Home truths

Of all the truisms, rules of thumb, and cheesy slogans that litter the real-estate business, one of the hoarier bits of received wisdom seems particularly pertinent.

It is the one they call the "80-20" rule – as in, 80 per cent of the property is sold by 20 per cent of the salespeople (or vice versa if you prefer). And if that isn't sobering enough, one particularly experienced operator in the New Zealand industry reckons it might be more like a 90-10 thing right now.

Real estate has always been a business that has richly rewarded its success stories, spat its failures ignominiously back onto the streets, and carried along an army of others who get by but little more.

Some may think that, given all the hysteria about the booming property market, there could hardly be a better time to be part of the action.

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