Initially Frank was very attentive, with constant phone calls/visits and a professional appraisal. He talked the talked, but once we signed it was a different story! The written appraisal suggested our property could achieve over $2m. But after signing, the tone of the conversations changed and we were told that the price needed to be significantly reduced before the campaign had even begun. We were not consulted about changes to the campaign, including the promotional dates and the auction date. Early into the campaign we were strongly encouraged to accept a pre-auction offer well below our original expectations and the appraisal. We felt there was excessive pressure to sell before the market had been properly tested. Communication was unprofessional, including late-night messages and emails which we found to be inappropriate in their tone and advice. Many of the conversations involved Frank trying to convince us to accept a lower offer and showing his frustration that we were ‘not listening to him’. This included telling us “Don’t muck this up” and trying to convince us to take the lower offer and invest it rather than going to auction. We were also concerned when windows and security screens were left unsecured on the property after an inspection. When it was raised with the agent he was very dismissive of our concerns. On auction day, we had to actively encourage Frank to continue negotiating to achieve a better price. Instead of strongly advocating on our behalf for the we got huffs and puffs and eye rolls. Luckily, we were able to gain a slight increase, but we had to constantly advocate for our own interests throughout the campaign, when that should have been the role of our appointed estate agent. While the property ultimately sold, the experience was stressful and left us feeling unsupported. We accepted the final offer reluctantly because we were anxious and exhausted by the process rather than because we believed it represented the best possible outcome.
Frank Callaghan
