3. Media and Marketing

Make a Winning Move Winners

👓 1 minute read

Winners of our ‘Make the Winning Move’ lead generation campaign have been announced. The 2025 campaign set out to help homeowners understand the value of their property while connecting them with local First National agents who know their area best. We saw strong engagement across every state with high levels of appraisal requests and positive feedback from participants.

Offices with winners were:

• FN Homeway (Castle Hill, NSW)

• FN Ranges (Dandenong, Vic)

• FN Biloela (Qld)

• FN Salisbury (SA)

• FN Margaret River (WA)

Should You Delete Online Sales Results if a Customer Asks?

👓 2 minute read

There’s a curious new reality of real estate: where agents must juggle transparency, legal compliance, and the existential dread of buyers who regret spending too much. In a recent Sydney suburb sale, a First National member’s record-breaking property result became less about the triumph and more about the buyer’s attempt to erase their digital footprint - armed with a Sydney Water bill and a vague threat of legal action.

The buyer demanded our agent remove photos, videos, floor plans, and price history from online portals, citing privacy concerns - despite the fact that all materials were published pre-ownership, when the home was staged and empty. No court orders. No ADVOs. Just vibes, a water invoice, and a dash of ChatGPT-assisted legalese.

After portals caved under pressure, the agent reinstated the listing, adding the sold price in the headline just for good measure. But with REA saying it receives about 700 hundred requests annually, the matter underscores a larger issue: growing pressure to scrub real estate history post-sale, with zero legal backing.

In a market that relies on transparency and public data, should agents really be in the business of hiding floor plans and sale prices because of buyer remorse? What will your response be, when asked? 

You can’t un-Google something. And you definitely can’t AI-guilt your way into erasing public records.

What is your view? Should First National develop a policy to address this rising trend? 

Read the full story and share your thoughts with us in the comments.

First National Christmas/New Year Radio

👓 1-2 minute read

First National members and spokespeople received media coverage in the lead up to Christmas and New Year, covering ABC Queensland, GOLD and KIIS FM, ABC Upper Hunter Valley, 2BS Bathurst, ABC Sydney Nightlife, ABC Sydney Afternoons, ABC Newcastle, and Star 104.5FM Central Coast. 

Topics covered:

• Landlords’ obligations with air conditioning

• Preparing for bushfire season

• Holiday home security

• Neighbourhood rules around leaf blowers and general noise limits

• 2026 property market trends

A huge shout out to Michael Sleiman (FN Daystar, NSW) who twice made himself available to Sydney radio stations, Tony McTaggart (FN Edwards Higgens Parkinson) and also Casey Rollinson (FN Discover, NSW) who debuted with her first radio interview for the network with 2BS Bathurst. Thank you for making yourselves available, and congratulations Casey on your first radio interview representing First National.

Here’s a roundup of recordings obtained:

Simon Russo Snags Media for Country Practice Cottage

👓 1 minute read

Simon Russo of FN Commercial (Castle Hill, NSW) snagged great coverage on realcommercial.com.au and commercialrealestate.com.au when he listed the commercial cottage used to film one of the most emotional scenes from A Country Practice for auction. The property sold under the hammer for $2.4 million + GST on 10 December.

Peter Watson’s Thoroughbred Equestrian Listing on Domain Prestige Cover

👓 1 minute read

Peter Watson of FN Neilson Partners (VIC) captivated buyers when his equestrian property listing featured on the cover of Domain Prestige. The spectacular Harkaway Estate is tucked in the hills behind Berwick and has expectations of $13.5 to $14.5 million.

Australian Property Conveyancer: Houses of Horror

👓 1 minute read

The January issue of Australian Conveyancer Magazine carries an interview with Communications & Corporate Affairs Manager, Stewart Bunn, on stigmatised properties and an agent’s duty of disclosure.

The AI tricks real estate agents are using to fool buyers

👓 1 minute read

AI home staging is on the rise, and why shouldn't it be? It's quick, cheap, and an effective way of helping buyers perceive how an empty apartment would look when furnished, and it helps the spatially challenged to grasp the genuine size of rooms. That's when it's used properly, but unfortunately we're seeing a disturbing trend of ridiculously misleading advertisements that are undermining trust, and will soon attract the attention of regulators if not stopped.

Money Magazine interviewed Communications & Corporate Affairs Manager, Stewart Bunn about the growing use of AI home staging and its impacts. What does the law say? Is virtual styling even legal? Is the line between polishing a listing and misleading buyers becoming disturbingly thin? Read the article here...

Facebook is not a diplomatic embassy

👓 3 minute read

Let’s set the scene. You’re a real estate agent. You sell houses. You are not, despite your profound confidence and recent Google deep dive, a geopolitical analyst, foreign policy strategist, or ambassador of anything besides auctions and awkward fridge placements.

Social media is not your confessional booth.

If you need to process your feelings about international affairs, may we kindly suggest:

• A private group chat with equally outraged friends 
• A screaming-into-a-pillow session
• Literally any other activity that doesn’t broadcast your opinions to potential buyers, sellers, and journalists with nothing better to do

Your audience isn’t just your mates.

Yes, even if your Facebook post received laughing emojis. Yes, even if ‘your followers’ loved it. 

No, Karen from high school agreeing with your take on Bondi doesn’t count as market validation. 

Clients will find this stuff, and they’ll wonder:

“If this person thinks that, what else are they like? Will they market my house or try to preach to my buyers during the open?”

We’re not saying don’t have opinions.

We’re just saying: your public profile isn’t the place. Especially when you represent a national brand. 

If your hot take goes viral and ends up in the inbox of your manager or worse, National Support Office, you are the news. And not in the ‘awarded top agent in the district’ way. More in the ‘How is this guy fit to represent your brand and we’ll never sell through you’ kind of way.

Some simple rules for survival:

• If the topic involves war, genocide, politics, religion, or Elon Musk: just don’t
• If your post makes you feel bold, smug, or vindicated: save it in drafts
• If you’re about to type ‘I’m entitled to my opinion!’ — congrats, you’ve already lost

Remember: every post is a potential billboard for your professional judgment. And trust us - that billboard doesn't look great with a flaming comments section and a dozen angry DMs or emails from offended potential customers who do not share your view.