What I’m talking to my property developer clients about.
Often, when I’m speaking with a client, and we’re just chitty-chatting about what’s going on, what we’re seeing in the market, and how sales offices are performing, my client will ask, towards the end of the call: “Look, I just want to get a sense from you: what are your other clients seeing in the property market?”
Now here’s where I hold your hand, gently lean in and say: “They’re thinking about all the same things you are”. They’re seeing everything you’re seeing in the property market. There’s nothing new. Everyone is feeling the same. They’re wondering, “WTF?” They’re bamboozled by some of their developments selling out like Albo to the Energy Lobbyists. They are positively mystified that other developments couldn’t crack a single sale, even if Sydney Sweeney were shilling it.
Here are the conversations I’m having with my clients:
What is actually going on out there in the property market?
People have legitimately lost their tiny minds. FACT. When the comedian Dave Hughes becomes the go-to spokesman for immigration, housing, and disgruntled landlords, you know we’ve got a problem.
Serious times call for serious solutions, and I don’t think sitting in the front seat of your car, bitching on without credible solutions, is helpful. And please don’t @ me about the dog of an idea of raiding your Super now to pay for a home deposit. Take it from someone who is navigating the aged care system with her elderly parents. My brothers and sisters in Christ, protect and throw money into your Super, because your future quality of life depends on it. When you reach the age where you need to access high-level care, you need a solid money pit (also known as Super! Amazing, isn’t it, to have your past employers set you up for a comfortable retirement; it’s almost like it’s been deliberately designed that way), to afford the best care and treatments.
If I turn my gaze towards sales offices, what’s actually going on out there is that we have a very diverse and uneven market. Forget a one-Australian-market view, and ditch the idea that even in centres like Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane, market performance is consistent. Where you’re located in the city and what you sell will largely determine how well you’re doing.
Here’s what’s working.
- Sales offices strategically designed for a solid buyer profile. This means if your buyer is an upgrader looking to exit the family home and move into over-50s living, your sales office speaks to that buyer at every touchpoint: every AV piece of content, the finishes selection within the sales office, and even the quality of the collateral produced. Everything has been considered and targeted toward that ideal buyer. When that buyer comes into the sales office, they know for certain this development was built for them and is their perfect home.
- 3D architectural models teamed with tech. I’m loving seeing the resurgence of 3D architectural models, but they’re no longer just a standalone hero piece. It’s now entwined with cutting-edge AV so that curated content can be queued up on the screen, facilitating conversations between the customer and the sales consultant.
- Marketing the sales office. You have to give a reason for people to put on a bra and get off the lounge. Share the sales office creation process on social media. Tease the upcoming launch through your EDMs. Feature 3D walkthroughs of the sales office on your website. Do not put your Sales Office in a silo! Sprinkle that effort throughout your entire marketing.
Here’s what’s landing harder than Barnaby’s credibility after a tussle with the 7.30 Report’s Sarah Ferguson:
- A mediocre sales office. If you’re going to do it, do it damn well. In this market, you can’t afford to just take sales or your customer for granted.
- Sales consultants who haven’t been through a market cycle. I’ve seen some younger sales consultants who have only ever seen boom times suddenly realise market cycles are called cycles for a reason. They looked positively shell-shocked at how the wheel turns.
- A sales office that speaks to everyone but serves no one. You need to understand your ideal customer and target that sales office like a MOFO.
The Groves Sales Office at Austral for the Allam Group. Photography by Walter Macri Studio
Is every developer doing it tough?
We’ve known for a long time that there is no “one” property market within Australia. It really is city- and region-based, but what I’m seeing on the ground is that even within cities, the market is very mixed. Where you’re located and what you sell will largely determine how well you’re doing.
Not every developer is doing it tough, but I see the property development market on a conservative footing. Developments are being delayed to gauge how the market is responding to potential future interest rate rises, or because of regulatory approvals.
Stories like the Bathla Group going into administration in New South Wales do not help. It batters confidence in the market. Plus, the very real situation of subcontractors potentially facing bankruptcy because they aren’t being paid, and home buyers left in limbo, unsure when their development will be finished, is gut-wrenching.
I don’t think the Bathla Group going into administration will be the last that we see. For too long, some developers in the property industry have engaged in Ponzi-like schemes, with one development propping up the next. If you get cost or timing blowouts – which are hallmarks of the Property Industry- it’s just a very badly built house of cards, ready to topple over.
What I do know is that even the toughest markets bring opportunity. If I were a savvy developer, I’d look at which market segments are doing well and will continue to do well over the next 3 to 5 years, and double down on serving that market. That may mean pivoting from who they’ve served in the past, but we’re in a season of contraction. We need to respect that season, but that doesn’t mean all opportunities have dried up.
The Silverbook Sales Office for Development Victoria. Photography by Daniela Fulford Photography
Do sales offices still make sales?
I could rabbit on for days about this, but the short answer, because we all have somewhere to be, is hell yes. The slightly longer version is “hell fuq yes.”
I’ll give you solid evidence. For example, a recent sales office we completed for a client in Victoria (apparently the ass end of the property ladder right now) had 108 groups of interested buyers through its doors on opening weekend. From there, they held information sessions the following weekend. There were 40 slots available, 30 minutes each. All of those sessions were booked out.
I know this raging sucess is not the sales office operating in isolation. The marketing and sales team also nurtured their leads and stayed in touch. It’s the EDMs, it’s the Google Ads, it’s the social media posts, and it’s personal reach-outs, all ensuring that, come launch day, they will achieve a 100% sellout. This is brilliant and committed work by the marketing, sales, and development teams. The divas and I are thrilled to play a part in this success and help people get into their dream home.
Sales offices still matter. At the end of the day, people don’t invest because they’ve seen a nice brochure. They invest when they feel confident in what they’re buying. And a great sales office helps create that confidence.
Want to have your own chitty-chat with me and discuss how you see the property market performing, get the insider secrets for navigating the Aged Care Sector (OMFG) or want me to tell you it will all work OK, we just need to gird our loins? Fantastic! Here’s a link to book into my calendar.
