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Q1) How do I determine the price?

Buyers assess the property by comparing similar homes they’ve viewed or sold and can seek guidance from salespeople or get a registered valuation.

Q2) How do I borrow if I don’t know the price?

Lenders usually offer a pre-approved bidding limit, and a mortgage broker can assist; borrowing shouldn’t prevent you from bidding.

Q3) Do I need cash?

Yes, bidding is considered cash, requiring a 10% deposit immediately after winning, with the balance due on settlement, which can be 14 to 180 days later. Buying is unconditional once bid successfully.

Q4) What about selling my current property?

You can often negotiate delayed settlement to sell your home, and a quick sale or cash offer could strengthen your position.

Q5) Can someone else bid for me?

Yes, with written instructions they can bid in person or by phone if arranged beforehand.

Remember, successful bidders pay 10% immediately, bid unconditionally, and settlement dates are flexible. Always review chattels and agreements carefully, and if unsure, contact us for guidance. Auctions are straightforward but require professional management.

PASSED IN? WHAT HAPPENS NOW? 

If your property was passed in at auction, stay calm, this is just the first step in the selling process. The auction either sells your home or makes it more appealing to buyers. Many new buyers enter the market daily, and conditional buyers can be ready to act, if not already. Your agent or auctioneer will have discussed pricing and positioning right after the auction, and we recommend setting a sharp, competitive price, preferably slightly below your reserve to attract offers. Consider adjusting open home schedules, updating marketing efforts, and possibly extending staging if applicable. Trust the process: with a well-priced property and ongoing marketing, results often follow, and many passed-in homes sell within 14 days. We remain committed to helping you achieve a successful sale.

If you need any further information, please get in touch.

Ilse Evans of Harcourts Cooper & Co. says it’s “business as usual” for them, although under the current COVID-19 Level 3 restrictions, all viewings are by appointment. This affords prospective buyers the necessary safety measures, while at the same time giving them the freedom of inspecting a property in private.

The primary objective of your actions when working at alert level 3 is to restrict the spread of COVID-19, and the  health requirements listed below are in the interests of you and your staff, buyers, vendors and all New Zealanders.

There should be no more than two people from the same extended bubble and the agent at the viewing. Your agent will open all internal doors before the viewing, so people don’t touch door handles in your house. Anyone viewing your property should use hand sanitiser, and they are not allowed to touch any surfaces in your house. Anyone visiting the property should be asked to wear a face covering.

Finally, there should be no more than two private viewings per day, and the agent should clean all surfaces after each viewing.

Ilse has some GOOD NEWS, saying, “We sold an incredible 15 out of 17 properties for the last week which were all live streamed through our Cooper and Co website, with 88% sold under the hammer, with 30 bidders on the end of the phone with our team!  Incredible results”.

Ilse goes on to say that this is due to the continued personal service Harcourt’s Cooper and Co like to offer.  NO online bidding. Always through a team member on the phone in the room guiding you through the process, the auctioneers taking their time, pausing to negotiate if required, always working for their vendors and buyers.

Finally, they have 23 Live stream auctions this week, so for more information on house auctions Belmont, property appraisals Takapuna and selling my house Belmont please get in touch

Harcourts Cooper & Co’s Ilse Evans says the last week of the school holidays in July was an unusually busy week, with the company surpassing the record with 1847 property viewings in seven days. Usually many families will head overseas on a winter escape to the Pacific Islands or Australia. However with the borders closed, it would appear that a lot of families went out shopping for bigger homes.

Bindi Norwell, chief executive at the Real Estate Institute, said the shortage of housing stock appears to be a continued influence on house prices because national demand for property has not faltered. “The top end of the market seems to have also benefited from the flow-on effect, seeing a 30.7 per cent increase in the $3m-plus category and a 38.5 per cent increase in the $5m-plus category nationally,” she said.

Meanwhile in Auckland, the number of million-dollar-plus properties sold during the first half of 2020 increased by 16.9 per cent, the largest annual percentage increase for the region since 2016. “Regardless of the difficulties faced over the last few months with Covid-19 and the lockdown period, the first half of 2020 still outperformed the first half of 2019 when it comes to $1m-plus sales,” said Norwell.

New Zealand and Auckland increased the number of property sales in the $1m-plus category, the $3m-plus category and the $5m-plus category in the first half of 2020 compared to the previous year, indicating the defiant strength of the national property market. Norwell said there were a number of potential factors that weigh into the rise of million dollar plus properties sold across the country. “That includes an ongoing shortage of supply combined with an increased level of demand (particularly over the last few months, with Kiwis returning home); improving consumer confidence; low interest rates and LVR opportunities for first home buyers; and continued investment in the regions.

Finally, Ilse says there also seem to be a lot of people now doing renovations on existing homes, or out shopping for more suitable properties, so for a level of service second to none, and for more information on real estate agents Belmont, property valuation Hauraki and property valuations Takapuna please go to https://www.ilseevans.co.nz.

2019 is shaping up to be an interesting one for the real estate industry, with anti-money laundering laws, landlord requirements and talks of capital gains tax. The reality is people still need to buy first homes, move towns, sell matrimonial homes on divorce, sell investments or sell family homes post a family loss.

New Zealand has had Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing Terrorism laws operating since 2013. These laws applied to banks, casinos, financial institutions, and some trust and company service providers. These laws are now being extended to include real estate agents from the 1st of January this year. All businesses and service providers covered under the AML/CFT Act (including those from the first phase) will now have reporting requirements that relate to particular transactions as well as suspicious activities.

Similarly, landlord requirements are being ramped up in the form of compulsory insulation in all rental homes from 1 July 2019. Ceiling and underfloor insulation must be installed, where it is reasonably practicable, by 1 July 2019. It must meet the standards set out in the regulations and be installed safely.

Capital gains from the sale of baches and holiday homes could be taxed in the future, and the Government could raise billions of dollars by taxing more profits from the sale of property and shares. Its Tax Working Group explained how such a tax could work in an interim report published last week, but stopped short of making a recommendation.

All of these possible changes will mean that you will be well served by an established and professional agent such as Harcourts’ Ilse Evans. Ilse is there to make the process of buying or selling your house painless, professional and price maximizing, as is obvious from the following testimonial.

“Over the four years we lived at 88 Francis Street, Ilse Evans continually kept in touch with us with local market updates and recent sales evidence and showed that she has the best knowledge and expertise of the Hauraki and Takapuna areas. For us, this also showed that Ilse is a hard working agent who uses the power of a good database to ensure she has contact with a wide selection of both vendors and buyers in our market.

Ilse provided us with excellent pre-campaign advice regarding both marketing and house presentation, and during the campaign we know Ilse did an outstanding job of both attracting buyers and servicing their needs and queries. This ensured we achieved the best campaign process and an excellent outcome.
We would strongly recommend that Ilse is the best-placed agent in our area, and can only say good things about our experience with Ilse.”
Paul & Claire Steele, 88 Francis Street.

So, for more information on Harcourts Takapuna, real estate agents Takapuna and real estate agents Belmont please go to http://www.ilseevans.co.nz .

And the winner is… ANDREW NORTH!! 🏆🏆🏆

Andrew beat 16 other competitors to take out the top gavel in the 20th edition of the Australasian Auctioneering Championships.

Andrew brings the trophy back home to New Zealand after the cup being in Australia for the past three years.

Congratulations Northy, we are so proud of you and so proud to have you apart of our Harcourts Cooper & Co Team.

Realestate.co.nz, one of New Zealand’s most popular online property search destination, recently announced a surprising rise in property interest in July, so much so that they matched interest levels that are usually only seen in summer.

Vanessa Taylor, Head of Marketing and spokesperson of realestate.co.nz, said: “Typically, interest in property peaks in the first quarter of the year and then gently declines as we head into winter, before lifting again as we head back into spring.

June is usually more active than July, as measured by unique users. To see this jump in July is unusual, particularly when it registers numbers equivalent to summertime browsing.”

Taylor says that while it doesn’t mean an increase in sales, a 9 per cent increase in unique browse visits on the website indicates that: “Kiwis are still engaged in the housing market.”

While interest was lively, there were fewer homes to consider, as total sales fell 3.8 per cent nationwide compared to last year. New listings are also down 5.4 per cent nationwide compared to July of 2017. Meanwhile, asking prices saw a marginal increase of 0.9 per cent from June to July.

The unusual peak in interest for property, coupled with a considerable decline in competition, does mean good news for property sellers.

Ilse Evans, top agent for Harcourts Takapuna Office, backs the realestate.co.nz’s numbers: “I am experiencing a lift in buyer interest at the coal face, supporting this find.”

A top seller in the North Shore property market with the experience, expertise and happy clients to back her numerous accolades, Ilse Evans is the agent of choice for selling your Takapuna property during these unique conditions.

For more information on her work, listings, testimonials, and more, visit the Ilse Evans real estate website today at https://www.ilseevans.co.nz/.

From the 1^st of July, lawyers and property conveyancers are now required by law to verify the identity of their clients. This new “Customer Due Diligence” process is in accordance with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009.

Home buyers and sellers will now need to provide proof of identities for lawyers and conveyancers to be able to act for them. Many lawyers will not agree to act for someone who has not been able to complete the identity verification process.

The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand reports that this can take days and sometimes weeks, particularly if a trust or company is involved. It is therefore strongly recommended that buyers and sellers contact their lawyers to complete the identity verification process.

For individuals looking to buy or sell their homes, the following certified documents will be required: passport, NZ Firearms License, or NZ Driver License. You will also need to provide a bank statement or a statement issued by a government agency, as well as a document with your residential address. There may also be specific requirements depending on your situation.

If client identity cannot be verified, lawyers cannot act for the client, which means conditional periods can lapse, property settlements can be delayed, and, worse comes to worst, deals can fall over. It is therefore very important that property purchases or vendors settle the identity verification process as quickly as they can.

Ilse Evans, leading Harcourts Takapuna agent, will be putting up fliers in her open homes. For detailed information on identity verification requirements and more, contact Ilse Evans today at 021 909 313 or visit her website at http://www.ilseevans.co.nz/.

The age-old question we get asked at every meeting with an owner. There are pros and cons to every time of year but here are a few quick tips to get you started:
 
Summer or Winter?
Everyone believes their home looks better in Summer, and it’s often true. But the amount of competition (from other homes for sale) can be much higher during the warmer months. If you put your property on the market in June you can benefit from a real shortage of supply. Plus, there will be loads of cashed-up buyers out there who sold their homes in March and now need somewhere to go!

Should we avoid the School holidays?
This shouldn’t have too much of an effect, except you may see fewer mid-week viewings as Mums & Dads are too busy keeping the kids occupied to go and look at properties. That said, motivated buyers will move heaven and earth to see a house they are interested in and to ensure they don’t miss out on ’the one’.

What about the election? (Sept 23rd)
We often find the real estate market can experience a bit of a pause leading up to the big day so I would recommend listing your home much earlier (eg. July or early August) or have it all ready to launch just after the votes are in.

Ideally, it’s good to have a few weeks of prep time to design a marketing plan, arrange professional photos (on a good day) and complete last minute touch-ups. So, contact me well in advance if you are thinking of making a move. Do it once, do it right!

After a busy year, I was thrilled to receive at the Cooper & Co Annual Awards 2018

• No 1 Agent Harcourts Cooper & Co Takapuna Office
• No 2 Individual Agent Harcourts Cooper & Co
• No 11 Agent Harcourts Cooper & Co

I was awarded ‘#18 Northern Region 2017 – 2018’ at the Harcourts awards breakfast held on the 3rd May.