When multiple offers landed on 9 Ruby Avenue, Seaton, Brenton Milewski of Klemich Real Estate advised his vendor to accept the offer with the best terms rather than the highest offer — and choose certainty over cash to protect a two-property settlement chain.
Aligning the vendor’s preference for an unconditional contract with a buyer who was prepared to deal under auction conditions meant that the best deal was not the highest offer.
Why certainty beat the highest price
The property was launched as an auction campaign, but early buyer discussions indicated there were unlikely to be unconditional bidders prepared to register and compete on auction day.
Rather than relying solely on the scheduled auction, Brenton advised the vendor to call for offers while keeping the auction date live. The approach allowed all interested buyers to put forward their best terms while preserving the option of proceeding to auction if required.
Several offers were received. Through the negotiation process, Brenton secured an unconditional buyer who agreed to waive cooling-off rights and offered terms that aligned with the vendor’s requirements.
The property attracted multiple offers, including a higher bid with a longer settlement period and multiple conditions. But Brenton’s vendor had already purchased another property and needed settlement security and flexibility to align both transactions.
The winning buyers waived their cooling-off rights and offered unconditional terms with flexible settlement dates — exactly what the vendor needed to manage the chain.
“The vendor had already purchased another property, so security was critical — they needed to know the deal would hold together, and they needed flexibility around settlement dates to align both transactions,” Brenton said.
Coordinating the settlement chain
Brenton worked closely with conveyancers on both sides to build settlement flexibility into the contract. The buyers wanted to settle quickly, and the legal teams managed the coordination to give the vendor the certainty he needed without locking him into a rigid timeline.
“The purchasers were keen to settle quickly, so I spoke with the conveyancers on both sides to build flexibility into the settlement process,” Brenton said.
Why transparent pricing drew the right buyers
Brenton’s strategy focused on fair pricing and transparent communication with prospective buyers to create genuine negotiation opportunities.
“It’s about pricing the property fairly and transparently, bringing as many people through as possible, then negotiating a deal that works for both the buyer and the vendor,” he said.
When the deal locked in, the vendor’s relief was immediate.
“You could tell it in his voice that he was just relieved that he had surety over the property that was selling and the property that was buying was going to be a smooth and easy transition for him,” Brenton said.
The three-bedroom, two-bathroom house with two car spaces on 436 square metres sold prior to the scheduled auction. The sale price was undisclosed. Seaton’s median house price was $1.136 million in June 2026.
About the agent
Brenton Milewski is a joint partner of Klemich Real Estate, bringing honesty, integrity and reliability to his role as sales consultant and business owner. With over 30 years’ experience in sales and acquisitions, he was awarded Domain’s South Australia Trailblazer of the Year 2022 and bronze in the Real Estate Institute of South Australia’s Future Leader Sales category and more recently, awarded the Silver Award in the 2025 REISA awards in the Local Residential Salesperson – Metro category. Actively involved with Unley Football Club and a long-standing Sturt Football Club member, Brenton works tirelessly to achieve the best outcomes for his clients. Visit Brenton’s website for more information or call Brenton on +61 417 719 826.