The Prime Minister?

Last Friday when going through the daily mail there was one rather amazing surprise. There was an Australian Government letterhead which I initially didn’t take a great deal of interest in but read on to find it was a letter of congratulations in relation to our recent Australian Business Excellence Award. On reading further the penny dropped, this was actually a personal letter from the Prime Minister Hon John Howard. Now whether you vote Labor, Liberal or any other political pursuasion let me tell you from our perspective receiving a letter of congratulations from the Prime Minister of Australia, personally signed is some thrill. For our locally born and bred Real Estate business this really is a special moment in the history of our company. To have won such a prestigious Australian award and then to have it recognised in a personal letter like this by our Prime Minister is going to be a thrill hard to beat.
Whilst we have had an amazing decade winning everything from the South Australian Government Telstra Small Business Award, local Real Estate Institute awards (including Best Agency) and the national Real Estate Institute of Australia award for marketing, this most recent Australian award has really capped off quite an amazing period of national recognition for Toop&Toop.
These accolades are greatly appreciated, however it only serves to put more pressure on the whole team to remain vital and relevant into the future and not rest on the glory of all this recognition.
Thank you to all South Australians for trusting and backing Toop&Toop and for your constructive feed back when we don’t get it right to help with our on going improvement journey.


Anthony Toop, Managing Director.


www.toop.com.au


© Toop Real Estate Group

Selling Luxury Homes

In recent months there has been a noticeable presence of large residential homes for sale in Adelaide. As many would know Toop&Toop set the record price of 5.3 million dollars in January with the settlement of “Springwood Park” and subsequently followed up in April with the sale of the “The Myrtles” in Medindie at 5.2 million dollars.
At present we have “Clifton Manor” a large estate like property situated in the eastern suburbs of Adelaide and “Arbury Park” at Stirling which are both icon residential properties in South Australia. As can be seen with the 2006 record prices, the luxury market in Adelaide is alive and well and demand has never been better.
Historically homes in the multi million dollar price range would take years not weeks to sell, at present these properties have been selling within 3 months of release to the market. For those who are looking for an anecdotal type comparison to previous markets the best rule of thumb is that the 1 million dollar sale in 1990 would have secured a home with similar features that today is equivalent to the 4 million dollar sale.
Finding homes in the top end of the market, or for that matter pretty well any part of the market, the web stands head and shoulders above all other information sources so go to toop.com.au to have a really good look at what we have to offer. You will also find us on the major websites including Australia’s largest sites realestate.com.au and domain.com.au. If it’s only luxury you want, then have a snoop on the international level where you will find us (and other premium agencies from around the world) on luxuryhomes.com
Happy house hunting!


Anthony Toop, Managing Director.


www.toop.com.au


© Toop Real Estate Group

SA winners strong performers at 2006 Australian Business Excellence Awards

Toop’s have won another significant award - the 2006 Business Excellence Award announced in Sydney last week. We are very proud of this award, as we are always striving to be the best at what we do, so these awards show we are on the right track.
Here is an extract from a press release from the Australian Business Excellence Awards organisation.
“Three Adelaide businesses, Toop & Toop, UnitingCare Wesley, and Julia Farr Services, received accolades at the 18th Australian Business Excellence Awards tonight - Australia’s most prestigious and sought-after business awards. The Awards, which are designed to recognise and reward excellence in business improvement and performance, are open to all organisations, from small business, not for profit organisations, government bodies to large listed companies.
Topping the Adelaide group was independent real estate agency Toop & Toop, which won the Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) award. “This award is extremely important to Toop & Toop,” says Managing Director Anthony Toop. “To pitch ourselves against the best of the best in a general business environment is really important, and we understand that to maintain an exciting business with the level of competition from interstate and overseas, we have to deliver on an international standards playing field.”
Toop & Toop, UnitingCare Wesley, and Julia Farr Services all underwent 12 months of rigorous assessment to be in the running for this year’s coveted business award. According to Ross Wraight, CEO of SAI Global, which conducts the Awards, the evaluation teams assigned to assessing each business were extremely impressed with their operations and dedication to best practice”.
We are proud South Australians mixing it with the best.


Anthony Toop, Managing Director.


www.toop.com.au


© Toop Real Estate Group

Awards, Awards, Awards.......and how is our Adelaide market tracking!

Awards.... It seems the media is full of every imaginable award but not with standing this, this week Toop&Toop have been recognised in the Australian Business Excellence Awards yet again on a National level for the way in which we have been conducting our business her in Adelaide. While at the time of writing the extent of our success is yet to be announced we have been asked to fly to Sydney for a special evening of celebration for the announcement of the winners. At the very least we are in the National Finals, whether we win will be revealed this evening (Wednesday 7th June).
As the current winner of Agency of the year with the Real Estate of South Australia and the National Winner of the Australian Real Estate Institute for Excellence in Marketing it is wonderful to have the team acknowledged on a National Level when pitched against general businesses and not just Real Estate Organisations. Next week we will let you know how we went, so for all those South Australians we hope to “come home with the bacon” for you.
The market is holding firm for those who are following it, and the Reserve Bank decision to hold rates for another month is most helpful. The top end of the market, which we feel is one million dollar plus, has remained strong and infact areas such as Golden Grove have seen a rally in recent months. This rally was not expected given petrol prices and the recent interest rate increase, so who knows why but we are very happy to be reporting this.
Confidence in jobs and in the economy is clearly our biggest influencing factor on sales and in South Australia there is no shortage of confidence at present. Not with standing this, pricing is now critical and make no mistake the boom is finished. Buyers are prevalent but no longer irresponsible and are far more calculating. As a consequence fewer sales are occurring well over the expected price range. Auction clearance rates are steady around the 60% mark and average time on the market is around six weeks for Private Treaty sales and four weeks for Auction sales, except in the top end where predictably sales are occurring within a few months.
Investors will be pleased with the increasing trend of rents with the vacancy rate under 2% and returns better than they have been for the past five years.
In summary, a very healthy market that is in a sustainable pattern and Adelaide property owners can rest easy!


Anthony Toop, Managing Director.


www.toop.com.au


© Toop Real Estate Group

Australasian Auction Championships Here We Come...

Congratulations to Phil Harris on his success with the Golden Gavel Awards. As runner up he now finds his place in the big game of the Australasian Auction Championships to be held in New Zealand.
It was a terrific night at the Golden Gavel and the quality of competition was so far ahead of the early days of the competition that it makes us all realise just how far the profession has come in the last decade.
So, Phil ‘go get em buddy’ and good luck mixing it with the best of the best of the region.
While we are on auctions, it was great to read about Toop&Toop’s extraordinary clearance rates that were achieved over the past few weeks while I have been away. A big congratulations to the whole Toop&Toop team for the most extraordinary couple of months ... we must be doing something right!
For those selling their properties, just enjoy the boom like conditions while they last...remember nothing lasts forever so take advantage of the market now.
Happy House Hunting.


Anthony Toop, Managing Director.


www.toop.com.au


© Toop Real Estate Group