Typical real estate agents response, the sooner we move to a more transparent system where you can choose and where having buyers agents and sellers agents is available then the playing field will be less tilted in favour of the majors and more open to competition.

Seamus O'Sullivan - good idea. Keep up the good work. Cutting out/down on RE fees will help reduce inflationary pressures and improve affordability. Very well done. Keep up the good work.

Cheers, Les.

Didn't we all see this on Coro.? And looked how that worked out!
"My house is worth far more than yours".
I doubt this will last as long as The Jonses'.

@Jill

Didn't realise that RE companies had such a liability... are RE companies often involved in legal cases of this nature?

Sorry Jill, new law- just wondered how it affected the leaky homes fiasco,
clearly it doesn't prior to this date.
I'll pay more attention.

Not sure what Peter Thompson is talking about getting a good price for the property. The vendor ends up paying large sums in real estate fees which wipes the profit if any away. Cannot put a price on the stress we experienced will the changing stories and prices every feedback session. We tried selling a house last year, gave us fancy assurances about price, marketing etc and came back with ridiculous offers. We had better offers when we tested the market trying to sell in a private sale. I know of friends who sold last year for way better prices than what agents were quoting them, it was like a scene of vultures coming to feed when they see signs of stress. Real estate agents in NZ have been ripping people off for many years so not surprised to hear them say this . their next fancy car, holiday or million buck mansion depends on talking naive sellers into using their services.

Any real estate fee is cheap compared with what a lawyer will charge if a private seller misleads a buyer on the faults in his leaky home,a real estate company is on the front line of disclosure.Just ask some of the poor unfortunate buyers who have been gouged by their lawyer when they discover their house is full of SPONGY BOTRIS.

Nice sting in the tail there, Scorpion. Swap the 4 dbr. for the 2bd ex-p lab.

Nicholas are you owning up to watching Coro ?

Err......the wife does, Andrew. ( he says red of face).

So my curiosity is satisfied, I assume its this section,

"A licensee is not required to discover hidden or underlying defects in land but must disclose known defects to a customer. Further, where it appears likely, on the basis of the licensee’s knowledge and experience of the real estate market,1 that land may be subject to hidden or underlying defects, the licensee must either—

(a) obtain confirmation from the client that the land in question is not subject to defect; or

(b) ensure that a customer is informed of any significant potential risk so that the customer can seek expert advice if the customer so chooses.

6.6 A licensee must not continue to act for a client who directs that information of the type referred to in rule 6.5 be withheld."

"While a customer is expected to inquire into risks regarding a property and to undertake the necessary inspections and seek advice, the licensee must not simply rely on caveat emptor"

Nicholas Arrand,

I herd last night, that official reports put the NZ drug trade at $1B per annum, after drug dealers have matured from laundering through cars - the next logical step would be to do so through property.

Perhaps Emma should should write an article on how money could possibly be laundered through property and the effect that this might play in the rising value in property prices.

Nope. It says everything that needs to be said about that quote. Pure and unadulterated.

This fascinated me
"Barfoot and Thompson managing director Peter Thompson said a problem with the model of swapping properties is ensuring both parties have legal advice and are getting the best price for their properties."
Well people normally dont do their own land transfer deeds anyway
and

“It could be done, but one of the problems is with both parties getting the best price, how do they state the price and are they both getting the best rate for their investment when out in the market they might get more?”

Now THAT is bollocks

REs are after a sale to pay for their groceries, best price is just a bonus to them.
We employed a realestate agent to find our home...took near on 9 months...
And yes she got the "best price" FOR US the buyers.
And split the commission with the agent from another company...
So I ask..did the sellers RE get the "best price" for selling the property?...hell no.

An insurance sales man is an educated car salesman
A RE salesman is an educated insurance sales man
What they all have in common is commission to put food on THEIR table and the good ones could sell an iceburg to a Eskimo

"advertising fees from 1%+gst. Their highest residential fee is 1.99%+gst"

Now that sounds more like it.....

Quick flick through the big boys, and couldn't find comparable - but I guess thats all part of the initial negotiation process.

Must be a new agency trying to get some market share?

Rob

No. It's not an advertorial. We just thought it was interesting and decided to report on it. We don't do advertorials on interest.co.nz

cheers
Bernard

Mr Observer

Free market in action I guess - good luck to them.
Maybe something to do with the fact that they don't have to support the huge franchising system some of the agencies have (don't really know, just guessing as usual).
They might end up with the same amount in their pocket at the end of the day.

Must confess to wondering whether some sort of cartel was operating in NZ regarding the commission rates - always seemed high to me.
Again, a statement made in ignorance.

KW - ummm.... Ms Observer actually :-)

Yes agents do give legal advice though not in writing;that way they can deny it later.

Let's understand this. Agents are at the pointy end so they have a substantial incentive to selll and essentially the price doesn' t matter as the commission will only vary by a $100 or so.

So the bottom line is go for it but get good legal advice during the process (from a lawyer).

I think this is great. It is just another option for those wanting to change houses. These guys are offering a service which by being on the net gives a larger "audience" for those who are interested. Whether it will be viable , only time will tell
All the comments about legal issues etc are nonsense -- most people selling a house , no matter how it is done will use some form of legal advice.

Jill- anyone with half a brain would surely have the home inspected at the very least before buying/swapping a home, In your case I assume you didn't ....................... reading your last two posts I now understand.

Great discussion guys. I am a genuine kiwi who believes that there has to be more options available to people selling or buying their property. In my view it is very much a closed shop at present controlled by few. You either choose a real estate agent (at considerable cost) or sign up to some sort of 'private sale' deal that attempts to turn you into a real estate salesperson complete with signs, banners and open home registers. Homes2swap.co.nz was born from my desire to find an alternative that might just work.

There is no doubt that our market suffers from an imbalance of sellers and buyers. I would argue however, that a good number of sellers are in fact buyers in waiting. As soon as they manage to sell, they will buy. Why not bring them together at the same time and in the same market?? Homes2swap will always list an equal number of sellers and buyers. Where else do you see that?

Homes2swap.co.nz is a venue where like minded people, sellers and buyers (being one in the same) can come together, in the hope of making the selling and buying of their most valuable asset less, stressful, less expensive and less onerous.

The market may be small, and the chances of the perfect swap even smaller. However I am of a view that the market is smart and open to new options and innovations that give them options. Given the right set of circumstances buyers and sellers may be much more flexible that the current model suggests The internet provides the opportunity to find out.

As an aside, you will note from my website that I strongly recommend that people obtain a registered valuation on their property and seek professional legal or canveyancing advice in securing a successful swap.

Homes2swap.co.nz is not just another Jones' or another Real Estate Company. I am not trying to replicate what already exists. The incumbents can do a much better job than me. Homes2swap .co.nz specialises in providing an on-line venue for people wishing to swap their property for another property - simple as that.....

Seamus

i think they should set up something like a WOF for your house,have it checked out every 6mths or 12 mths & registered so that buyers can check it out,so you can sniff out all those hidden faults,leaks and other nastys.

probably because they found too many nastys!

Hey Seamus,
Is that an old photograph of you?
You certainly look a lot older in real life.
Must be why you used a blurry photo aye?

I'm not too sure what I've said to upset jill, trev. But to answer their questions:
1)No. I don't own my own house. I rent now. Costs me $850 per week, and given that it's 68% what the interest yeild of the money in the bank from selling up ( at 5% less RWT, was fabulous at 9%!) I'm not that fussed.
2) I was going to volunteer to "Save the Kakapo" on Codfish Island ( or Stewart Island, most likely), but decided against it - too cold.
3) Tent? Maybe; Hope not; But who really knows what life holds.

@Lindsay: A house owner could get checks now its just not a legal requirement. What does it achieve? a huge extra cost more govn red tape more un-productive jobs for "inspectors"...Im a keen DIYer I do my own maintenance at my own pace....oh what happens if you dont get a house WOF? cant take you off the street...legal penalties?

Now like a car if selling I think the WOF must be no more than a month old....we could do that...it does seem silly if say we have 6 buyers looking at one property then 6 builders reports seems a bit OTT...so one offered via the seller, but the contractural issues...

and like I said there is nothing stopping a buyer 1) doing research on the age of the property looking for generic problems, for instance pre-1960 (or so) the wood in a house didnt have to be treated for borer....so pay particular attention for small holes....ppl dont arm themselves with such information....houses can smell of damp, walk in and sniff...note if the seller has opened all the windows and doors to aire the place....has any fresh work been done? ask usually the vendor is happy to say if so its usually to hide things, sniff for fresh paint.... 2) getting his or her own professional report its $500 ish? many buyers dont, I didnt, but I know what Im looking at/for.... 1) and know as a DIYer the issues....also I had my dad who with 50 years serious DIYing acting as a backstop. 3) dont be in a rush....first time buyer can afford to take the time, on-buyer once selling the house they are in are in a rush....the market sets up the buyers IMHO....consider renting....and storage...I did...4) As a buyer dont forget the RE is your enemy, they are there to take every penny off you they can as quickly as possible they owe you nothing eg if they think there is another $5k in you they will tell the vendor to ask for more dont help them determine that. get the contract and ask them to leave and think on it over night you cant have a frank discusion with them in the house.....they are sharks and you are putting your dangly bits in the water....

So the biggest thing is think...use your brain....most ppl dont, I object to the idea of having and paying for yearly WOFs to cover the stupids...

regards

Jill.

1) I have owned quite a few properties and currently have 8 so yes I have owned a home.
2) My fiance is a commercial solicitor so I find your comments offensive.
3) I always check any house I buy to the extent i have purchased an infrared camera and training to help weed out houses before making an offer.
4) I DO NOT......... wear khaki shorts or sport a beard but as a keen hunter I have spent many a night in the bush.
5) A real estate agents area of expertise is selling houses they are not generally engineers, builders, plumbers so how are they equipped to pick up on a leaky home issue?

my question to you is if men are from mars and woman are from venus where did you spawn from?

RT - there was only one person making personal comments. Anyone can scroll up to read them and see that. Enough said.

Nice mullet in the photo Seamus

@Nicholas Arrand - Thanks Nicholas. I appreciate that many informal swaps are advertised and have taken place quite regularly in NZ. The difficulty in my view however, is that there is no-where that you can go to get the best exposure for your swap proposition. The net is an obvious way to spread this wide and far with the aid of a specialist provider.

With respect to liabilities, I have received considerable professional advice on this matter. I am comfortable that any liabilities can be mitigated by the swappers by them making use of good professional advice at every step along the way, as they will be encouraged and recommended to do so. Seamus