Long-standing Invercargill Real Estate Agency Merges With Its Bigger National Competitor

One of Invercargill’s foremost real estate companies is merging to become part of New Zealand’s biggest real estate agency brand – in what will become Invercargill’s largest full service real estate agency.

Southland Real Estate – which has been successfully trading in Invercargill since 1993 – is merging under the Bayleys Real Estate moniker. The amalgamation formally completes in early June.

Southland Real Estate employs 24 sales and administration staff specialising in the residential and lifestyle property markets, with an additional six staff operating in the residential property management sector overseeing more than 450 properties. Meanwhile, Bayleys employs 10 sales and administration staff at its Invercargill office, with six additional staff servicing the Southland area from the company’s Gore branch.

Both companies have prominent central city offices – Southland Real Estate at the two-storey corner site on 169-171 Dee Street, and Bayleys at the modern corporate tower at 173 Spey Street.

The merger will be a seamless process for Southland Real Estate vendors and landlords currently listing their properties with the agency – with their listing and all marketing simply transitioning over to the new entity.

Bayleys Southland director David Gubb said the merger with Southland Real Estate reflected the long-term visions both agencies held for the province… founded on decades of on-going demographic and economic growth. It would also unify their sales teams in not only Invercargill, but also the satellite townships of Winton and Riverton where both agencies have a presence.

“We’re excited about the Southland Real Estate stable joining the Bayleys brand. The company has a well-deserved reputation in Invercargill, Winton, and Riverton, which will be enhanced by accessing Bayleys’ extensive industry-leading back-office support services such as national print and digital marketing in conjunction with a strong community sponsorship programme both locally and nationally,” Mr Gubb said.

“With support from Bayleys’ national and international marketing initiatives, the Southland Real Estate team joining the brand will now be able to add even more value to their vendor relationships – ensuring the maximum value is achieved for their vendors in the sale process.

“It’s certainly going to be an exciting time for the Southland’s residential and lifestyle property sectors.”

Bayleys Southland is part of Bayleys Real Estate – New Zealand’s largest full-service real estate agency with a network of 90 offices nationwide, employing more than 2,000 sales and support staff nationally.

Southland Real Estate director and company founder Gus Johnston said the proposed dual-branded business of Bayleys Southland Real Estate reflected the respect both parties had for each other, with the new agency’s sales team remaining committed to the region - and looking forward to working under such a prestigious nationally branded agency.

“Bayleys’ marketing initiatives and operational resources really were attractive for us to join. They underpin what is now New Zealand’s foremost real estate agency - with more than 45-years’ experience in the market. The ‘arsenal’ of tools in the Bayleys marketing kit is truly outstanding, and we look forward to introducing those to our clients in the coming years,” Mr Johnston said.

Latest property sales statistics from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand record that the median sale price for residential properties sold in Southland rose by 7.3 percent in the year to March 2022 – up from $410,000 to $440,000 over a 12-month period.

David Gubb concluded: “It is exactly this sort of growth data which spurred Southland Real Estate to concentrate its activities in the Southland region some 29-years ago, and why Bayleys sees such a promising future for the region.”

Under the auspices of Bayleys Queenstown, the agency has expanded considerably in the Southland and Otago regions over the past six years – merging operations with such real estate agencies as Locations in Queenstown, Metro in Dunedin, and Newman Real Estate in Arrowtown, while also opening branches in Cromwell, Winton – ensuring the Bayleys brand is the dominant player and is well placed to provide a superior level of service throughout the Lower South Island.

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