The Gold Coast – Something For Everyone

If you are thinking about investing in a holiday property in the Gold Coast, this video will demonstrate why the area is such a popular tourist destination. Young or old, singles or families – there truly is something for everyone. Combining the vast array of attractions with one of the world’s most perfect climates, it is easy to see why occupancy rates remain high throughout most of the year.

Gold Coast Holiday Property Management Checklist
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Real Estate investing in Australia’s Gold Coast is very profitable and can be a great way to build your wealth. However, in today’s difficult economic climate, it is becoming even more important that property owners ensure that their property management agents are properly managed themselves. We have provided a checklist of questions for you

• How many years have you been in the property management business?
• What’s the experience level of your staff members who will be leasing and managing my property?
• How frequently will you inspect my property?
• What’s your process for dealing with repairs and maintenance? How often is maintenance carried out?
• What steps do you take to ensure that all work on my property is competitively priced?
• (What steps do you take to ensure that all contractors working on my property are property licensed and insured?)
• Can I see some references from satisfied clients?
• How do you deal with complaints?
• Do you offer an out-of-office-hours service for emergencies? If so, please provide details.
• What is your fee structure?
• Where and how do you keep service charge monies, and how are they administered and who receives any interest?
• How do you provide financial report and how soften are they provided?
• Do they give out regular report about the status of the property?
• How are rental properties advertised/marketed? (Does the company have an aggressive marketing strategy to advertise the property? )

You want to be sure that the holiday property management team provides answers that you are happy with in regards to all of these questions. Most importantly, make sure you shop around for detailed quotes – remember, the cheapest quote may not provide the best quality work!

Airport Upgrade Reflects Strength of the Gold Coast

Gold Coast Tourism (GCT) welcomes the $100 million terminal upgrade at Gold Coast Airport as a significant advantage for the $4.47 billion Gold Coast tourism industry.

GCT CEO Martin Winter said the rejuvenation of a major infrastructure asset such as the airport would directly assist in the tourism’s industry’s growth targets as increased airline capacity and servicing were key.

“Access is a major factor for every destination, where other regions have flat lined or indeed gone backwards in terms of air access, the work of Gold Coast Airport and Gold Coast Tourism has driven continued growth in airline services and passengers over the past twelve months,” he said.

“The completion of the $100 million terminal upgrade is of huge benefit in our work to bring more flights and more airlines into the Gold Coast direct, and in our business more seats means more tourists.”

“Furthermore, it reflects the continued evolution of the city and obviously enhances the visitor experience.”

“Gold Coast Airport has been a major contributor to GCT’s cooperative marketing campaigns and promotional activity recently, driving visitation from markets with direct access such as New Zealand, Malaysia, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.”

“With the completion of the terminal upgrade, we expect the GCT / Gold Coast Airport partnership will continue to secure increased airline capacity and effective marketing opportunities for the benefit of the Gold Coast holiday & tourism industry and the entire city of the Gold Coast.”

Gold Coast Tourism Director Communications, Ben Pole
0437 343 104 or ben.pole@gctourism.com

The results of the latest Visa PATA Travel Intentions Survey show Australia is “top of mind” for Chinese travelers.

More than half the travelers surveyed from China said they intend to travel to Australia over the next two years, and their top three priorities are natural scenery, sunshine and beaches, and new places, a report revealed on Tuesday.

Gold Coast Tourism (GCT) Corporation boss Martin Winter said the results of the survey underscore the timeliness of the tourist strip’s decision to increase its investment in the Chinese market. This is also supported by a relaxation of regulations from the Chinese Government into how many outbound travel agencies.

“China is now the second largest source region for tourists to the Gold Coast, with 106,000 visitors in the year to March 2010, but more importantly it is showing the best long-term rapid growth potential, with a 15 percent increase over the previous year,” he said.

Outbound tourism forecasts place China as the Gold Coast’s single biggest international growth opportunity over the next five years. GCT forecasts Chinese visitation to increase by around 10% over the next two years, outstripping the growth of the Gold Coast’s current number one and two international source markets, New Zealand and Japan respectively.

China is currently the Gold Coast’s third largest source of international tourists, last year it attracted 96,792 Chinese visitors who spent $57 million in the city.

In response to this trend, GCT has taken timely and decisive action on behalf of the Gold Coast tourism industry, by appointing a full time marketing representative in China in June. The GCT Regional Manager is responsible for leading promotion of the city as a leisure and business tourism destination, increasing travel trade relationships, generating new commercial partnership opportunities, and boosting the exposure and knowledge of the Gold Coast as an international destination of choice.

This international structure of on-the-ground activity in the emerging China market and increased marketing activity in the relatively mature South East Asian markets is expected to drive solid growth.

One such marketing promotion included partnering with the Shanghai Marathon to promote the Gold Coast Marathon. As a result, runners from Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, China and Hong Kong are strongly represented in this year’s pack.

“The Queensland Government recently launched a promotion in China to see the top four Shanghai Marathon 2010 runners invited to participate in the 2011 Gold Coast Airport Marathon,” Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said.

“The aim is to encourage more Chinese runners to enter the event and is just one example of the sort of targeted overseas marketing that has taken place this year.”

Gold Coast accommodation providers in the region are reaping rewards from the event, with many reporting they are at capacity or near capacity over the weekend.

In a recent interview, the development manager of SunMore Holidays, Ashraf Kamha, stated “The results from the Visa PATA Travel Intentions Survey do not come as a surprise to most accommodation providers.”

“SunMore Holidays is certainly experiencing an increase in Chinese visitors choosing to book through our website.”

Kamha suggests the tried and true formula of providing exceptional value for money has continued to pave the way for the Gold Coast.

“The Gold Coast ticks all the boxes that Chinese tourists are looking for,” Mr Kamha said. “They are particularly well suited to what the Gold Coast has to offer because … it is better positioned than anywhere else in Australia to give them the ‘fun’ element of their trip.”

Mr Kamha said up to 20 per cent of SunMore Holiday’s business depended on international tourism and China was a key new market along with growing the existing Hong Kong and Korean business.

“I believe it will be like Japan was for the Gold Coast 20 years ago,” he said.

“The potential volumes out of China are unbelievable.”

“Furthermore,” continues Kamha, “the Gold Coast City council’s consideration about adding Mandarin translations on street signs could lead to thousands more Chinese holiday-makers finding their way to the Gold Coast.”

The Collapse of Gold Coast Accommodation Providers – Is It Safe To Use ‘Faceless’ Website Operators?

The last few weeks has seen the collapse of a number of Gold Coast accommodation providers, leaving thousands holiday makers out of pocket and without holiday accommodation.

One such company was Accommodation 1, which sold the bulk of its accommodation through eBay . The eBay discussion forum has been flooded with comments from holidaymakers, with victims vowing to fight for money lost.

The company was placed in the hands of liquidator Jason Bettles and Ivor Worrell of insolvency firm Worrells Solvency & Forensic Accountant. The company traded through two online portals: the website ourholiday.com.au (which has since been taken down) and through gifts2U.com.au on the auction site eBay Australia. The site focused on Gold Coast apartment blocks such as Circle on Cavill, the Q1 and Chevron Renaissance.

Bettles said 90 landlords at Circle on Cavill, the Q1 and Chevron Renaissance also were hit. On top of the customers who have been caught by the collapse, Bettles says a number of landlords had signed long-term rental agreements with Accommodation 1 and are now owed back rent.

With the collapse of such private accommodation providers, many questions have been raised from concerned holiday makers about the reputation and ethics of private operators. The Gold Coast Bulletin posted comments in May stating, “Consumers using faceless website operators have no way of knowing the financial circumstances or capabilities of the company and are putting their hard-earned money and holiday experiences at risk by using them”.

However, Mr Ashraf Kamha of SunMore Holidays disputes such comments and believes there is no more risk in booking through independent accommodation providers than directly through the big corporations. “It is not just private accommodation providers who go broke. Mega corporations fall over as well,” says Kamha, “we know that it does happen, like it did two years ago when a major travel agency collapsed, leaving thousands of people out of pocket”.

“The private market offers competitive and alternative options for holiday makers. There are literally hundreds of private accommodation providers out there and the vast majority are honest and hard working”.

Kamha says that operators such as Accommodation 1 fail mainly because they do not charge an adequate price for the service they provide, and are therefore forced to cut corners and fail to provide a decent standard of service to customers. It becomes only a matter of time before they enter into the vicious downward spiral of losing customers because of inferior service and having to reduce prices even more just to attract customers.

He believes that the secret of success in the holiday accommodation business is giving customers the service they want for a fair and reasonable price, in the time-frame and in the manner most convenient to them.

In the case of SunMore Holidays, it offers customers the convenience of being able to check availability and pricing of accommodation online in real-time, and to choose and book the actual apartment or holiday home they like online. And they can do that at their convenience and in their own time, without having to wait for someone to respond to their phone call or email enquiry.

Kamha said “We are not embarrassed to say that we’re not the cheapest in the market. We try to offer a service that is reasonably priced in order to allow us to give customers a good standard of service and to give landlords a fair return on their investments”.

With horror stories like Accommodation 1, Kamha believes that private operators need be attuned to customers’ demand for the highest possible level of protection for their hard earned deposit and rental money.

For example, the apartments listed on SunMore Holidays’ website are managed by fully licensed real estate agents who are accredited by the REIQ (Real Estate Institute of Queensland) and appointed to manage the properties and receive the rental money on behalf of their owners.

This provides a higher level of protection for customers’ deposit and rental money, as the law requires licensed agents to bank monies received from all real estate transactions into a trust account that is subject to regular audits.

Therefore, Kamha believes it is not right to tarnish the whole private industry with the poor actions of a few. “We are proud to continue to offer alternative options and a personal service to both holiday makers and property owners alike”.

Indeed, in the wake of the collapse of companies such as Accommodation 1, it has been both the larger and smaller operators that have helped out those people caught in the middle.

For further information about Gold Coast accommodation or holiday property management, visit SunMore Holidays at www.sunmore.com.au

Combining Technology and Service to Enhance Holiday Property Management

In a globally-competitive market, it isn’t enough to just have accomplished management and marketing skills in being able to make holiday properties noticed amongst the crowd. In this marketing age where most advertising and promotion is done by way of varied social media, eg Twitter, Facebook, and Multiply, there’s no doubt the internet has established itself as one of the most influential management and marketing portals. With marketers confusing brand visibility with marketability and profit, the internet has now created a worldwide market place. Therefore, it has become a prerequisite to integrate technology with service to enhance your holiday property management.

Expanding Visibility Through The Web

With today’s property investors, customers, or even those who are just looking for a nice place to stay while on a vacation or checking out real estate online, demand and standards have increased. Prior to booking and going to the actual vacation property, it is common for people to go browsing and checking what the vacation property looks like and has to offer has been definitely how the real estate market has been going. Therefore, improving site visibility assists in making people, globally, aware of the properties that you manage. Through photos and videos, you are able to show what guests can expect and experience. Making this data available online expands not just your market worldwide but also gives them an impression of your holiday property management.

Holiday Property Management Beyond the Web

Aside from making use of and maximizing technology and the internet to your advantage, investing in quality interior decor instead of cheap and quick alternatives has always been the way to go. The style, design, and motif of the furniture and fixtures not only add financial price to your vacation property but also contributes to the ambiance. Adding one or two extras and some finishing touches can make the property look friendly to your visitors’ delight. Additional advantages like free books, DVDs, gift certificates, and even deductions on their return can add to your clients’ overall experience.

Offering Customized Service To Guests

Meeting and exceeding client expectations has traditionally been an element for buyer commitment. In addition to offering the best and top-flight vacation property and amenities, providing a consistently high level of customized service is what guests come back for. In accordance with this, newsletters and promotional updates through email can also inspire guests to come back and be a loyal patron.

Detailed Reporting For Clients

As well as caring for guests, being clear by providing continual updates about the performance of each property to its specific owner builds up trust and confidence on both parties. Property owners rely and trust holiday property management groups to maximise their property’s financial opportunity. Also, being well-informed and updated of the costs that go with maintaining and safeguarding their property as well as the earnings generated is also a part of property owners expect from their management team.

Therefore, maximizing the usage of all available resources would significantly improve holiday property management. The right mix of dedication, management and financial understanding, along with technology and world class service will not only make profits for both the property owner and the holiday property management team but also gain customer and client satisfaction and faithfulness.

Strong Demand For Gold Coast Holidays Accommodation

The Gold Coast has been a popular tourist destination within Australia since half way through last century. The city is located on the south-east coast of Queensland, Australia and is well-known for its sandy beaches, rainforest filled hinterland and theme park attractions of Dreamworld, White Water World, Movieworld, Seaworld and Wet’n’Wild. As a town that has something to offer for everyone, not even the world financial crisis has managed to stop the steady flow of tourists.

One person who is experiencing this first hand is the development manager of SunMore Holidays, Ashraf Kamha.  In a recent interview, Mr Kamha said that the Gold Coast was well placed to temper the effect of the economic downturn.

“There’s no question that we are in challenging economic times, however I am optimistic about the tourist sector outlook for 2010 and beyond,” he said.

“In these uncertain times, we see less Australians holidaying overseas and more electing affordable domestic holiday options,” states Kamha.

“Add to this cheap domestic airfare opportunities, and the numbers start to stack in favour of domestic holidays as an affordable family option.”

In fact, so strong is the demand for the Gold Coast Holidays accommodation, SunMore Holidays has such a high occupancy rate, that many of the properties on their books are booked out months in advance.

This is supported by data released by the Australian Bureau of statistics that shows that the Gold Coast city region – Australia’s 3rd largest hotel market by total number of rooms – registered steady occupancy levels throughout 2009 – despite the economic downturn.

It seems that the international market is also contributing to the high demand for Gold Coast holidays accommodation. The Gold Coast saw growth from its second largest holiday source market Japan due to increased air capacity to the region. This is the first time Japanese visitors to the Gold Coast have increased since the year ended September 2005.

Chinese visitors to the Gold Coast also increased with an additional 11,000 Chinese visitors travelling to the region. China is the third largest international source market for the Gold Coast. Young Europeans particularly those under the age of 30 years, increased their travel to the Gold Coast by 10% over the year to December 2009.

“With the steady increase of international travelers and the anticipated domestic market to increase visitor nights by 2% in 2010, “ Kamha continues, “we are looking to expand the number of luxury holiday apartments and executive holiday homes on our books in order to cater for the demand.”

“The properties we promote are in many of the Gold Coast’s popular resorts, SunMore Holidays is always on the lookout for property owners who are looking for someone to market or manage their investment.”

For further information about Gold Coast holidays accommodation or holiday property management, visit www.sunmore.com.au

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Maintaining Your Gold Coast Holiday Property

Whether you are letting your holiday apartment for the first time, or just getting ready for a new season, one of the most important considerations when you rent property is gearing up for a various and demanding succession of visitors. It is generally known that keeping a vacation rental property in good condition may be the key to success, particularly in a competitive market. For one thing, this could attract new tenants and, equally as important, keep the ones that you already have. We have assembled some simple tips to help you :

Decorating

Finding the proper balance of quality and durability can be tricky to do, especially if you are trying to get things prepared in an area you’re not familiar with. This is where using a holiday property management team is extremely helpful, as they know which providers to use and will mostly be ready to negotiate better prices for you. Think about buying quality furniture and fittings for your property. Sounds clear enough but regardless of the initial higher cost, you should expect greater life expectancy and less breakages.

When decorating try and keep colors neutral. Use paint that is washable and avoid pure white which shows up stains, marks and scratches. Instead choose light pastel shades with just the occasional splash of color.

Maintenance

Upkeep is one of the best investments a landlord or a property owner can make, so ensure that you undertake regular inspections of your holiday property, or ask your holiday property management team to do it for you. This can please your guests, since they’re going to enjoy staying in a place that is beautiful and properly managed.

If you have a garden, consider making it as low maintenance as possible. Avoid things like lawns and flower beds, which need regular attention, in favor of paved areas, decking and potted plants. If you let all year, contemplate how outdoor areas will look when the sun isn’t shining.

Keep the utilities running

It is your responsibility to ensure that all your tenants have water and electricity in their units, so pay the bills promptly to stop any interruptions of these services. Dealing with guests who are indignant that their electricity or water has been cut off even though they pay their rents on time is surely not an experience that you would like to go through.

Responsible Tenants

Aside from making improvements and maintaining your property, it’s very important to emphasise with your tenants that they have got a responsibility to look after the place as well. Make sure that they won’t be joining in activities that can cause damages to the property such as bringing a dog. It’d be a smart idea if you would prepare a booklet of information on issues such as the correct disposal of garbage and the utilization of the washing facilities.

By taking good care of your property through improvements and upkeep tasks, you’d be able to profit from the profits it can generate for you. 

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Tips For Choosing A Gold Coast Property Manager

Managing a Gold Coast holiday property can present you with plenty of problems and challenges. If you are the kind of person who flourishes in such circumstances, then you would without doubt find the whole business very exciting. But if you’re a first time financier who still has to gain the required amount of experience in the industry, or maybe you simply don’t have enough time to dedicate to your investment property, then a professional property management firm can come in to assist you in taking care of your valuable vacation property investment.

So how do you go about selecting the proper Holiday Property Management team?

There are lots of factors you should consider when entrusting somebody else to manage your valuable vacation property asset on the Gold Coast. To help choose the right company for you, we have provided some basic points that you would need to consider before hiring one.

1. What You Get For Your money
It’s vital to find out what rate of commission the vacation property management team charges, and the types of services the offer for that commission. It’s smart to ask about the marketing and sales techniques they employ – you’ll be desiring to be sure they have a pro-active, targeting web marketing campaign, as the internet is one of the first places vacation makers go to find vacation accommodation.

2. Outstanding Management Team
The second thing that you’ve got to consider is the company’s previous record. The housing market can be quite unpredictable at times, and you would need to have a team who knows the simplest way to navigate through the rough spots working for you. The Gold Coast vacation market can tend to change, so a property management firm that has had years to deal with inflation and deflation is superior to a dynamic rival. The more established business would sometimes have a support system already set up, so it’s much better to choose experience over passion in this area.

3. Personalised Service
It’s essential that you consider how the Gold Coast Property Management company handle you and your particular problems. They have to be ready to offer you wonderful service that gives you options and solutions, and shouldn’t push you into making choices that you’re not happy with. A great company is one that gives you exactly what you need, while at the same time it presents you with options that you may want to consider for a better overall working experience.

4. Local Information
For a holiday property management team to push your investment to its full potential, it’s important that they have got a solid understanding and awareness of the local Gold Coast area. The reason being that potential guests may have specific questions about transport, attractions, local businesses or even the subtleties about the area. These are the sorts of questions that only a local would have detailed understanding of. If a vacation property management team can supply this value-added service, your potential guests are likely to feel assured the full purchaser service experience is going to be positive.

By following these straightforward pieces of recommendation, you are much more likely to find an excellent Gold Coast Property Management team that won’t only help to keep a high occupancy rate for your Gold Coast property, but will also be a breeze to deal with.