How real estate agents can market property in the age of COVID-19

PHOTO: Real Estate Agent Tips

The continued impact of the coronavirus including quarantine and social distancing measures has left many Australian businesses thinking about new ways of doing business — and the real estate industry will also need to adjust. In addition to facilitating efficient transactions online, Openn Negotiation has helped us compile some practical tips to keep your property marketing campaigns moving. These tips cover Open homes, Auctions, Office Administration Settlement and more.

With an estimated 115,000 listings on the market (according to CoreLogic), agencies are looking for solutions that allow them to continue to transact property – particularly if consumers are subject to further isolation and quarantine measures which can make the familiar arrangements a challenge.

Strategies to contain the spread of the virus, such as enforced isolation and public gathering restrictions, have left many agents seeking solutions that will allow them to work with as little disruption as possible.

One of these platforms, Openn Negotiation, provides an online process that does exactly this by allowing vendors and agents to continue to list and negotiate properties under management.

The tool also allows buyers – who may be in enforced or voluntary isolation – to participate in auctions as they normally would, but from their home, office or other chosen location.

Openn Negotiations Managing director Peter Gibbons says, “We’re well-placed to support the industry and help businesses meet their COVID-19 preparedness goals – we can have agents certified via our online learning facility in under two hours.”

Business as usual… but change is coming
McGrath Geelong co-director Will Ainsworth says their team has not experienced any slowdown – yet.

“We had 48 groups through one property on Saturday then 20 on the Monday and sold it via Openn Negotiation in seven days for $110,000 above our vendors’ expectations,” he said.

“We always worry about what we can control and never forecast too far into the future and speculate on what might happen.