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What's the difference between a registration and licence in Real Estate?

Tue, 22 May 2012 13:53:05 +1000

This question is raised quite often at PTS. Here is a brief outline to help make this clearer:

Real Estate Registration

In NSW, QLD & the ACT, to work in the real estate industry you must hold a real estate registration certificate. If held, you are able to work in an agency, under your employer's licence as a salesperson or property manager. The educational requirements differ in each state:

NSW Certificate of Registration:	4 units of competency
QLD Real Estate Registration:	7 units of competency
ACT Salespersons Registration:	5 units of competency

Real Estate Licence

By completing a qualification in Certificate IV in Property Services (Real Estate), this will provide you with the educational requirements to apply for your full real estate licence in NSW & QLD. By holding your full real estate licence, it means that you are able to open your own agency and employ licenced or registered salespeople/property managers to work for you. The full qualification includes the registration units so there is no need to complete both.

For more information on either of these two courses, please email rgantman@pts.edu.au.

Fair work targets agents in follow up blitz

Wed, 16 May 2012 09:18:48 +1000

Real estate agents have been put on notice by Fair Work, with the workplace regulator announcing it will audit 125 agencies in Queensland as a follow up to its campaign last year which found the majority of principals had failed to lodge written staff agreements with the Queensland Property Industry Registry (QPIR).

Fair Work inspectors are planning to audit the businesses – a mix of those that failed to lodge agreements last year and others that will be randomly selected - over the next three months to check that they have lodged the agreements.

Last year, the Fair Work Ombudsman audited 156 real estate agents throughout Queensland and found that 81 (52 per cent) had failed to lodge agreements.

The Fair Work Ombudsman will also work with key industry stakeholders to contact more than 2,000 real estate industry employers throughout Queensland to make them aware of their obligations under workplace laws.

The follow-up campaign will focus on real estate agents, business and hotel brokers, strata and community title management businesses, stock and station agents, buyers’ agencies and real estate valuation agents.

Fair Work inspectors will audit employers throughout Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast and in regional areas including Ipswich, Loganholme, Cairns, Mount Isa, Townsville, Mackay, Rockhampton, Hervey Bay, Gladstone, Gympie, Toowoomba, Gatton, Stanthorpe, Charters Towers, Kilcoy, Maryborough, Roma and Longreach.

Fair Work said it is a requirement under the Real Estate Industry Award 2010 for employers to lodge a written agreement with the QPIR for all staff classified as property/strata management or property sales employees.

The agreements must state how the employees will be paid - commission-only, part-commission or as per the rates listed in the Modern Award.

Fair Work Ombudsman Nicholas Wilson said employers who fail to lodge agreements are at greater risk of underpaying their employees.

“We are conducting this follow-up campaign because we have identified that many of the underpayment complaints we receive from real estate industry workers in Queensland are against employers who have not lodged pay agreements with the QPIR,” Mr Wilson said.

“By ensuring employers are complying with the requirement to lodge agreements, we aim to prevent underpayments and pay disputes before they occur.”

*Source: rebonline

Conditional Contracts VS Unconditional Contracts

Tue, 15 May 2012 09:13:44 +1000

Conditional means that the contract relies on certain "conditions" to be met before it is binding. Once the conditions have been met and you are satisfied then you are bound to proceed with the purchase of the property/land. The most common conditions are finance and building and pest inspections. Normally there will be a timeframe that you have to meet these conditions (14 or 21 days for example) and if you are not satisfied within that timeframe, you can withdraw from the contract.

Unconditional means that once you sign the contract or your conditions (as explained above) are met, then you are bound to proceed with the purchase of the property/land. This is the case when purchasing a property at Auction. You must obtain finance approval and conduct your building and pest inspections, prior to bidding at Auction.

Property manager hit with an 18 month jail term

Wed, 09 May 2012 11:04:44 +1000

An 18-month jail sentence has been handed down to a property manager formerly employed by a Sydney commercial property management company.

The judgment was delivered to Paul Francis Charles Stevens, who was convicted of seven counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception and sentenced to the jail term, suspended on him entering into a bond.

Fair Trading Commissioner Rod Stowe said he applauded the efforts of Fair Trading investigators and prosecutors in the matter.

“This outcome is a credit to their professional skills,” he said. “This is a very strong sentence at the upper end of the jurisdictional limit and with a commensurate deterrent message to the community generally and the real estate industry specifically.”

According to a statement from Fair Trading NSW, Mr Stevens worked as a property manager at a Sydney commercial property management company for more than six years and in that time he stole tenants’ rent cheques from his employer and deposited cheques into his own account.

Unlawfully having possession of the cheques, he over-wrote the payee name particulars with ‘P Stevens’ and overlaid it with a ‘Not Negotiable’ stamp imprint to disguise the true payee.

Later, he presented the forged cheques to cause deposit credit entries to be recorded in a bank account of Paul Stevens Property Services Pty Limited, trading as Paul Stevens Property Services.

In a separate and prior action, the property management company sued Mr Stevens and on 7 December 2010, the NSW District Court awarded the company $246,916 plus costs. That judgment debt has not been satisfied.

The Commissioner said Fair Trading would continue to regulate the real estate industry with rigour, in the interests of honest participants and the public.

The District Court in August last year upheld the sentence of an unlicensed real estate agent, Phillip Chau, to 18 months imprisonment, with a non parole period of 12 months, for misappropriating monies from clients’ property trust accounts. Mr Chau was ordered to pay $123,830 to the Property Services Compensation Fund.

Earlier in 2011, Fair Trading prosecuted Navid Azzati, the director of a company formerly trading as Raine & Horne Fairfield. Mr Azzati was sentenced to seven months imprisonment, suspended on him entering a bond, for fraudulently misappropriating monies.

He was ordered to pay $58,855 to the Property Services Compensation Fund.

Source: rebonline.com.au

Term of the Week - Mistake of Fact VS Negligence

Tue, 08 May 2012 10:29:01 +1000

Mistake of Fact: An unintentional error which does not state the true facts or conditions of the contract and if it is curable and agreeable to the parties does not void a contract. Unintentional failure.

Negligence: Either the failure to act as a reasonable prudent person or the performance of an act that would not be done by a reasonable prudent person. Intentional failure.

Avoid the Buyer's Agent Title

Tue, 01 May 2012 08:53:26 +1000

The Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW) has warned agents against claiming to be a ‘buyer’s agent’ unless they deal exclusively with buyers.

Although REINSW has said they are an important service provider, the area needs to be clearly defined.

“It’s obvious there exists a need for a service to assist time-poor and inexperienced homebuyers and investors in the market,” REINSW said in a statement.

“Buyer’s agents operate independently and work solely with buyers to search, locate and negotiate the purchase property on their behalf.”

This means a residential sales agency that offers services which include liaison with buyers should be careful not to incorrectly label staff as ‘buyer’s agents’.

Licensed buyer’s agent and House Search Australia Director Jacque Parker said some residential sales agencies could be misleading consumers by using the ‘buyer’s agent’ title in describing the role of some staff.

“Though the concept of agents assisting buyers certainly isn’t new, there are still many consumers who are not aware that there are agents out there who represent buyers exclusively and work very differently to residential sales agents,” Ms Parker said.

“It is important to differentiate here between exclusive buyer’s agents and ‘buyer’s assistants’ or sales staff employed by the seller’s agency to look after buyers and liaise with them during the sales process.”

Ms Parker said labelling staff as buyer’s agents within a selling agency can lead to confusion and if buyers are led to believe that such ‘buyer’s assistants’ are providing the same service as an exclusive buyer’s agent.

According to the REINSW best practice guidelines, a buyer’s agent must be completely independent of vendors and selling agents, not list or sell any property, not demand or receive referral fees for referring a buyer, not represent any buyer where a conflict of interest is likely to arise and only accept fees or commissions from buyers.

Under the guidelines, they also cannot operate out of a selling agent’s office.

*Source: rebonline

Term of the Week - Imputed Notice

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:04:53 +1000

A legal concept that holds that information communicated to an agent is communicated to the principal because in the client/agent relationship nothing is held back because it was the duty to report the information to the principal

How to Attract and Retain Top Agents

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 11:10:54 +1000

Recruitment in the real estate industry often sees a vast difference to other industries. The real estate industry in Australia is a lucrative one at the best of times. It rivals retail and hospitality, and dominates over many others. It’s for this reason, a lot of focus needs to be placed on recruitment in the industry and how agencies around the nation can do their best to not only attract, but retain the agents that keep this industry running, writes John Caldwell.

Recruitment in the real estate industry often sees a vast difference to other industries, in that agencies’ mentalities on staff and staffing is all about either one of two opposing things: a strong focus on attracting and retaining new staff and a subsequent focusing of all their energies on how to do that or conversely, a lack of focusing on those aspects.

If and when agencies fail to follow a robust recruitment strategy, they run the risk of not attracting the right candidates or ‘talent’, or – to a degree – worse, attracting candidates who are not retainable for the long term due to unclear expectations from both ‘sides of the fence’.

Many agents and agency directors undertaking their own recruitment would benefit from asking a simple question: why? It is by asking why that person is right for the job, why they’ll fit-in with company culture and why they won’t contribute to a high or low staff turnover is exactly how many exploring the minefield of recruitment will avoid a large, metaphorical explosion.

Gone are the days where agencies have a line of quality applicants willing to do whatever it takes to land a job with them. Sure, there was a time when people would jump through hoops in the interview process, attend a free trial and if successful work all manner of hours just to keep the job, this is simply not the case anymore. With salaries on the rise coupled with employer benefits increasing and albeit an impressive unemployment rate, Australian employers have found themselves in a bartering position with potential employees. Even companies with a high base that are not commission driven are struggling. Recruiters of all walks had not predicted this day would come, but this ‘dry spell’ extends from grassroots organisations and agencies to those of the international spectrum. Organisations such as Google, for example, are reputed to be one of the country’s most generous employers with free child care, free laundry, free meals and a games room useable anytime; however, we still see large amounts of unfilled vacancies in their ranks because of the growing effect of the employee.

A number of factors need to be taken into account when recruiting for your organisation, which includes the real estate industry – one of the most lucrative of all with one of the highest staff and worker turnover rates around especially with new consultants.

The initial recruitment factor to determine before the process begins is the benefits an employee can gain while working with the agency. Whilst the – what some consider – gimmick benefits on offer by some of the ‘giant employment’ agencies out there may attract a portion of the market, don’t panic, there is still room for everyone and plenty of people to fill the gaps. What stops most companies securing top talent is not the lack of benefits or opportunity, it in part comes down to a somewhat ‘old-school’ mentality that still circulates the minds of employers, being that people should love the brand and what is ‘in it’ for the employers by hiring the candidate. The tables have now turned on the world of recruitment in anything from retail to real estate, which has proven that now with so many opportunities on offer the candidates hold all the cards and leave the employers vying for a candidate, rather than the candidates vying for a position.

When looking to recruit new talent you need to be prepared to sell your brand and the opportunity. If you approach the recruitment process with any degree of arrogance, no matter how powerful the brand, alienation of the candidate will occur and ultimately drastically reduce your pool of quality candidates to select from. To adopt an old adage, they say there’s a fine line between pleasure and pain – which incidentally both of which recruitment can prove to be – but if we convert this into arrogance and confidence, a whole new air to the understanding of what recruitment does comes to light. For example, if the likes of global organisations with employee numbers in the tens of thousands approached their recruitment and selection process with an arrogant shrug of a shoulder and over-zealous approach, considering employees are highly likely to disregard the organisation as far too pretentious and selfabsorbed and ‘head for the hills’.

So, how do you approach the recruitment process? Think laterally. There is a very well known academic known as Dr. Edward De Bono, whom is the leading authority in the world of creative and lateral thinking. He devised the ‘Six Thinking Hats’ as a tool for lateral thinking and planning as a method of “separating ego from performance” to get a greater outcome from a situation and have input from varying angles. It’s a brilliant system and while not for everyone, certainly gets the brain and recruitment process out of complacency.

Combine this lateral thinking with planning and you’re left with the very first thing you need to do. Ideally, the planning phase of recruiting needs to happen from the very beginning before you even advertise the role. Clearly understand in your mind the role, the responsibilities, the hours and the characteristics of the person required. There are companies out there that are able to sort the specific demo- and psychographics of candidates, but be prepared to pay through the nose. In the end, it comes down to the fact that you, as the individual or individuals responsible for the expansion of your agency’s employee base, are the ones that know your agency. You know the culture, you know the people, you know who would and would not work; therefore, it’s a matter of filtering the good from the bad.

A fairly informal, but effective method of doing this is to perform a bit of ‘environmental scanning’ and take a look at your industry. Take a look through the archives of past applicants, and if possible successful or unsuccessful agents and determine why they worked or did not, as well as what made them great, or sent them flailing – little things like this will help you get a clear scope of the exact person you want to be handling your clients, representing your agency, and ultimately, bringing in the dollars.

After the planning and thinking stage, before you’re able to begin recruiting, a position description needs to be designed and mirrored against the ideal candidate to ensure total accuracy and trustworthiness that the people it draws-in will be the top of the range. A position description does not need to be overly formal and any search engine will provide hundreds of free templates and guides if you have never drafted one before. When it comes to the real estate industry, there are obviously certain traits that are highly sought after more than others. A keen understanding of the industry and local area knowledge would be a must, as well as the all-important proficiency in the English language. Again, as the individual or individuals recruiting for your agency, you know the culture and know the ideal specific requirements of anyone who comes on-board. After the position description has been created and you know the exact, perfect candidate you’re after, you construct the advertisement that should be seen as the lure and hook with which you catch that perfect agent. Use the position description to draft your employment ad, ensuring that the key requirements are listed in the ad such as past experience, educational merit, personal attributes and any other positive and beneficial bits and pieces they can bring to the table. All of this will ensure that you only get relevant people apply which will make the screening process a lot less painful.

So imagine, you’ve assembled an ideal benefits package, built the perfect candidate recruitment plan, composed a sterling position description and crafted an enticing job advertisement and you’ve got a few nibbles at the end of what has been a very long hook – what now?

In terms of keeping candidates keen through the whole recruitment process, some things must be done to ensure they don’t go cold and disappear. It is critical that you know up front what the process will be, how many interviews are required and if any psychometric testing – an increasingly popular method of intellectually and mentally profiling potential candidates – is required. If from the get-go, the candidate is aware of the recruitment process, surprises down the track and possible turn-offs can be avoided.

You need to plan how you will sell your brand and this opportunity you’re providing to your next agent. Often at an interview, organisations and recruiters forget this integral aspect of the process and can quite easily turn someone who is raring to go, into someone who ignores phone calls and allows their passion and interest to die – something we’re desperately keen to not let happen. Ways to avoid this disappointment on both sides of the fence is to ensure the interviews and interactive stages of the recruitment process aren’t a bland, corporate process lacking in life. Unfortunately most of the time, interviews are comprised of employers firing-off consecutive questions to their candidates with no consideration for any kind of two-way communication. We need to remember that gone are the days of the hypoderm and gone are the days of, as mentioned before, the candidate being the ‘chaser’ rather than the ‘chasee’. A lot has changed in recruitment and the employment market in recent years. The hierarchical structure of the typical interview has also changed: interviews nowadays should be tailored to resemble more a candid chat with a few loaded or leading questions thrown in the mix to elicit key answers from the candidate. It is in this way that employers are sure to get the best information and see a side of the candidate that they’ll most likely be working with.

When it comes to touting the benefits of a new agent working for the agency, it is easy to overlook the basics. It’s quite interesting when you’re confronted with an interviewer who has no pre-set questions and worse still, has no idea of what it is exactly that makes the agency or organisation worthwhile to work for. Alas, these things happen, so it’s something that should be avoided – at all costs.

Admittedly, it is often hard on the spot to think of all of the benefits of working for your agency so it’s best to draft a page before interviews commence. Think of all types of things big and small. For example, some organisations and agencies offer employee benefits such as monthly team and individual incentives, high commissions, birthdays off, mental health day off every annual quarter and incentive trips with co-workers. It’s a great idea to make this list, have it printed off in an attractive manner and leave a copy with each candidate. As long as they know what they’re in for if they sign on the dotted line, it’s sure to be enough to keep them keen.

If, however, there are few organisational benefits then this will need addressing. As it stands, if an organisation or agency can’t carefully articulate exactly why someone would want to within the ranks, then chances are their enthusiasm may be curbed, therefore careful communication of everything good about the agency will be needed.

Benefits of working for an organisation are like the cherry on top of a brilliant cake; a cake filled with excellent branding, a good mix of people and a great client list to fill the gaps. Benefits do not need to be huge and in fact can be cost neutral as well as be the ideal sweetener in retaining a new employee for as long as possible.

For example, by providing a small incentive for achieving a percentage over a monthly target budget, such as a domestic trip with a loved one may be just the ticket that carries the right amount of weight to push that agent to repeat the effort again next quarter. As they say, every little bit helps.

Other ideas that can be factored into a low company budget plan all contribute to aiding the ‘selling points’ of why an agency is the answer to a potential candidate’s employment prayers.

After the benefits have been shared, interviews been conducted and just before the offers are made, the highly vital reference checks are recommended. While candidates may seem perfectly sincere on paper, and sell themselves to you flawlessly – they are real estate agents, after all – it would simultaneously seem that in this day and age, there are a lot of embellished points on the CVs of individuals. Two reference checks aren’t a bad spot to start in terms of weeding out any little hiccups in their back-story.

After it’s all done, all sold, all finished, managing the offer with a candidate can be a make or break in the recruitment process. The job offer process should be an exciting and well-sold situation. After all, an agent changing agencies or a graduate securing their first placement is an exciting and nerve-wracking time, so it’s great to empathise and share the joy.

The offer should never be low balled and is best to be made in person. There’s nothing more demeaning than a candidate being accepted (or rejected for that matter) via e-mail or letter – a personal touch makes it all the more meaningful and serves as a platform to provide them with excellent feedback. But, let’s not forget that an offer in writing keeps the legal process happily purring away in the background along with an employment agreement.

However, when it comes to contractual agreements and signing, it’s a wise move to use a solicitor or lawyer to draw-up the paperwork and necessaries. Around $A500 will be sufficient enough for a lawyer to work their magic and seal the deal once and for all. That contract can then be used as a template for all similar roles.

When it comes to however, the unfortunate circumstance, it would be remiss to not share information: resignation and the power of the counter offer are disappointing necessities in the world of employment. If the recruitment process is done well, the agency as an employer should understand the reason as to why the agent that you fought so hard for and won is pulling the pin.

By offering the resigning employee a counter offer – something such as a tokenistic monetary amount or as a gesture of goodwill and determination to keep them on board, such as a change of role, job responsibilities.

When managing a counter offer it is very important to remind the candidate why they wanted to leave and how your company will offer them what they were looking for. Remind them of your benefits sheet.

Following the recruitment process may seem arduous and at times futile, but comfort lays in the fact that precious money and time will be saved ultimately. Recruitment done well can highlight any organisation as an employer of choice and a stand-out in the market.

Recruitment is a battle – recruitment for a great real estate agent can be an even bigger battle! Finding that person with that little bit of je ne sais pas that illustrates them from the rest is half the fun, and once you've got them, there's always a slight jitter of excitement as you watch your competitors whimper.

Recruitment does not need to be a difficult task, and while these suggestions are a typical process that should be tailored to an agency’s particular tastes and culture, they may just be the tantalisation in the right direction your agency needed in finding that diamond in the rough.

*Source: Australian Real Estate Review

Business Planning

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 10:36:36 +1000

When running any business, it is of vital importance to have a plan in place. Business plans are formal statements of your business goals and what your plan is for reaching those goals. They are used as a decision making tool and there is no "standard" content for a plan, rather it is determined by the goals and the audience. Business plans will help you to set your vision and strategy and will cover areas like finance, human resources, training, marketing, policies and procedures, compliance, future development etc.

Below are some tips to assist in the process of creating a business plan to produce effective results:

SWOT analysis. This is an extremely useful tool for understanding and decision-making for your business. SWOT is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats. You need to be able to identify all of these things to create an effective business plan. Starting with a SWOT analysis is often the most logical first step. There will be some research involved in this process, especially when it comes to your competitors.
Establish your business philosophy and aims. Your short, medium and long term goals and ensure to share this vision with your staff. If your staff know the direction that you want to take, they are more likely to be able to help you achieve that vision and be more willing to participate when they have been involved in the process.
Create a mission statement. This announces clearly to your staff and your customers, what it is that you are in business to do. Involve your staff in this process also to help develop ownership and responsibility.
Define your product and/or service. You must be able to identify exactly what it is that you offer your customers every day. This is not just the actual product or service, but the way in which you choose to do business and how it benefits your customers.
Write your plan and include your historical and/or projected sales, cost of sales, overheads etc.
Develop a marketing plan. How will you bring in new customers? Who is your target market? What is the demographic of your area?

Further areas you may want to include in your plan are:

Development of staff (training and education, recruitment, retention)
Implementing systems (inc. software, customer service standards etc)
If you are a new business, premises, signage, rent, position

Whatever your business, the above should help you get started on the right track to developing an effective business plan.

Related Information

Word of the Week - Breezeway

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:58:19 +1000

A covered passage open on two sides connecting a house with a garage or other parts of the house.

Word of the Week - Obsolescence

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 08:30:00 +1000

A loss in property value due to reduced desirability or usefulness because its design and construction have become old fashioned or it has not kept up with current needs or a less costly alternative exists.

Ex-Property Manager Facing Fraud Claims

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 11:41:03 +1000

VICTORIA Police are investigating serious fraud allegations against a former manager at Run Property, who has been accused of misappropriating more than $560,000 from clients of the public company.

Click here for the full story.

Word of the Week - Equity

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:24:36 +1000

In the context of real estate, the difference between the current market value of the property and the amount the owner still owes on the mortgage. It is the amount that the owner would receive after selling a property and paying off the mortgage.Below is a helpful example of how you would use the equity in your home.

$500,000 - $125,000 = $375,000

The $125,000 number is the amount of money yet to be paid on your mortgage. And because your house has appreciated in value -- somewhat like a stock or a valuable antique -- so has your equity in your home increased. In many cases, you may be able to use this investment to borrow against your equity in order to get another loan. And just like with your first mortgage, your house serves as the collateral that guarantees your loan to the bank. If you can’t pay off your second mortgage, you may be forced to sell your home, or the bank might seize it.

Frequently, the length of a second mortgage is shorter than the first, though they can last anywhere from five to 30 years. Still, second mortgages are generally intended to be for smaller amounts than the first, for consolidating debts, financing an addition to a home or helping to pay for a child’s college tuition. But in some cases, homeowners simply wish to take advantage of a good investment by borrowing against the rising equity of their home and thereby gaining some financial flexibility.

Related Information

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Term of the Week - Balloon Payment

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 08:55:54 +1000

An installment payment on a promissory note usually the final one for discharging the debt which is significantly larger than the other installment payments provided under the terms of the promissory note.

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Real Estate Humour

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 07:46:38 +1000

A very successful real estate broker had a meeting with his new son-in-law. "I love my daughter, and now I welcome you into the family," said the man. "To show you how much we care for you, I'm making you a 50-50 partner in my real estate office. All you have to do is go to the office every day and learn the business."

The son-in-law interrupted, "I hate office work. I can't stand agents."

"I see," replied the father-in-law. "Well, then you'll work in the office and take charge of some the paperwork."

"I hate paperwork," said the son-in-law. "I can't stand being stuck behind a desk all day."

"Wait a minute," said the father-in-law. "I just made you half-owner of my real estate office, but you don't like office work, can't stand agents and won't do paperwork. What am I going to do with you?"

"Easy," said the young man. "Buy me out."

Related Information:

Real Estate Registration

Report Points to Rise in Homebuyer Confidence

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 07:18:13 +1000

Thirty-nine per cent of homebuyers believe now is a good time to buy a home, with homebuyer confidence up two per cent and back to levels last seen last March, according to the latest edition of the Genworth Homebuyer Confidence Index (HCI).

According to the report released last week, the key drivers of confidence are the decrease in mortgage stress and Australians' increasing comfort with debt. Only one in five homeowners experienced mortgage stress in the last 12 months, compared with one in four in September 2011.

Ellie Comerford, President and CEO of Genworth said in a statement that the lowering of the cash rate by the RBA since September 2011 has made a significant impact on borrower sentiment.

"While cost of living pressures and an increase in unemployment are likely to strain households, currently these problems are being offset by positive factors such as wage growth, low inflation and interest rate cuts," she said. "The Australian dream of home ownership is not fading as increasing affordability improverees borrower sentiment."

First homebuyers' confidence was up by 1.5 per cent to 99 – a level similar to the national confidence level before the global financial crisis – and the proportion of potential first homebuyers surveyed who said they were unable to save for a deposit fell from 45 to 30 per cent between September 2011 and March 2012.

To read the report in full click here.

*Source: Australian Real Estate Review

Related Information:

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Developing Your Career

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 08:15:01 +1100

Self Assessment

This is the first step in developing career goals. Assess your own personal likes and dislikes, your skills and your interests/hobbies. Identifying your strengths and weaknesses will also help to "match" yourself to a job role or industry. It is also handy to take a look at your past and present career situations and identify what aspect it was of these jobs that you didn't like or loved.

Outside Resources

Talk to friends and family about what they see you doing in future and what they believe you to be good at. Visit your local TAFE or community college and have a look at the different courses on offer. Some centres will even hold career nights for certain industries so you can go and ask questions about the job to the industry experts.

Exploring Different Careers

Most of the time, an industry will provide you with many different careers within. For example, in Real Estate, you have Sales, Property Management, Office Management, Administration, Strata Management, Holiday Rentals etc. All these roles require different skill sets and also some that are transferrable. Have a look at some job descriptions and compare the skill sets to what you already know and assess them against the results of your self assessment to see which one would be more suitable. You may even find some local businesses in the industry you're looking in that you could go in and speak to.

Career Growth

Once you have a better idea of the career you want to pursue and have secured a job in that industry, ensure you have a plan for your career growth. It is important that you set yourself goals within that career, goals that you can work to achieving to keep you motivated and "interested". Once you are "comfortable" speak to your manager about additional duties that you may wish to undertake that will challenge you and provide you with new skills for the future and start you on the path to getting where you want to be. This may include undertaking additional educational requirements to give you the formal recognition you need to secure a higher position. Many courses and qualifications are funded by the government so the training you need may not even cost you anything!

Developing an Action Plan

This is the best place to start! Write it all down! Write down the things you need to do FIRST and go from there. Take one step at a time and tick them off as you go. This will also give you a sense of achievement as you see your plan come to life! Make sure that you set specific dates when creating your action plan so you have a deadline. If you don't set yourself a deadline, you'll never do it! When already in the workforce, make sure you speak to your manager about your plan, they may even be able to give you some advice or help for you to achieve your goals.

Related Information

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Principals Urged to Rethink HR Strategies

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:39:24 +1100

Principals have been urged to have a strategic plan in place to help attract talented, long-term real estate agents during the tough economic climate.

Speaking on the back of the inaugural Property Industry Awards, Buckmaster Hawkey Director, Mark Appleby, said in a candidate-short market principals need to think about their human resources strategically.

"[Principals] should start with a well-thought out plan encompassing their work place structure and advancement and succession plans," he said. "They should also think about their firm's culture and pay. Workplaces cultures which are hierarchical and based on command and control just don't retain talented staff these days. The best want to be able to learn advance and innovate – and they will move firms if those opportunities aren't available. And salaries in a candidate-short market are likely to rise – in fact I would expect average salaries for a property manager to rise by $5,000 this year.

"Retaining and recruiting the best staff is not like the old days where you just advertised your position and waited for hordes of applicants to show up. Now you need to have the right strategy in place!"

Last week, the Buckmaster Hawkey-sponsored Property Industry Awards revealed the best and brightest young staff in real estate.

'Rookie of the Year Award' went to first-year trainee, Jonathan Koh of UniLodge, recognised for his work ethic and professionalism.Erica Rotherham of Infolio Corp, a young property manager regularly mistaken by her clients for a company director, snared the 'Rising Star Award'.

Appleby said it was time to recognise the best young people entering real estate and highlight the contribution they are making.

"We've noticed a steady rise in the standard of people entering the industry over the last decade," he said. "But when it came to awards, recipients tended to be industry stalwarts, people known and respected for years, but few of the young bright sparks firing up the industry."

Infolio's Rotherham was attracted to a career in real estate upon completing high school, and pursued property management as she believed it suited her best. Despite initially grappling with the 'around the clock' workload of a property manager, she puts her success down to her hard work and dedication.

"Time management is by far the greatest challenge [young agents face]," she said. "Real estate is no nine-to-five job.

"I have spent much of my own time at the office after-hours and on weekends keeping up with the constant workload, but as I grew more experienced, the after-hours load has become less onerous. But every property manager has to be prepared to face the challenge of being caught in the middle between landlords, tradespeople and tenants. The trick is to do your job right the first time and take the emotions out of the challenges you face negotiating with people.

"It's all about dedication. If you are dedicated to having a successful career in real estate the hard work, determination and passion will follow. I love my job and I'm dedicated to being very good at it."

Buckmaster Hawkey's Appleby said his team meets hundreds of young people each year who have decided to make real estate their career, most of whom understand it requires hard work to be successful.

"The unique thing about Gen Y though is that they are attracted to careers where they can aspire to create their own way of making a living," he said. "This is a generation that not only wants to make their mark – they want to do it their way."

The inaugural Property Industry Awards attracted entries from across the spectrum of the real estate including property managers, trust accountants, real estate salespeople, receptionists and clerks.

Nominations forms were sent to 8,800 real estate industry contacts across Victoria, which resulted in over 100 nominations. Entries were judged across five categories including business achievements, teamwork and leadership, work ethic and client service.

*Source: Australian Real Estate Review

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