Turning the Market Upside Down in Johannesburg Southern Suburbs

No, it's not a mistake. And no, it's not someone trying to vandalise our signs. From now until the end of the year, we hope that consumers' right across the Johannesburg southern suburbs will be doing a double-take at all the upside-down Chas Everitt International signboards - which we have deliberately placed that way ourselves, to signify the effect our agency is having on the local property market.

I've been involved in the Johannesburg southern suburbs market for a long time, having started my own agency here in 2002, and I've always known it to respond pretty steadily - or "as expected" - to overall economic conditions, with sales rising when times were good and falling when times were tough.

But since joining the Chas Everitt International group last year I have seen my sales expectations all get turned completely on their heads as the brand become increasingly dominant in our areas of operation - and thus the idea for our latest publicity campaign.

As an example of what I mean, although times are still tough for many Johannesburg southern suburbs residents, and although winter is usually the slowest property sales period of the year, June this year turned out to be a five-year record month for us in terms of turnover - in other words, a better June than we had experienced at the peak of the last property boom! Then just to underline my surprise, turnover proceeded to climb another 36% in July, and a further 15% in August…

Meanwhile, as most locals know by now, Chas Everitt Glenvista recently had to move to new offices (on the corner of True North Road and Bellairs Drive) to accommodate our much expanded sales and administration teams - at a time when many other estate agencies are battling to find good people.

In fact, since joining Chas Everitt International, I have had so many approaches from top Johannesburg southern suburbs agents about joining us that I have lost count, and our sales team has expanded by more than 20 people as a result.

In September last year, for example, Lucy Ferreira, head of her own successful agency for the previous nine years, decided to bring her whole team to Chas Everitt Glenvista. And in March this year, we were joined by a team led by Patsy Parker - formerly a director of the local Jawitz franchise and a 26-year veteran of the Johannesburg southern suburbs market.

Then this month Mark Botha, another extremely well-known figure in the southern suburbs real estate market, also decided he wanted to be part of the Chas Everitt "family".

And now it's summer, with the best real estate sales period of the year ahead, and we are ready to keep turning things upside down - especially for our clients - by delivering outstanding service and much better and faster results than they expect. In short, by using our top-notch training, technology and marketing expertise to help make the purchase or sale of a property a real pleasure.

So look out for our inverted signboards in the Johannesburg southern suburbs - they're there to remind you that things don't have to stay the same. They can and do get better if you get the right help.

Article by Jacques Bronkhorst | Chas Everitt Glenvista