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A Milestone Celebration!

A couple of weeks ago I was asked to attend a work meeting at the Palm Beach Surf Club. 

On arriving at the room, I was totally surprised to find that the meeting was actually a gathering that had been organised to help me celebrate 25 years of working at the office of First National The Pines. 

Many thanks to Dave and Dot and everyone that helped to organise the evening and everyone that attended. As I said on the evening you would not stay in the same workplace for 25 years if you did not enjoy the friendship and the company of the people you work with and the people you work for. I have actually been in the Real Estate industry in the Palm Beach area for 31 years, 25 in the Pines office the last 19 years of which it has operated as First National.

As with all industries there have been huge changes over that time. 

Computers and the internet were just starting. There were very few mobiles and those that were around had very poor reception. There was no such thing as email. Fax was the only electronic system to send paperwork and the quality was poor.  

The paperwork required to buy or sell a property was 4 pages compared to today approx 24 pages. 

Most of the listings were Open listed with a number of Agents. Today 99% are Exclusive or Auction listings. 

Most of the inspections on properties were done in private during the week. Today 85% are conducted at Open house. 

Marketing was very basic. We used to take the photo with a “Box Brownie” camera and plank it on a piece of A4 paper and display it in the shop window and sometimes in the monthly magazine or newspaper. 

Today 90% of our marketing is done via the internet and Facebook. A professional photographer is used, a floor plan drawn and a matterport video taken and an 8-page booklet compiled for each property. The window card is LED backlit and displayed in 3 of our offices. 

Photos are frequently done at dusk, a drone or aerial shot is often used and print media in certain cases.

In April 2000, The Pines office was purchased by Dave and Dot Hamilton.  That was the start of a huge transformation.
 
The name was changed to First National The Pines Real Estate agents in general are more professional that they were 30 years ago, however by Joining The First National Group we have access to everything that they provides which gives us a huge advantage.

Some of these procedures are The First National Best Practice system:

• Tools and Systems designed to establish and maintain a huge data base and prompts the agent to regular communicate. 

• Access to a large library of training videos. 

• Monthly seminars are conducted by various professional trainers. 

• Information in regard to the latest technology is readily available. 

• Quarterly meetings with other Gold Coast First National offices which gives us the opportunity to talk and network with other top agents.

• The opportunity to network and refer both buyers and sellers to First National offices throughout Australia and New Zealand. 

• Weekly meetings with our 3 offices at which we often have a local Solicitor, Accountant, Bank Manager, Mortgage Broker etc speak in order to keep us up to date with matters that effect the industry. 

These are but a few of the changes that have occurred, but despite these changes the basic principals of business remain the same. 

A good agent has to have regular communication with both buyer and seller throughout the whole sale process. Good product knowledge in relation to price, location and the pros and cons of the surrounding area. Be 100% honest, punctual, helpful and show empathy to all parties.  Know the legal side of the whole process and guide parties in relation to the time that all clauses are due. It has been said that to be a good Real Estate Agent you sometimes need to be a Solicitor, an Accountant, a Bank Manager, a Marriage Guidance Councilor, a Taxi driver and just occasionally you are a Real Estate Agent. 

That may or may not be true but certainly it is a great thrill to see the beaming face of someone, especially a 1st home buyer when you hand over the keys to their new home.

For more information, please do not hesitate to contact me on 0413 189 550 or check out my web profile here.
 

by Neil Trewin