More of an advertising story than a public relations one but of interest all the same....
Property Wizards, the Auckland-based low flat fee real estate company has been banned from advertising in any edition of Property Press, in what the directors believe is yet another example of bias against cheaper non traditional agencies, which is keeping charges to New Zealand homeowners higher than they should be.
Steven Sharp, director, Property Wizards explains: `The wrong advertisement was accidently placed in an issue of the Central Property Press and the publishers have used this as an excuse to ban Property Wizards from ever advertising in any edition of Property Press. We believe our flat fee model has sparked antagonism from vested interests who do not want to see the cost of selling a home come down.’
Property Wizards , which became a fully licensed real estate agency in December last year, charges a low flat sale fee of $7,000 plus GST, regardless of the value of the property, which is only payable when a sale becomes unconditional. When marketing costs are included the cost of selling a typical $400,000 home in Auckland is around $10,000, substantially less than what it would cost with a traditional agency.
Earlier this month Massey University senior property lecturer, Dr Susan Flint-Hartle was reported as saying New Zealand homeowners were paying too much to real estate agents and that the big firms’ were stopping fees from reducing because like any established industry there’s a stranglehold on the ways things are done.
Steven Sharp added: `Our situation is similar to that experienced by the Joneses just over 18 months ago when they introduced a flat fee system and found all sorts of barriers erected to keep them in check. However, Property Wizards is taking a more prudent approach to expansion.
`We are one of the few licensed agencies which does not charge a commission on a sliding scale meaning vendors can save a substantial amount of money selling with us. Not only that, we retain our salespeople and help them develop an income stream. And for those people who wish to sell their homes themselves we offer a suite of off the shelf marketing packages.’
For more information check out www.propertywizards.co.nz
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