Ria Oxburh of the Starlight Children's Foundation with Harcourts NSW CEO, Chris Stephandellis

The Harcourts Foundation has recently granted funding approvals totalling $4,000 which will be donated to two New South Wales-based children’s charities – the Starlight Children’s Foundation and the Rainbow Club Australia. This amazing figure was raised by Harcourts staff and clients from all around New South Wales.

The Starlight Children’s Foundation, who aims to brighten the lives of seriously ill and hospitalised children and their families throughout Australia, has received a funding grant of $2,500 from The Harcourts Foundation.

The programs run by the Starlight Foundation are delivered both in and out of hospital with the aim of providing positive distraction to sick kids in their time of need.

The grant provided by The Harcourts Foundation will go towards upgrading four hospital-based ‘fun centres’ across the country which provide a unique and much needed service to seriously ill children. The upgrade will ensure that the fun centres are operable and stocked with the latest technology and equipment in order for hospitalised children to access the latest forms of entertainment.

The Rainbow Club Australia, who aims to provide children with special needs the opportunity and confidence to explore and extend their abilities through sporting and recreational activities, has received a funding grant of $1,500 from The Harcourts Foundation.

The Harcourts Foundation grant will go towards building the Rainbow Club Australia’s swimming program which encourages children of all abilities to learn to swim.

Established in August 2008 by real estate firm, Harcourts, The Harcourts Foundation aims to provide financial support that helps, grows and enriches local communities, and has received over $700,000 in donations from Harcourts staff, offices and clients around Australia and New Zealand in its first two years of operation.

Harcourts New South Wales Chief Executive Officer, Chris Stephandellis is pleased to be able to provide vital funding to these two important charities and is proud of the generosity displayed by the Harcourts team.

“The fact that these two important funding grants have been approved really highlights the generous spirit of the Harcourts NSW team and I am thrilled with the outcome. Being able to give back to our local communities is truly fantastic,” said Mr Stephandellis.

Held at the St George Motor Boat Club in San Souci on the 26^th of August, the half-day event attracted almost 100 Harcourts delegates from across New South Wales.

Harcourts New South Wales Chief Executive Officer, Chris Stephandellis was proud of the turnout and of the event overall.

“It was fantastic to see so many people from the Harcourts New South Wales team in attendance and to listen to some fantastic speakers from both within and outside Harcourts,” said Mr Stephandellis.

Three key speakers addressed the group including international author and trainer dedicated to the study of behavioural change in the corporate market, Merion Lees, Head of Specialist Divisions for Harcourts International, Julianna Forsyth, and Head of Real Estate Operations for Harcourts Australasia, Bryan Thomson.

Each speaker addressed the group individually and delivered their story which both inspired and motivated the Harcourts New South Wales team.

Following the speeches, Bryan Thomson led a question-and-answer panel discussion where three of the state’s highest performing Sales Consultants and Business Owners were asked questions by those in the audience.

This panel, consisting of Michael Garside of Dougmal Harcourts Dapto, Andrew Chrysanthou of Harcourts Unlimited Blacktown and Garth Makowski of Dougmal Campbelltown, shared their views, methods and insights into obtaining listings, marketing and selling properties in the New South Wales market.

“The event was a fantastic success and I believe everyone in the audience was inspired, motivated and enlightened by the panel discussion and the words of the great guest speakers,” said Mr Stephandellis.

The event, which celebrates real estate achievement over the April to June 2010 quarter, was held at Dalton House, Jones Bay Wharf in Pyrmont earlier this month.

The individual and office award winners competed against 40 other real estate offices and over 100 sales consultants to win their highly coveted awards.

Chris Stephandellis, Harcourts NSW CEO, is extremely proud of all the winners and their efforts.

“I am extremely proud of the winners and believe that their achievements are a testament to the amount of hard work and dedication they have put in over the quarter. These results display the fantastic team we have in New South Wales” said Mr Stephandellis.

The winners included:

CEO of Harcourts NSW’s State Office, Chris Stephandellis hopes that the Careers Night will attract well over 100 current and future real estate professionals.

The event aims to provide attendees with information on everything Harcourts, plus general details on the real estate industry, in a fun and informative manner.

As well as being informative, the event will double as a recruitment drive for Harcourts with many outstanding career opportunities available to those in attendance. Harcourts are currently looking for Sales and Property Management professionals.

“We are pleased to be able to offer this Careers Night for our next generation of real estate professionals in Sydney’s North West and the Hawkesbury region,” said Mr Stephandellis.

“Harcourts and Dougmal Harcourts is a growing real estate brand, and as part of this growth we are excited to be able to give local people the opportunity to find out more about being part of the real estate industry, the various roles, and the job opportunities that we have on offer.”

“I really believe in the Harcourts brand and I am excited to share everything this company has to offer with others. We’re hoping that this event will get people interested and enthusiastic about the Harcourts brand.”

Established in 1888 in New Zealand, Harcourts is one of the world’s fastest growing real estate companies and continues to go from strength to strength in the local and international real estate industries.

Harcourts provides industry-leading training, technology, marketing and communications solutions for its team, as well as a dynamic, well-renowned corporate culture. 

The FREE Harcourts NSW Careers Night will be held on Tuesday the 7^th of September from 6:00pm to 7:30pm at The Castle Hill Golf Club, Windsor Road, Baulkham Hills. To register for the event simply email your resume to nswstateoffice@harcourts.com.au stating which position you are interested in and why.

Harcourts Harrington Park’s new Principal and Business Owner, Michael Alexander, has spent the past 10 years in real estate, and has become one of Macarthur’s most accomplished sales professionals.

Prior to his career in real estate, Mr Alexander successfully managed businesses in the sales and tourism sectors, so he knows exactly what commitment is required to keep his clients coming back for more.

“I have lived in the Macarthur for a long time where my family and I fell in love with the beauty of the area and its community feel. I really am looking forward to opening the doors of Harcourts Harrington Park,” said Mr Alexander.

“Owning and managing this office in Harrington Park is a real opportunity – the office is perfectly situated in the Plaza to service the local community, and I look forward to extending my real estate service and advice to them.

“I hope to soon become an integral part of the local community – I know my team and I will make a huge difference.”

Mr Alexander decided to open under the Harcourts brand as it offers him the systems and technology that complements his outstanding, proven and award-winning service.

“Harcourts has the right technology and a forward-thinking mentality that complements my style of service and supports my ideas to take real estate service in this area to a whole new level,” said Mr Alexander.

Harcourts NSW CEO, Chris Stephandellis said, “We are pleased to attract such a quality leader to the Harcourts NSW team.

“Over the years I have seen Michael work hard in the local Macarthur area where he is recognised as a real estate professional that is extremely dedicated, has high standards, and delivers outstanding real estate service with honesty and integrity.”

“He is a great leader and will further strengthen the Harcourts and Dougmal Harcourts name in the Macarthur region.”

For more information please visit the website, www.harringtonpark.harcourts.com.au or call (02) 4648 5744. Harcourts Harrington Park is situated in Harrington Plaza, Shop 13.

Harcourts Murwillumbah Principal, Peter Reading was born in Murwillumbah and has been an integral part of the local real estate industry for more than 13 years. Peter is highly experienced in all aspects of real estate, especially applied to his local Murwillumbah area.

“I have been looking for a while at other franchises and training groups, and after seeing how Harcourts is run and the people in it; we decided that this is what we are looking for. The systems are great and the training looks good as well, which is very important,” Mr Reading said.

“Our aim is to establish the Harcourts name as the number one real estate office in town.”

“I have always focused on our exceptional service and developing our team, so that all clients are receiving the best possible service for their needs.”

“I am looking forward to the challenge of growing this office in the property management field and continuing to grow the sales area – we will also look to employ sales people that have the same outlook as us. “

“Long term, we would like to open more Harcourt offices in the area. I feel that in the Tweed Valley we could accommodate 4-5 offices and just south in the Bryon Shire another three.”

Harcourts NSW CEO, Chris Stephandellis said “We are pleased to have Peter and his team join Harcourts NSW. Having a Harcourts office in Murwillumbah is crucial in NSW and we look forward to working with Peter to expand his office and the Harcourts brand within the area.”

For more information please visit the website, www.murwillumbah.harcourts.com.au or call (02) 6672 7828.

About Harcourts:

With nearly 620 offices internationally, Harcourts is the fastest growing real estate agency in Australia.

Harcourts is the exclusive Australasian and South Pacific representative of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World ™, the largest real estate network on earth consisting of 650 companies, 5,000 offices, and 150,000 sales consultants.

Harcourts International has its own charitable foundation – The Harcourts Foundation ‘To provide support that helps, grows, and enriches our communities’.

Harcourts New South Wales CEO Chris Stephandellis said preliminary figures showed total sales achieved in March was $19.3 million up from $27.5 million in the same month last year.

“As we continue into 2010, we are seeing prices climb, showing no signs of stopping,” Mr Stephandellis said.

“This could be because of the increasing lack of supply, which means there is serious competition between home buyers and investors for listed properties.”

“Quite simply there are not enough properties for the number of buyers and that is reflected in the number of new housing loans been created.”

Recently REINSW released the median house prices for the New South Wales’ local government areas for the October to December 2009 quarter.

In the immediate Wollongong area, the median house price has gone up 18 per cent from the same quarter in 2008 to $419,000 from $355,000.

Generally in the Illawarra, the median house price has gone up nearly 20 per cent from the same quarter in 2008 to $395,000 from $330,000.

“These figures indicate a stellar growth in the area, and is certainly supported by Harcourts and Dougmal Harcourts’ sales in the Illawarra region,” Mr Stephandellis said.

Harcourts’ report is a confidence boost for NSW property investors; however Mr Stephandellis warns buyers to plan carefully when entering the market.

“While conditions are strong, NSW has major issues with housing shortages in the residential rental market, increasing rental prices, and investors leaving the market because of the various Council red tape and costs, as well as the myriad of other NSW State Government taxes and charges.

NB: If you would like specific reports of your area in New South Wales, market comments are available for all major regions. Please contact Amanda Freeman on 07 3227 4209 or 0401 392 332.

Blog: http://blogs.harcourts.com.au/chrisstephandellis

Harcourts NSW CEO Chris Stephandellis said preliminary figures showed total sales achieved in February was $36.5 million up from $20 million in the same month last year.

“In addition, in the last 12 months alone we have brought on seven new offices around the state, which have definitely contributed to our massive increase in sales,” Mr Stephandellis said.

“Despite market jitters surrounding interest rate rises, sales figures indicate buyers still have confidence in the market.”

“While these dramatically increased sales figures indicate Harcourts’ growth in the area, they also show how strong the NSW property market has become over the last 12 months.”

Harcourts’ report is a confidence boost for NSW property investors; however Mr Stephandellis warns buyers to plan carefully when entering the market.

“While conditions are strong, NSW has major issues with housing shortages in the residential rental market, increasing rental prices, and investors leaving the market because of the various Council red tape and costs, as well as the myriad of other NSW State Government taxes and charges.

“These elements have created issues within the NSW market that need to be addressed by all levels of Government, in particular the NSW State government if the NSW property market is really going to take off.”

“Housing really is a rapidly growing issue for the state, with the fastest growing population in Australia, NSW is being impeded by this lack of real policy in the Housing Sector.”

What is the solution? Mr Stephandellis predicts the only way to solve the problem is to scrap Housing NSW from being a landowner, and allowing the private sector the responsibility of housing people with the right incentives administered by Housing NSW.

“This is a drastic solution, however by doing this, building activity and building auxiliary industries would be increased and it would stimulate further property investment in NSW.”

Harcourts Greater Port Macquarie will open in Port Macquarie and Wauchope next week, which are a result of a re-branding from Raine and Horne to Harcourts by local real estate owner, Ross Lindsay.

Mr Lindsay is a fifth generation local with more than 20 years’ experience in the property industry.

He said is looking to continue his businesses growth and expansion across the region under the Harcourts banner.

“I have been operating my real estate business in the local area since 1989, so this re-brand is a big move,” Mr Lindsay said.

“The property market in the greater Port Macquarie region is strong, which is why I have based my business here.

“Over the next few years my goal is to open another branch in the district south of Port Macquarie.

“All branches will function as full service real estate agencies. Harcourts Greater Port Macquarie will offer everything from residential, rural property to commercial property sales as well as implementing mortgage and insurance brokering services,” Mr Lindsay said.

The Hastings Valley property market is strong, which is a great platform for Harcourts’ growth throughout Port Macquarie.

“Across the valley, demand for housing under $400,000 is high, with purchasers seeking small acreage holdings up to $600,000 on the increase. We find quality rural properties are also a scarce resource lately,” he said.

“90 per cent of property sales in the last 12 months have been in the under $500,000 bracket, which wasn’t surprising because of the first home owner’s grant increase,” he said.

On the back of the offices success, business owners Andrew Drane and Chris De Celis are launching a new office in Castle Hill next week.

Owner Andrew Drane said the awards evening was a fantastic showcase of Harcourts’ strength in the New South Wales market.

“I am proud of Harcourts Baulkham Hill’s achievement. Our office has achieved a 20 per cent increase in revenue over the past 12 months despite tough conditions, which was an amazing feat in itself,” Mr Drane said.

“I think this award gave us an added confidence about expanding into Castle Hill,” he said.

“The business model used for the Baulkham Hills office is incredibly successful, so we wanted to emulate this in the Castle Hills area.

“Our new office will open next week, and is targeted towards the luxury end of the property market,” Mr Drane said.

Andrew and Chris have been operating around the Hills for many years, and are experts in the local real estate market.

Owner Chris De Celis said the pair’s business goals are to win the top office award annually as well as grow the businesses rent rolls to expand its property management division.

“We want to be the top office in the Hills district, offering prime properties for sale and rent while delivering premium quality service,” Mr De Celis said.

“Harcourts is a global real estate franchise company with more than 625 offices worldwide, so the brand is strong and owners such as us receive great support from head office,” he said.

For more information, please visit Harcourts’ website, www.harcourts.com.au.

If you would like to list your property or find out about properties for sale in your area, please call Chris and Andrew’s team on 02 9686 3999.