Real Estate assistance

"Be quick, don't Hurry!"

2010-10-21T18:06:00.000-07:00

I Love this quote! The idea, I believe is that you need to be decisive. Opportunity comes rarely in this business and when it presents itself you must be quick.

Speaking to buyers everyday a good number of them want to buy when things are on fire, and they choose to wait when things cool. The smartest thing to do is the opposite, if you have the courage and opportunity to do so.

Love to hear from you...

Be good to yourself and each other.

Mark

Summer Has Arrived!!

2009-12-17T16:36:00.000-08:00

Some fine weather and the realisation of Christmas fast approaching is facilitating a flurry of decision making. For me anyway, this is the icing on what is a much bigger sales volume cake than last year. As long as interest rates remain at the current levels, I would expect activity to continue in the New Year.

Cash is King... Unconditional offers have never had more value than right now. The certainty of a deal for both buyer and seller is what most parties are looking for before Christmas.

Vendors – Respect the unconditional offer. Remember, an offer beyond your highest expectations is not worth anything if conditional on finance for even 1 day.

Love to hear from you.

Mark

Don't Forget What This Is All About...

2009-12-03T16:14:00.000-08:00

Whether it was the week of persistent rain or talk of a property drought, the effect has had buyers adopting a more cautious approach. Sales are being made albeit with some vendors needing to adjust their expectations.

The question for all sellers is - Do you want to know what the value of your house is or not?

The question for all buyers is - Do you want to move on with your life or not?

Lets remember what buying and selling is really about for 99% of people... Moving on with life. Everyone I deal with talks about money, but at the heart of every sale and purchase is a situation. Life is not about a house, a house is a place from which you live.

Love to hear from you.
Mark

Christmas Bells Ringing!!

2009-11-26T18:36:00.000-08:00

With Christmas closing in we are seeing a huge volume of property being offered to the market. For us, sales are pleasing with clearence rates high at Auction. We note buyers focusing, offering or bidding and moving on quickly. My recommendation is that vendors wishing to sell, listen to the market carefully as there are lots of options for buyers.

Talk soon

Mark

Brave New World

2009-11-19T14:17:00.000-08:00

As of Tuesday the 17th November, we entered the brave new world of the Real Estate Agents Act 2008. This involves some changes in the way our industry is governed and how we interact with the public. I welcome the changes and have embraced them. The intention of the new act is to left the level of professionalism within the industry itself and to protect those who buy and sell properties through Real Estate Professionals.

I look forward to helping you in the future.

see: http://www.reaa.govt.nz

Kind Regards
Mark

Ellerslie Market Update

2009-11-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

I always say... A world of opportunity lies before you.

Someone more famous than me said "More is lost through indecision than the wrong decision..."

Latest R.E.I.N.Z. figures show median house price sales for the month of September 09’ was $585,000 with 17 properties selling at an average of 30 days. This is a huge increase on the same month a year ago. September 08' had a median house price of $455,000 with 7 properties selling at an average of 35 days. Interesting numbers...Ellerslie remains a suburb with strong attraction from buyers. Drop in interest rates people are once again able to make their dream come true of owning their own home.

Advice...If you are thinking of selling, act ASAP.

Love to hear from you.
Mark

Real Estate Predictions

2009-11-13T17:00:00.000-08:00

I noted with interest this week, New Zealand Herald headline - "Housing Prices Set To Fall". Since the last time we read similar predictions - the market has risen in Auckland specifically to a house price median in excess of 24 months ago - The highest ever! People like the security of owning their own home. Always have, always will.

Ellerslie Market Update

2009-01-14T12:41:00.000-08:00

Happy New year to you!

Hope you had a great festive season over the past 2-3 weeks. I visited family in Tauranga with my wife and daughter which was fun. For the most part our family enjoyed the weather and visited the beaches that this great city has to offer.

A new year has begun and I hope to deal with you over the next period of time. A world of opportunity lies before you. Seems like the OCR will take another cut this month making houses more affordable... A welcome relief for all I would say.

Latest R.E.I.N.Z. figures show median house price sales for the month of October 08’ was $480,000 with 11 properties selling at an average of 27 days to sell.

November 08’ saw the median drop to $403,650 with 16 properties selling at an average of 42 days to sell.

Interesting numbers...

Ellerslie has not been immune from the recent market volatility. The good news is that people continue to buy and sell homes. It is taking longer to close the deal at times but people are realising that life must go on. With the recent drop in interest rates people are once again able to make their dream come true of owning their own home.

Advice...
If you are thinking of selling, act ASAP.

Love to hear from you.

Mark

Be Patient!!

2008-12-17T14:23:00.000-08:00

I was reminded last night at the end of year Christmas function that life is full of seasons. It was a time to celebrate the end of business (for most of us) for another year, and also reflect on how things went over the past 12 months. The Good Book says... “There is a time for all things under heaven... A time to sow and a time to reap”

For many, this year has been a time to sow with little to show in the reaping department. I was encouraged the other day by someone who said that reaping doesn’t follow sowing but rather waiting follows sowing then the reaping will come.

The encouragement for me is that I need to keep working hard and keeping active: make a plan and follow it. The outcome might be delayed, but in the end the universal principle will be realised!!

Waiting follows sowing...

Be patient!

Have a great Christmas break this year with family, friends and all that is important in your life.

God Bless

Market Value

2008-11-17T12:35:00.000-08:00

Market value is commonly misunderstood. In real estate market value is the price that a willing seller is prepared to sell at and a willing buyer is prepared to purchase at.

It is commonly said that “a house is worth what someone is prepared to pay”. This is not true. Let me explain... If a vendor choices to put their house on the market, they are really saying I will exchange my house for an amount of money (excluding trades).

If they do not receive a satisfactory offer they simply choose to hold on to their property rather than exchange it for an “insufficient” amount of money. What the vendor is really saying is that their house is worth more to them than any other buyers offer of money. This is their right.
Obviously it is just as incorrect to argue that a house is worth what a vendor will sell at, even if it is more than anyone is willing to pay. Hence both seller and buyer must agree for the house to be of “Market value”.

By definition all sales of property are at market value and hence offer the best indication of market value for comparable properties.

A good real estate agent will help both parties in the purchasing process by identifying for both what a reasonable price to sell and buy would be.
For the vendor who sees their property through rose-tinted glasses the agent must offer honest buyer feedback whilst still representing the property in the most valuable light.

As I always say...
Buying and selling property effectively is difficult, use an expert you trust.

Change is always happening...

2008-11-09T14:06:00.000-08:00

I was reminded last week of the truth that “change” in life is inevitable. Obama’s campaign slogan was “vote for change”.
We have witnessed the first African American president elect in U.S. history.
Real Estate is no different. People are constantly moving through life and change is always on the cards. The kids leave home; new children arrive into our lives. Our jobs force us to pack our bags and leave our suburb or even our city or country. Either way change can affect our housing situation.
Like Obama’s slogan the change is always confronted by our choice. Do we embrace it or do we avoid it? Do we chose to act or do we hesitate? The choices we make do not always clearly offer a certain outcome, but we cannot avoid them. Doing nothing is a choice but it is a choice that leaves the outcome much more susceptible to chance. Either way you chose.
We have a change in government. Helen has served this country well for the past 9 years but the people have spoken and said we want change. How we respond to the change is up to each of us. We can accept it and chose to make the best of the new government, regardless of whether we chose Labour, National or any other party.
Buyers...
Don’t wait for change. Make it happen. If you find the house you are looking for try to buy it. I find the biggest difficulty for buyers is finding the home they like. Don’t wait for next year or next week to come. Buy now if the house suits.
Sellers...
Don’t wait for change. Make it happen. If you want a change or need to make a move, do it... Don’t wait for next year or next week. There is no guarantee as to what the future holds. Any person who tells you they know what is to come simply can’t be trusted.
Have a great week! Be good to yourself and others.

Who is Mark Atterbury?

2008-11-02T18:02:00.000-08:00

I was born in 1977 (same year Elvis died). I have been married to my wonderful wife for 2 years and as mentioned earlier we have a beautiful 11 month old daughter. Currently we are living in St Heliers.

I have lived in Auckland most of my life with a few years working in the golf industry in Taupo and Wellington. My high school years were spent in the classrooms of Auckland Grammar, and completed Bachelor of Arts from University of Auckland (Politics and Philosophy). (I could talk politics all day).

Before coming on board with Unlimited Potential (UP) I was Distribution Manager for a printing business in Glen Innes.

I’m sure there is more to know, but let’s give it time!

The journey so far...
I have taken a pay cut (as expected) but have embarked on a career with “Unlimited Potential”. I had a good job, and enjoyed it. My future was bright but was contained within the walls of large warehouses. People were my passion so a change was inevitable. Having sat my papers for a Real Estate sales person soon after leaving University, I now needed someone to employ me. Conversations with my father-in-law and brother-in-law lead to a meeting with Barry Thom and eventually Grant Lynch. As they say the rest is history.

I feel privileged to work for such a great company founded by two inspiring individuals, sharing office space with some of the best sales people in Auckland. You will hear more about UP as the weeks go by and how my business in real estate is inextricably connected to the agency I work for.

Rome wasn’t built in a day... So they say, and I want you to watch this space and talk to me about your experiences in real estate. Ask me your questions and let me know your thoughts. I won’t have all the answers but hopefully I can give you a perspective from the other side of the contract.

Why a blog?

2008-11-02T15:50:00.000-08:00

Why a blog? I see interesting things every day in my business which I just wish others could hear about of which I find myself telling anyone who will listen, mainly friends and family members, most of all my Wife and 11 month old daughter!!. Much of what I experience would be helpful for both sellers and buyers and I wish to help.

I want to share this with you and hear what you have to say.

I will be posting a new blog each Monday but adding comments and answering questions daily.

Thank you for reading and please feel free to share.