Value Over Volume Wins

Toop & Toop won the Real Estate Institute of Australia’s national Large Residential Agency of the Year award after first winning the South Australian category. The award was framed as meaningful because it was independently judged and recognised a boutique, value-focused model over the industry’s usual emphasis on sales volume and gross commission income. The agency’s approach prioritises trusted advice, end-to-end service and stronger outcomes per property rather than high transaction numbers. Despite post-budget concerns about capital gains tax, negative gearing and trust changes, buyer activity in Adelaide has not weakened. Across 85 weekend opens, buyer numbers were 10% higher the week after the budget and about 15% higher the following week compared with pre-budget levels. Some individuals are delaying decisions due to tax advice, but no broad market shift is evident. Trust changes are viewed as more concerning than CGT or negative gearing. Help-to-buy limits may restrict families to smaller, outer-suburban new builds, while rentvesting remains a practical entry strategy. Melbourne may offer stronger near-term capital growth than Adelaide.