For 43 years, Bourke-born David G Russell of Russell Property and Livestock has been selling rural property from his base in Cobar across the greater western division of New South Wales. He tells us about how the market has changed over nearly half a century in his part of the world.
David G Russell was raised on his family property at Tilpa in western NSW. In 1979, a poor season on the land pushed David in the direction of real estate. He went to Cobar to work for a private stock and station agency servicing his home turf of the western division.
Five years later, he did a crash nine-week course at Hawkesbury Agricultural College, got his licence to sell, married and purchased the business backed by Dalgety. Dalgety-Russell was born and is now Russell Property and Livestock, part of Nutrien Harcourts.
In that time, he has been responsible for some major station sales including the $26m sale of Yarra and Kilparney Stations at Mt Hope on 53,500 hectares sold with 3,000 sheep and hay. He conducted 15 inspections for his seller, who was in his eighties, and it sold with nine expressions of interest lodged. With a Northern Territory real estate licence, he also sold Epenarra Station on the Barkly Tablelands two years ago for $14m for clients in the Philippines.
David has witnessed significant market change over the years; and says technology has changed the way property is sold, too. Back in his early days, he recalls telecommunications options in western New South Wales were pretty limited.
“Post offices connected us by phone to ‘party lines’ that linked us to our clients,” David said.
These dated house-to-house phone systems connected one phone line to a number of families that would receive calls collectively. As a result, families could effectively listen in on each other’s calls.
“Then came the radios; one in the Toyota and one in the Office. Then came STD & Telex machines then faxes. Now with the internet, Facebook, mobiles you are in contact and under the spotlight 24/7.”
Covid has forced the digitisation of even the most conventional selling practices out west.
“Over past years we have routinely done clearing sales on property, some are over 500 kilometres away from our office. But now with the pandemic, we have been using online clearing sales via AuctionsPlus selling some 4,000 lots at properties all over the west.”
He says that the upshot of going online has been exposure to buyers elsewhere around the state and interstate.
“We found this approach gave us a huge exposure with buyers from all states purchasing goods without being able to travel due to border closures. From that, all our rural property auctions have been run on AuctionsPlus and have all sold extremely well, with buyers not having to travel back to town to attend the auction.”
He says plenty of western properties are selling before auction in this market.
“As we are putting all our big properties to go to auction via AuctionsPlus while it’s a hot market, we’re selling before auction. We recently sold one for $2.7m and another for $4.7m pre auction and both results were above clients expectations.”
The rural farmland market is in the midst of some of its best conditions.
“We have had three good seasons in a row. The land now has not been this good since 2012. When I’m speaking to sellers thinking about selling in the next few years, I remind them that the reality is that it will get dry again, interest rates will rise and commodity prices are currently at an all time high. They should use this market to their advantage, by which I mean fix up fencing or refurbish buildings as all materials are having a big price increase.”
What does David recommend to aspiring buyers in this market?
“Look at a ten year plan, not a 5 year plan. This market is hot and will stabilise over the long term. And, lock in a 5 year interest rate now!”
“Buyers look out west to get into the goat market and Dorper sheep market. We’re speaking with lots of buyers from eastern and southern parts that grow big crops and are now looking to scale back due to high fuel and fertiliser costs, using their equity in their inside country to buy western land.”
“We’re hearing from lots of city buyers looking for 2,000 to 3,000ac bush blocks just to get out of the city for recreational purposes.”
“As an auctioneer of some 40 years and with all of the big changes, I'm fortunate to have a very understanding wife who helped grow the business. In the early days there were just the two of us and I was doing 170,000 kilometres per year. Now with a very dedicated team of 10 staff and with new technology we continue to be leaders in the west,” David says.