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GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋 Good morning, and welcome to The Brief for Friday 18 September 2026. |
TRUE OR FALSE? In 1997 Fox built a full-size, liveable replica of the Simpsons' house in Nevada and gave it away in a competition – and the winner packed up and moved in. (Scroll to the bottom for the answer!) |
In today's edition of The Brief - Sydney's top end is down 10.7 per cent, so how did Gavin Rubinstein just have his best year in two decades? His answer: changed, not bad.
- Agents are buying AI to make more calls. The people they're calling are using AI to screen them. Samantha McLean on where that leaves your prospecting – and who'd actually welcome the call.
- A $120,000 outback Queensland house is returning a 33.9 per cent rental yield – but Vanessa Rader has a word of caution before your investors get excited.
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TODAY'S FEATURE  Sydney’s luxury slide hides a supply storySydney’s upper-quartile house values have dropped 10.7 per cent from their peak, yet Gavin Rubinstein just had his best 12 months in almost two decades of selling real estate. The founder of The Rubinstein Group became the first agent across the Ray White network to hit Elite status for 2026/27, just six weeks into the financial year. His explanation for the gap between the headlines and his results comes down to a distinction: changed, not bad. |
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What you'll learn in the full article: - The microcosm read: why Gavin says the Eastern Suburbs behaves nothing like the citywide Cotality numbers suggest.
- The 18-groups weekend: the supply-demand mechanics behind two recent listings that pulled up to 20 groups within 48 hours of going live.
- The misinformation problem: what Gavin identifies as the second biggest handbrake on vendor decisions, right after supply itself.
Read the full article → |
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TOGETHER WITH ID4ME  The 49ers won Melbourne before kick-offYou were good in that lounge room. They felt it. Then they told you they're not selling just yet. Adam Joske calls this the missing middle – the appraisal that doesn't convert and doesn't die – and says it's the number one neglected area of an agent's business. Behind every hot list sits a warm list of around two hundred people who've already let you through the front door, and most stop hearing from you within weeks. In his iD4me session with Peggy Ford, Adam walks through what he actually sent in month eleven, and the check-in phrases he banned. Watch the full session here. Learn more → |
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DEPT OF VALUATIONS  PM/ONE session reveals where rent roll value hidesA mismatch between what's in the management agreement and what's set up in your software can mean revenue you've earned but never collect, Pendium Advisory's Stuart Hobden told PM/ONE 2026. He and Fiona Blayney also flagged compliance records as a real driver of the multiple buyers pay – so a mini audit is a practical place to start. |
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DEPT OF INVESTMENT  Aramac tops list with 33.9% rental yieldA $120,000 house in outback Queensland is paying a 33.9% rental yield – the highest Ray White found in its new regional scan. Mount Magnet and Menindee aren't far behind, and Vanessa Rader says these towns exist because of mining, farming or government work, not growth potential. Worth knowing as negative gearing rules tighten around established homes from July 2027. |
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DEPT OF PROSPECTING  When your AI calls my AISamantha McLean’s AI receptionist took a call from a conference organiser’s AI dialler recently, and neither would give up the floor. She has the recording. It left her with a question for anyone buying a bot to work the database: if the people you’re calling are using AI to screen you, what have you actually automated? Her answer starts with who would welcome the call. |
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HOW IT SOLD  Disclosed reserve turns four bidders into $828k saleIn Mascot, Anthony Kassis told every registered bidder the $805,000 reserve before auction day. Two first-home buyers went head to head, with the winner beating the underbidder by just $500 for a final price of $828,000. Find out the story behind how it sold → Google calls it E-E-A-T. Agents call it being written about. getailsa.com → |
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CELEBRITY HOMES  Inside the $8m London home where Monty Python met Star WarsMonty Python legend Eric Idle’s former St John’s Wood home has hit the market for £4.25 million (AUD $8 million). The four-bedroom Victorian residence became a celebrity haunt during Idle’s ownership, reportedly entertaining members of The Rolling Stones. Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford also used the property as a temporary London base while working on major films. Read the full article → |
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MOVERS & SHAKERS  Mark Stewart named CEO in One Agency ownership handoverOwnership of One Agency has passed from founders Paul and Annie Davies to four members who built their careers inside the network. Mark Stewart takes on the CEO role, joined by Matthew Crockett, Aaron Blackburn and Adam Martin – the group behind a multi-office business they've grown within One Agency since 2017. Between them, they now take custody of a flat-fee network spanning more than 120 independent offices across four countries.  Amie Goddard joins Ray White The Bayside GroupAmie Goddard has joined Ray White The Bayside Group after more than 13 years in Melbourne’s Bayside market, bringing an established client base and extensive experience in strategic marketing, property presentation and buyer behaviour. |
 Francesca Gasteen confirmed as Allhomes general managerThe top job at Canberra's Allhomes is no longer temporary. Francesca Gasteen has been confirmed as general manager after holding the role on an interim basis since July 2025, bringing more than 20 years across real estate media, sales leadership and commercial growth to the permanent post at the Domain and CoStar-owned portal. |
 Melbourne and Perth commercial firms merge to form NAI Harcourts RPGTwo established Harcourts commercial names are joining forces – Romano Property Group founder Maurice Romano and NAI Harcourts Perth's Tony Romano have combined businesses to launch NAI Harcourts RPG. The pair reconnected at this year's Harcourts HX conference, and the new venture pairs two decades of Maurice's Melbourne projects with Tony's Perth business, the number one NAI Harcourts office for the past four years, according to the network. The new business will initially focus on growing its Melbourne presence, with an eventual Perth footprint for RPG on the cards. |
 Ray White NSW & ACT names 2025/26 award winnersMore than 1,100 members filled Sydney's International Convention and Exhibition Centre for Ray White New South Wales and ACT's annual awards, where Ray White Upper North Shore & Northern Beaches claimed the No.1 Business title for a fifth straight year under principal David Walker. Double Bay's Elliott Placks and Michael Krimotat took home the CEO's Cup, and Brendan Lappan topped the state's sales rankings with Ray White Macarthur Group. |
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TRUE OR FALSE: In 1997 Fox built a full-size, liveable replica of the Simpsons' house in Nevada and gave it away in a competition – and the winner packed up and moved in. And the answer is … False. Barbara Howard from Kentucky took the $75,000 cash instead – Nevada was a long way from home. Hard to blame her: the downstairs floors were painted concrete to match the cartoon, and whoever moved in was contractually obliged to repaint the bright yellow exterior. It's beige now, with the original paint starting to peek through on the garage. via The A.V. Club. |
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