How we sold our property for 50% more than we paid for it last year...

You may find this hard to believe, because we certainly did, but it’s true.

In July 2002 we purchased an investment property in Wellington . Owing to a change in our circumstances, we opted to sell the property after just one year. During this time we had undertaken some refurbishment of the property and enhanced its overall presentation. We were naturally keen to recoup all the money we had outlaid, but were only cautiously optimistic of doing so. What we certainly hadn’t counted on, and were amazed to receive, was the $150,000 bonus over and above our break-even price.

The reason we achieved this amazing figure is largely due to the efforts of Tony Cramond of Leaders Real Estate. We had toyed with the idea of selling the property privately, but after reading a reference for Tony from a couple who made $80,000 on their property in just 8 weeks, we felt that we should also have a chat with Tony. After viewing the property, Tony met with us and listed out all our options, and together we decided on a marketing plan that best suited our situation. Over the next few weeks he put this plan into action, with more than the desired result.

During the selling process of our property we were highly impressed with a number of aspects in the way Tony operates, which we believe, sets him apart from the majority of real estate agents. His marketing and negotiation skills obviously speak for themselves. During the selling period, he remained in constant communication with us including giving us written reports. We were also highly impressed by the way in which he respected our tenant’s needs and conducted viewings in such a way as to not upset them in any way. We were impressed by the manner in which he conducted viewings of the property, sometimes with the assistance of two of his personal support staff to ensure the security of our property, and at the same time adequately looking after his buyers.

It is often said that actions speak louder than words, and Tony’s actions speak volumes, or in his case it should be dollars.

If you too are considering selling a property, in our opinion there is only one person you should be talking to, Tony Cramond .

Paul and Vivian Schuchmann - Lower Hutt (Vendors 16 Glendevar Street, Berhampore)

Tony “Show Me The Money” Cramond...

Why “Show Me The Money” Cramond? Because as I kept reminding him every time he gave me a daily update of proceedings “Don’t worry about feedback. Just show me the money!” And that is exactly what he did.

When Tony took on the task of selling my Wellington investment property he was being asked to sell what some people may have called a bit of an ugly duckling. However, thanks to his ability to think outside the square, and flair for advertising he turned the property into a Golden Goose for me.

When the tenders closed there were a number of offers. Two of which could only be described as dream offers, because I would never in my wildest dreams have expected to sell for that much money. I am still smiling today.

As I have already told Tony I will never even consider using anyone else to sell another property for me. If you too are looking for an approachable, friendly yet highly professional real estate agent who is guaranteed to get you top dollar then there is only one person you should be considering. Tony Cramond .

Dean Oliver - Wellington (Vendor 213 The Parade, Island Bay )

How Tony Cramond made me $80,000 in 8 Weeks...

To anyone thinking of using the sales and marketing services of Tony Cramond .

I have learned a few lessons in real estate over the years which have cost me thousands of dollars. Recently though I got it right – I am glad I did not go with the agents who offered a discounted commission rate……for me I ask “why be cheap on a few thousand dollars commission when the difference between and average and outstanding agent is tens of thousands of dollars on the purchase price.”

I am a property investor who has been buying property around Wellington for about 8 years. When it came time to sell a property I was in no doubt who I wanted to sell it. For many years whenever I saw a “for sale” sign with Tony’s face on it my heart would sink. Many times I tried and many times Tony would refuse to feed me the right information to help me be successful at getting a property at the lowest price possible. I soon came to recognize that he is a man to sell a house. I know that he is not just an agent that says he works for the vendor … he absolutely does. I have been both a buyer and seller with Tony, and much prefer being a seller than a buyer, having experienced the way he constantly extracts a top price from buyers. As a result he will always be the one to sell my property.

I bought a family home in March of 2003 at a price I thought was about right, maybe we paid a little too much, but it was a family home and it had all the criteria we wanted……

Within 6 weeks our personal circumstances changed and we needed to sell it and head overseas. I had been telling my wife for 18 months that if we ever sold a property it would be through the Cramond guy as he never ever gave me a break as a buyer and always seemed to get a premium on properties.

I have been saying that you are better to be born lucky than to be born rich but if I was not born rich I wanted to find myself an agent who had the Midas touch.

Some people believe that a 15% capital gain in one year to be an outstanding capital gain

Tony got us 15% capital gain in 8 weeks!!!

Tony is a pro. The whole process was incredibly hassle free and easy and he is fun to deal with.

I will be unlikely to buy many properties from him (I hate paying a premium) but he will always be the one to sell my properties.

Richard and Julia Petrie - (Vendors Te Anau Road , Hataitai)

Twenty two offers and over two hundred purchasers...

The interest Tony created was exceptional, and I am still overwhelmed by the whole sales process. Thanks to Tony’s intensive marketing, combined with a group effort by your whole sales team, over two hundred groups managed to view the property in just two weeks. You also can imagine my amazement when Tony presented me with twenty-two offers, with the highest one being for more than $100,000 over my initial expectations.

Bruce Fergusson - Wadestown (Vendor 59 Pembroke Road, Northland )

Five offers in one week...

Over the years Tony had kept us informed of the market via numerous promotional letters he had mailed us. While we had constantly received similar letters from other real estate agents none were as in depth, or professionally done as Tony’s. Thus we decided to give him a call. We were also aware from following the real estate section of the newspaper that he was obviously a very successful salesman.

When we met with him at the apartment, so that he could evaluate it, he not only gave us relevant information pertaining to recent sales and the best selling methods for our apartment, but also provided excellent advice on how best to present the property to maximize our return. All of this information proved invaluable and as a result of following Tony’s advice we not only sold the apartment quickly (five offers in one week) but also for a price well above of our expectations.

We have dealt with numerous real estate agents over the years, and Tony would have to be the best agent we have ever had dealings with. We thoroughly recommend him to anybody who may be thinking of selling.

Jim and Annette McCluskey - Lower Hutt (Vendors Apt 16, 12 Girton Terrace, Mount Cook )

Deferred maintenance - yet still selling $150,000 above GV...

The property was an investment property I had owned for a number of years and was at the stage where it required substantial “deferred maintenance” as Tony referred to it. As I did not wish to be involved in the sales process in any great way I left everything in what proved to be, Tony’s more than capable hands. He arranged and coordinated the complete sales process in a highly professional and stress free manner. From arranging the necessary letters advising the tenants that the property was going on the market, through to ensuring the property was properly presented for sale.

The offers themselves were fantastic. There were nine offers, and the property sold for more than $150,000 above the Government Valuation in a very short time. How Tony achieved this, considering the overall condition of the property, is amazing.

I can highly recommend Tony to anybody who is considering any form of real estate, as I am certain you also will receive his professional, stress free service resulting in a successful and lucrative sale.

Stuart Holford - Hataitai (Vendor 7 Dee Street, Island Bay)

Besieged by agents...

Tony quickly put together a plan for the sale of our home. The next day we were besieged by agents from all the Leaders offices, who came to view our home, before bringing the prospective buyers through. Well, the flow of people coming through our home did not let up all week, especially as a number come back for a second and third look and the open home was even busier. All of this activity certainly paid off as our home sold just one week after, due to all the interest Tony created. And even better, it sold for far more than we ever thought possible.

We can thoroughly recommend Tony, particularly with the support he receives from the rest of the Leaders staff who certainly work together as a dynamic team and have already recommended him to friends of ours in the area.

Irene and Wim Vonk - Miramar (Vendors 51 Darlington Road, Miramar)

So much for trying to sell privately...

After attempting to sell our home privately without any success, we contacted Tony to see if he could arrange a relatively quick sale on our behalf, as we are soon to depart overseas.

We were a little skeptical at first of Tony’s suggestion of advertising on a large scale, and naturally the cost involved. However in hindsight the return on our dollar was well worth the outlay. The advertising was exceptional and certainly promoted the home in its best light. We were particularly impressed with the feature article Tony managed to secure in the Dominion Post. Owing to the resulting hype of all this advertising and promotion Tony produced four offers, and our home sold for what we would call an exceptional price, in just two weeks. So much for trying to sell privately.

This is the second time we have employed Tony to sell our home and would now consider nobody else. Please pass on our thanks once again to Tony, and also to the rest of your team for their combined effort.

Andrew King and Carolyn Lawson - Mount Cook (Vendors 145 Tasman Street, Mount Cook)

Seventeen offers...

Seventeen offers. Selling for more than $100,000 over the GV. And without any fuss or hassles. What else can I say except a very big thank you on behalf of Michael and myself.

Admittedly we were tempted to go with another agent at another company, especially when they began to slash their commission rate. However, our faith in you and your expertise, plus the rest of your team was more than justified, and rewarded when you produced all of those offers, and all in such a short time. I don’t believe anybody else could have achieved such a fantastic result.

Donald Joe - Auckland (Vendor 14 & 16 Thompson Street, Mount Cook)

Countless numbers of buyers...

We had heard of Tony’s reputation as an expert in the area of selling investment properties and made contact with him. He initially came and viewed the property and gave us an indicative sales range. Once we made up our mind to sell, Tony sat down with us and produced a marketing plan that he thought would best suit our needs while causing as little stress as possible for ourselves and tenants alike.

We were very impressed with the advertising and marketing package that Tony put together for our property, which we consider to be of a highly professional standard, and far superior to the norm. The results show that it obviously works. We understand from the tenants, that while working to predefined time frames, so as to ensure as little inconvenience as possible for the tenants, the agents managed to show countless numbers of buyers through the property. In fact from day one, there was a constant stream of prospective purchasers wishing to view.

On tender closing day we were presented with a number of offers, all of which were in excess of our initial expectations, with the top one being what could only be described as a dream offer.

We would appreciate it if you would pass on our sincere appreciation to Tony and the rest of the Leaders staff for the consideration they gave to us and our tenants and the effort they put into working as a team to produce this wonderful result. It is now obvious why Leaders are the market leaders, and they and Tony, thoroughly deserve the reputation you have earnt throughout Wellington .

Geoff and Margaret Steel - Karori (Vendors 29 Devon Street, Te Aro)

$60,000 above the private sale offer...

We were recently approached by our tenant who wished to purchase an investment property we own. She made us what appeared to be a very attractive offer, especially as it was backed up with a registered valuation she had undertaken. Just to be sure we were doing the right thing, we thought we should seek a second opinion from a real estate agent. I explained our situation to Tony over the phone and even though he was obviously not going to receive any commission on this particular sale he was more than happy to discuss the offer with us. He even offered to come and do a separate appraisal of the property’s value. It is just as well we took up Tony’s offer.

Tony called around to the property with a colleague and after viewing it they said they felt that we could achieve a much higher sale figure by taking the property to the open market, and even allowing for their commission, we should receive a much higher net figure in our hand. By doing this, our tenant would still be able to submit her offer along with any other interested parties.

In only one week Tony showed more than fifty groups through the property and produced not one, but seven offers. The offer we accepted was for more than $60,000 above the private offer we were tempted to accept, and thirty percent above the properties rateable value.

Throughout this whole process we found Tony to be honest, up front and totally reliable and trustworthy. He worked to the extreme and through his perseverance generated the competition, which lead to the sale of our property at an unbelievable price.

As a result of this experience we will never ever consider selling privately again and will always utilise Tony’s services when it come to any real estate matters and would advise you to do likewise.

John and Cherryl O,Connell - Plimmerton (Vendors 12 Herald Terrace, Berhampore)

Declining market - no problem...

I am extremely appreciative of the manner in which the sale was concluded, with the result being accomplished within a real estate market struggling against declining prices and limited buyer interest. To Tony’s credit a sale was achieved within the range originally quoted to me and within a relatively short time after commencing the sale process.

During the few weeks that the property was on the market Tony provided me with regular feedback on the progress of the marketing, including written reports of every open home.

I was impressed with the highly professional service provided by Tony, his personal team of associates plus the rest of the RE/MAX Leaders team. I would thoroughly recommend their services to any person contemplating the sale of a property within Wellington .

Gerad Taylor - Greytown (Vendor4/346 The Parade, Island Bay)

Appraisal leads to quick sale...

I cannot speak highly enough of the effort he put into this sale. He was first of all very happy to appraise the house and then when we decided to sell, there was an enormous amount of energy from Tony. His attitude was both professional and friendly and we thought the work he did was just great. As a result our house sold within a week of being on the market and I guess that is just a reflection of Tony’s hard work.

Carolyn Fraser - Auckland (Vendor 7 Zohrab Street, Hataitai)

Dedication and communication...

I was especially impressed with your dedication (I had heard that you were a hard working agent and I wasn't disappointed), your feel for the market, and your efforts to keep me informed throughout the entire sale process.

Richard Marshall - Mt Cook (Vendor Apt, 12 Girton Terrace)

Six offers - selling a great deal over expectation...

I appreciated that throughout the sales process Tony kept me constantly updated with what progress was being made. The final result was outstanding. Not only did we receive six offers but also the highest offer was for almost $100,000 higher than the lowest offer and at a figure a great deal over our expectations.

I have already spoken to friends who also own investment properties in Wellington and have suggested to them that when the time comes for them to sell, that they should certainly make use of Tony’s services. I will naturally always return to him regarding any further real estate dealings I have in Wellington .

Gerald Godrey - Tauranga (Vendor 102 Kilbirnie Crescent, Kilbirnie)

The “extra mile”...

Tony worked extremely hard in achieving the sale and went that “extra mile” to ensure the contract became unconditional. He has sound knowledge of both the investment apartment and home market in Wellington . It was Tony’s expertise in the residential investment property plus his positive attitude that were the deciding factors for me to employ him to sell my apartment.

Janet Chilton - Karori (Vendor Apt 1, 12 Murphy Street, Thorndon )

Careful negotiation...

I was impressed with the professional way that Tony handled the negotiation of my property and I was more than happy with the final selling price that was achieved through careful negotiation with the purchaser. I don’t think I would have achieved such a good price without Tony’s expertise.

Sandra Charles - Kelburn (Vendor 20 Koromiko Road, Kelburn )

Good versus indifferent...

Tony Cramond lives his own real estate principals. I found he worked to achieve the best price for my home and ‘went the extra mile’. He was professional and honest in all our communications and followed through.

The difference between a “good” sale and an “indifferent” sale is an agent working with you to achieve the best result. Tony succeeds at this goal. I sincerely recommend him to other buyers/sellers.

Jane Hill - Wilton (Vendor 4/151 Hataitai Road Road, Hataitai )

Optimise the selling price...

On first meeting with him, it was evident he was very knowledgeable and professional sales agent for this type of property. He immediately inspected the property, quickly produced an in depth marketing programme for us and then took the time to sit down and go through it thoroughly. At this stage he also made a number of suggestions as to how we could best present the property physically for sale and optimise the selling price. We were understandably delighted when we received a number of tenders for the property, and it sold for more than we had originally anticipated.

Ian Stewart - Dunedin (Vendor 331 Willis Street, Te Aro )

Innovative...

You came up with a very innovative marketing plan that helped to create a great deal of interest in the property. All the marketing material you produced we consider to be a very high standard, while the colour advertisement in the newspaper looked fantastic, read well and helped to attract numerous people to the open homes.

Allison and Vince Belgrave - Hataitai (Vendor 133 Overtoun Terrace, Hataitai )

Maximise the sale price...

During our initial meeting, Tony not only devised a marketing plan for the sale, but also gave us a number of ideas on how we could maximise the sale price.

Within a week on the market Tony had produced two offers for us, one of which he negotiated upwards even further to a very acceptable level. You can imagine our disappointment however when on the day we were to go unconditional we received notification that the purchaser could not proceed with the purchase. At this stage a number of agents may have given up. Not Tony. Within an hour of being notified of the sale falling over, he had recontacted the purchaser and negotiated a cash unconditional contract for us.

We discovered during the negations, that Tony had contacted the purchaser in Palmerston North and urged him to come to Wellington to view our property. Obviously he has a huge buyers network and utilises it well.

Ron & Jan Casey - Palmerston North (Vendors 156 Hanson Street, Mount Cook)

More than expected...

Tony was only too happy to work in with our busy lifestyle and visit us in the evening to provide us with constant feedback and evaluate how the promotion of our home was proceeding, and make any necessary adjustments. The resulting sale was achieved in just over a week, and for more than our initial expectations.

Tony is a dynamic and innovative salesperson and is a credit to Leaders and his profession as a whole by offering integrity to the process of selling real estate.

Ian & Trish Georgeson - Hataitai (Vendors 10 Matai Road, Hataitai)

High offer in flat market...

I soon became aware that he was not only an expert at selling homes throughout the area, but also investment properties.

My confidence in Tony was completely justified as within a week I had received a very attractive offer in what was supposedly a ‘flat’ market. Bearing this in mind, I was tempted to accept the original offer, however after some further negotiations on Tony’s behalf I managed to secure an even higher selling price and more favourable conditions. In fact a price higher than I, or any other agents who had appraised the property anticipated.

Peter Skrzynski - Hataitai (Vendor 36B Moxham Avenue, Hataitai )

No need to cry...

At times it would have been difficult for him to understand exactly what was happening especially with me living in Sydney, my brother and his partner in Hong Kong and my ex partner in Auckland. What really amazed me was his good humour throughout the whole incident. At times when I was nearly in tears, Tony would come up with a solution that actually worked.

I would not hesitate for a second in recommending Tony Cramond to anyone who is thinking of selling a property especially if your circumstance is a little bit different to the normal. I found his industry knowledge invaluable and his people skills via telephone and other communication channels excellent.

Mateki Afeaki - Sydney (Vendor 178 Tasman Street, Mount Cook)

Friends swap to Tony...

We had seen him ‘in action’ at earlier open homes and were impressed, he came out best when pitted against two other leading Wellington agents in testing interview/selection process.

He has a proven track record that speaks for itself, Tony displayed a hunger to succeed that was coupled with a high degree of professionalism and personal commitment. He had at his disposal and knew how to “work” (and certainly did so) the resources of a leading Wellington agency.

In the intervening three months two of our friends in Hataitai have terminated their unsuccessful listings with competing agencies and commissioned Tony to market their homes.

Grant Lyons and Keri Paterson - Hataitai (Vendors 42 Ariki Road, Hataitai )

No action with two other companies - then Tony secures immediate sale...

After no action with two other agents, my wife Allison and I were not at all sure what to do about our property, when unsponsored, we received a letter from you suggesting that given the chance, you might very well sell our property.

Well, having given you the opportunity, and with all the boundless energy and enthusiasm you exhibited, a sale was achieved through expert marketing, within a week of us signing up with you. You can’t imagine how much we appreciated all you did for us, with daily phone calls to let us know what was happening until the deal was done.

We would never look for another agent to represent us in any sale of any property we may have for sale in the future. Everything about the way you went about your task was entirely professional and spontaneously done to the highest standard

Doug & Allison Whitcombe - Greytown (Vendors 4 Gordon Street, Newtown)

Why wait for nine months?

We couldn’t believe it, when within the first week Tony had produced two offers for us. Especially, as the neighbouring house had only just sold after being on the market for over nine months. After just one week on the market our home was sold and for a price higher than we were expecting

Gordon & Elaine Reynolds - Masterton (Vendors 355 Ohiro Road, Brooklyn)

Overwhelmed...

Tony established right from the beginning what our expectations were, duly qualified buyers quickly, provided the right information to the right people and came up with the sale.

We have been overwhelmed by the response we have had to the Leader’s marketing, and the feed-back conveyed to us continually from Tony, resulting in our property being sold (at a more than acceptable price!!) within one week of being placed on the market

Warren Callaghan & Heather Donachie - Auckland (Vendors 141 Miramar Ave, Miramar)

Network works...

We sought proposals from agents with three different agencies but settled on Tony Cramond of Leaders because:

His suggested marketing strategy (closed tender if not sold prior, and a wide price range) accorded with our needs for a concerted and short term effort.

He persuaded us of the value of the wide network of agents and contacts Leaders offers relative to smaller agencies.

We found Tony to be a very diligent and thorough agent, who kept us informed of progress on a daily basis. His advertisement was very clever and attracted a large number of visitors to the two open days that were held.

Tony’s estimated price range which we had initially thought somewhat optimistic, was bang on and we were very happy with the agreed sales price.

Ian & Susan Craig - Mount Victoria (Vendors 90 Elizabeth Street, Mount Victoria )