Hi all, Just a reminder to tune into the ABC for 4 Corners on Monday 21st April at 8:30pm for a story on real estate gurus.
http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/content/2003/20030421_tall_stories/default.htm
“Bill Gates uses software. I use property.” – Real estate guru “You can go broke quick but you can’t get rich quick.” – Real estate sceptic
Never mind the forecasts of flagging interest. Australians’ love affair with property shows few signs of cooling…
In Melbourne alone, 100,000 new apartments will hit the market in the next four years. Most of these are being snapped up not by people who will live in them but by investors who believe they can’t lose on bricks and mortar.
The real estate obsession has spawned a new phenomenon – property messiahs who organise huge seminars and work their crowds with religious intensity.
“Dreams absolutely do come true!” one tells his audience.
Wanna-be millionaires are flocking to hear property gurus tell them how to get discounts from developers, or how to buy using deposit bonds that can be paid for later. The key message: you don’t have to have money to make millions.
Typically, a thousand people pay about $60 each for an introductory lecture. More intensive courses may see hundreds of people paying anywhere between $5000 and $50,000.
The seminars are often just the front window on a network of marketeers, financial advisers, valuers, law firms and financiers. While these groups trade on an image of respectability, all too frequently there are conflicts of interest that remain hidden from the buyer.
While some have made money, thousands of investors have fallen victim to schemes based on inflated valuations and two tier marketing – one price for the locals, another for outsiders – especially in Queensland.
Four Corners discovers that despite belated action by Queensland authorities, many of the sharp operators are thriving – and that their focus has shifted south, and to Melbourne in particular.
Stephen McDonell reports on “Tall Stories” – ABC TV, 8.30 pm AEST Monday 21 April (repeated Tuesday 1 pm).
Thanks for letting us all know about this….should be interesting…
They are also having a online chat with these “property masters” at 9:30 – could be very interesting..
Cheers
PeteI was dissapointed with 4 corners. I had expected that the ABC would have provided a bit more of a NEW story. The Queensland property scams are old hat anyone who ever watched any of Paul Clithroe’s money shows knows that you never take use the professionals recommended by the developer ! Ok, now they are doing it in Melbourne….. I half expected Jenman to announce he had a new book out or something!
Did anyone get anything out of the online chats afterwards?
Simon.What is interesting is that a person i have known for the last 10 years was implicated in this story (i didn’t see it but was told from a mutual friend).
A few friends have invested with him over the last 4 years and are still waiting for the said properties to be valued at what they were supposedly worth 4 years ago!
How do you tell a friend “I told you”, and that their friend has ripped them off?Chris
I didn’t participate in the online chat afterwards but looked them up the next day.
A real ‘dog’s breakfast, I’m afraid. It was very hard to follow the threads and I didn’t get much out of them; my own reading, and forums like this and the Somersoft one have been far more educational.
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