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For some, the thought of buying a pair of shoes or a piece of furniture just from seeing a photo online is daunting enough. So imagine buying a house without ever stepping foot inside.During lockdown, buyers have been restricted to searching and buying property virtually, with both in-person property inspections and on-site auctions paused in both the ACT and NSW. But that hasn’t slowed down the hot property market in the Canberra region, with sales continuing despite many never having stepped foot in the property they’re buying. In fact some have even still been snapped up before auction.Many agents were initially unsure how restrictions would affect sales. For <a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/justin-taylor/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Justin Taylor</a> from McGrath selling <a href="/sale/33-katoomba-street-harrison-act-2914-45728/">33 Katoomba Street, Harrison</a>, they had one open home before lockdown came in, and had to change the scheduled auction from in-person to online.“We had 27 registered bidders for the online auction of which only seven of the registered bidders had actually viewed the property in person,” says Justin.With another sale of <a href="/sale/13-auburn-street-amaroo-act-2914-19069/">13 Auburn Street, Amaroo</a>, they didn’t even have to go to auction.<img alt="IMG_8669.jpg" class="richtext-image full-width" height="674" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/IMG_8669.width-800.jpg" width="750">“The most notable lockdown sale for myself and <a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/dimi-romero/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dimi Romero</a> is <a href="/sale/13-auburn-street-amaroo-act-2914-19069/">13 Auburn Street, Amaroo</a>. We sold this property pre-Auction after only 14 days on the market for $1.1million, well in excess of the sellers’ expectations,” says Justin.“We had zero open homes, zero Inspections, approximately 75 enquiries via email and phone, and multiple offers were received.”Without open homes or even private inspections allowed, agents have been relying predominantly on technology to help potential buyers feel like they’ve walked through the home, without ever actually stepping foot inside. This usually involved obtaining video footage of walking through the home, either getting it themselves in-line with government restrictions, or even relying on vendors to shoot the footage themselves.<img alt="Justin Taylor &amp; Dimi Romero McGrath" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/justin_dimi_article.width-800.png" width="800">For both the Amaroo and Harrison properties, Justin was able to attend himself and do thorough video walk-throughs, adding his own basic commentary about the features, inclusions and overall condition both inside and outside the property. He then sent through the footage to any potential buyers who contacted him.“I personally want all of my buyers to be thrilled with the property they have purchased, and not to be disappointed at all, hence why I really go out of my way to capture as much detail about the property as possible with the iphone video footage and virtual walk through.”<img alt="dimi_article.png" class="richtext-image full-width" height="530" src="https://d2t3vhau9g43uy.cloudfront.net/media/images/dimi_article.width-800.png" width="800">And while attending house auctions online via video link would have been new for most, Justin says that hasn’t restricted numbers—in fact it’s had the opposite effect.“We are finding that the number of registered bidders for all of our online auctions is approximately double that of our normal numbers. We have been averaging around 15 to 16 registered bidders per online auction, and for the Harrison property we had 27. Normally we would average around seven or eight registered bidders for on-site auctions,” says Justin.“We are also noticing that the number of interested parties logging on to view each auction is averaging in excess of 100 people. Again, probably double that of a normal auction.”While lockdown was extended for four weeks in the ACT, <a href="/news/lockdown-extended-but-private-real-estate-inspections-now-permitted-in-canberra/">restrictions have eased allowed in-person inspections by private appointment to go ahead from this weekend</a>.

Buying homes sight unseen during lockdown

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Moving from <a href="https://zango.com.au/research/suburb/harden-nsw-2587/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Country NSW</a> to the <a href="https://zango.com.au/research/suburb/city-act-2601/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Bush Capital</a> as a school leaver, <a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/chris-fredericks/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Chris Fredericks</a> has asserted himself into Canberra’s property market and never looked back.Just four years ago, Chris started his career at <a href="https://zango.com.au/agencies/luton-gungahlin/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Luton Properties Gungahlin</a> as a receptionist with no real estate qualifications.Now, he finds himself as a young, passionate and ambitious registered agent who is named one of Luton&#x27;s Top 10 sales agents.Chris said he is proud of his career journey so far, putting it down to the mentors he has looked up to along the way.“I am definitely proud of what I have achieved, but I can’t put it all down to myself because I have had great mentors and assistance,” he said.“My Aunt, <a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/suzi-wells-1/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Suzi Wells</a>, is the General Manger of <a href="https://zango.com.au/agencies/mcgrath-north-canberra/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">McGrath North Canberra</a> and I really look up to her as a role model.”“<a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/nick-paine/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nick Paine</a> also gave me my start in the industry, and I had a lot of exposure working with <a href="https://zango.com.au/agents/katrice-velnaar/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Katrice Velnaa</a>r.”Chris said that the guidance he received by those closest to him in the industry made for an easy transition when the time came for him to go out on his own.“The more I learned, the more I wanted to grow and start running my own business,” he said.“Just last year I was recognised as the highest business growth in the whole company.”“That was a really special achievement for me.”Putting his professional achievements aside, Chris does not forget where he was raised and how that has impacted his success.“I grew up in a small country town…and I have a lot of memories of my parents starting their own business from scratch, building it up to what it is today,” he said.“Their hard work was all I saw growing up and became second nature to me as I started building my own business.”Chris’ advice for those considering a career in real estate is simple, “stay true to who you are. Doing that will make people like you and come to you for their residential needs.”Chris is now in his second year of being a Sales Consultant at Luton and specialises in the areas of <a href="https://zango.com.au/research/suburb/amaroo-act-2914/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Amaroo</a> and <a href="https://zango.com.au/research/suburb/palmerston-act-2913/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Palmerston</a>.When asked about a memorable sale, Chris did not hesitate to tell the story behind 25 Beazley Crescent in <a href="https://zango.com.au/research/suburb/calwell-act-2905/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Calwell</a>.“I had family friends I used to go skiing with who wanted me to sell their property. After one week on the market we had 50 groups through and achieved a result well above the asking price,” he said.“The buyers were first home buyers and we so excited because it ticked all the boxes for them.”“And at the same time, my family friends were so thrilled with the experience and helping them out was really special to me.”About 17 months into being a Sales Consultant, Chris epitomises the younger generation of real estate agents who are hungry for a successful career.Reflecting on this drive for success, Chris puts it down to his love for sport and people.“I used to play a lot of competitive sport and I don’t do a lot of sitting around,” he said.“I love socialising and you will often find me with friends and with a beverage of some sort in my hand.”Chris Fredericks is certainly a name that will be cemented in the property industry for years to come.

2 news articles with tag amaroo

Buying homes sight unseen during lockdown

Chris Fredericks: The 23-year-old agent from Harden who is making his mark on Canberra’s Property Market.