This special episode is the audio from a webinar we were recently invited to moderate by the Real Estate Institute of Victoria. Featuring three leading Melbourne auctioneers - Adrian Butera, Luke Banitsiotis and Peter Kakos - the discussion explores the process of competing in auction competitions, and the enormous positive impact it can have on your on-street or in-room auctioneering.

A key part of the property industry is the buildings themselves. It sounds obvious, but the planning and forecasting around major building projects can tell us a lot about what the economy is likely to do over the next few years. That's why this week we've sought a different property perspective for the Hammertime podcast. Phil Alexander-Pye is the Victorian Property Market Leader at multi-national design firm Arup and has shared his insights to the impact the covid crisis might have on buildings. From the need to manage loading and unloading high-rise offices (it's going to take hours, and forget about popping out for lunch), to projects in the pipeline and their impact on the economy.

What's going through the minds of buyers during this crisis? We thought we'd go straight to the source and seek the insights of independent property buyer's advocate, Cate Bakos from Cate Bakos Property. She says right now there are buyers in the market frustrated by the lack of supply, but that the real impact of the covid crisis won't be understood until later in the year when the government's stimulus packages wear off and people are left to stand on their own two feet.

The Covid-19 crisis has (unsurprisingly) brought real estate agents significant challenges when it comes to listing and selling property. In this, Lucas McEntee, Managing Director at Deposit Release sees an opportunity. Their innovative product soft-launched last year but has gone to market in the middle of this crisis. It offers agents a tool to help them list, while also assisting vendors to achieve a better sale price. What's not to love?

Property valuer Tony Kelly says there's been no evidence of a drop in property values due to the coronavirus crisis - yet. But how will the crisis-driven changes in our behaviour flow into the long term, and how will they affect property values three, six or 12 months down the track? Property valuers will be at the forefront of any downturn, reporting on it and advising banks and the property industry. In episode 5 of Hammertime, Tony shares his insights on what's happening now, and what we can expect in the future.

"This is not a time to be doing less," says George Passas from Pascon Group. He's made social media marketing a priority since the outset of his business and is only ramping up in the face of the corona crisis. Check out episode 4 of 'Hammertime: A Property Perspective' to hear George's take on social media marketing, and why there's no excuse for any business to be inactive in 2020.

The last few weeks have been turbulent for the property industry, with extreme measures being implemented by government, resulting in unprecedented restrictions on our practice. The man who's been in the room (or on the phone) for all of those conversations with government, negotiating on behalf of our industry is Gil King, CEO of the REIV. Despite some criticism from people in the industry, Gil argues the REIV is the best and only voice fighting for our industry, and it deserves our support.

"Banks are open for business and loans are being approved." That's the message from mortgage broker Alan Heenan, whose phone has been ringing off the hook, in contrast to many of us in real estate.

Phil De Fegely is a legend of the Australian property industry, and with more than 35 years' experience he's seen and survived a downturn or two. Phil shares his insights on how agents and auctioneers can tackle the corona crisis head-on, and adapt their practices in the new world of online property auctions.