Remember When..

I am constantly asked what has changed in real estate after nearly 30 years in the industry, there is a fairly long list but a few things stand out.

Firstly the internet has probably changed things the most, especially in terms of advertising.

In the old days it was just a small ad in a weekend paper but that doesn’t cut it anymore.

During the economic boom we simply placed everything on the internet and inquiry would flow.

I think in many ways this has made the industry lazy and less creative and going forward in more a competitive market, the skills of the agents and agencies will play a bigger part in getting better results.

The internet is a required part of real estate but with so much information available, and not all of it accurate and relevant, I think it has halted some of the all important inquiry on a property and judgement of a property can be made too quickly.

The skill to get a potential buyer to a property is still very important and won’t be replaced, matching people to property is a rare skill and can be only done by people not by a computer screen.

The mobile phone has been the other great change, people can now call you at any time.

But I am not sure if it has fixed communication as I have four daughters and I think I find it harder to find them now than before!

An interesting one is the change in security.

I remember the house I grew up in that my dad built with my uncle in Bertie Street Guildford where I never used a key and it was unlocked all the time, no security windows and doors.

I used to sleep in the sleep-out on the back porch with the door open most of the time in the summer to keep cool with the old louver windows open.

Today we have keys for our keys if you know what I mean.

As agents in the late 80s, we used to use magnetic boxes on gutters to have the key available for inspections, crazy to imagine that now.

Last note for this long Anzac weekend, like many I had family who fought in the wars to protect our country, Lest We Forget.

If you have any memories like mine, email memories@realestateplus.com.au.

– Milton Rendell, Chief Executive Officer