This CEO hasn't sat at a desk in 15 years (on purpose) 🪑

GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋

TODAY'S FEATURE

The CEO who ditched his desk 15 years ago

Matt Lahood leads roughly 900 people at The Agency, and he hasn't sat at a desk in more than 15 years. He walks the floor daily looking for what he calls "the black cloud" over someone's head – then buys them a coffee. After eleven interviews with Elite Agent since 2017, we've pulled together 30 of his sharpest lessons on leading, selling, and lasting in this industry.

What you'll learn in the full article:

• The forehead test: one in five buyers at your next open home is secretly interviewing you for a listing, and Matt explains exactly how to spot them.
• The three-price rule: Matt says it's "very hard to lose a listing" once you give an owner these three numbers, and one of them is deliberately heartless.
• The Friday cutoff: for over 20 years he's booked nothing after midday Friday, and the two-week review ritual he runs instead is the real reason it works.

Read the full article →

TOGETHER WITH REALESTATE.COM.AU

Realestate.com.au launches five AI-powered tools in the NextGen Now product suite

Turns out most buyers chatting to AI aren't typing a suburb first – they're describing a lifestyle, a commute, a feeling about a renovation project. Realestate.com.au has built its NextGen Now suite around that shift, bundling AI Assistant, Campaign Assist, AI Search, iGUIDE tours and Property Walkthrough Reels to help your listings speak the same language buyers are already using.

Have a look at what's in the toolkit and how it can sharpen your next campaign.

Learn more →

DEPT OF MONETARY POLICY

RBA holds at 4.35% as economists split on next move

The cash rate stays put, but a Compare the Market survey found 65% of households say one more hike would tip their budgets over the edge. Domain's Nicola Powell notes supply just hit a seven-year high across the capitals, giving buyers more choice heading into spring. The next real test comes at September's meeting.

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

MRI Software helps property management teams simplify operations by bringing workflows, automation and portfolio visibility into one connected, cloud-based platform.

Its technology is designed to reduce fragmented systems and manual processes, automating high-volume tasks including inspections, maintenance, invoicing and communication. Real-time insights and AI provide greater visibility across portfolios while helping teams strengthen compliance and improve consistency.

At PM/ONE, MRI Software will showcase its latest property management innovations through live demonstrations, giving attendees the opportunity to see how its connected solutions can reduce administration, streamline operations and give teams more time to focus on clients and growth.

See MRI Software at PM/ONE
PM/ONE brings Australia’s property management community together in Sydney on 13–14 September 2026. Explore the event and get your tickets at PM1.com.au.

DEPT OF DATA

Cromwell, Napier next to hit $1M median

Auckland used to own the million-dollar suburb tag – 76 of 79 back in 2016. Ray White's Atom Go Tian reckons that's changing for good: Christchurch has climbed to 15 such suburbs, and Cromwell, Aidanfield and Matua are all within $20,000 of joining the club within six months. Auckland and Wellington, notably, have nothing left approaching the mark from below.

HOW IT SOLD

A global campaign, but the buyer was local

James Doole targeted offshore buyers for a Victoria Avenue estate through Luxury Portfolio International and Chinese buyer platforms. Instead, a local family upsizing within the grammar zone bought the property in just 22 days, sourced through James's relationships with fellow Remuera agents.

Find out the story behind how it sold →

A listing lasts weeks. The case study lasts forever. getailsa.com →

CELEBRITY HOMES

A pioneering legend takes the spotlight

Since 1908, only four families have called 81 Windsor Road home – and now buyers get the rare shot at becoming custodian number five. Tamara Lee, who has the listing with Harcourts Solutions, says the history is as much the drawcard as the timber verandas and high ceilings.

"You're not just buying the architecture. You're buying into 117 years of stories."

Read the full article →

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Pardeep Singh – taking calculated risks to achieve success

Pakenham and Officer have become Pardeep Singh's turf, built on first home buyers and investors in a market with a median price from around $750,000. After selling 55 to 60 properties last year, he's now backing himself to crack 100 in 2024, running a three-person team with his own rental division through the Area Specialist platform.

Norman Tran promoted to associate director at Adrian William Marrickville's most active agent this year, according to his agency, Norman Tran has gone from sales associate to associate director at Adrian William Real Estate. He joined the Sydney agency in November 2020 after six months in leasing elsewhere, and is now the first agent invited into the business since its founders established it, taking on a bigger role in growing the sales team and mentoring the associates coming through.

No two rural markets are alike, but the challenges often are Rohan Ibbs leads First National's Rural Chapter, and this year's Rural & Regional Muster in Albury-Wodonga showed him exactly why the format works. Agents from across the country traded practical strategies between sessions on innovation and business leadership, while a charity auction raised $25,000 for the First National Foundation, including $10,000 for Yes Unlimited's homelessness work.

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AGENTS ON SOCIAL

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TRUE OR FALSE:

The Chrysler Building won the race to be the world's tallest building using a spire nobody knew existed – assembled in secret inside the tower, then raised through the roof in about 90 minutes.

And the answer is …

True. William Van Alen was in a very public height race with 40 Wall Street, whose developers kept adding floors to stay in front. So he had his spire built in secret, in sections, inside the building's crown – then hoisted it up and riveted it in place in about 90 minutes. The Chrysler Building came out at 319 metres, sailing past its rival and, briefly, the Eiffel Tower. The finest off-market campaign in construction history. via Smithsonian Magazine.