Our Group stands at 131 offices with just over 1,180 salespeople, 220 property managers and 145 administrators. This year our sales turnover increased by 12%, which saw us transact $3.895 billion in property sales. Our property management portfolio has grown beyond 14,000 and our market share, particularly in the last quarter, has shown good growth across many of the areas we trade.

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The number of sales that will occur within the industry will be 58,000 for the year and will be in line with 2010. The amount of property that has been marketed for sale has dropped by 10% during the year. This has effectively resulted in lower days on market and price increases across most centres throughout New Zealand. Productivity levels for our top 20 businesses increased by 23.8%. There was one interest rate reduction of .5% in March. The official cash interest rate has remained at 2.5% during 2011 and is expected to remain at the same level throughout 2012.

During the year we remained committed to the three pillars of our business growth, being marketing, personal skills and growth. Our marketing platform has seen us redesign our online presence and we have applied a number of superior applications which sees us continue to lead the industry.  Personal websites were also introduced during the year.  We have rebranded our marketing through the media to present further enhanced property presentation. This is now fully integrated with all publishers.

The growth of the company has been evident with the number of new offices that have joined and there have also been several high profile salespeople join Ray White from other companies.

Within this year’s Christmas message we make reference to the significant events that occurred in 2011 throughout New Zealand. To our people and their communities who have been affected by these events, we pay tribute to you.

Our Group will finish the 2011 year in very good shape. The industry continues to polarise.  The significant reinvestment that is required to be a leader in this market is our commitment. 2012 will be a year of continued growth as we enable our plan for genuine leadership.

On behalf of the Ray White corporate team and the White Family, we wish all of our members and their families a relaxed Christmas break and look forward to a successful 2012.

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In making the change to Ray White, Vicki said “The Ray White Group provides industry leading technology and gives us the ability to be able to communicate successfully with our community. Our office has a team approach to our real estate success and in our considerations of partnering with Ray White; we made the decision that in offering the finest service to our clients that we would also offer Australasia’s leading real estate brand.”

Wellington City Real Estate Ltd has a sales team of 14. The team have consistently been awarded for their high quality service and this is reflected in the number of sales they  achieve throughout the marketplace.

Carey Smith, Chief Executive of Ray White New Zealand, said that in welcoming Vicki that her team approach to real estate was certainly a successful model. “There is a good mixture of youth, enthusiasm and experience which now makes up the dynamic team for Ray White in Wellington City.” He also said that Vicki’s leadership and drive for success is widely recognised and that transfers to her business as she sets the highest standards for her office.

 Ray White Wellington City provides services in residential sales, property management and commercial leasing. Their office website provides information on their current listings, properties available for rent, investment properties and information on preparing your home for sale and details of the Wellington City area.

For further information please contact Vicki Collins on 0275 389 574  or visit their website at rwwellingtoncity.co.nz.

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These marketing incentives are in place over the first two weeks of November and are available for any individual property that is promoted through a Ray White  media partner.

For further information please contact any individual Ray White salesperson, who will provide full details of the marketing incentives available.

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Leading salesperson, Peter Vink, said the Tutukaka Coast is a special location that has always had a high attraction particularly for Aucklanders, being just under two hours in travel and providing a relaxing family environment to enjoy. In regards to the re-brand to Ray White Allens, Peter said the marketplace had already reacted positively and that he personally saw opportunity for his buyers and sellers to utilise the Ray White marketing system, both online and through print media, to attract more awareness about the Coast and the property available.

The Ray White Allens Tutukaka office is part of Goode Leith Realty Limited. Peter Vink and Chris Windust are available to be contacted on 09 434 3034, with their properties being displayed through their local website rwtutukaka.co.nz.

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Bill Tunzelmann has a well deserved reputation in the economic rural sector of the Waikato.  Formerly with PGG Wrightson, Bill has been recognised as one of PGG Wrightson’s leading salespeople with a career in real estate extending over many years.

Bill Tunzelmann said that he is excited by his move to the new Ray White office in Matamata.  “Our new business will be dual branded as Ray White Rural and also Ray White. I will continue my personal sales of economic units through the Ray White Rural office at Matamata and also plan to build an extensive sales team in residential that will be part of the business.”

Carey Smith, NZ Chief Executive of Ray White, said that the new office in Matamata is an exciting opportunity for the Group. “The new franchise owner Bill Tunzelmann is highly experienced in the rural area of real estate and he will bring a new dimension to the Group with his extensive database and knowledge of rural.”

The new office will also be conducting residential sales and the team is to be headed up by Nerrida Schuler.

The new Ray White Matamata office is expected to be open by 1^st October.  Bill Tunzelmann can be contacted on 021 489 571 or bill.tunzelmann@raywhite.com.  Nerrida Schuler can be contacted on 021 424 711 or nerrida.schuler@raywhite.com.

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Sue has an extensive background in real estate, with 14 years of experience in dealing with properties in and around the Hamilton area. Sue was not only the No1 sales consultant for the Harcourts Hamilton group but was also consistently ranked as one of the top 20 sales agents for Harcourts in New Zealand.

In joining the Ray White Group with her own office, Sue said this was a natural career step that she has been considering for some time. “Being able to own our own business is something that we have been working towards and with the assistance of Ray White, we have been able to achieve. I have been fortunate to have a high performing real estate career and this has given me the step up into office ownership.”

Richard Jacobsen, who is co-owner with Sue Hall, said “Opening a new office with Ray White will enable Sue to share her skills in leadership and sales amongst a high performing team. We are thrilled to be part of the Ray White Group and with their systems, technology and back up, we are sure to be able to make a success of this business.”

Carey Smith, NZ Chief Executive for Ray White said that “Sue Hall in her time in real estate has achieved numerous accolades and is recognised as one of the top performers of the industry. Her level of skill, knowledge and dedication to the industry has seen her achieve the highest levels.  Sue and Richard join us as co-owners and they are an exciting addition to our growth in the Hamilton region.”

Sue has a team of three who continue to support her ongoing listings and sales. The new office is currently being fitted out and is expected to be open for trading from 1 October 2011.  In the meantime Sue Hall is now listing and selling property and can be contacted on 0800 783 425 or sue.hall@raywhite.com.

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Initially Ray White Online was built as an internal communication where members could access stories, updated information and events that our group was undertaking.  The site quickly developed into a broader communication platform which became public just over 18 months ago.  The site gives insights into our group with stories posted most days, with 250 posts attracting over 210,000 visitors since the site has been live to the public.  Other features include new offices, CEO comments, and Elite member details.  A lot of feedback is received in particular from the posts and CEO comments.

The site is enabled to be shared to Facebook and Twitter, giving each communication post a much broader audience.  The site has also recently enabled an area where the public can subscribe to direct updates and feeds at 9am each morning.

We encourage stories from both our members and the broader public and these can be forwarded to swatson@raywhite.com

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One of the changes to the referring sites shows that Facebook is now the highest referrer for the Ray White Group for individual properties that are visited from a primary referral source.  During the past 12 months Facebook has consistently moved up the rankings and is now a clear number one referrer to our company website.  Another area of interest in 2010 for the same period the average visitor viewed 3.3 pages and stayed on our site 2.59 minutes.  In a snapshot that was taken last week for the same period, our total visitors has increased by 33%, with the average pages viewed just under doubling to 6.37 and the average time on our site has also increased substantially to 4.32 minutes.

Collectively this shows the consistent and ongoing optimization that the Ray White Group has been putting into their web platform to maintain one of the leading positions in the industry.

Keith Ashkettle, head of technology for Ray White New Zealand, said that two key indicators for visitors were the speed of the site and the rich content of their experience when they come to the site. “Our property display now has integrated features which include school zones, a full suite of mapping and community information.  This has translated into the visitor spending more time on our site to get much greater detail of the property they are showing interest in.”  He went on to say that the enquiry rate from the local Ray White sites has also increased substantially and this has been a highlight in the response to our new platform.

The Ray White Group partner with Trade Me Property, realestate.co.nz and also have total membership to the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand.  The new web platform is designed to respond at a national, local and individual level and this has kept Ray White as one of the industry leaders in technology in the real estate agency business.

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Wayne Howett, CEO of Ronald McDonald House Auckland, said that “It is great to have Ray White back on board through our Business Club.  The ongoing commitment and the financial support are always needed to support our families through their time of need.”

Carey Smith, Chief Executive of Ray White New Zealand, said “Renewing our commitment to Ronald McDonald House Auckland allows our company to play an active role in the community by ensuring families who most need support are able to get it with the help of New Zealand businesses such as ours.”

Ronald McDonald House Auckland began in 1994 with a 10 bedroom house.  In 1997, 2003 and 2006 the House undertook extensive renovations to care for up to 77 families every night.  The latest addition to Ronald McDonald House Auckland has been the new building purchased late in 2010 on Grafton Road which will become a second home for families needing to stay with their children in Auckland.

For further information on Ronald McDonald House Auckland please click here.

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The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand provide a platform for best practice standards with up to date and current legislation, with members being bound by codes of agency practice at all levels of membership.   In addition to this, the Real Estate Institute provide the most current sales data which ensures property owners are being given information that is the latest throughout the industry

Helen O’Sullivan, Chief Executive of the Real Estate Institute, said she was delighted to have Ray White become members of the Institute as a total group. “Ray White is a key industry player and to have their endorsement is confirmation of the direction we are heading for the greater industry.”

Carey Smith, Chief Executive of Ray White New Zealand, said he is pleased to confirm that all Ray White offices and salespeople will be members of the Institute for the ensuing year.  “We believe in the importance of a strong industry body and are pleased to support the Institute through the leadership of Chairperson Roseanne Meo and Chief Executive Helen O’Sullivan.”

The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand has been a mark of quality for the industry for over 100 years.  There are more than 10,000 real estate salespeople in New Zealand and the Real Estate Institute provides services to all levels of the agency business.

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