Monthly Archives: April 2014

Hello readers.

I am so pleased with the amount of positive feedback I have received since writing my first column 2 weeks ago Thank you all very much.

Now with ANZAC day upon us for locals we no that this generally means that it is time to start the heaters or light the fires!! So this week I though it would be a good time to discuss how to have your house presented for inspections of the winter months.

It is extremely important that regardless of what heating system you have, be it Gas, Electric, Wood or any other means that you have these systems on for inspections wherever possible. As we do live in a colder climate heating is certainly one of the top items people look for when purchasing a home.

If you have a ducted system it is also recommended that you run through with your agent how the systems works as this can be of a huge benefit when showing prospective buyers through the home.

Which brings me to my next point many people believe that winter is not a good time to sell …… I disagree with this for a few reasons. One there is a lot of people thinking the same thing so you see an influx of listings over spring which leads to more competition against your home! The other is the fact that we do live in a cold climate and prospective buyers will want to see just how warm the house is in winter so many buyers will wait until winter to buy. I believe this winter will be very busy on the property front here in Armidale, The recent headlines in the Sydney media regarding the un-affordability of Sydney only makes Armidale look better as an investment alternative. Whilst people may not want to move here they still will want to invest cash and Regional property has a lot of appeal especially a city that offers a university and NBN.

On Another note: A few weeks ago I was part of the “lock up 4 Kids” fundraiser in Centro it was wonderful to be able to help raise money for such a wonderful cause and I would like to thank all the local people and local business’s that supported me and no doubt the other “inmates”!!

Until next week …

REALTY SPEAKING By Luke Fahy

Hello again readers.

Deciding to sell your home can be one of the most stressful times in your life. The great unknown…… the questions – “What agent will I use?” “What will people think of my home?” “Is the price to high?” “ Is the price too low?” This week I thought you may benefit from a basic ten point plan to help you on your journey.

Select your preferred agent.
Call your solicitor or conveyancer and ask them to prepare a contract of sale for the property.
Organise a meeting with your agent to execute the agency agreement.
During this meeting structurea price that represents a true indication of value not a price so high that you price yourself out of the market nor a price that undersells the home.
Develop a marketing plan with your agent that gives you the most possible exposure in print, web and other mediums. “Leave no stone unturned”
Tell your agent how you would like inspections to run eg: “Shoes not to be worn in the property”
Ask your agent if there is anything that you should do before the property “hits” the market? For example: Any small jobs that may benefit in the sale such as getting that squeaky door fixed.
Be involved in your marketing. The last thing you want is to see a photo of the home you dislike as the main picture …no one knows your home like you do.
Ensure that you receive regular feedback from your agent.
Remember not everyone will like your home but that is ok.

There is ofcourse a lot of other things that come into the selling of a property, but remember there is no such thing as a silly question? Talk to us.

On another note: Sometimes I just can’t believe the market in Armidale gets talked down by peers within the industry to make a vendor except an offer on their property which could have got so much more.

I was recently talking with an agent I know well in Sydney and she told me “Luke, Mt Druitt and other suburbs similar are becoming unaffordable, we are seeing many buyers now looking at regional areas to buy in and invest and later sell to get back into the Sydney market”

With Armidale recently ranked 13^th in an RP data study as to the best places to live in Australia. This was based on many factors including median house prices. I would suggest that the Armidale real estate market does indeed have a rosy future and doesn’t need to be sold as a cheap city with no future.

I would like to take this time to wish everyone a very happy and safe Easter

Hello readers…. I’M BACK!!

After a 12month lay off it is great to once again be writing a weekly column on real estate in the Domain.

I guess I should start with the “Elephant in the room” … You would have noticed a few agencies are no longer advertising in this publication and we have been asked why we still are? The answer is simple; it didn’t make sense based on a few key factors that were important to us. These primarily are that we didn’t want to reduce our vendors advertising opportunities in print media to once a fortnight, we don’t want reduced distribution and we want to stay LOCAL.

We feel that whilst many businesses are looking to reduce overheads, especially with advertising, we simply can’t sacrifice a vendor’s opportunity to sell!

The numbers for us don’t lie. Domain’s weekly distribution of approx 19,000 copies via the FREE Express Extra, Friday edition Armidale Express, The Walcha Times, The Guyra Argus, delivery to out of town letter boxes (RMB), local mailboxes and the people from around Australia who are on a subscription with the Armidale Express to just name a few.Advertising with Domain also allows us to benefit from advertising on www.domain.com.au which is one of Australia’s major real estate portals.

One of the biggest factors also for us was we did not want to take $$$ away from a local business being the Armidale Express. The Express is an important part of our town and to take advertising $$$ out of the region whilst at the same time wanting other businesses and the community to support us is simply hypocritical. The wonderful people at the Express have over the years done a lot for the community and the real estate market; to leave was simply not something we could contemplate. We are proud members of Locals for Locals and strongly believe and practice this concept.

ON ANOTHER NOTE: I am glad to be back working with Hutchinson and Harlow. For me I have come full circle, as I started off doing work experience here as a kid so to finally be working here is something that I didn’t think would happen but am so excited about!!!

I will finish this week’s column by repeating what another agent told me last week….”No one reads the paper anymore anyway”! If you have just read this, you’ll know the answer to that statement.

Until next week…..

opinions are those of Luke Fahy and may not represent those of others

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