There are transactions that remind you why you do this work — and then there are ones that stop you in your tracks entirely.
For Zoran Solano and his team at Hot Property Buyers Agency, a recent downsizer engagement was one of the most emotionally profound experiences of his career.
The job came through a selling agent contact who was managing the sale of a family home on behalf of an elderly couple well into their eighties. They had lived in the property for 26 years. Now, with the husband battling a fast-advancing case of Parkinson’s disease, the couple had made the difficult decision to downsize to something smaller and more manageable.
They were selling and buying simultaneously – a complex enough undertaking for anyone, let alone a couple navigating profound personal hardship.
“They were becoming overwhelmed,” Zoran recalls. “They were finding the whole process confronting and very stressful.”
What compounded that stress was the sheer shock of re-entering a market they’d essentially been absent from for the better part of three decades. The costs involved in listing, selling, buying, paying stamp duty and engaging the various professionals required to get the job done had left them dumbfounded. Property values had moved in ways they simply hadn’t tracked, and the legislative landscape was unrecognisable from the last time they’d transacted.
It’s a dynamic, Zoran says, professionals can lose sight of when they’re embedded in the market every single day. “Sometimes we forget that our clients may have gone decades without tracking values or what’s happening in real estate. When they finally do need to participate, it can be a real shock. You’re not buying and selling regularly, you’re essentially a first homebuyer again. Markets, legislation, everything feels unrecognisable.”
In many ways, that’s exactly what these clients were: first homebuyers again, just with different motivations. Rather than excitement about getting a foot on the ladder, they were navigating grief, change, and uncertainty, and all while managing a serious illness.
Zoran and his team worked carefully and methodically to find them a lowset home in an area that offered easy access to essential services, medical support, and family. Practical, considered, and exactly what the couple needed.
The moment that has stayed with Zoran came at the settlement. When the paperwork was completed and the keys were handed over, the wife embraced him in tears.
“Selling a house of 26 years – it was traumatic for them,” he said. “At the end of the day, it was one of the most heartfelt transactions we’ve ever been involved in.”
It was also a powerful reminder of the value buyers’ agents provide that extends well beyond finding a suitable property. For this growing demographic of older Australians re-entering the market after many years away, having an agent who understands both the complexity of the transaction and the emotional weight behind it isn’t just helpful, it’s essential.
As Zoran reflects, buyers’ agents who are attuned to this buyer type and can navigate the process with patience and genuine empathy will increasingly find themselves at the heart of some of the most meaningful work in the profession.
Do you have an interesting, funny, educational, scary, or all-around rollicking tale from your day-to-day work life that you’d like to share with other members? Contact our editor, Kieran, on kieran@bricksandmortarmedia.com.au and help us share your Door Knock Diaries story with others.
