BELLS HAVE A BALL
BROTHERS’ 30-YEAR MILESTONE
The Bell brothers have weathered the ups and downs of the real estate market over many years but one thing has never wavered — the passion and commitment to an adopted home
IT’S not what you expect to hear from a real estate agent.
“I’m really hoping this isn’t a boom,” says Andrew Bell, CEO of Ray White Surfers Paradise Group.
“Our market is strong, but I’m just hoping prices don’t soar.”
It sounds counterintuitive, but that’s because this property power player believes in the long game. His passion and profession is selling the Gold Coast – not just its houses, but its lifestyle and its future.
And, judging by the Order of Australia awarded for contributions to both his industry and his city, he’s pretty good at his job.
Having just celebrated 30 years in business on the Coast, both Andrew and RWSP coowner, commercial director and brother Greg have weathered seven real estate cycles, severe recessions and the Global Financial Crisis – but believe the city has finally matured so that booms, and the inevitable busts, are in the past.
Their concern is not simply a matter of business, but is personal.
While the brothers invested in their company over the past three decades, they’ve also been busy building up their city – Andrew was on the Commonwealth Games’ bid and organising committees, is on multiple steering groups for the city and, with Greg, regularly hosts and speaks at community events.
“As much as I love property and business, I love the Gold Coast even more,” he says.
“For 30 years we’ve been living and working here and my passion for its future has only grown stronger. This is my family’s home.
“As a city, this is probably the most exciting period we’ve seen. Our industries are growing and diversifying – it’s not just tourism anymore, we have health, education, tech companies. Families are still moving here – but their kids aren’t leaving.
“We’re really seeing the flow-on effects from the Commonwealth Games coming into play now – we had more than $15 billion invested here and we’re soaring.
“The property market itself is really strong right now, which is great. We’re seeing a number of houses sell for more than $5 million now – that hasn’t happened for 10 years. Anything between $1 and $2.5m is going gangbusters as well … but I am wary of our prices going too high.
“We don’t want a boom, we want to see the city where it’s just steady growth. That’s what maturity is.
“Of course we’ll still have the trends up and down, but there’s a difference between that and a boom and bust cycle.”
In fact, Andrew says the GFC was almost a cleansing for the
Coast. He says it was one of the most profound ‘bust’ cycles, which lasted for almost a decade, but it has left the city grounded on a more solid base.
“One of the reasons we’ve been so subject to busts was the heavy investment from southerners – the Gold Coast was where they bought a holiday house or had a rental,” he says.
“As soon as times were tight, the first thing they would ditch would be the house on the Gold Coast – we’d be left with a glut of stock and prices would plummet.
“The GFC saw all those places sold, we got rid of all those shaky investors. That’s why it lasted so long here … it was from 2008 pretty well until 2016. “Now we’ve recovered but it’s been a much steadier recovery. You can still see the effects. People are holding onto their houses longer than they used to – where it used to be selling every seven years, now it’s more like 11. This city was badly burned and it will be a little while yet before residents are ready to take the plunge again.
“The good news is that the new southerners we have coming to this city are coming to stay – and they’re a different demographic from the migrants we used to attract.
“Previously, it was a lower socio-economic group, people who were priced out of outer Sydney and Melbourne so they came here where it was more affordable. Now we’re seeing wealthy professionals and retirees coming here for the lifestyle and looking to buy premium properties. Jobs are much more movable these days and the crush of inner city living in our capitals means it’s losing its allure.”
Andrew says the GFC, along with technical and social changes, have changed the entire real industry itself.
He says agents are no longer salesman but professionals who have to establish a relationship based on trust with clients.
He says while some agencies still focus on getting listings, it was a short-term mindset that would see them ultimately squeezed out of a shrinking industry.
“There definitely are not the same number of agents out there now, and that number will continue to decrease,” he says.
“It’s not about making an easy dollar, it’s about being at the top of your game when the market is good or bad and making customer service a priority. That means playing the long game – don’t tell people what they want to hear, but what they need to hear.
“Just like you have your accountant, your financial advisor, your doctor – your real estate agent is becoming someone you have a relationship with, not just a shortterm hire.
“There is a huge amount of change in the industry, disruption is a factor in real estate as well. We saw (online agency) Purple Bricks come and go, and I really think the reason they failed is simply a massive overspend on television advertising.
“When Airbnb first started we had so many clients pull their properties from our per
As much as I love property , I love the Gold Coast even more
manent rental pool to go into holiday letting, but they’ve all come back now. There was too much risk, too much competition, too much work.
“But every time one threat ends, another will begin, that’s why relationships now are all the more important.”
Greg says the field of commercial property is also evolving, with sales the strongest in 30 years, but occupancy in some suburbs still low.
He says retail in particular is doing it tough, with Broadbeach
beginning to follow in the footsteps of Main Beach and Chevron Island.
“There are precincts on the southern end of the Gold Coast where tenants are fighting to get a space – Nobby’s and Palm Beach, and it’s spreading down to Kirra, Tugun and Coolangatta.
“Meanwhile, Main Beach is still struggling, Chevron is in the midst of closures and Broadbeach is falling prey to the dual threats of Pacific Fair and The Star.
“Ultimately it’s another cycle. You get a hot spot for patrons, tenants want in, landlords raise their prices, tenants leave and so do the patrons. They move on to the new flavour of the month.
“It’s not necessarily to the detriment of the Coast – it’s the market in action. If landlords don’t react to the decreased demand, then you’re going to have oversupply of space. If they do react then we see suburbs revitalised. That’s the beauty of the Coast, it’s always changing.”
However, the brothers say their passion for property and the city remains a constant – especially as a new generation of Bells enter the industry.
The children of both brothers work in the Surfers Paradise office, along with extended family as well.
“We’ve worked together as brothers now for almost 40 years, it’s pretty incredible,” says Andrew.
“We’ve had our moments and our arguments, but nobody has your back like your brother. Our family is tight – on Christmas Day we’ll have 29 Bells under one roof.
“We love that our kids are living and working on the Gold Coast – and working with us as well.
“People keep asking us when we’ll retire, but I just don’t see it on the cards. What would we do? We don’t play golf.
“Building a future for our family and for the city itself is what we’ve been working at all these years. It’s a great feeling knowing that our business employs 250 staff – we’re contributing to the economy and the life of the city.
“We weren’t born here but it’s in our blood. It reminds me of our mother – she converted to Catholicism to marry my father, and she became the fiercest Catholic you’ve met. That’s how I feel about my city, I chose it and I love it.”
And that’s why selling the Gold Coast is not just a job for these brothers … it’s their life.