Effort

If you’re writing about real estate right now, it kind of helps to have your head out of your arse. Thousands of eagle eyes are reading and ripping apart real estate writing at the moment, usually in less time than it takes a horny kid to spray his shorts over massivehooters.com.

So if you’re prepared to stumble into a story, quote the David Lereah of Australia, offer up a real estate agent masquerading as home buyer for your secondary source, then use that real estate agent’s boss to round out the article... I'd have to ask, "how do you enjoy working for Gold Coast Bulletin?"

"Oh no, I'm an experienced journalist, in fact, I write for The Australian."

"Hah, you relentless joker, you!"

"No. I really write for The Australian."

"Really?"

"Yeah my name's Andrew Fraser."

Andy F, who kind of looks like Guy Sebastian from the year 2050, has fallen for the old "real estate agent poses as home buyer" trick, it seems. And I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he's made a mistake here. Being a trusting guy, with full faith in the print media, I just couldn't believe someone would be so devious as to knowingly write a story where they allowed a real estate agent to pose as a home buyer and offer up the following dubious advice...

"I don't think they (interest rates) will go up, but even if they did it's still a good time to get into the market," she said.

Oh by the way, that was potential buyer, Laura Kavanagh. She's looking to buy in Brisbane right now, well apparently, or maybe she's looking to sell in Brisbane, cause guess who is a real estate agent in Brisbane? Someone by the name of Laura Kavanagh.

Now you might say how many Laura Kavanaghs could be in a large city? Well maybe a few, but how many could coincidently be featured in the same article with a guy named Damien Hackett, who employs a Laura Kavanagh at his Place Estate Agents?

Say hi to Laura, in regal black and white.

So 2 and 2 are together and I think we've comfortably got 4.

So how valuable are any of her ramblings? Or the ramblings of her boss, Damo, who is featured with this doozy...

"The Brisbane market is generally behind Sydney and Melbourne, and I expect history to repeat itself and as those markets are going up then Brisbane probably will as well," he said.

Fraser's article is little more than trying to will life into a dying market. 'Expert' economist says Brisbane is near bottom and soon to swing up. Check. Eager buyer on the ground is getting ready to buy at rock bottom, crazy prices. Check. Real estate agent says Brisbane will move up because it has before. Check.

Fantastic, except for that one key element in the story - the buyer. If you can't actually pull up a buyer who doesn't moonlight as a real estate agent, how good can the market be? And considering this is the second time it's happened in Brisbane this year, the noose must be really tightening around some real estate agents' necks up there.

And to Andrew Fraser, if this is honestly the best you can offer up, let me introduce you to google - it's a handy research tool.

Credit to AxelF at bubblepedia his google skills are even quicker than mine.