Andrew Duncan - Real Estate Blogger. Thoughts, advice and market commentary with a bit of world travel thrown in for good measure. I love working with nice people, enjoying plant-based food, crossfit, NFL and living in New Zealand.
property@andrewduncan.co.nz
+64 27 428 6686
What effect does the election have on the Wellington real estate market? REINZ figures show 210 sales for Wellington City in August. This was up 5% from the month before (199 sales in July) but down a whopping 27% from August 2016 (290 sales recorded). So volume is down… Quite a bit! To be fair, this is pretty typical, especially in Wellington where most potential…
In this weeks mailbag, we answer a common question about whether you should consider buying an apartment as your first home. Email your question to property@andrewduncan.co.nz Question: “I found your blog whilst doing some research re. potentially buying our first home. I’m a firm believer in doing my homework, and in particular, getting an unbiased opinion… Hence, I was wondering about your thoughts re. our…
Wellington has always been the Tender capital of the world, and now Auctions have become popular as well. Right now you might just feel like every home you look at is up for Tender or Auction. Why so many Tenders/Auctions? Why won’t they just give us a damn asking price? Smart home owners will always look to employ a strategy that will allow them to…
Are you looking for cost-effective ways to add value to your home? Would you like to increase your potential selling price or valuation without spending the earth? When it comes to renovating, costs can spiral out of control if you are not careful. So this list has been prepared with frugal-ness top of mind! You might think some of these suggestions are obvious but you…
Some Wednesday motivation for all your hard working people out there. And a little bit of encouragement for those of us who fall off the wagon now and again. I was recently introduced to this poem by Kahil Gibran (Author of ‘The Prophet‘) while reading the Hohepa ‘Wednesday Flier’ newsletter. It was reproduced paying tribute to their long time volunteer of 33 years, Robert Simpson….
When you read through articles on my blog, you might start to think I’m being a bit tough on our poor old real estate industry. Some of you, on the other hand, might think I’m not being tough enough! Here’s the thing: I am more passionate about this ‘world’ than you could imagine. I have worked in it for 15 years (and counting) and have…
Wondering how much to offer? Are you going into a deadline blind, with no idea what the other buyers are going to put down? You need a quick, easy home valuation process to help you decide what that property is worth to you. So where should you start? Do what the real estate agents do, of course! I’m going to show you the exact process…
Let me guess – your salesperson promised you the world and bought you an atlas? What constitutes enough of a reason to fire them and start over? Let’s discuss the 7 signs you need to fire your real estate agent, and how to do it. Did you know… When you sign a listing authority, giving salesperson Sally Lotaleads permission to market your home (usually for 90…
I see changing market’s everywhere I look. Reports from Wellington describe buyers being more judicious and increasingly tentative. Priced properties are attracting lots of interest but some Tender dates are coming and going with no offers being received. Meanwhile there are 51% more houses on the market in Auckland than there were this time last year, and buyers are harder to come by. Suddenly agents are chasing…
READER: I have a question, brought on by Wellington’s crazy house market. I sold my house last year and have been living with family since then, looking for a smaller place to buy. I haven’t yet found anything that ticks the majority of my boxes. I’ve developed relationships with three agents from different firms and do all the standard Trade Me / Realestate.co.nz checks every day….