🏎️ You've got to slow down to be the fastest.

GOOD MORNING FROM ELITE AGENT 👋

TRUE OR FALSE?

London’s luxury mews homes got their name because wealthy Victorian buyers thought "mews" sounded more prestigious than "laneway."
(Scroll to the bottom for the answer!)

In today’s edition of The Brief

• The real edge in real estate isn’t acceleration, it’s control

• Rising listings meet stalling prices

• NSW driving 305,000 home shortfall in housing target

Today’s read time: 5 minutes, 30 seconds

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REAL ESTATE PERFORMANCE

The best agents don’t just go faster, they know when to brake

Real growth in real estate, according to leadership consultant Phill Nosworthy, doesn’t come from doing more of the same, it comes from learning when to slow down, step outside your own craft, and see the system differently.

Drawing on lessons from Formula One, Microsoft and elite healthcare, he urged agents to look beyond their own craft to find the next level of performance.

“The fastest car on race day Sunday is not the car with the biggest engine,” he shared from McLaren CEO Zak Brown. “It’s the car with the best brakes.”

The point landed clearly for real estate professionals: pushing harder without restraint leads to burnout, poor decisions and missed opportunities. Strategic slowing down, he argued, is what creates the space to speed up again with purpose.

He also highlighted Microsoft’s cultural shift under Satya Nadella, where collaboration replaced internal silos.

“Unless you have mutual value recognition, you will never get the value from it,” Phill said, underscoring the importance of shared expertise in winning environments.

Finally, he left the room with a leadership challenge: “Great leaders run two clocks.” One tracks today’s deals; the other protects long-term vision. The best in the business, he suggested, learn to hold both at once - without sacrificing either.

What you'll learn in the full article:

• The "I don't know" principle: Why having every answer makes people doubt everything you say

• Expertise variety vs mutual value recognition: The two-concept framework for high-performing teams

• The handover problem: Where your 50% improvement is hiding in your client process

• Five practical exercises: Specific actions to implement each insight this week

Read the full article

ICYMI, yesterday: Matt Lancashire on the three decisions that built Ray White Collective Luxury.

TOGETHER WITH MOSAIK

Client care is the strategy that wins the next listing

Structured client care is becoming the real battleground for future listings, according to Mosaik founder Sheila Reddy, who argues that “the assumption is that once a property settles, the relationship is finished,” when in reality “that’s where most of the opportunity is lost.” Instead of relying on generic follow-ups, agents using property-specific communication stay embedded in ownership cycles through ongoing value delivery, from council reminders to maintenance and insurance prompts.

Sheila says the impact is subtle but decisive, with many homeowners defaulting to whoever is most visible when they re-enter the market. “If you are not already embedded in their decision-making process, you are relying on chance.” Over time, she argues, the agent shifts from being remembered as a seller to becoming part of how a homeowner manages their property, and that is what ultimately drives the next listing. Read more about Mosaik here.

LISTINGS

Property influx triggers price downturn

Australia’s housing boom has hit a critical turning point as a 10.4% month-on-month flood of property stock pushed total national listings into positive annual territory for the first time in over a year. The data by SQM Research, reveals a worrying 5.1% monthly spike in distressed listings alongside widespread price exhaustion. Concurrently, asking prices have stalled nationally, posting outright monthly declines across five major capital cities, including Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.

CONSTRUCTION

The 300,000-home black hole threatening Labor’s housing dream

Construction needs to jump 49% immediately for Australia to hit Labor's 1.2 million homes target by 2029. At the current pace, we'll fall 305,000 dwellings short – and NSW is the main drag, accounting for half the national monthly shortfall despite housing just 31% of the population. Victoria and the ACT are tracking well, but until the country's most populous state closes the gap, the target stays out of reach.

HOW IT SOLD

Preview campaign and six days on market seals $546k Newcastle unit

A 1-bedroom Newcastle unit sold for $546,000 in six days after a preview advertising strategy drew three written offers, with a motivated buyer who had missed out on previous properties negotiating swiftly to close the deal. Greg Oddy of Century 21 Novocastrian identified the serious buyer early, guided her through a tight cooling-off window, and delivered an unconditional result for a young vendor planning to travel overseas.

Agents across Australia and New Zealand are turning sales into stories. getailsa.com

CELEBRITY HOMES

From Superbad to super spreadsheets: Jonah Hill’s Malibu flip returns

Jonah Hill’s former Malibu Colony home is back on the market for US$13.25 million after a whirlwind few years of rapid resales, a foreclosure twist, and a tidy US$2.1 million profit during his brief ownership. The beachside pad has changed hands four times in five years, proving even Hollywood luxury real estate can’t resist a fast-paced plot twist.

MOVERS + SHAKERS

Real estate leaders raise record funds at the Pink Tie Gala

More than 640 business leaders attended the annual event at The Star Brisbane, helping set a new fundraising benchmark for The Lady Musgrave Trust. More here.

Belle Property strengthens South East Queensland presence

The opening of Belle Property Lowood is led by experienced local agents Brett Barry and Sean O’Connor, servicing the Somerset and Lockyer Valley regions. More here.

AGENTS ON SOCIAL

You get what you pay for. 🤷‍♀️ $

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TRUE OR FALSE:

London’s luxury mews homes got their name because wealthy Victorian buyers thought "mews" sounded more prestigious than "laneway."

And the answer is …

False. The word mews actually comes from the Royal Mews, where hawks were once kept while they mewed (molted their feathers). The buildings later became stables, and when those stables were converted into homes, the name stuck. Today, some of London’s most sought-after properties are found in streets originally designed for horses and hawks.

Wishing you a productive day!

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