Greg Downes

1. I submitted a written formal offer and he refused to present it to vendor until I signed the contract, which was built into the Hodges system & uneditable. It did not have my terms in, nor could I put them in, and why should I engage a solicitor for an offer? Only once I signed his contract with no terms (knowing I had a cooling off period) did he finally submit the offer, 5 days later. 2. He was altering the contract of sale, not a lawyer. He refused to include my 'subject to the unconditional offer of sale of my current property' saying he's never heard of that. Whilst he did include 'subject to vacant possession' as there was a tenant, he also said he had never heard of that one and doesn't see the need. 3. I repeatedly said I wanted the the lawyers to deal with everything yet he did not. I began recording phone calls in the end as I did not trust him. He was far too involved with things he shouldn't be. 4. Once my offer was accepted, I had my 14 day finance condition, he was texting and calling me on day 2 asking if it was approved. This went on for the 2 weeks, even though I kept saying my lawyers will update everyone once its approved, let's leave it to them- he accused me of being too curt. Then as my lawyers were already requesting an extension, at 3pm on day 14, he texts me that I am in breach of my contract, which I was not. This bullying was unnecessary and unprofessional. 5. He didnt like when I chose to do my final inspection, saying I don't know what I am doing and I clearly dont understand the repercussions of this (none), and being very condescending. 6. The final straw here is that once I moved in, locals tell me of the MAJOR construction work due to begin soon, with 13 years of construction works to build a train yard, and tunnels being build directly below our apartments and some land could possibly even be requisitioned. The residents were issued multiple notices about this since 2021, these were not in the S32 at all.

Greg has over years sold properties for me. This time was for my Fathers Estate. It was a very emotional time. Greg was compassionate and very helpful throughout the whole process. He has great knowledge of the area and gave advice accordingly.

It was time for us to downsize and we did not hesitate to list our house with Greg. This is the second house Greg has sold for us, so it was logical to choose him. We listed the property about 3 weeks before the first open for inspection. During this time, Greg managed the photos and advertising and took initial inquiries. The house was open for a weekend before Melbourne was locked down, causing the campaign to also shut down. This made us understandably nervous but Greg kept in touch with the potential buyers he’d met on the first weekend. When inspections were able to start again, it was a week before the auction. Greg scheduled 5 open for inspections in the last week and was confident the auction should go ahead. The hammer fell and the house sold. As vendors we were very happy with Greg and Hodges Real Estate.

Greg was amazing from start to finish, an absolute please to work with. He was professional, honest and open, provided timely written and verbal feedback after every open and made you feel at ease with the process. He always answered our calls or texts and went above and beyond in our campaign which is why, I am sure, we got an outstanding result. Greg has a real passion for what he does and nothing was too much trouble which made our experience an amazing one. His knowledge of the current market, the local area and his experience in real estate was evident throughout and it is for all these reasons that we trusted Greg and Hodges for the sale of our family home. The entire team at Hodges were amazing and we were blessed to have the charismatic Angus Graham conduct our Auction. Watching him in action was a pleasure. Thanks so much Greg and the team at Hodges.

I purchased my unit from Greg in 2014. Circumstances change and I'm on the move again. In all honesty, I did not even bother to interview other agents, I always knew that should I need to sell again that Greg would be entrusted with my vitally significant asset. Regrets...I've had a few. Primarily that Greg did not sell my previous house. His work ethic and organizational ability are unmatched. Communication lines were always open. Greg comes to real estate from the corporate world and this is ever apparent in his complete professional approach to his current career. Greg is calm, positive, adaptable, intelligent and endlessly patient and courteous. I felt he always had my back. I am presently looking to purchase a unit and he still has my back, available to answer any questions in that process. When I attend various inspections and tell other agents that Greg sold my current property, unanimously replies are 'he is a really decent/good/nice guy'. This from competitors which says so much. No hesitation whatsoever in stating that Greg stands out as the very best in his line of work.

We engaged Greg Downes due to our 10yr relationship as he sold our first apartment in Highett enabling us to purchase Alfred Street. Greg was always a positive person and I enjoyed our bi monthly phone calls over this period. When we made the decision to sell Alfred Street we immediately contacted Greg to get the job done! Greg was able to sell our place during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. There were limited showings and an extremely uncertain market and nervous limited buyers. Greg persisted and after the second lockdown, was able to secure the sale of Alfred Street. Greg presented us with multiple offers and was able to exceed our expectation by reaching the top tier of our asking price. Greg's industry knowledge and longevity in sales means his approach becomes second nature. His rapport with both us as the seller and the buyers was established early and he is never pushy. We worked up a realistic price strategy and advertising campaign and Greg delivered on all accounts. His phone is always on and he would always respond to our inquiries and kept us informed throughout the entire process. We most definitely recommend Greg if you are looking to sell your property and we personally call Greg our friend and remain in constant contact months after our settlement.