Property Transactions Occurring Off-Market In Cut Throat Industry

Each month, many property deals are hidden from the public, because the people involved like to remain anonymous. These 'off-market' deals occur without any advertising, marketing or fanfare.

Harj Uppal, Principal at Regency Real Estate, said being able to keep a buttoned lip is a prerequisite for realtors in today’s cut-throat market.

Regency Real Estate is currently representing 40 sites, with DA's approved or pending, capable of reaping anything from 10 to 300 residential apartments.

The locations include Meadowbank, Mortlake, Ashfield, Belmore, Burwood, Campsie, Epping, Gladesville, Dee Why, Milsons Point, Strathfield, Homebush, Gordon and Redfern.

Despite the sites being extremely newsworthy, all of the vendors want to maintain their privacy.

“When you know what you are doing and have access to the right businesspeople then there is not always a need to put a property officially on the market,”  Mr Uppal said.

“Many of our clients like to keep their financial dealings to themselves, and are mindful of potential negative impacts which can flow from having a high media profile.”

Mr Uppal formed Regency Real Estate three years ago, and in that short time has generated more than $350-million worth of property transactions.

“We maintain cordial relationships with many influential people throughout the world, and a fair proportion of our deals have been with cashed-up developers from Russia, China and India,” Mr Uppal said.

"The influx of overseas developers have pushed up the prices of sites, meaning locals either have to stretch beyond their normal financial comfort zone or take a chance on developing in areas they had never previously considered.”

Mr Uppal says the true level of development activity in Sydney is grossly underestimated because of off-market transactions.

“If you thought 2014 was busy for the construction industry wait until next year; Sydney will become ‘crane city’.”