More than 90 per cent of real estate agency owners anticipate positive revenue growth over the next 12 months, according to new research.
The NAB Real Estate Industry Insights Survey found 93 per cent of respondents expect their revenue to growth in the next year, while 86 per cent are looking to grow their business.
They survey also saw 80 per cent of real estate business owners report revenue growth over the past year.
NAB Head of Professional Services Donald Jamieson noted in the survey that real estate business owners were naturally positive.
“They’re incredibly optimistic people,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the market, they’re always looking to grow, expand and achieve new goals.
“That’s just the nature of the sector.
“Add that natural optimism to an environment where some certainty is returning after a very large spike in interest rates, and people are feeling good times may be coming again.”
The survey revealed investing in people and technology were at the heart of how agencies expected to achieve growth, with 59 per cent highlighting recruiting and retaining staff as the path forward, while 28 per cent said they would embrace new technology.
A further 19 per cent listed acquiring assets as their growth strategy.
Interestingly, half of the survey respondents also listed hiring and retaining staff as posing a major challenge.
“Having fully qualified staff in any business has been very tough over the last few years and that will flow through the real estate sector because there’s demand for people in all sorts of roles and strong competition for people who can perform,” Mr Jamieson said.
He added that his real estate customers have told him securing listings and good people were the ingredients for success.
“‘If we can get the good stock it will sell, but if we can get the good people they will get the good stock’, is their mantra,” he said.
“They do link together.”
When it comes to acquisition, one in four real estate business owners have spent in order to grow, acquiring rent rolls, equity or full ownership of other businesses.
The survey also revealed 27 per cent plan to do the same in the next two years.
Leasing and property management was also highlighted as a mainstay of real estate agencies, with 75 per cent of respondents offering those services in both residential and commercial.
“The rent roll is the underpinning or the vanilla part of the business,” he said in the survey.
“It has cash coming in on a regular basis and takes the volatility out from the sales side.
“There are agencies I’ve seen in the past that have just focused on their sales and sold off their rent roll because they were in a really strong sales cycle.
“That cycle turned and those agencies didn’t survive, because they had no revenue source.
“I think the smarter and more successful agents understand that there are two major parts of their business and they want to grow both.
“Growing sales can sometimes be a function of the market and economic conditions, and rent rolls less so.
“But you do have to grow your rent roll all the time because properties will be sold, or owners might move into their properties.”
