🤷 Everyone agrees buyers have the upper hand – except buyers

GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋

TODAY'S FEATURE

Cautious buyers need a different conversation

Over recent months, only about 30 per cent of BresicWhitney's auction sales have sold at or above reserve, and some of the rest reached a result one, two, or three weeks later that wasn't there on the day. BresicWhitney CEO Will Gosse says buyer demand isn't necessarily disappearing. Buyers are nervous, well informed, and weighing the possibility of another rate rise. That changes how you handle your post-auction follow-up and your next pricing chat with a vendor.

What you'll learn in the full article:

• The upsizer maths: Will's hypothetical $1 million apartment and $2 million house show why some apartment owners could be closer to their first house than they think.
• The bad-news test: This is the one signal Will is watching for that tells him the market has found its feet, and he isn't expecting a sudden rush of buyers when it comes.
• The honest-conversation rule: "It's a great time to buy" is the line to retire, and Will explains what to find out from a genuinely interested buyer instead.

Read the full article →

TOGETHER WITH REALTYASSIST

Compliance pressures are growing. RealtyAssist wants to help Property Owners get the work done.

You've found the problem, lined up the quote, and then the owner hesitates because of the upfront cost. Sound familiar?

RealtyAssist's Rental+ gives eligible investment property owners another way to fund the work, whether it's a hot-water system, a body corporate special levy, or a refresh between tenants, with loan repayments spread over time through rental income.

Your part is simply the referral, and RealtyAssist takes the owner through the application from there (Belle Property's Fabian Ekker says his first reaction was that it just made sense).

Take a look at how the referral program works.

Learn more →

DEPT OF LENDING

Sydney's slide from peak now outpaces Melbourne's

If spring felt flat, you weren't imagining it – prices slipped nationally for a seventh straight month, and Sydney has now dropped further below its high than Melbourne. Eleanor Creagh at realestate.com.au says buyers have more negotiating power, but higher mortgage rates still cap what they can borrow and pay. Her read: softer conditions are likely to run into 2027.

DEPT OF ECONOMICS

Buyers know it's their market but hesitate

Two-thirds of people in Opteon's survey think buyers have the upper hand. The catch is that 61% feel less confident since September's rate rise, and Domain's Nicola Powell thinks another hike is increasingly likely. Opteon's Scott Chapman has a reminder for anyone waiting it out: nobody can reliably pick the bottom. The RBA makes its call today.

DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Sovereign wealth funds face higher British tax bills

Some of the world's biggest property investors, including foreign governments and their sovereign wealth funds, are in line to lose longstanding UK tax breaks on rent and sale gains from 2029. The UK Budget pencils in about A$1.31 billion from the change. Everyday overseas home buyers aren't affected, and the consultation is still open.

HOW IT SOLD

How growth potential sold a $650k Officer home

With negative national headlines keeping many buyers on the sidelines, Quazi Haider of Area Specialist Rapid sold the three-bedroom house at 35 Tussock Way, Officer, for $650,000 after a 59-day private treaty campaign. His approach was to send buyers specific details on the nearby Kaduna Park and Lera Estate developments, school zones, and four-minute freeway access.

Find out the story behind how it sold →

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CELEBRITY HOMES

Knicks champion Josh Hart lists Miami estate

Fresh off a Knicks championship, Josh Hart and his wife, Shannon, have put their Miami-area home in Pinecrest on the market for US$5.699 million (about A$8 million). It's set up like a holiday resort, with a pool, an outdoor kitchen, and a sound system the couple added. And yes, there's a private putting green for when the jump shot needs a rest.

Read the full article →

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Lauren Brewer joins REIQ Board with a focus on technology and the future of real estate

The REIQ Board's under-35 seat has a new occupant – REMAX Australia Marketing & Innovations Manager Lauren Brewer, elected Young Director after a race the institute's CEO calls hotly contested. She brings nine years in real estate and a focus on technology and keeping good people in the profession. For three years, she'll sit alongside returning Chair Peter Camphin and Daniel Burrett, now Regional Director.

Brittany Cox named First National's property manager of the year One of the opening-day highlights of First National's Property Management Conference at Sofitel Broadbeach went to Pakenham, Victoria. Brittany Cox of First National Neilson Partners was named the group's 2026 Property Manager of the Year, recognising excellence in a role that increasingly calls for strong communication, sound judgement, and a careful balance between the needs of rental providers and tenants.

Kelly Qualtrough joins Ray White ICON as partner After almost 21 years working Everton Park, Arana Hills and Ferny Hills, Kelly Qualtrough is now a partner at Ray White ICON alongside principal Sherrie Storor. Recently she wrote in a clause giving a Ferny Hills family 21 days to buy their next home – they sold for $1.175 million and stayed in the suburb. She'll work from the group's Chermside office.

Kristina Mastrullo returns to Colliers as national director A familiar face is back at Colliers. Kristina Mastrullo returns as Sydney-based National Director, Portfolio Strategy, in Occupier Services, joining from Cushman & Wakefield's office leasing team, after almost three years in research leadership at Colliers earlier on. Next up: shaping portfolio strategy across Enterprise Client accounts and overseeing the Colliers360 analytics roadmap.

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AGENTS ON SOCIAL

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TRUE OR FALSE:

Archer, winner of the very first Melbourne Cup in 1861, famously walked all the way from Nowra on the NSW South Coast to Melbourne to race.

And the answer is …

It's actually false. Archer did win the first Melbourne Cup – and the second – but the long walk is a myth. The newspapers of the day tracked the whole trip. In September 1861 Archer and two stablemates left Sydney on a steamer, the City of Sydney, and landed at Sandridge (today's Port Melbourne). Bell's Life in Sydney reported he'd arrived safely, "notwithstanding a rather rough passage". He won by six lengths at 6/1, then came back the next year and won by eight. The real twist came in 1863. His trainer, Etienne de Mestre, sent a telegram entering Archer for a third Cup, not realising it was a public holiday in Melbourne. The telegram turned up a day late, the club stuck to the rules, and Archer never ran. If you're after a safer bet than a horse today, you can safely bet that Transform 15 will deliver the goods for your digital profile in 2027. Sign up at transform.eliteagent.com via Australian Racing Museum. Note the image is not Archer and is not AI. It is another famous horse though. Can you name him?.