Two Arrowtowners have launched the Arrowtown area’s first buyers’ agency, helping out-of-town, mostly high-end buyers find their dream Southern Lakes home.
NZ Buyers Agency is led by Jo Eddington — New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty’s former Southern Lakes GM — and former top Bayleys Arrowtown agent Holly Hargreaves — a fifth-generation descendant of the Butel family who farmed today’s Millbrook Resort.
The pair, who’ll specialise in Arrowtown, Dalefield and Lake Hayes, say buyers’ agents are becoming the norm in Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland and the United States, ‘‘but it hasn’t really hit NZ yet’’.
They differ from ‘‘vendor-centric’’ agents as they don’t list or sell real estate.
‘‘We work with all the other agents, every agency, because we’re not touching their commissions,’’ Eddington says.
However, they also source unlisted properties.
‘‘We have exclusive access to homes that aren’t listed online, allowing our clients to act fast, and secure a property before it hits the open market,’’ Hargreaves says.
Eddington adds: ‘‘Our network is like our super-power, it enables us to open doors for our clients others simply can’t.’’
She’s delighted to be teaming up with Hargreaves, whom she met within the first week of moving to Arrowtown from Auckland, two years ago.
‘‘We’ve got someone who knows the entire market, who probably would know every house that’s been bought and sold in the last decade.
‘‘I’ve got the offshore and expat connections — my entire background is Auckland, Sydney Melbourne and London — so we’re marrying those two together.
‘‘We know our clients’ time is their most valuable asset, so we have developed a process that maximises efficiency, ensuring they can secure their dream home here without it consuming their schedule.’’
Hargreaves says though she worked exclusively for vendors at Bayleys, ‘‘buyers are my forte’’.
‘‘I’m so passionate about this town and this area; this is not work for me helping people buy a property here.’’
The duo, who are paid by a buyer’s fee, launched their website — nzbuyersagency.co.nz — last week, and their office in Arrowtown’s Dudleys Cottage Precinct, by Butlers Green, opens soon.
