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Dougmal Harcourts - The Property People

Friday 5 December 2014

Protecting your Home Over the Holiday Season

We are fast approaching the festive season when many of us travel to see our families or head to our favourite holiday spots, leaving our homes unattended.

Statistics show that home burglaries are highest over the Christmas holiday and festive season. Thieves know that many families are away for an extended period of time, often leaving behind new goods from Christmas Day.

If you are planning to go away, it’s time to start thinking about how to best protect your home and contents while you’re away. An unoccupied house advertises itself to potential thieves without you even realising it!

Here are some great ideas to give your house a “lived-in” look that’ll leave no clue to thieves that you’re away. Before you go away you should:-
  1. Cancel any newspaper deliveries.
  2. Ask the post office to hold your mail, or get a neighbour to collect and hold it for you.
  3. Let your neighbours know you’re going away and ask them to keep an eye out for anyone around your home. Also ask someone to collect your mail (including catalogues etc).
  4. Give a neighbour your car keys and ask them to move your car out of the garage and leave in the driveway every couple of days. Alternatively you could ask them to park their car in the driveway.
  5. If you are away for an extended period of time, perhaps organise for a teenager or lawn mowing service to do your lawns and tidy the gardens.
  6. The garbage bin. If you don’t want to ask a neighbour to wheel it out and back in for you, put it away altogether.
  7. Install some electrical timers inside your home to turn selected lights on and off for a period every night.
  8. Turn the volume of your phone down and don’t leave a message telling people you’re away.
You may also have some ideas of your own. Remember, the key is to make your home look “lived-in”.

Friday 28 November 2014

4 Simple Tips to Improve the Appeal of Your Property

So you’ve made the decision to sell your property, the next step is to get your place looking as good as possible before any photos are taken or potential buyer inspection dates.

The good news is, whether your property only needs a little or a lot of attention, you can start to improve the appeal of your property in these four simple and inexpensive steps.

1. De-clutter
Buyers are generally looking for space. The more space you can show, the more attractive your home will be to buyers.

Don’t expect buyers to ignore your accumulated stuff and imagine your house in its clutter-free state. The aim is to make it as easy as possible for potential buyers to imagine themselves and their belongings in the house.

Tips to get you started:
  • Be systematic. Do one room at a time and don’t move on to the next room until it is complete.
  • Depersonalise. You want your buyers to visualise themselves in your house, not you living in it! Pack away photographs, souvenirs, trophies, medals, certificates, posters, religious items and family heirlooms.
  • Restore rooms to their core functions.
  • Clear tables, counter tops and all surfaces.
  • Consider storing off-site some items of furniture.
2. Clean
Once you have more room to work, undertake a thorough housecleaning. As well as your regular chores, focus on rarely-cleaned areas such as skirting boards and light fittings. Steam clean your carpets, and wash walls and windows. If you don’t have time to do this, there are cleaning companies that can help you.

3. Patch and paint
Add a fresh coat of interior paint. Painting your walls can instantly brighten up your house and make it appear well cared for. First, patch up any holes, no matter how small. Favour white ceilings and off-white or beige walls with white skirting. These colours throw more light around the room and make it appear larger.

4. Garden work
Spruce up your outside area. Get rid of green waste, trim the hedges, weeds, and mulch the flower beds.

Friday 21 November 2014

The Property People Wins at Real Estate Awards

Our team recently attended the Harcourts New South Wales Quarterly Awards at The Tea Room, QVB, Sydney, to celebrate individual and office real estate achievements for the July – September 2014 quarter. 

We competed against 66 other real estate offices, 150 sales consultants, and over 60 property management professionals across NSW to gain these highly sought-after awards.

Individual Awards Won:

Property Management Business Development Listing Award - 
1st place, Sarena Rowley

Top Lister - 1st place, Garth Makowski

Top Auction Lister - Garth Makowski

Auction Encouragement Award - Shaun Moss

Top Sales Consultant – No of Settled Sales
1st place, Cathy Furness & Shaun Moss
3rd place, Tom Spiljar

Top 10 Sales Consultants - Income to Office
4th place, Cathy Furness & Shaun Moss
7th place, Tom Spiljar
8th place, Troy Holmes

Bronze Sales Achievement Award
Gary Ghassibe

Silver Sales Achievement Award
Garth Makowski
Tod Campbell
Troy Holmes

Gold Sales Achievement Award
Tom Spiljar

Platinum Sales Achievement Award
Cathy Furness/Shaun Moss

Sapphire Pin
Cathy Furness/ Shaun Moss

Diamond Pin
Tom Spiljar
Garth Makowski

Office Awards Won:

Property Management Office Excellence Award - 1st place

Property Management Office Revenue Award - 1st place

Property Management Business Development Office Award - 1st place 

NSW Top Office (highest gross revenue) - 1st place

Top Auction Office for the Quarter - 1st place

I’m so proud of our awesome team! Our Property Management team, led by Sarena Rowley and Laura Makowski, won most of the major awards, testament to their top class service and tireless work ethic. Our Sales Department kicked some great goals too, with four of our agents in the Top 10 in NSW (Tom Spiljar, Troy Holmes, Shaun Moss and Cathy Furness). It is also fantastic to earn back our title as the number 1 auction office in NSW, and retain our title as the number 1 office in NSW.

Friday 14 November 2014

November Auction Results!

Last week we had our biggest in-room auction event for the year, held at the Rydges Hotel in Campbelltown. 

This auction event gained some outstanding results, selling 10 of the 16 properties submitted to auction – a 62.5% clearance rate. Here’s the summary:

RABY, 20 Tornado Place - SOLD BEFORE AUCTION
ROSEMEADOW, 7 Miranda Place - SOLD!
INGLEBURN, 11 Moorhen Street - SOLD!
WOODBINE, 7 Barrenjoey Close - SOLD!
BRADBURY, 3 Gipps Street - SOLD!
BOW BOWING, 7 Hamersley Place - SOLD!
ROSEMEADOW, 1/20 Fortinbras Close - SOLD!
EAGLE VALE, 14 Diamond Place - SOLD!
MACQUARIE FIELDS, 2 Sixth Avenue – Not yet sold!
CAMPBELLTOWN, 57 Chamberlain Street - SOLD!
GLEN ALPINE, 15 Bishopscourt Place – Not yet sold!
RUSE, 17 Cudgegong Road - SOLD!
CAMPBELLTOWN, 25/31-35 Chamberlain Street – Not yet sold!
ESCHOL PARK, 10 Eschol Park Drive – Not yet sold!
ROSEMEADOW, 39 Hamlet Crescent – Not yet sold!
CAMPBELLTOWN, 1/182 Lindesay Street – Not yet sold!

11th NOVEMBER AUCTION EVENT STATISTICS:

  • 10 of the 16 properties submitted to auction SOLD – a 62.5% clearance rate.
  • Of the properties SOLD, our team achieved an average of 23 buyer inspections per property during the intensive 21-day marketing campaign leading up to the auction.
  • Of the properties SOLD, there was an average of 4.8 bidders vying for each property. 

It was a fantastic auction night! Everyone worked so well together to create the best possible auction night, and it transpired to excellent results. There is also strong interest in the properties that didn’t sell on the night, and I am confident they will be sold this month. 

Thanks again to our outstanding Auctioneer, Paul Casarotto, and the wonderful support from Domain, The Macarthur Advertiser and Harcourts NSW.

Friday 7 November 2014

Renovate your Outdoor Space

Australians love nothing more than outdoor living areas, and with the warmer months ahead, it makes a lot of sense to make the most of your outdoor space. 

If you are looking at selling your home in the future, refining your outdoor living areas doesn’t have to cost a lot, but can greatly increase the appeal and selling price of your home.

Provide outdoor entertaining
A good outdoor entertaining space is highly sought-after by buyers. This could take the form of a deck, a pergola, a retractable sun-shade, or verandah.

Also consider the inclusion of an outdoor barbeque and dining area.

Outdoor lighting
In the evening, a garden or an entrance looks wonderful with good lighting. It can emphasise a feature or hide a blemish. Carefully selected lighting can create a wonderful effect that makes your property very desirable. 

There is a huge range of solar lights available that can achieve a wonderful effect without wiring.

Don’t forget to organise the inspections of your home at a time that shows your lighting off!

Car spaces
Off-street car spaces are worth a lot, both in dollars and convenience. Covered off-street parking such as a carport or a garage is right at the top of the list for many buyers.

Landscaping
Defined landscaped areas can add hugely to the overall presentation and desirability of your home – however it can detract if done badly. Achieve a balance between easy maintenance, water efficiency, and hard and soft surfaces to create a landscape in which your property stands out.

Consider the plants you choose, as some are better at certain times of the year. With a bit of research you can have a garden that changes, having different features for every season.


Friday 31 October 2014

Choosing the Best Agent to Sell Your Home

Many sellers think that the best real estate agent is the one who gives them the highest "potential" sale price to sell their home, and the lowest commission fee. But does this really represent good value?

When gaining market price appraisals from agents to sell a property, sellers should be wary of those that price their property above the others without comparable sales to substantiate that price estimate.

Unfortunately some agents will overprice properties because they are either not educated in the area, or are simply just trying to win the business. Choosing an agent on price alone can actually cost a lot of money down the track when the property is not selling. An overpriced property that is not selling can put the seller into the unfortunate position of having to sell below market price to gain a quick sale (due to commitments elsewhere).

Incorrectly pricing property targets the wrong buyers.

Additionally, most buyers watch and know when a property has been on the market for a long time. Even if the price is later adjusted to the correct market price, the previous activity tarnishes the property and buyers often think there is something wrong with it! All of this wastes a lot of time and causes the seller a lot of stress. This inactivity also attracts "bargain hunters" trying to secure a property at a rock-bottom price.

It is critical to correctly price a property.

When it comes to real estate agents and their commissions, the ones who are cheap, or cut their fee easily when asked, are not going to be tough, savvy and smart enough to negotiate with buyers. It's these strong negotiation skills that sellers need from their agents to gain the best possible price for their home.

When it comes time to sell, it's important that sellers choose their real estate agent focusing on their reputation, current sales track record, but more importantly their sales skills. This is what will get the best final price!

Friday 24 October 2014

Getting Started in Property Investment

When it comes to building a retirement nest egg for the future, property is still viewed as one of the safest long-term investments.

While some investors may want to buy and rent it out straight away, others may choose to live in the home while they renovate it.

Investing in bricks and mortar can be a great way to create wealth, but there are a few things to consider before diving into property investment.

Know your budget
It’s essential to have a thorough understanding of your cash flow. You should ask your bank for pre-approval of your investment loan so you know how much you are able to borrow before you start your property hunt.

Don’t underestimate ongoing costs
Make sure your budget allows for extra costs such as insurance, and general maintenance and repairs.

Buy in a growth area
Find a property in an area where there is strong demand for rental properties. Buying close to schools, universities, public transport and shopping centres will make it more appealing to renters.

Be realistic about your investment goals
Are you looking for fast capital growth, or do you want to hold the property long term? During a strong market period, it will be easier to renovate properties and sell them for quick profit. But in slower economic times, it can take years to achieve the same growth.

Look for essential, not extravagance
A rental property only has to be functional and clean. Don’t over capitalise or be persuaded to buy a property simply because it has a stylish interior.

Think carefully before negative gearing
If the rent you receive does not fully cover your loan repayments, your property will be negatively geared. This can have tax advantages, but it will also lead to financial stress if you don’t have the cash flow to cover loan repayments, rates or body corporate fees.

Still paying off your home?
It isn’t necessary to have your home completely paid off before purchasing an investment property, however it is a good idea to have a large portion of your own home paid off along with other debts such as credit cards. 

Friday 17 October 2014

October Auction Results

Last week we had our in-room auction event for October, held at the Rydges Hotel in Campbelltown.

This auction event gained some outstanding results, selling 6 of the 10 properties submitted to auction – a 60% clearance rate. Here’s the summary:

ST HELENS PARK, 19 Briggs Place - SOLD!
CAMPBELLTOWN, 149 Dumaresq Street – Not yet sold
MINTO, 111 Eagleview Road - SOLD!
EAGLE VALE, 27 Zeolite Place - SOLD!
AMBARVALE, 45 Harthouse Road - SOLD!
AMBARVALE, 49 Georgiana Crescent - SOLD!
BRADBURY, 49A Chisholm Crescent – Not yet sold
CAMPBELLTOWN, 13 Manning Street - SOLD!
GLENFIELD, 7 Stirling Place - Not yet sold
GLEN ALPINE, 71 Mount Huon Circuit - Not yet sold

15th OCTOBER AUCTION EVENT STATISTICS:
  • 6 of the 10 properties submitted to auction SOLD – a 60% clearance rate.
  • Of the properties SOLD, our team achieved on average $13,666 above our vendors’ reserve selling prices.
  • Of the properties SOLD, our team achieved an average of 12 buyer inspections per property during the intensive 21-day marketing campaign leading up to the auction.
  • Of the properties SOLD, there was an average of 4.7 bidders vying for each property.
Another great auction night! There was also strong interest in the properties that didn’t sell, and I am confident they will lock down some solid offers in the coming week.

Thanks again to our outstanding Auctioneer, Paul Casarotto, and the wonderful support from Domain, The Macarthur Advertiser and Harcourts NSW.

OUR NEXT IN-ROOM AUCTION EVENT WILL BE HELD ON 11th NOVEMBER 2014. SEE OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION.



September Auction Results

Last week we had our in-room auction event for September, held at the Rydges Hotel in Campbelltown.

This auction campaign gained outstanding results, selling 9 of the 9 properties submitted to auction – an impressive 80% clearance rate. Here’s the summary:

MINTO, 111 Eagleview Road - SOLD!
AMBARVALE, 45 Harthouse Road - SOLD!
BRADBURY, 63 Fern Avenue - SOLD!
GLEN ALPINE, 31 Nepean Towers Avenue - SOLD!
RABY, 25 Spitfire Drive - SOLD!
CAMPBELLTOWN, 22 Megalong Crescent - SOLD!
ROSEMEADOW, 3 Lucius Place - SOLD!
ST HELENS PARK, 1 Mackillop Crescent - SOLD!
BULLI, 9 Sturt Place – SOLD BEFORE AUCTION!

17th SEPTEMBER AUCTION EVENT STATISTICS:
  • 9 of the 9 properties submitted to auction SOLD – a 100% clearance rate!
  • Of the properties SOLD, our team achieved on average $15,750 above our vendors’ reserve selling prices.
  • Of the properties SOLD, our team achieved an average of 21.6 buyer inspections per property during the intensive 21-day marketing campaign leading up to the auction.
  • Of the properties SOLD, there was an average of 3 bidders vying for each property.
What a brilliant team effort! Great preparation from both our sellers and agents, lots of hard work, and all of us efficiently working together were all key to the success of the event.

Thanks again to our outstanding Auctioneer, Paul Casarotto, and the wonderful support from Domain, The Macarthur Advertiser and Harcourts NSW.

OUR NEXT IN-ROOM AUCTION EVENT WILL BE HELD ON 15th OCTOBER 2014. SEE OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE INFORMATION.

If you want to know more about the process and the benefits of selling your property by auction, speak to one of our highly experienced Sales Consultants on 4628 7444.


Friday 10 October 2014

Rental Reference Know How

Finding a good tenant forms the foundation of a successful investment. So how do you acquire a good tenant?

Checking a tenant’s references and doing the appropriate background checks are critical tasks to give you the best chance of a smooth running and successful investment.

Professional Property Management staff have access to systems, and have the knowledge and experience to carefully look into applying tenants and thoroughly evaluate them. Investors would be wise to choose an experienced Property Manager and agency team that focuses on gaining a quality tenant. A carefully selected tenant will result in a more trouble-free investment.

Two of the most important background checks your Property Manager can do are previous rental history and employment record checks. This sounds fairly straight forward, but there are many traps for the inexperienced.

It comes down to finding out from the information gained if the applying tenants have an excellent track record from their past tenancies. That means paying their rent on time as well as looking after the rental properties to the expected standard. Also the current ability for the tenants to pay the rent is evaluated through information and proof from their current employers.

Owners managing their own property often get too involved to be impartial. One of the mistakes many property owners make is relying on personal references when investigating potential tenants. A bad personal reference rarely exists - friends and relatives won't write or tell negative things about those close to them. Professional and background checks are absolutely essential.

A Property Manager’s experience and expertise, as well as that of the agency’s team, will save you a lot of time, money and stress in managing your investment.



Friday 3 October 2014

Switching From House to Apartment

Moving into an apartment after living in a house can be a big change. You may be moving out of home as a first home owner, or are looking to simplify and downsize as your children may have moved out and into homes of their own.

In Campbelltown, most apartment living is located closer into the CBD, which is often the goal for people looking to make the switch. One of the most attractive features of living in the CBD is the benefit of having most amenities and services within walking distance - major shopping centres, amenities, restaurants, clubs, theatre etc. There is also less need for a car in the CBD as public transport is excellent.

Then there are the more personal reasons for making the change, such as simplifying your life, having less to look after, which means more time to spend on the things you want to do.

No matter the reason, moving into an apartment after living in a house can be a large adjustment.

There are practical issues such as the size of the apartment, the location of the complex, what furniture you can fit in the new premises and car parking.

And then there's the fact that you'll be living in close proximity to others. You need to be more considerate of others when, for example, it comes to having a party or you wish to play loud music in your apartment.

Then there are the other rules of the complex such as what you can put on your balcony, what pets you're allowed, and what you can and can’t do to your apartment that may impact it externally. You should carefully read the owner’s corporation rules before signing on the dotted line.

You also need to consider the sharing of common facilities such as a swimming pool and barbeque area.

It would also be wise to find out the percentage of owner-occupiers living there. With more owner-occupiers there is generally greater care taken in looking after the facilities and the upkeep of the complex.

And then there’s the “community feel” of the complex. Have a chat with the owner's corporation manager and possible future neighbours to gain a feel for what it's like to live in the complex. Here you can find out a wealth of information and discover the positives and negatives of living there.

Additionally walk around the area and look at the people who reside there. It might be predominately young professionals, retired or semi-retired people, or “empty nesters”. Depending on what you are looking for this might influence your decision.

At Harcourts we currently have many new and existing apartments for sale. In Campbelltown CBD we are selling many new off-the-plan apartments and have some new projects that are launching in the next 12 months.

Thursday 25 September 2014

Attending an Open Home

Attending open homes in search of your ideal property can be an exciting time, however, you may find that there are a few issues on otherwise fantastic properties that are holding you back.

Rather than discounting a property based on these issues, have a closer look – these issues may have easy and cost-efficient fixes to gain you your ideal home.


Before attending an open home inspection, it’s a good idea to write a list of your top five priorities in a property so you have a thorough understanding of your ‘must haves’, as opposed to those things that you would ‘like to have’.

When attending open homes, have this list handy and check them off. Then take a note of any issues; perhaps take photos of them, for you to evaluate your options.

Here are a few examples of issues and fixes:

Construction
Poor construction of walls or floors may seem like a huge issue, but may be easy to fix. Some walls can be demolished to open up areas of the house, and floors fixed or new floors placed over the top to gain what you are looking for.

Unappealing design
Don’t be discouraged by the ugly tiles in the perfectly sized bathroom or kitchen. Tiles can easily be replaced. Many hardware stores also have easily constructed modern flat-pack cabinetry, and many can also install custom made timber, stone or acrylic bench tops.

Storage
Take note of the storage throughout the house and evaluate whether it is enough for your needs. If there is a lack of storage consider building a shed, built-in wardrobes, or a lovely set of drawers to serve your needs.

Air Conditioning
If there isn’t any heating or cooling in the property, it is easy to install air conditioning - and it certainly adds value to the property. Also consider insulation to keep the temperature constant and to reduce your power bills.

Exterior
The backyard is often full of opportunities to add value to the property. Adding a pergola, BBQ area, paving and beautiful gardens are all value adding projects.

Finally, when attending an inspection, don’t hesitate to ask the real estate agent as many questions as you like. They are there to help you get all the information you need.