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GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋 Mark your diaries: or those of you that want to start 2027 ahead of your competition, we've got time for one more 30 day challenge this year. This one focuses on content and lead generation. Hop on the waitlist today for a special offer tomorrow. |
TRUE OR FALSE? The city of Bendigo in Victoria is named after an English boxing champion. (Scroll to the bottom for the answer!) |
In today's edition of The Brief - More female leaders, or better leaders? Lisa Pennell's answer isn't the obvious one.
- Got downsizers who don't want to move? Joel Parkinson's agent found a way.
- Think younger voters love the negative gearing changes? They're as keen as Boomers to scrap them.
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TODAY'S FEATURE  More female leaders, or better leaders?What happens when you get to the top and realise there's no one left to ask? Barry Plant CEO Lisa Pennell joins Samantha McLean and Chris Hanley on The Edit, with John Cunningham staying on for the first half, for a candid conversation about leadership, bias and the behaviour our industry walks past. The Question: Does real estate need more female leaders, or better leadership? Lisa is three and a half years into her first CEO role, leading a franchise network through a rebrand and a market that is testing everyone's nerve. Her answer to the question might not be the one you expect. |
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What you'll learn in the full episode: - The bias test that caught Lisa out – and what it had her doing at home.
- The rebrand she stopped halfway through, and why.
- Chris's line on what young agents learn from the people who write the biggest GCI.
Listen/Watch the full episode → |
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TOGETHER WITH APLYID  Compliant on paper, exposed in practice: Where Australian agencies stand on AMLIf your AML setup still means chasing ID documents by email and ticking boxes in a spreadsheet, you're not alone. According to APLYiD, plenty of Australian agencies grabbed whatever was quickest under deadline pressure, and some are already looking for a second system. Their new piece looks at what the agencies doing well have in common: tools built for a real estate office, checks that run inside the software you already use, predictable costs, and a complete record ready for AUSTRAC the same day it's asked for. With AUSTRAC now issuing penalties to businesses that haven't enrolled, book a free 15-minute AML health check and see where your gaps are. Learn more → |
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DEPT OF LEGISLATION  Younger voters want negative gearing changes reversedThe generation the new negative gearing and CGT rules were meant to help is just as eager to scrap them. Gen Z and Millennials match Baby Boomers in backing a party that would undo the reforms, and one in five would vote on that pledge alone. With the Coalition and One Nation both promising a rollback, OurTop10's Mansour Soltani has a pointed read on why. |
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DEPT OF DATA  Five Sydney markets on Hotspotting's investor radarIf your investor clients are priced out of Sydney houses, Tim Graham reckons established units are where to look. Hotspotting's top five – Cumberland, Canterbury-Bankstown, Campbelltown, the Central Coast, and Blacktown – pair relatively affordable entry prices with rental demand and infrastructure spending. His caveat: choose carefully where new apartments keep going up. |
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DEPT OF MARKETING  US agents swap walkthroughs for TikTok comedy skitsAssociate broker Lisa DuBois hides inside her own listings – wardrobes, crawl spaces, Murphy beds – and one of her TikTok hide-and-seek videos drew about 14 million views. In San Diego, Compass agent Merek Greene gave a listing the full Love Island treatment. The catch (there's always one): no strong evidence yet that comedy tours bring more genuine buyers than a standard walkthrough. |
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HOW IT SOLD  The Eleebana garage that became a lake-view roomDaniel Mark of Century 21 Novocastrian advised the vendors of a vacant home to invest in presentation before going live, including converting the double garage into living space overlooking Lake Macquarie. The campaign drew 52 buyers over nine weeks and one offer. Daniel then kept a three-to-four-day negotiation moving, with the buyers agreeing to complete pool drainage repairs. Find out the story behind how it sold → Is your name invisible to AI? Start getting published. getailsa.com → |
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CELEBRITY HOMES  Surfing world champion Joel Parkinson downsizes without leaving the buildingHere's a downsize with a $10.1 million cash bonus attached. Joel and Monica Parkinson sold their full-floor Flow Residences apartment and bought a half-floor in the same Rainbow Bay development. Kerry Pezet of Pezet Matheson matched them with an owner who needed more room, so neither home went to market (a database earning its keep). Read the full article → |
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MOVERS & SHAKERS  Peter Brewer and Doug Disher named REIQ life membersMore than 80 years in real estate between them has earned Peter Brewer and Doug Disher REIQ life membership – the Institute's highest honour, by its own description. Peter chaired the REIQ from April 2018 until October 2025, while Doug, a member since 1990, has run his independent Toowong agency since 1995. Both were formally welcomed at the Institute's annual general meeting. |
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Success doesn't rest on weekends!
Get top agent and agency moves every Sunday in Movers & Shakers. Subscribe now. |
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AGENTS ON SOCIAL Affordable housing, now with a slide into reality. 🛝🏡 |
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TRUE OR FALSE: The city of Bendigo in Victoria is named after an English boxing champion. And the answer is … It's true! Mostly, anyway. In 1840 the land was part of a sheep run called Ravenswood. The man running its southern end was a big fan of England's boxing champion, William Abednego Thompson – such a fan he took the boxer's middle name as his own nickname. Trouble was, hardly anyone could say "Abednego". So it got mangled into "Bendigo", and that's the name that stuck. Officially, the city was Sandhurst until 1891, when it finally gave in and became Bendigo too. via Museums Victoria. |
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