Spring Lift in North Shore Real Estate Market

Graph from Crockers

So, what’s happening in our real estate market? Real Estate agents have to be positive – it’s our job! I don’t know anyone who would employ a real estate agent who wasn’t positive and enthusiastic! So here’s a little reality..
On the North Shore the real estate market in winter has been quite difficult and patchy – May and July were horrible, June was excellent, and I sold 4 homes in August! But winter is always a bit like that, it’s been wet, wet and wetter, and the post budget blues didn’t help either.  But what’s happening right now?

September 9, 2010   No Comments

Sex and the City | Apartment For Sale in Takapuna

Possibly the highest value apartment at $5.2million, in New Zealand has just been sold by Harcourts Cooper and Co on the North Shore. with an area of 668m2 on three level atop the Sentinel in Takapuna, the young Asian businessman who has purchased it will have an envied lifestyle. See more here. And here’s more evidence of Takapuna’s growing style and metro flavour…a sleek spacious 350m2 apartment for sale.

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July 16, 2010   1 Comment

Open Homes for Buyers

Open Homes are a great way to find a home on the North Shore! They are also a great way to find the right agent to sell your North Shore Home.
A favorite pastime of many people — whether in the market to buy or sell a home or simply curious — is to attend a weekend Open Home. In fact, checking out open homes is almost a religious experience in Auckland. Everybody seems to go to open homes.
If you’re wondering about the proper open home etiquette or have questions about the role of the agent holding the open home, here are some suggestions to help make your open home visit productive.

July 16, 2010   No Comments

Home For Sale | Mairangi Bay | Monster Makeover

Monster Makeover in Mairangi Bay

Monster Makeover in Mairangi Bay

52 Penzance Road, Mairangi Bay:

You know I love do ups and this is a classic. Many will love it for what it is – a big 60’s family home on a full site with a neat pool and just minutes from Rangitoto College and Mairangi Bay. It’s a great investment whichever way you look at it. Buy and hold as it is – there’s a great market for family renters in Mairangi Bay. Buy it and move in – there won’t be a cheaper family home this big in this suburb. Or secure a superb do up, it’s very difficult to overcapitalise in one of the best suburbs on the North Shore of Auckland. Interested? read on or flick straight to the property website for more information and supporting documents!

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May 7, 2010   No Comments

Homework is a must for mortgagee buyers

Each week, in the New Zealand Herald, national law firm Simpson Grierson answers commercial property questions which can be emailed and headed “property problems”. This week’s question on Mortgagee Sales is answered by senior associate Phil Shannon who can be contacted at phil.shannon@simpsongrierson.com
Q. I am looking at a number of properties to buy and a couple of them are being sold by way of mortgagee sale. I have never bought a property from a mortgagee but understand from other people that there are some differences in the way the property is sold. I am a cautious investor and do not want to assume too much risk in my contracts. As a buyer, what is the difference between a mortgagee sale and a normal sale of property?

April 24, 2010   No Comments

Is Newspaper Advertising for Real Estate a Dead Duck?

Recently I listed 4 houses for auction. As I was going through the marketing budget for each property I noticed that more than half the cost was for newsprint advertising in the Property Press and New Zealand Herald.
The most difficult part of selling a house is stepping up to pay the cost of advertising. And yet…advertising works.
But what’s the most effective method of advertising? As a seller you want to make sure that the money you spend to sell you home is bringing lots of qualified buyers to see and (hopefully) buy.

April 9, 2010   6 Comments

North Shore Housing Crisis

Sold Signs

What will this year bring us in the property market? It is only a year since all was doom and gloom with no end to the recession in sight. Right now, it seems like we are going to have a great year! According to Alistair Helm CEO at Realestate.co.nz, sales of residential property in New Zealand were up 10% on the previous year and he predicts that there is plenty of scope for more:

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January 14, 2010   4 Comments

Should you Disclose a Defect in a House you want to Sell?

House detail

What does the new Real Estate Agents Act, 2008 mean to buyers and sellers of real estate in New Zealand?

On November 17, 2009 the new Real Estate Agents Act, 2008 came into force. It is changing the face of real estate in New Zealand and how the business of buying and selling a home is conducted. For the better. Real estate agents need to be much more careful and professional in how they interact with both buyers and sellers. The Act gives buyers and sellers more rights, more power and, along with the real estate agents themselves, more responsibility.

This is the first in an occasional commentary on the Real Estate Agents Act and how it affects buyers, sellers and agents. You can find out more about the REAA here.

Should you disclose a defect in the house you want to sell?

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December 16, 2009   No Comments