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How to sell an Australian investment property from Hong Kong

A seller in Hong Kong, an agent in Werribee, a buyer purchasing sight-unseen over the internet, and it all taking place while in lockdown. When Rob Westwood from First National Westwood sold 69 Kellerman Drive in Point Cook recently, it was a masterclass in selling in the time of COVID-19. 

Originally owned by a pilot who is based in Hong Kong, the property was one of the agencyโ€™s long-term rentals before the vendor decided to sell.

However, almost as soon as it hit the market in early August 2021, Victoria was plunged into a state-wide lockdown. 

As Mr Westwood explained, the timing couldn’t have been worse.

โ€œThe property sat there for five weeks, just getting inquiries,” Mr Westwood said.

“Due to lockdown, we werenโ€™t able to run in-person inspections, and we would have had no convenient way of selling it, had it not been for Openn Offers. The platformโ€™s launch came at a really great time for us.โ€

Created by the team behind Openn Negotiation, Openn Offers focuses on supporting a traditional private treaty process online, with improved transparency and streamlined digital contracting.

The end-to-end solution provides buyers with real-time feedback through their device on how much competition exists and where their offer price ranks โ€“ resulting in an optimal sales outcome for the vendor, and a fairer process for the buyer.

No stranger to the original Negotiation process, Mr Westwood began using the platform in January 2020 after a referral from a fellow First National agent. 

โ€œWe had amazing results with Negotiation, so when Openn launched their Offers process, we jumped at the opportunity to use it. Both processes are so transparent,” Mr Westwood said.

โ€œOpenn is also a great tool for helping to educate vendors who have set their sights a little too high on price, or buyers who think thereโ€™s no way a property could be worth that much.

“When they donโ€™t necessarily believe the agent, Openn helps to show them in the real world.โ€

Mr Westwood has already seen this in action.

โ€œOn one of our other properties, a buyer ranked second with her offer of $485,000. She then went back on her own and revised her offer to $495,000, and sheโ€™s now ranked first,โ€ he recalled.

But back to the Kellerman Drive home, and that sight-unseen sale. In a predominantly first home buyer market, competition for affordable homes can be high, and this property was no exception, according to Mr Westwood.

โ€œThe price range for the home was between $595,000 and $640,000, and it sold for $690,000. We had 13 offers on the house, and interestingly, two were actually higher than the successful offer,โ€ he said.

โ€œThe owner was motivated to sell and the successful offer was unconditional, so thatโ€™s what got the slightly lower price over the line.

โ€œBeing able to select your preferred buyer is another benefit of the Offers process, and in this case it allowed for a quick sale for the vendor and an easy purchase for the buyer.โ€

Having now completed several sales through Openn Offers, Mr Westwood says that his confidence in the platform was justified.

โ€œWhen I looked at Openn Offers, I immediately knew that it would work well in our current climate, and it absolutely has assisted us. Itโ€™s helped us collate all our inquiries, so none get missed, and itโ€™s allowing us to easily keep track of all our offers.

โ€œThe big benefit is that it gives us a platform that shows all of the interested parties where their competition is at, and I think that helps develop belief in the buyerโ€™s head that how they are bidding on the property is fair and honest.โ€

To those agents who are hesitant about adopting a new process, Mr Westwood says that itโ€™s worth a go.

โ€œJump in and have a crack. Openn provides heaps of training and resources, and the team are always quick to assist if you need help or guidance,” he said.

โ€œThereโ€™s also a camaraderie between us agents who use Openn. They all want to see you succeed, because you succeeding helps all of us succeed.โ€

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