When the market is good, you don’t need to do a lot to sell a home. Anybody can put a home on Trade Me Property or realestate.co.nz, put a signboard up, and hold a couple of open homes. In a climate where the market is prospering, a property almost sells itself for a reasonable price, and when the market is moving upwards, even an over-priced house can sell.
However, when the market shifts and slows down, choosing an agent who is laser focussed and committed is key. In a quieter market, integrity and transparency thrive. Vendors need to be told not just what they want to hear, but most importantly, what they need to know. You need an agent that can navigate the market and give valuable advice to help can maximise the value of any home they have for sale, whether it be worth $400,000 or 2 million.
In a very short space of time, we have suddenly been faced with a state of emergency. In the past 24 hours, New Zealand has gone into Lockdown. One cannot deny the economic effect that the Corona Virus will have on the economy, and consequently, how this will challenge the Real Estate Industry in not only the weeks, but months ahead.
Although this is an unprecedented event, it is by far not the first economic crisis we have been through in recent years. There was the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, and then the horrible Earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. During these times, the tree was shaken, and a lot of agents left the industry; offices closed doors. Will we see this happen again in 2020? Quite possibly, yes, we may.
So what can you do to ensure that you are still here when this too passes and life starts to return to normality?
When the economy shifts, you need to shift too and move with it. There is no doubt you can ride out this crisis, just like we did back in 2008, but there are 4 key things you need to think about and focus on:
1. Pay way more attention. You need to be active and take action. It is very easy to get caught up in social media hype and the unnecessary fear that it creates. You find yourself spending all your time deciphering between fact and fiction, which is not productive – or good for your mental well-being.
Being in Lockdown, we are given a choice: We can stay at home, sit on the couch and watch Netflix for the next 4 weeks. Or, we can use this time to build on the business foundation, and make the business stronger. Why not take action on those things that you just don’t normally have time for in your daily business, but yet will have the potential to increase your business presence in the months ahead. Or, sign up for one of the many online courses you can do. Just imagine what you could achieve in 4 weeks!
2. Adjust your budget and spend less. In times of economic downturn, it’s almost guaranteed that earnings will be reduced and there will be less income flowing through into the business. So you need to cut back, simple! You need to review every expense now, and continue to do so in the months to come. Make this not only about your business expenses, but your personal expenses too. It can have a positive impact in all areas of your life.
3. Nurture the relationships you have. As we come out of Lockdown in a few weeks’ time, there will be people out there who want to do business. There will be savvy people who will recognise that there is a great opportunity to purchase property – especially cash buyers! Or maybe you will have customers that need to sell for financial reasons. However, there will be less buyers and sellers. So you will need to dig deeper and work harder when it comes to generating new leads. Pick up the phone and talk to the clients and customers in your database. Connect, grow, and build on those relationships you already have.
4. Hit the ground running. No two markets are the same, so you need to identify the opportunities that are there in the current market – NOW! Maybe it’s a buyer’s market; maybe it’s a seller’s market; maybe it’s a first-home buyers’ market. The key is, whatever the market, there is an opening that you have to find – your reason to stay. How do you find out what that market is? Talk to lots of people! The answers are all there, you just have to pull them out.
Ultimately, we know things are going to get worse before they get better. We know that we are going to have to work harder, dig deeper, try new and different ways of doing things. However, we know that we will come out the other side – and we can actually be better than before. We just need to be resilient, be proactive, be patient, and most importantly, be grateful every day.
Please stay safe, stay home, and take care.
With gratitude,
Nathan