Big Bang!

28.08.08 This weekend marks the end of winter and the start of spring, and as usual the event is marked by the fabulous RiverFestival. Kick starting the RiverFestival is the spectacular RiverFire this Saturday evening. Whilst it may not be on quite the same scale as what we have recently witnessed from Beijing, this is Brisbane’s biggest and most spectacular fireworks display each year. As the Council proclaims, “Riverfire transforms our city into a massive celebration, as hundreds of thousands of people pack the banks of the Brisbane River and come together in backyards across the suburbs.” Whilst there are opportunities aplenty to get down to South Bank and other City vantage points for RiverFire, I usually like to take my young family up to Mt Coot-tha where we can experience the spectacular display from a “safe” distance, where the crowds are slightly smaller and the noise a little less threatening to young hearts and ears! Hopefully too, the F-111’s will perform their customary “dump and burn” again this year, which for me (as a frustrated fighter pilot!) is the highlight of the show! During the day, we have an equally impressive display of property for you to view! New to the market this week, are some fabulous homes across a broad spectrum of suburbs and price ranges – i.e. 5 Aldergrove Street, Chapel Hill (11:00am-11:45am); 495 Grandview Road, Pullenvale (12:30pm-1:15pm); and 20 Scandia Street, Kenmore (2:00pm-2:45pm). There’s more detail on each property inside this edition of Open Doors, or simply ask one of our expert team wherever you may meet them this week. Throughout the rest of the weekend and next week, RiverFestival continues with a dazzling array of events and activities, like the free BBQ breakfast at RiverBBQ and a broad selection of events for the whole family on RiverSunday. You can find out more information about the whole festival at www.ourbrisbane.com where they say, “For ten days, Brisbane truly becomes the ‘river city’ as events, films and art installations about water and the river engulf us. Plus, the international RiverSymposium brings the world’s water experts to our shore.” So after an enjoyable day looking at houses, tap into the RiverFestival, or just do as I plan to and make the trek to a suitable vantage point and enjoy the RiverFire show! Until next week…..

GOLD, GOLD, GOLD!

21.10.2008 I love watching sport as much as anyone, and have been in heaven catching snippets of the Olympics in between business and family commitments. Whilst watching the Olympics, I have been struck by the number of parallels between the athletes’ feats in the sporting arena, and the myriad challenges that Buyers and Sellers face daily in real estate. We’re all familiar with many of the sporting related clichés that fill our vocabulary, but I’ve also identified 8 Gold Medal lessons that we can take from sport and apply to our day to day circumstances: Know the rules and play by them. Be aware of your rights and obligations, and always, always, always act ethically and within the law. Be precise, but act quickly. When you see an opportunity, don’t delay. Gather your facts together, and make a prompt decision. Remember that often opportunity doesn’t knock, it tip toes quietly by! Persevere. As the age old proverb states, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again!” Always ensure that you have done your preparation and know that you are acting based on facts and quality information. If you can’t get a result, change or start again. The caveat to Perseverance! Beware of being “pig headed” or ignoring the realities or a particular situation, and be prepared if necessary to change strategy or even start again from scratch. Be prepared to take risks. Some people say that you can’t get great rewards without taking great risks. I personally don’t subscribe to this theory, but I do strongly believe that in order to achieve your objectives you must be prepare to take calculated risks. Look wide. Be prepared to consider a wide variety of options. Sometimes you find the ideal solution presents itself from the least likely quarter – but only if you’re open minded and prepared to consider it! Be focused. Identify your objectives. Make your plans. Gather your resources. Chanel your energies into using your resources, following the plan and achieving the objective! Be balanced. Whilst trying to juggle all of the above, (much of which appears prima facie to be contradictory!) you must have a sense of “balance”. This enables you to make calculated decisions that quickly and effectively weigh all of the pros and cons and determine your next action. I hope that helps, and now here’s your chance to participate! In the spirit of competition, I’ll award a gold medal winning bottle of red wine to the person that can offer the best suggestions for which Olympic Sports each of the above “lessons” were drawn from! Just email me at c21westside@century21.com.au with “Olympic Competition” as the subject, and I’ll announce the winner next week!

Accessible, Clear, Expert Advice

14.08.08, As a business, we are always listening to Buyers and Sellers so that we can do our best to serve you better, so I was delighted to be invited last week to be a guest speaker at realestate.com.au’s national strategic planning conference in Melbourne, so that they could learn more about what life was like “at the coal face” of the real estate industry. It’s not everyday that one of the country’s most well know and respected companies calls to ask for your advise, but I was delighted to be able to assist realestate.com.au, the premier real estate portal in Australia, to improve their operations and hopefully deliver an even better service to you, the Buyers and Sellers in the market place. CENTURY 21 has also recently signed a long term agreement with the preeminent real estate data supplier, RP Data, who have now expanded their service to provide consumers with online access to property data right around the country. Check out the new myrp.com.au site, where you’ll be able to access detailed information about property, and also access some terrific tools for tracking your property portfolio, in much the same way that you do with shares. As president of the Kenmore and District Chamber of Commerce, I was recently elected to the Main Roads Department’s Kenmore Bypass Community Reference Group (KBCRG), to provide community input on plans for the Kenmore Bypass. The KBCRG has already met once, and will continue to do so on a regular basis until a final recommendation is made to the Government for the tract of land they own between Moggill Road and the Centenary Freeway. So, if you have any queries about Real Estate; the tools that are available for your due diligence; local business; or plans for the future of our suburbs, please feel free to call me or my expert team any time and we will be glad to help you make a Smart Move. Until next week….

On the road again!

09.08.08. People always have questions about property, even if it’s just a curiosity about what their property is currently worth, but few people pick up the phone to call a real estate agent unless they’re actually buying or selling.

That’s why we have been “on the road again” this week with our popular ‘Kenmore Village Roadshow’ - a unique and exclusive opportunity to provide expert, no-obligation advice to the local community in the setting most convenient to them. Once again, that opportunity was grasped by hundreds of people keen to find out what’s happening in the local area in these uncertain times, and I’m pleased to say that our Award Winning team of local experts were on hand to give clear advise.

We’ve got an absolutely fantastic team here and that’s no accident. Success attracts success and accordingly we’ve attracted very talented people into the fold. Anyone can sell a property, but only highly trained experts can secure a win-win result for buyers and sellers while also minimizing the stress involved for everyone.

And if you are thinking of moving within or into the area, we are pleased to be able to offer an exceptional selection of quality property across the price spectrum. As always, you’ll find our comprehensive list of Open Houses (in time order for your convenience!) at the front of every edition of Open Doors, but if those times are not suitable, please call our toll free hotline on 1300 200 100 to arrange a private viewing at a time more convenient to you.

You’ll also notice a snap shot of each property listed herein alphabetically by suburb. Of course, if you’d like more information about any of the properties, please speak to one of our team and we can provide a full property profile. Alternatively log onto our award winning website at www.century21.com.au/westside where you’ll find a wealth of information, including detailed floor plans for all of Platinum Collection of properties.

Whether you’re buying or selling, we’d love to help you make the Smart Move to the Westside!

Until next week….