🎭 A wrestling villain, a Year 11 agent, and an $810k save

GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋

The Investor Edit

Investors haven't fled, they are quietly pivoting

After a week of headlines about sell‑offs and collapsing confidence, we wanted to separate fact from fiction. Drawing on auction data from more than 64,000 campaigns, plus insights from economists, brokers, lawyers and PMs, this first deep‑dive investor edit shows a different picture: investor numbers did drop 31 per cent after the Federal Budget, but then clawed much of that back, while strategies shifted into cheaper price brackets and new‑builds. The real story isn’t retreat, it’s recalculation – and the detail matters for every buyer and vendor conversation you’re about to have.

What you'll learn in the full article:

• The buyer-vendor ratio: why 71 investor buyers per 100 investor vendors before the Budget barely moved to 72 afterwards, and what that tells you about the "sell-off" headlines.
• The sunset clause trap: the specific contract clauses catching inexperienced investors in off-the-plan deals, and why glossy brochures are the problem, not the reassurance.
• The advisor pivot: three concrete moves agents and property managers can make right now to become the person investors call before they change strategy, not after.

Read the full article →

TOGETHER WITH DOMAIN

Domain brings Matterport 3D tours to The Block

This season, you won't just watch The Block's renovations reveal themselves on screen – you'll be able to walk through them yourself. Domain is bringing Matterport 3D tours to the app as part of its expanded partnership with Nine, letting viewers step inside each completed room the moment it's unveiled and follow the homes right through the season.

It's a neat reminder of how quickly screen audiences are turning into property searchers, and worth keeping in your back pocket for vendor conversations about what buyers now expect from a listing.

Have a look at how it works at domain.com.au/matterport.

Learn more →

DEPT OF DISPUTES

REIV breaks ranks to fight Victoria's pricing bill

Victoria's peak body has done something it doesn't normally do: sided with the Opposition. The REIV says the Consumer Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 leaves gaps that could expose agents, buyers and sellers to litigation, and claims its evidence-based fixes have been ignored.

With Jacinta Allan gone as Premier, whether the Bill proceeds as drafted is now anyone's guess.

DEPT OF PRODUCTIVITY

Three story housing and less rules

It now takes the average household 11 years to save a 20 per cent deposit, up from eight in 2005, and the Productivity Commission says planning rules are a big reason why. Its interim report floats three-storey housing as of right on most residential land, but the Planning Institute warns upzoning alone won't get homes built without infrastructure to match. The DL of the interim report is in the link with final recommendations landing in March 2027.

Also… did you see

• London is on course to remain the UK’s weakest housing market

HOW IT SOLD

Off-market pivot kept the tenants and the sale

When tenants threatened to leave mid-campaign, Nathan Peters took the Cessnock property off-market instead of pushing on publicly. He tapped his investor database and a trusted buyer's agent to find a purchaser happy to keep the tenancy, settling at $810,000 by day 74.

Find out the story behind how it sold →

This story started with a 10-minute phone call. Imagine boosting this on socials to your farm area. getailsa.com →

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Meet Showtime – the property manager who wrestles on weekends

By day, Sean Thompson leads the property management team at Ray White Southbank. By night, he's "Showtime", a wrestling persona he calls flashy and bold, performing across four promotions on the Australian independent circuit since starting in July 2022. A dislocated knee from a recent match hasn't slowed him down.

Bathurst teen fast-tracks real estate career through school Most 16-year-olds are juggling assignments and part-time shifts – Jayden McGrath is doing that too, just with open homes and contract paperwork thrown in. The St Stanislaus College student is completing a school-based traineeship at LJ Hooker Bathurst, working towards a Certificate III in Real Estate Practice he's on track to finish ahead of schedule. Director Mark Dwyer took him on after Jayden approached him directly, and he'll graduate school with both a qualification and real industry runs on the board.

Ray White Canberra hits 22 acquisitions with latest deals Boris Teodorowych, Peter Morrell and Greg Sadil are bringing their client books into Ray White Canberra, as the group notches its 22nd acquisition in 16 years. The move lifts Ray White Canberra's property management division past 45 staff and its overall team beyond 150, with founder Ben Faulks and property management CEO Lisa Hyland leading the integration.

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AGENTS ON SOCIAL

Seen an Agent On Social we should include? Let us know here

TRUE OR FALSE:

If the new stage adaptation of The Castle wins a major theatre award, the producers are legally bound by the Australian Constitution to bypass the fancy mantlepiece and send the trophy straight to the pool room.

And the answer is …

Well, false, of course. But the perfect excuse to yell, "Tell 'em they're dreamin'!" did arrive yesterday. It's just been announced that a stage adaptation of the film about the greatest real estate sale that never happened is indeed happening. via The Guardian.