A dynamic and engaged Land & New Homes Network member, Peppe has seen the Land & New Homes business of Homes Estate Agents in Hampshire and Surrey go from strength to strength in recent years. Here, he explains how a focus on innovation, hard work and an ambitious outlook has enabled the business to expand – and open a dedicated land and new homes agency.
In conversation with Peppe De Fazio
Director of Land and Residential Development Division, Homes Estate Agents
How is your land and new homes business doing?
We set up the division exactly two years ago and it’s been amazing – there’s no other word for it. The growth has been beyond all our expectations; we always knew that there was income to be made here, but what we’ve seen throughout year two, going into year three, has been incredible.
My constant challenge is that I am always behind with my to do list. It’s easy to get side-tracked and to get bogged down in the day-to-day of running the department, but you need to be thinking a long time ahead all the time and there’s always something I should be doing.
How has your relationship with the network developed?
As with all members, you get the framework to follow and the resources to help you create the business. But we’re finding nowadays that we’re looking to the network for ongoing support and to help us maintain our focus. It’s almost like mentoring and it’s incredibly valuable. So, for example, I might be dealing with a certain house builder and something might come up that I haven’t encountered before and it’s good to get advice and insight from Kevin and the team.
What’s your inside tip for new members?
I have two tips, really. Number one would be, right from the start, keep the land and new homes part of your operation separate. It’s really important that you make this distinction not just for your own internal focus, but for how you’re perceived by local landowners and house builders.
This brings me to my second point: meet with house builders and developers as quickly as you can. You kind of expect that it’s going to be difficult to arrange, but it’s quite the opposite – if you approach them saying that you want to discuss finding land opportunities for them, they will roll out the red carpet!
How easy is it to find land opportunities?
If I am honest, that’s the most difficult thing to get on top of. There is so much land out there that it can be a bit overwhelming knowing who to approach first and how to pitch it to them. I guess it just comes down to manpower – we want to do it all but we just can’t!
What do you say to those agents who aren’t fully on-board with land and new homes yet?
Commit. No one likes to look on the negative side of things, but if the wider sales market falls off a cliff, it’s likely that your business is going to fold. The more elements you can add, the better. This is a recession-proof part of your business because, as long as we need houses, builders will buy land. And in Britain, there’s a desperate need for houses.
To learn more about how Land & New Homes could be delivering a significant revenue to your independent estate agency business, please get in touch to find out how we can help you tap into this lucrative business.