INTERNATIONAL
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Ten NZ property market predictions for the rest of 2019
New Zealand’s residential property sales activity looks set to tick along at the same controlled pace in the second half of the year as it has in the first, with average values growing in a restrained fashion. Other key factors to watch over the rest of 2019 include policy decisions from the Reserve Bank (e.g LVR and bank capital rules),…
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Brisbane agent ranked 9th commercial agent globally
An impressive 30 entries from Australia and New Zealand have made real estate giant RE/MAX’s Global Top 100 lists for the 2019 first quarter, with one Aussie agent ranking in the top 10. Brisbane-based commercial real estate specialist, Deepen Khagram came in at ninth spot in the Global Top 100 Commercial Agents list. Mr Khagram specialises in services stations and retail developments,…
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RE/MAX announces its top global performers
Global real estate giant, RE/MAX, has just announced its top performers for the 2019 first quarter, with a staggering 30 entries from Australia and New Zealand in the Global Top 100 lists. “Here the designation ‘Global’ represents all agents outside of the United States and Canada,” explained Michael Davoren, Managing Director of RE/MAX Australia and RE/MAX New Zealand, “which is…
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Juwai.com partners with Archistar to launch Property Feng Shui Reports
Juwai.com has launched a new service in partnership with Archistar offering Chinese real estate buyers the option of analysing the floor-plans of potential acquisitions for Feng Shui. Archistar is an Australian Proptech startup, responsible for creating and operating a Feng Shui analysis feature that assesses floor-plans and provides insights and design recommendations. To celebrate the launch, Archistar conducted a Feng Shui…
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Hello Alfred, can you find me a cleaner?
Everyday we hear about a new platform which is leading the charge in making property management easier. Earlier this week, Hello Alfred announced an in-app assistant program which sets up building managers to a range of services for easier up keep. The Hello Alfred app provides apartment residents with on-request services from cleaning, grocery delivery, prescription refills and tech support,…
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What US$1 million buys you around the world: Knight Frank
The Wealth Report 2019, released this week by Knight Frank, reveals how much US$1 million can buy in prime cities around the world. The aim of the report is to approximate values for luxury properties globally, the study compares how many square metres of luxury internal floor space can be purchased with US$1 million as at 31 December 2018. Monaco…
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OBrien Real Estate celebrates cultural diversity in the industry
Melbourne-based OBrien Real Estate, a boutique agency with a 27-office network of over 300 people, is strong on multiculturalism. On 21 March 2019, the group celebrated its diversity with a meeting recognising an important part of the group’s uniqueness. It was a special time to come together to appreciate one another’s values and differences. “The gathering of our people was…
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Realogy named in world’s most ethical companies
Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY) has been recognised by the Ethisphere Institute a global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices, as one of the 2019 World’s Most Ethical Companies®. This is the eighth consecutive year in which Realogy has been recognised among 128 companies to be honored by Ethisphere spanning 21 countries and 50 industries.…
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Reinventing residential rentals: Tina Grey
Every now and then in your career, you may be fortunate enough to work on a project that is truly special. A body of work that not only stimulates you but has the potential to change the very face of the industry you are so passionate about. I am living one of those moments right now. For the past couple…
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Harcourts and Glen Coutinho to open flagship office in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles
Harcourts International has announced the expansion of the growing Harcourts USA network. Global real estate pioneer Glen Coutinho has joined the Harcourts USA team as Director of Growth & Training, for the Pacific Region, and will become owner of a new office in Beverly Hills. “We are very pleased to welcome Glen to the Harcourts group,” said Harcourts International Managing Director…
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Chinese investment in Australian property to stay strong in 2019 as buyers look to ‘grab a bargain’
Juwai.com has released the Australia 2019 Outlook for Chinese Residential Real Estate Buying, which shows that 2019 will continue the strong outlook for Chinese investment as buyers are attracted by dropping prices in key markets. According to the report, Chinese buyers will be bolstered by strong Chinese wealth growth and the desire to get a bargain while the market is…
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Purplebricks changes tactics in US, takes on traditional fee structure
Fixed-fee agency Purplebricks has announced a change to its US business model, switching to a varied listing fee structure which will only be charged when a home is sold. The new approach for the network will launch this week and aligns the business with a more traditional agency model. “These changes have been informed by customer and agent feedback and…
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Australia named second least-affordable housing market in the world
The 15th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey shows Australia as the second most unaffordable market for housing, with New Zealand coming in third. The survey uses a measurement of ‘median multiple’ to rank affordability, which is found by dividing median house price by gross annual median household income. This method is the same favoured by the United Nations and…
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Crown Residences at Barangaroo, Ironfish, ArchiStar and BC Securities Win Chinese Global Choice Awards from Juwai.com
Australian companies Crown Residences at Barangaroo, Ironfish, ArchiStar and BC Securities were four of the most notable among the 20 of the world’s very best China-focused real estate marketers who were named as winners of the Global Chinese Choice Award by Juwai.com at a gala black-tie dinner event in Shanghai on Wednesday, 5 December. The awards presentation followed four months…
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Airbnb set to start designing houses in 2019
Airbnb has announced they will begin building their own prototype homes in 2019 through a new project called Backyard. The short-term letting platform, which arguably kicked off the self-managed short-term letting craze, already has a global network of more than five million properties and is estimated to be worth approximately $38 billion. According to a press release, Backyard will be…
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Greg Paramor AO Joins Board of Directors at Juwai.com
Greg Paramor AO will join the Board of Directors of Juwai.com as a non-executive director from 1 December 2018. Mr Paramor has been involved in the real estate and funds management industry for more than 40 years. He is former CEO of Mirvac Group, past president of both the Property Council of Australia and the Investment Funds Association, a board member of…
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Rob Forde appointed as Harcourts Chief Operating Officer International
Harcourts International has named Rob Forde as Chief Operating Officer International. Mr Forde will be responsible for leading operations and driving growth in six Harcourts territories – USA, China, Hong Kong, Canada, South Africa and Indonesia – as well as taking responsibility for Harcourts’ financial services business, Mortgage Express. Mr Forde takes on this new role and joins the international leadership…
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realestate.com.au goes international with the launch of Travel
realestate.com.au has launched Travel, a new vertical as part of its popular Lifestyle content experience. Travel joins the five existing Lifestyle categories – Renovating, Indoor Style, Outdoor Living, Organising & Cleaning and Dream Homes – to provide Australians with a truly ‘one stop shop’ for all their inspiration and insights needs on realestate.com.au. To celebrate the launch of Travel, realestate.com.au has…
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Not so golden after all
This week is Golden Week – a holiday week for the Chinese where it used to be all about travel, and in Australia, property. But not for the last couple of years according to Juwai.com CEO Carrie Law. Ms Law says that the balloon has definitely deflated over the past three Golden Weeks, and while they still see some transactions, it’s not…
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Bubble Index 2018 suggests risk appears greatest in Hong Kong
UBS Global Wealth Management’s Chief Investment Office have released The UBS Global Real Estate Bubble Index 2018, indicating ‘Bubble risk’ or a significant overvaluation of housing markets in most major developed market financial centres. According to the report, ‘Bubble risk’ appears greatest in Hong Kong, followed by Munich, Toronto, Vancouver, London and Amsterdam. The study has also found imbalances in Stockholm,…
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Coldwell Banker announces iBuyer product to level the playing field
Realogy Holdings Corp (NYSE: RLGY) announced a partnership with Home Partners of America’s subsidiary, cataLIST, to offer a ‘quick-sale’ program via NRT’s Coldwell Banker brand in selected markets in the USA. This would allow their agents access to a similar model to compete with iBuyer or ‘quick sale’ programs already in the market. Through the cataLIST Program, an owner of a…
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Harcourts Partners with The Global Challenge in South Africa
Harcourts South Africa has partnered with The Global Challenge – an international professional women’s golf team event – where nine players selected to represent the Northern Hemisphere will be teeing up against their counterparts from the Southern Hemisphere. The event is set to be hosted for the second time from 9-11 November in Hermanus, South Africa. For the first time…
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Keller Williams adds Contract Smarts to Virtual Assistant
KUNGFU.AI US-based artificial intelligence services company, and Keller Williams (KW), one of the world’s largest real estate companies by agent count, have announced a partnership to together build a robust new real estate contract-reading skill for Kelle, a proprietary artificial intelligence-based personal assistant for KW agents. Launched in mid-February 2018, Kelle has more than 97,000 monthly active users and the Kelle…
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Juwai.com launches World’s Top China-Focused Real Estate Developers and Agents awards
The world’s top real estate developers and agents are vying for recognition in the Chinese market via the first-annual Juwai Global Chinese Choice Awards. Juwai.com is the No. 1 Chinese international property portal and international property partner to both Tencent and JD.com. “China is the cutting edge for property marketing worldwide. Excellence in China-focused international property development and services deserves…
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Zillow to allow renters to search, apply and pay for rentals online
US-based platform Zillow has debuted a system which will allow renters to find, apply for and pay for rentals online. The system will be rolled out across the company’s three platforms – Zillow, Trulia and HotPads – but not New York-based StreetEasy. “Renters tell us they want the entire rental process to happen online, from search to application to payment.…
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New report shows foreign buyer taxes on the decline worldwide
According to a new Juwai.com report the world will see fewer new foreign buyer restrictions imposed in top Chinese property destinations in the year ahead than in any of the prior three years. The Foreign Buyer Restrictions Report 2018-19 points out that Canada’s two largest provinces, six of Australia’s eight states and territories, and Australia’s national government have all increased…
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Raine & Horne continues global expansion with third office in Fiji
Leading Australian property group Raine & Horne is escalating its worldwide expansion with the opening of a third office in Fiji in less than 12 months. Raine & Horne Fiji directors, CJ Shergill, Sanjay Krishnan and Aveet Goundar, launched offices in Lautoka and Nadi in July 2017. “Since joining the network, the Fiji team have gone from strength to strength…
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Zillow appoints first President in executive shuffle
Former Group Marketing Officer Jeremy Wacksman has been appointed President of Zillow after nine years with the company, making him the first person to hold the title. Mr Wacksman will oversee the entire Zillow brand, and continue to control the Zillow Group marketing in his role. In addition to this, he’ll be adopting the strategy, product development and engineering teams…
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Harcourts experiences substantial growth in US market
Despite just three years of operations in the US, Harcourts has seen significant growth in the region, under complex market conditions. Over the past 12 months, the US business has opened two new offices in Southern California, innovated their Harcourts Academy training, and continue to grow their non-distressed auction platform. Overall, agent numbers have drastically increased in this past year…
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Harcourts NZ wins Readers Digest award
Reader’s Digest New Zealand has announced its Most Trusted brands for 2018, and Harcourts for it’s sixth consecutive year has been voted Harcourts their Most Trusted real estate brand. Harcourts New Zealand CEO Chris Kennedy says the support and faith New Zealanders continue to put into the company is humbling. “To be named the Most Trusted real estate brand for six years…
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Chatbots take on the human form
Chatbots are about to take on human form, courtesy of FaceMe and their digital assistants who look, sound and interact just like real people. FaceMe is an Artificial Intelligence platform that offers customised digital assistants which embody the most human of personas. It features avatars that can hear, see and remember customers, and “have the capacity to empathise for exceptional…
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ACproperty partners with ListGlobally to give agents access to 120 international property portals
Chinese property portal ACproperty has moved forward in their partnership with ListGlobally to launch Sodichan.com, an international property portal. Managing director Esther Yong told us more about the partnership and their plan for international property domination. “Agents put their listings on ACproperty and Chinese buyers come on the site, send enquiries or call them directly. Very similar to REA or…
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Disruptors amongst top US brokerage firms
Real estate disruptors are gaining traction in the US, with innovative players like Redfin and Compass both named in the top 10 brokerage firms in terms of sales. According to the recently released inaugural Swanepoel Mega 1000 list, which ranks US brokerages, Redfin came in at fourth position with $22.5 billion in sales last year, while Compass took out ninth position…
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RE/MAX tops 120,000 agents in its first quarter
As the global real estate giant reaches another milestone, RE/MAX Australia and New Zealand Franchise Director Joel Davoren says his regions are travelling a similar upward path as the international scene. RE/MAX® concluded the first quarter 2018 with a global count topping 120,000 agents. “That is an addition of more than 30,000 productive agents in the past five years,” Mr…
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European model reducing the cost of Australian housing
Baugruppen is a housing model first established in Germany that sees like-minded home buyers come together to design and build multi-residential housing. Rather than buying off the plan, they buy land as a group and then commission designers and builders to construct projects to their specifications. The Conversation explains the name roughly translates to “building group” and “stands for a long tradition…
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