remoov.com.au Cuts Out Agents
May 18, 2009 by Emma Sorensen
remoov.com.au is a new website aimed at making it easier for Australian property owners to sell their own properties, without an agent.
Unlike existing for sale by owner (FSBO) websites like buymyplace.com.au, remoov.com.au doesn’t contain any listings itself or present a threat to the established portals. Instead, it agregates its customers’ listings to Australia’s two biggest players – realestate.com.au and domain.com.au.
So it’s sellers, not buyers, who visit remoov.com.au. They are provided with:
- A solicitor
- Contract of sale
- Valuation
- Professional Photography
- Customised brochures
- Customised for sale sign board (installed in your home)
- listing on realestate.com.au and domain.com.au
- Tips & guides
- Free-call 1800 help line
Packages start at $3,300 with no commission. While this doesn’t look like a bargain, the company argue that based on a $500,000 property, you’ll save around $20,000 each time you sell with Remoov.
On the company’s website they write:
“Remoov has been set up by a group of people who care about putting money back in the pockets of Australians at a time we could all use it. And the important thing is – we know what we’re doing. Together, our directors have sold literally thousands of residential properties in our time. We’re absolutely delighted to be able to bring Remoov to life and deliver Australia’s first real alternative to an agent.”
Click here to watch a video about how remoov.com.au works.
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Who is behind Remoov?
So why are these private sellers being allowed on realestate.com.au?
Well, I am impressed with to concept behind this service, and will definitely be recommending it to my family (recently ripped off by Real Estate agents) and to my clients as an alternatice.
Lisa, real estate is real estate whether it is being sold by a private individual or by an agent. That is why they are called Real Estate *Agents*. Why shouldn’t they be allowed on realestate.com.au?
You are absolutely right Elizabeth they should be allowed on, but unfortunately currently the REA TOS very clearly disallow the practice.
What this means essentially is that whether they ( REA ) have a right to deny private sale companies operated by agents is not the immediate issue. The immediate issue is that anyone using REA for private sales is misrepresenting the REA to the public and my legal advice is very clear on such a practice.
Certain things will need to happen to further the cause of private sales but meantime I perceive that any company knowingly offering a disputed service is engaging in misleading advertising. Such practices took up at least 50% of my CPD points this year.It’s a very dangerous practice for a real estate agent and that’s why PropertyNow is not using REA for the purpose of Private sales, at least until their policy changes or as a directive of a legal body requires such change.
Until then, sound minds will lament the issue but also realise that attempting change in the wrong way will not advantage anyone.
It is in my perception, possible that Private sellers themselves may have legal recourse against companies who misrepresent things, even if they feel justified in their actions. Furthermore other private sale companies may also have legal remedies against them.
And I don’t think that one could rule out the REA having a case to answer also.
It shall be an interesting year no doubt about that.
Andrew Blachut
PropertyNow
Lisa, I would like to turn your question around and ask you – why should private sellers not be allowed on REA? Do you not imgine that perhaps the burden in the argument may fall on the REA not the private sellers?
Andrew
PropertyNow
People make this much more of a political issue than it needs to be….
Its really simple…Why would REA risk annoying the agents in the hope to gain the tiny FSBO market?
Dead right Max
Over the years FSBO players have come and gone in the AU mkt
Its not a real business and never will be.
FSBO is for owners who are able to handle negotiation.
Reality is a lot of what you pay a GOOD agent for is their negotiation skills.
Many a fsbo sale falls over because the vendor and purchaser cant negotiate a succesful outcome.
Snoop, to my mind, the most important thing for people to remember before they try to sell their own house is how easy it is to end up in court for a tiny misrepresentation that could end up in hundreds of thousands of losses.
I am not an agent right now but I was a yellow jacket at one time or another and still hold a licensee – but I still would never sell my own home.
The FSBO V REA debate really cracks me up to be honest. People with vested interests touting ‘discrimination’ REA’s way (on other sites) – talk about trivializing the term.
Last time I looked, REA wasn’t a public service but IS a company. And last time I checked, any company had the right to refuse business unless it was on GENUINE and REAL discriminatory terms.
To Max and the guy supporting Max’s comments – seriously guys you have got to be kidding. You belittle private sales and the industry supporting it. What would you say to the client who used our service last week, sold privately in 5 days and saved fifty five thousand dollars.
Only a complete fool or someone so blinded by total vested interest would dismiss that type of occurence and suggest as you both did, that private sales will never amount to anything in Australia.
So far PropertyNow has helped over 300 people to sell privately but you can ignore that, while the future of real estate in Australia is being shaped. Talk about Rip Van Winkle
…..um guys just so you know….the Wright Brothers managed to get a plane in the air recently.
Andrew Blachut
Owner
PropertyNow
By the way Max and Snoop, regarding Max’s desperate resort at the ole ” use an agent or risk getting sued or losing your house ” routine – let me challenge you Max.
Come back here and post an example of a Private seller who got sued , lost their house, lost money because they sold privately etc………. and for every one of those you post in here, I will post 3 about agents who ripped the public off, caused loss of money , were sued or fined…..deal Max?
You should take a look at what Peter Mericka and Tim O Dwyer have to say about agents , their control of the industry and their effectiveness.
Get educated before you post comments such as these, as you simply show ignorance of the real issues.
300 sales out of around 500k per annum
yep its a niche,and for the more educated vendor
maybe total industry is one per cent
Lot of noise about nothing.
Good and fair points Andrew.
But to suggest you are re-shaping the property industry (that’s how it reads) is a little over the top.
As for the challenge, given over 99% of transactions are made by agents I wouldn’t have thought that to be a level playing field. Bit like me giving you a 99m head start over 100m.
The truth is both sides of the arguments made here are based on fear. I would never sell my own home because I don’t have professional indemnity insurance and find the risk too great (fear). At the same time, your business is based on the “agents will rip you off” (fear).
We can all use anecdotal evidence till the cows come home but, back to my original comments (the words before the sentence that got Andrew wound up), its about choice. Vendors have a choice to use agents or sell themselves, REA have a choice to allow FSBO online or not and even I get a choice…..
right now choice card reads
Vendors selling through agents = 99% +
REA = No FSBO
Me = Find a decent agent and make them do their best