for them to maximise their results from the market – they could have risked underselling in some cases by upwards of $70,000 dollars.

There is no substitute for having someone who is working in the market every day (and working with active buyers ready to write a cheque for the right home) take a physical look at your property’s location, appeal, competition, features, potential – and having a better idea of what buyers might be prepared to pay in the real world.

www.danebrown.co.nz

Maybe the media will one day give up trying to predict the property market, as from our experience conditions can change almost from week to week at times!

What is obvious is that outdated seller caution was out of step with renewed buyer demand, leading to a shortage of available stock, assisting a strengthening in sale prices, and significant buyer demand still currently not being met…

For this full market comment and other articles, read my latest Dane’s Doorway September newsletter

Another great result for some very happy clients! 82 Hillcrest Ave sold under the hammer for a premium price after we implemented an intensive 4 week strategy to ensure maximum interest was generated for our owners.

With over 100 people attending the onsite auction the successful buyer was also excited to be able to secure the home they really wanted, so a positive result all round!

Check out some other Recent Sales here

Flat tack like many at the moment, with a reduced number of properties available in many of our local areas being quickly soaked up by heavy buyer demand, and owners just starting to come out of winter hibernation keen to move on with their plans.

Hot off the presses is my latest “Dane’s Doorway” newsletter, an excerpt from this is below:

“…Just one of the new listings I started marketing this month had 68 groups through the first open homes! (PS desperately seeking homes for a wide range of buyers wanting family, character, and contemporary homes in Northcote, Hillcrest, Birkenhead, Sunnybrae, Onepoto and Birkdale if you happen to know anyone thinking of selling!!)

With plenty of pent up buyer demand still to be satisfied, the current shortage is a bonus for those coming to the market – when their property is marketed the right way to ensure the best possible response is generated.”

For the full Market Comment and more (including the chance to WIN a $30 movie pass in my “famous” Trivia & Win competition!), below is the link to…

Dane’s Doorway Newsletter – August 2009

Happy reading!

Funny how the newsletter I’ve been sending out for years was what you could call a version of a post long before blogs were invented!

I haven’t been specifically mentioning these in my blog until now apart from a page link, so below is a link to my latest newsletter with market comments, competition, and useful information.

“Dane’s Doorway” July 2009 Newsletter

Other recent newsletters can be found on my website www.danebrown.co.nz

I’m using the “box of chocolates” theory to describe the current property market, particularly on the Shore -

When a chocolate box is full, people are fussy and choose their favourite flavours, bypassing the less popular ones. As the box empties out, they pick from the ones they maybe didn’t like as much at the start, but are the best of the bunch left!

At the moment, the chocolate box of properties available for sale in some suburbs is probably two-thirds empty…

This situation means we are strongly recommending to potential sellers in our locality that they seriously look at taking advantage of current conditions, as with the right support and strategies the best “chocolates” are being fought over (multiple offers or keen bidding competition), and less popular ones that would perhaps have been left to go stale last year are now getting some action.

Waiting for spring – when buyers will have a whole lot more to choose from – may mean buyers picking off the best, and the Turkish Delights getting left behind in the box once more…

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Working to get the best possible result from the market for our clients is what we do! If you or someone you know on the North Shore would like a Free market appraisal, or some friendly advice to help with their plans, as always please feel free to contact me on (09) 480 8880, 0274 906 507, or at dane.brown@harcourts.co.nz.

Predictions that the balance of interest rates and prices would bring waiting buyers back into the market are already being proven, with a significant increase in buyers out looking, and written sales!

Ironically this means the shortage in available properties is continuing. We are generating multiple offers and/or strong bidding on many of our clients properties, particularly where they are offering specific features we know a range of buyers are looking for.

Buyers waiting for conditions to become even more favourable risk being disappointed. Sellers who are taking advantage of our ability to utilise current market conditions to generate solid interest and buyer competition for them are getting their properties sold – in many cases with surprising results! – and a balancing of market forces may assist in stabilising prices for a while yet.

Sellers holding off hoping values will rise however should consider coming to the market while buyer interest is high, as homes are selling for as much as buyers are willing, and able, to pay - and they may not be prepared to pay more than current levels for some time yet.

The necessity for people to move on with their lives means the stalemate of the past year had to resolve itself, and as always the property market does what it does and adjusts so homes can continue to change hands, and meet peoples changing needs.

As I’ve said many times, our market tends to change very quickly, and anyone looking to make a property decision should perhaps seriously look at doing it right now while conditions seem more settled.

Have a look at Harcourts CEO Bryan Thompsons latest blog regarding real estate “facts” – and his point on whose opinion is really the most important for you when considering your own property decisions…

http://blog.harcourts.co.nz/2009/04/08/be-your-own-expert

Headlines recently have ranged from “Caution Still Rules in Property Market” to “Good Time to Buy a House” (…both from the same paper!)

No wonder many people are scratching their heads over what to do! Some answers to the most common questions we’re asked at the moment:

Is it a good time to sell? Any time is the right time! In other words, if you have plans you want/need to get on with, work out what it is costing you to stay – in keeping your life on hold in the hope values ‘might’ go up next year, or the year after, are the real costs of not moving on putting you behind.

There are more buyers looking at the moment than for most of last year, plus somewhat ironically there is a current shortage of homes available for sale for buyers to choose from.

Strategies we use are generating keen bidding and/or multiple offers in many cases, so don’t assume it’s doom and gloom out there!

Is it a good time to upgrade to a bigger/better home? Absolutely! Do what you do when upgrading a car – find out what yours could now be worth, and what you want to buy, and focus on the dollar difference. You may be pleasantly surprised to find the amount to allow for inbetween is likely to be significantly less than it was in the past.

Is it a good time to buy a first home, or investment? The balances between interest rates and market values are currently at levels making a first home or rental a far more workable option. The last time we saw this was early 2000s.

How many people still say “wish I had…”

While no-one has a crystal ball, current market conditions do present a valuable range of opportunities to consider, and we are experiencing a huge increase in activity at the moment.