PHOTO: Alison McCallum | @realty
Experienced realtor Alison McCallum is returning to her Christchurch home working as one of the first New Zealand recruits for @realty after a stint selling property in Australia.
@realty is one of Australia’s fastest-growing agencies, with 750-plus agents internationally and $3 billion in property sold in the past financial year. The company made its first foray into New Zealand in September, prompting Ms McCallum to make the move back to her native Christchurch.
Ms McCallum, who has been working with @realty in regional Queensland, says the agency has been a welcome change to the way the real estate industry operates, bringing benefits for both agents and vendors.
She says @realty’s new model encouraged her to come back to real estate after running into headwinds with her own franchise as well as working for other companies.
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“I have worked in real estate for about 16 years, and there’s so much variety in the way things are done, and that lack of consistency can be an issue,” she said.
“I worked for an online company for a while, but they didn’t have the right systems in place. I ran my own franchise too – but there are overheads that make it difficult for smaller businesses to compete.
“I decided I wanted to work under someone but didn’t want to give all of my hard-earned money away to a franchise, and I wanted the flexibility of running things my way.”
Ms McCallum said @realty “ticked all the boxes” due to its network, administrative and marketing expertise.
“I like the fact that my clients benefit from this too – I can provide them with more cost-effective marketing, and can sell through @realty’s entire network, rather than being limited by franchise agreements,” she said.
“When I heard @realty was making the move to New Zealand I decided to move with them, and I’m very excited to be one of the first members of their team here.”
@realty director James Taylor says the company already has 19 agents and agencies on board in New Zealand, and is aiming to increase its ranks in line with its Australian team.
“New Zealand is the perfect place for @realty to continue its march as a growing agency, especially considering the number of people moving between the countries.
“There’s nothing like @realty in New Zealand and that’s why we’re here – to fill a gap in the market for agents, vendors and purchasers.”