Damian Miller has sold a 3-bedroom duplex at 108B Renou Street, East Cannington, for $685,000 after the property sat unsold for three months with another agent.
“It was clearly stale. It was a deceased estate, so there was real urgency in the sale,” Damian said.
“I advised the seller that we needed a completely new approach to the pricing, given that pricing hadn’t worked and the property had been on the market for more than three months.”
The strategy: let the market speak
Damian stripped the advertised price and structured the campaign as an end-date sale — creating the urgency and competition of an auction without the cost.
“My approach was to let the market tell us what the property was worth,” he said.
The property was re-photographed, the presentation tightened, and the marketing refreshed from scratch. The 3-bedroom, 1-bathroom duplex sits on a 525-square-metre block with one car space — a typical first-home buyer or investor proposition rather than an auction-tier asset.
“My main selling demographic is generally properties from $1 million to $2.5 million-plus, so this was outside the price range I would usually work in,” Damian said.
“I met the seller through mutual acquaintances at an event, and she later approached me for assistance. I was only too happy to help.”
The pivot that delivered offers
Initial open homes drew inquiry but minimal walkthrough traffic. Damian switched to appointments only.
“Once I shifted to appointment only, we had three appointments in one day — with two of those being offers and one of those being the successful offer,” he said.
The conversion rate told the story: three appointments, two offers, one sale.
The winning buyer was local, purchasing the property as an investment for their superannuation fund just under a tax cutoff — a detail that added urgency on their side of the negotiation.
“They came in at probably a similar start point to the other offer, but I recognised their intent and their capacity to increase was certainly there,” Damian said.
Navigating the sale structure
The negotiation wasn’t straightforward. With a government party involved in the ownership structure, the sale price had to reach a specific threshold for the transaction to proceed.
“It did take a bit of negotiating on both sides to actually reach that final sale figure,” Damian said.
The property went under contract on 28 July after 26 days on the market.
“They were just absolutely over the moon. It was a huge relief for them. They were very much under pressure to sell the property,” Damian said of the executors.
The seller later praised Damian in their testimonial, saying he had “strong market knowledge and honest feedback. Damian went above and beyond with our not-so-straightforward estate sale. Highly recommend.”
About the Agent
Damian Miller is a premium property negotiator who transitioned from a career as a professional jockey to specialise in residential sales and development opportunities. His approach combines market insight with strategic campaign design tailored to each property’s context. Visit Damian’s website for more information or call Damian on 0432825563.