Woman real estate manager

Press, 19 October 1976, Page 16

Woman real estate manager

Mrs Pixie Sanders is something of an institution in Nelson now. She is one of New Zealand’s few woman real estate agents and owns her own business.

She is also the first woman president of a branch of the Real Estate Institute — and a grandi mother. In Christchurch for the third congress of the AsiaPacific Real Estate Federation this week, she said that her office was due less to outstanding qualities, than i to longevity. She had been in real estate for 18 years,

and on the branch committee since 1965. “They had to do something with me,” she said. The real estate field was one which women were entering more slowly than many others.

A woman real estate agent was often particularly sought out. People took a sound business head for granted but wanted the additional extra — a woman’s point, of view. As Mrs Sanders settled into her business she discovered men were reluctant to reveal details of their assets and financial affairs. Women however sought her out.

Men now asked her to handle their commercial sales and arrange investment. Not so long ago this would have seemed impossible, Mrs Sanders said. "It’s been a long hard struggle, but I’m now a fact of life in Nelson.” She. had an all-male sales staff of six and an office staff of three. The business belonged to her grandfather and father before her. Had it not been so, she would prob-

ably never have considered the profession she said.

The housing market had become depressed but not badly. Prices had really only returned to their proper level after the artificial shortage caused by the imposition of the propertyspeculation tax. Expensive properties were turning over well, provided that they gave value for money, and low-priced brackets were not selling able if they were good bargains.

Houses between these two brackets wer eont selling well. For people wanting to buy and sell homes worth between $30,000 and $40,000, and even between $25,000 and $30,000, money was rot available. The State’s limit on housing finance was now S2O,C )• on the house and $lO,OOO on the section, but restricted to new houses. Money for used houses was available only on the private market, so that even low-cost housing was often out of the reach of the couple on a sin~le pay packet. “A couple may have $BOOO of their own but need to borrow $20,000. They may raise $20,000 at 10 per cent interest if they are lucky. But $28,000 can be a greater burden than a single pay packet can sustain.” Particularly affected were owners of the many houses costing about $30,000. There had to be something special about a house in this price bracket if it were to sell —

perhaps the status of the suburb, or proximity to ] some facility. A school : teacher might want a house i near his school. To help their homes sell, more vendors were leaving money on them, Mrs Sanders said. i

She welcomed legislation proposed by the Minister of Housing (Mr Gair) to encourage turnover of used houses by providing loans to people at present given incentives to build new lowcost housing.