[ Real Estate Articles ]

Singapore Latest Launch Condo in 2012 – House Hunting

Pdf file for download – featuring the latest condo launches in Singapore for 2012.

Both “already launched” and “upcoming property launches” available – displayed on a single Singapore map (with MRT line) for easy viewing.

Also shows the number of units available, developer, location, tenure.

Download the pdf file here and stay tuned to Singapore latest condo launches 2012.

Using property listings data from online portals to value your property

With the popularity of several property portals that list a huge inventory of property listings, we get many clients who ask us the same questions.

Property owners ask – “I see from …. (website) that other units are asking for …. (price), how come you are telling me I should only list for this ….. (price).”

Buyers and tenants say the same thing, but just in reverse, wanting the price to be lowered.

We understand … everyone wants to get the best deal.

Highest price for sellers and landlords and lowest price for buyers and tenants. We handle clients from both sides (not for the same deal of course) and we see the rationale from both parties.

Using data (especially asking prices) from online portals to determine your asking price is … well, yes, recommended but it’s good to also realise real estate is a heterogenous product.

The facing, height, interior condition, etc could all be very different. Using such data as a “rough gauge” is okay, but the input from your agents and potentials are even more important than the data. Their response and feedback is “real” and “qualified”.

Quite simply, it all boils down to what the market is willing to pay for the property. If all the owners in the same development are asking for, say around S$5,000 per month rent and nobody’s getting their property rented out, pretty obvious the market’s currently not willing to pay this amount. Reason? There’s probably another project nearby that’s more attractive.

It’s a bidding game and winner takes all and if the property owner decides on a price that’s higher than what the market is willing to pay for, then congratulations, you just won the bid and you get to keep the property for yourself.

A better way to determine prices is perhaps through these few methods

1. Request transacted price data from your agent
2. Compare with asking prices (know the strengths and weaknesses of other units)
3. Understand how the market is currently trending
4. Determine a price that’s attractive and reasonable

If the property IS the best in the development (at this point in time), the offers that come in will naturally be higher. You don’t even need to ask for it.

Even if others may transact at a higher price later, the keyword to note is “later” and there’s really no telling how the market will move or what new rules will appear all of a sudden to push prices up or down.

Getting offers is most important, thereafter you get to pick and choose, see whether the price is acceptable.

If a property is priced too high, then less interest = less/no offers = weak platform for negotiation.

And whilst referring to the “highest asking price” seen in the property portal, wouldn’t you wonder …. why it’s still listed for sale (or for rent)?

LOTS OF SHOWINGS BUT NO OFFERS

(pictorial guide) why you are having a hard time selling / renting out your property

(survey) 88 percent of buyers use the internet to find their home

A recently published data by National Association of Realtors® (NAR) in the US reported that to find their home,

• 88 percent use the internet,
• 87 percent use real estate agents,
• 55 percent yard signs,
• 45 percent attend open houses and
• 30 percent review print and newspaper ads.

And when buyers were asked where they first learned about the home they purchased,

• 40 percent said the internet,
• 35 percent from a real estate agent,
• 11 percent from a yard sign or open house,
• 6 percent from a friend or neighbour or relative,
• 2 percent from  print or newspaper and
• less than 1 percent from book or magazine.

91 percent of home buyers who used the internet to search for a home purchased through a real estate agent, as did 70 percent of non-internet users.

Home buyers thought the most important services that agents provided are helping find the right property and negotiating price and terms.

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Thinking of selling or renting your Singapore property? Engage a professional salesperson.

(article) Report on Singapore Estate Agents and Salespersons

- Source: Council for Estate Agencies

Note – % in chart has been rounded off

We recently did a tabulation of data retrieved from CEA website and found the following results to share with everyone

1. Approximately 90% of Agency (aka Estate Agents) have between 1 to 10 Salespersons
2. Slightly more than 7% have between 11 to 50 Salespersons
3. 2% have between 51 to 500 Salespersons
4. Less than 1% have more than 500 Salespersons

Out of the 90% majority (with 1 to 10 Salespersons), around half are single person operations (1 KEO).

A more detailed copy of Singapore Estate Agents & Salespersons Report 2012

• Which are the 10 agency with the most Salespersons?
• What’s the percentage of Salespersons in top 10 agency?
• How well is your agency ranked?

Singapore GDP grew 4.9% in 2011

2010 = 14.8%, 2011 = 4.9%, 2012 (forecast) = 1 to 3%

Manufacturing, Finance & Insurance grew the most.

Visitor arrivals expanded 13.1% and Consumer Price Index rose 5.2%.

- See Press Release from MTI

Based on the latest forecast for 2012, we see that the last time Singapore economy grew within the range of 1-3% was in 2008, followed by a -1.0% in 2009.

Prior to that, 2001 saw a -1.2% and 1998, -2.2%

Further back, in 1986, 1.3% and the year before, -0.6%

Now, how did the property prices perform in those years?

(for agents) how to make your property photos more attractive?

Was contemplating between two titles

(1) How to make your property photos more attractive?

(2) How to take better photos for your property?

Number (1) seems more appropriate for this article

Interior photography has become quite a norm for most agents these days. Some may be using their mobile phone camera (STOP DOING THAT!), whilst others may have invested in a conventional digital camera (the smaller type) and a small group has started investing in better equipments (the DSLRs and lenses).

The discussion today will not touch on which type of camera is better or more suitable (because we find that the choice is clear).

So, for today, we will talk about how to “make” your photos more attractive.

In a sense, yes, it’s about the first step of taking the photos, but also slightly more than just that.

The interior photos should tell a story, evoke a sense of desire from the viewer and initiate a call to action. A few basic points to take note of.

(1) The property should be clean and tidy before the photo shoot – as simple as this may sound, it’s often easier said than done (especially for properties that have occupants). There’s always going to be personal belongings, trash, boxes, etc, lying all over the place. It’s advisable to inform the owners 1 week before the photoshoot and let them know what you need done, in order to achieve the best results (after all, the photos are supposed to attract viewers that translate into sales, so it’s really to their benefit (in monetary sense) if they clear things away.

(2) Time of photo shoot should be either early in the morning or just before sunset. The external (natural) lighting for these two periods of time are optimal for photography. A lot of photos have over-exposed window shots (outside of windows looking very bright), so these two periods of time will help reduce the over-exposure (in a way, balancing the lighting within the property and outside).

(3) Composition of the shot (aka framing the shot) is an important factor because this is basically how you tell the story.

Within each photo, you are trying to either show a lot, or draw focus on one thing. The shooting positions (high, low, left, right, straight on) will also affect the outcome and feel of the photo.

A high position is good as a “birds eye view / top-down plan view” type of photo, allowing the viewer to see the open complete layout.

A low position is good as a “as if you were there” type of photo, as it provides a sense of the interior as though the viewer is physically standing / sitting there. Adding to a low position, you can provide a feeling of depth by having foreground and background subjects.

Left / right skewed photos can help to give a spacious feel to the interior whilst a straight-on shot will  typically be your primary photo (the ONE featured photo) that attracts viewers to click into the webpage to see more.

(4) Having a tripod is very useful since interior photography is really considered “still photography” and there’s usually insufficient lighting within the property. You will want to allow for a low ISO (less noise), slower shutter speed (meaning – aperture opens up for longer period of time to let in more light) but not have blurry photos, so placing the camera on a tripod or alternative (chair, table, stool, etc) will prevent blur in your photos.

(5) For real estate agents, most will go for wide (or far shots) so as to cover as much of the room space as possible. It may also be good to collect a number of near shots for emphasis on particular interesting key subjects (brands, appliances, points, flooring finish, etc). Since it’s digital these days, it’s free anyway.

Are we facing the same problems as the US? (listing syndication)

Are Singapore real estate agents & agencies also facing similar problems? Have the syndications actually helped or worsened the sales results and leads generation?

In Singapore, we do have some similar MLS syndications as well. Should more be done about these?

Potential buyers and tenants are browsing through so much repeated listings online that it’s difficult to find the real listing agent anymore. Maybe there should be a sign / award / logo – given only to the original listing agent(s), and that can help consumers to differentiate between the “originals” and the “re-posters”.

Just fyi, yes … our property listings are originals =)

Telemarketing lessons from an insurance company

A couple of days ago, a salesperson from an insurance company called.

She sounded like telemarketing agent. Usually for such calls, I will just reply with a “No Thank You” and hang up the phone.

The response for this call was a bit different and I wondered why myself. What caused me to initiate a different response? Was it the product, the person, the time, the environment?

Salesperson: Good afternoon Mr …… (my name), I’m calling from ……… (company) *pause*

Me: Yeap, what’s this regarding?

Salesperson: I understand that you recently took up our ……. (package) when you used ……. (airline) and would like to know whether you experienced any problems — *technique of seeking feedback from past clients*

Me: Nope, didn’t have problems

Salesperson: Great to know that you enjoyed yourself. Now, based on the ……. (package) that you took up, we would like to offer you a ……. (service) that offers …………………………………………… (tons of benefits) — *no price given*

Me: Sorry, I don’t need it

Salesperson: *reinforced the benefits and elaborated on instances where the benefits can be enjoyed* …. trial close by “can I sign you up for it?”

Me: No thanks, I already have a similar service

Salesperson: *again telling me about the benefits, not disregarding or querying about my “similar service”* …. trial close by “can I sign you up for it?”

Me: Why don’t you send me an email with your brochure attached and I will get back to you if I’m interested.

Salesperson: Are there any specific queries that you have? It will be easier for me to answer you directly since we are already on the phone, and then *again telling me the benefits … followed by a trial close*

Me: I won’t sign up for packages over the phone. You can email the information to me and I will take a look.

Salesperson: Alright Sir, shall I send over to your email address (they already have it) or is there another email address that you prefer?

Me: Yeap, the one you have is fine

Salesperson: Great! I’m sending the attachment over as we speak, shall I call you tomorrow afternoon to answer any queries you may have regarding this …… (package)?

Me: Okay

Salesperson: Thank you! and have a nice day, Mr ……… (name)

I think the first instance why I held onto the line was because of the familiarity in company’s name and was curious about what this company was going to tell me.

Even though I really didn’t need such a package at this point in time, it doesn’t necessarily mean I won’t be needing it in future. Frankly, I didn’t catch too much of the benefits told to me (too many and too fast). Sounded good overall, just simply didn’t need it.

Telemarketing techniques are definitely essential to real estate salespersons as well, some lessons I learned from this conversation;

1 – initiate a point of common interest

2 – introduce benefits

3 – listen to objections, answer if applicable, reinforce benefits

4 – trial close (or in real estate case, arrange for appointment)

5 – request for more contact details for follow-up

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