Can you imagine selling a property worth a billion Australian dollars? It would be pretty amazing, right!

I am speaking with a man who has done exactly that, and we learn how he approaches marketing challenging and difficult real estate.

I am sure you will enjoy his tips and ideas. It seems that I have a bit of a series developing around billion dollar property stories… hopefully yours is one in the making… and we can talk about it in the future.

And just quickly before we get to today’s guest, if you want to learn how to develop property safely and successfully, then email me justin@propertydeveloperpodcast.com about the mentoring program that is available to help you get started on your development career.

Okay, on to our guest, real estate agent Bernard Uechtritz. Bernie is an Aussie who is based in Dallas Texas, and has forged a reputation selling unique, hard to sell and high value property, with his largest transaction a ranch in Texas valued at around one billion Australian dollars, that’s a B for billion! I was keen to speak with Bernie to find out how you go about marketing and selling a property with such a high value. 

 We are a high risk, high reward, elite specialist company. We like to call ourselves the Seal Team 6 of real estate.

Bernie has sold some amazing real estate over the years, including an infamous property where a family murder took place, and I am sure you will enjoy his insights into some of the key tactical activities he employs, what is different about selling high end property and what developers should think about when marketing their projects.

Keep an ear out for the ground work that Bernie puts in before he even has the authority to sell a property.

Interestingly enough, Bernie and me also share a history of growing up in Papua New Guinea, so his response to my opening question about what he would eat until he was sick, brought a big smile to my face…

Lessons for property developers

I really enjoyed hearing about how Bernie approaches selling unique, high end properties and how for each campaign he is looking for that angle that will help make the property jump out in the market.

Here are three things I took away from our conversation.

1. Every property has a buyer

I love Bernie’s view that the property market is like the car market, there’s an arse for every seat, so there’s certainly someone out there for your development stock. The way Bernie goes about finding that buyer is to cast a wide net, create a competitive marketing environment,  and manufacture a situation conducive to selling a property as fast as practical. He likes to generate interest over a 90-120 period, get things to a fever pitch and close the deal. So give some thought to how you could look to do something similar in your next campaign.

2. Find the unique angle or story that will help the property stand out

Bernie mentioned that he likes to design campaigns around the story or stories of the property he is marketing, to help bring it to the market in a way that creates interest and a ultimately a deal. He said every property is different, and he likes to build a custom campaign around it. Even if the property has a stigma, like being a murder scene, you can be clear about it and make it work to your advantage.

3. Be a good listener