With construction halting and the economy faltering, does this mean that auctioneers have become the ham in the sandwich between bewildered buyers and startled sellers?
“More jam than ham,” laughs Healy Hynes of Hynes Real Estate Alliance in Athlone. “Business is still sweet and steady, and hopefully this week’s Budget will help boost business.”
Being in business for 40+ years certainly helps cushion economic changes, but Healy is quick to point out that there is a lot more competition around now than in the mid-1960s when his father Donal first opened his auctioneer doors.
“Fortunately the industry will be regulated soon, which may see some of Ireland’s unqualified auctioneers being reined in, but even for the vast majority of us who are IAVI (Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute ) accredited, it has become challenging work.”
Hynes Real Estate Alliance is now run by Healy, covering commercial properties and his sister Donna, who deals with residential, with input from their ‘semi-retired’ father, and six full-time staff.
The real estate business is in the Healy blood
“In the 1970s my parents ran furniture and property auctions in Athlone’s St Mary’s Hall and I used to help out as a kid. I don’t think there was ever really a question of me working in any industry other than property.”
The auctioneers’ Church Street site has expanded with Athlone, and is in a perfect spot to catch the eye of passers-by, which Healy points out, is still important.
Auctioneering is a very personal business
“While much of our business is conducted through the Internet, people still love to look in the shop window, popping inside with enquiries. Auctioneering is still a very personal business and that’s the way we like it. People may browse the web (www.hynes.ie / www.realestatealliance.ie ) to buy, sell or rent, but they still want to discuss serious matters face to face with a specialist. Buying and selling property is after all a huge step in anyone’s life, and we sell assurance and peace of mind as much as bricks and mortar.”
At the heart of Ireland, Athlone has grown as a commercial base in its own right, rather than servicing a commuter corridor to bigger towns.
“Big organisations like Élan, Ericsson, AIT, and the army act as a magnet for ancillary services and staff. Our population of around 20,000 expands to 300,000 when we include all connected counties - Westmeath, Roscommon, Longford, Offaly and Galway, so Athlone is very much a town that workers commute into rather than out of, and this gives us a strong economic base.
“Great social amenities such as our schools, third level college, shops, theatre, regional leisure centre, the lakes, walkways, restaurants and hotels, have also attracted people to Athlone. The River Shannon itself is a huge attraction, loved by the sailing, fishing and walking communities alike. And, being in the centre of Ireland we are only an hour or so away from the capital.”
In his property consultancy business Healy conducts business in all of these counties, and offers a broad range of property related services: new and second-hand homes, commercial and professional services, commercial lettings, industrial, retail and office.
“The divide between residential and commercial is dictated by market conditions, so changes from year to year. Currently, we’re doing more professional services and commercial work than residential home sales, such as rent reviews, where we represent the best interests of either the tenant or renter.
“We also do a lot of work on CPOs (compulsory purchase orders ) and road acquisition schemes. We act on behalf of the landowners to ensure that they receive the optimum price for land that they have to relinquish.”
As more people move into Athlone, property management has become an important service offered by Hynes. This involves everything from collecting rents to ensuring that the quality of properties is maintained.
Residential renting stronger than buying
“Residential lettings are strong at the moment, with shorter vacancies between lettings, which is good for landlords. A big student population, combined with incoming workers means that demand is up, and people who build their own houses need to rent until completion.”
Hynes is shortly bringing to market a scheme that was developed out with 95 per cent tax concessions attached. Thomond Lodge Retirement Village in Ballymahon, County Longford is offering a choice of bungalows designed with the needs of the elderly in mind.
“People are living longer and are seeking a secure, friendly environment that affords them independence. This development leases the homes back to owners, giving investors a guaranteed income without any of the responsibilities attached with maintenance. In addition, people can avail of tax breaks under ‘Section 23 and Rural Renewal’ and offset rental income against income tax.”
Complementary marketing company
Healy’s background is in marketing, and from this developed Hynes’ sister company, Real Creative (www.realcreative.ie ), a marketing agency, within the existing premises, which works with clients to help them to effectively bring their product to market.
“We help clients identify their target market and creatively launch their new development. Originally, we worked mostly with developers, but have since added on clients from the healthcare and leisure industries.”
From 2009 all residential and commercial properties, whether for sale or rent, will be energy rated. Healy is currently working with a number of developers on four ‘eco-friendly grade A’ residential developments in Athlone, Clara and Moate.
“Developments such as these boast energy saving features like better insulation, renewable fuel options, solar energy, district heating, heat exchanging and community waste management. These combine to reduce home energy costs by up to 40 per cent over conventional systems and can halve our energy demands.
“One of our Athlone developments, Parkway Avenue, which was launched this year is an example of how estates can be made very attractive with a bit of vision. Houses of different sizes, from family homes to retirement bungalows, are clustered together in wooded areas, giving a country feel. When consumers want to upgrade or downsize in the future, they can possibly do so without leaving the location, and this can lead to three generations living side by side, which fosters good community spirit.
“Another of our A-rated schemes, Gleann Duchais comprises 15 eco-friendly homes in Moate, and was featured on RTE’s Showhouse.”
Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI ) has been making grants available for some time now for energy upgrading, and Healy points out that in Europe ‘green mortgages’ are commonplace, which reward buyers and sellers of eco-friendly homes.
“There are moves here in Ireland to introduce a similar concept. The Construction Industry Federation (CIF ) is pushing banks to make available financial packages specifically geared to encourage people to upgrade the energy efficiency of their homes.”
Talk of the financial meltdown is on all business lips, but Healy has his own take on this.
“The best way to ride a rough patch and stay ahead is simply to do your job right every day and build up long-term working relationships. We’ve moved from a sellers to a buyers market place today, but economic conditions are still way better than they were back in the 1980s when we had to contend with exorbitant interest rates.
“When our business started up in 1965, an average house price was £IR 2,000 (€2,500 ). Today’s equivalent is €200,000. We’ve built up four decades of solid customer service, and this stands to us. We now get second and third generation customers coming into us, and we deal with them professionally, explaining through our Buyer’s Guide publication everything they need to consider.”
Midlands strong, but needs good management
The National Spatial Strategy for Ireland, 2002-2020 has led to a population doubling of the Midlands region, and Healy is confident that the good work already done by the IDA will be replicated in this timeframe to attract in further industry and people to the Athlone area.
“Good management of the region is essential, for example the new traffic management system in Athlone needs to be resolved to improve business. The planned street-scaping and upgrading of the town centre should go ahead in 2009 as this will attract more business into the town centre. We also need a southern relief road from Golden Island to the old N6 to be built now.
“In addition, the quality and cost of broadband is to be looked at locally, although this is a national problem. It makes it very difficult to compete on an international stage when Ireland suffers from such low capacity broadband.”
This concern for the development of Athlone was what led Healy to take on the role of President of the Athlone Chamber of Commerce back in 2003.
“I enjoyed the work and it gave me an insight into how the 200 or so Athlone businesses interact. The skills I learned actually helped me in my current role as Chairman of Real Estate Alliance, which has over 40 offices around Ireland.
“The Alliance is a group of like-minded property consultants, all IAVI and SCS (Society of Chartered Surveyors ) firms. Its purpose is to give strength to all the firms in all regions, so that we can tap into one another’s expertise and learn, in much the same way as the IAVI professional development courses allows us to do”.
“Future developments may include offering commercial properties abroad to our clients here, and certainly I can see the Internet side of our business growing, as it’s a very fast moving industry.”
In his leisure time Healy runs down by the Shannon, and windsurfs on Lough Ree, but still never quite manages to leave the world of property behind him. “I’ve been doing up a house for the past few months, which is great fun.
“I also enjoy reading, and my favourite book has got to be Hyperspace by Michio Kaiku, which examines fascinating issues such as parallel universes and time travel. Can we change the past? Are there other universes?”
And do these universes need auctioneers, I wonder?
