Absolute Property – Over a quarter century of property expertise
The staff at Absolute Property outside their premises in Bishopstown. Pictures by: Larry Cummins
Over the last 29 years, Absolute Property have become a byword in rental services and block management in Cork city and beyond.
As one of the largest block management companies in Munster, they manage over 100 complexes mainly in Cork, but also in Kerry and Dublin.
They pride themselves on being the best in the business, operating from their premises (including a very convenient, spacious car park) next to the Bishopstown roundabout and South Ring.
What a lot of people may not realise, however, is that Absolute Property have a growing reputation for property sales, as well as individual property management.
It is, of course, quite a natural progression. Not only do Absolute Property have an unrivalled professional background and powerful background in Cork property generally, they’re also amongst the best placed as estate agents to be aware of what is likely to come on the market in the near future.
Nobody else has their finger on the pulse in quite the same manner and with such a strong combination of skills and professionalism.
“Absolute has always touched on property sales,” says sales manager Niamh Smith.
“People who would know us from our management portfolio would come to us and ask us to sell their property. But there was no dedicated sales department until I came in 3 years ago.”
Since when, Niamh points out, Absolute Property sales have grown, doubling the number of properties sold year on year.
Most of those sales are still coming directly from their letting and management activities, however, with a good number of homeowners regarding Absolute as an estate agent with some of the highest possible credentials in the market.
As estate agents or auctioneers, Absolute Property look to go the extra mile to offer a level of service that many other estate agents don’t match.
“I help out our new vendors with staging homes for sale,” says Niamh.
“If the property needs painting or if furniture needs to be removed, for example, we’d organise contractors for them. The staging of the property is included in our fees, and we sometimes bring in our own soft furnishings just to give a fresh look to the photos and make the property look inviting.
"We really try to offer the full package. It makes such a difference. When selling your home, we advise vendors to present their property in the best possible way to achieve the best price.
"You’ve only one chance to make a first impression, so you want the property to look its best. Vendors can earn (10/15%) more on the property by doing this. Purchasers can walk into the property and say, ‘I can see myself living here!’, so we don’t just take on a property and go with it, we do everything we can to make a property look its best.”
Absolute has taken on a new professional photographer to photograph all the properties they’re selling.
Up until now, the high quality of pictures taken on a modern smartphone was very good, but we now use highly experienced property photographers, so this is taking the presentation quality to a new level.
“Drone photography is another game-changer,” says Niamh.
“When you use a drone image, you get a great impression of the environment around you, the green spaces, the views, etc. We also offer virtual tours and 3D models of the property to give potential purchasers a full overview before they come to view."
The property sales department has been in existence for only three years and consists of sales manager Niamh, supported by two more members of staff, but it feels like it’s been there all the time, waiting for its time to shine.
“Éimear and Chantal in the office support Niamh with website promotion and social media,” says Antoinette.
"Assisting her with viewings, with advertising and administration. Even with sales increasing year-on-year, there is still clearly plenty of room for growth of Absolute’s sales department.
“I still talk to property-owning clients of ours who tell me that they’re planning to sell their property, and I then ask them if they’d consider placing it with us for sale.
“They’re delighted to realise that we do sales because they know and trust us, but so many of them didn’t realise that we do sales. Of course, if the property is in an apartment complex we manage, we know everything about it, and Niamh can pass on this very valuable piece of information to potential buyers."
From a lettings point of view, the market is very busy.
The ongoing shortage of property in Cork and in the rest of the country is still at an acute level, even though several developments are coming onstream over the coming months.
Managing individual properties is another aspect of the business that is growing fast at Absolute Property, and the company now has over 400 properties in their portfolio.
Once again, it’s the simple combination of care and expertise that keeps this well-oiled machine growing and running smoothly.
There was a time in Ireland, not so long ago, when getting someone to manage your property was considered a luxury service.
Why would you pay someone to do something that you can easily do yourself?
With the multiple changes in legislation around property management and letting in recent decades, however, having an expert agent look after your property and its letting arrangement is a necessity.
“It’s getting harder and harder for small landlords to do this without somebody like us,” says Antoinette.
“Things have changed so much,” says Christy Connery, who is head of property management and has been working with Absolute Property for over 17 years.
“That’s down to the changes in legislation that have taken place. Landlords can no longer keep up with the changes, and that has had a massive impact on the property management market.
"They now need the assistance and the expertise of a property management company like ours. We’ve seen that uptake over recent years, where Landlords want to pass over things to a management company.”
The company’s service includes a dedicated Debtor Department to ensure that apartment owners understand and pay their service charges on time.
With apartment ‘culture’ still being something of a minority sport in Ireland, quite a several people who buy apartments don’t fully grasp the commitments involved; the importance of the annual service charges in maintaining and improving their property and the collective spaces around it.
“When everyone pays their service charges on time, it means that we can move forward and pay for the works that need to be done to keep the properties in an apartment block or complex in excellent condition,” says Antoinette.
“I think that the three main elements of our business (block management, letting agency and property sales) feed off one another very well,” says Christy Connery, who is the director of individual property management and the letting side of Absolute Property’s business.
“If your clients know that you provide the whole array of services, then they’re more inclined to work with you. I think that more and more people are aware that we can provide other services to them. We have many years of experience in all aspects of property."
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