Damning video explained

The footage, which was caught on the security camera of a Douglasdale complex, shows a Lew Geffen/Sotheby’s agent, James Christelis removing a Rawson property ‘for sale’ sign on the verge of the complex. In the video Christelis drops the sign on the ground and replaces it with his own ‘for sale’ sign before driving off.

When approached about the video, Christelis said his action had been taken out of context. He explained that Lew Geffen/Sotheby’s had been given sole mandate on a property within the complex, and he was simply moving the other agent’s board since he and his colleague had been appointed sole agents.

“In my opinion, the video was a vindictive move by the agent whose board we removed, in the hope of discrediting us,” Christelis said.

Roger Mortlock of Rawson property said he did not know where the video had originated from, but after viewing it, he was not convinced of Christelis’ innocence. “By removing an agent’s board you are removing that agent’s presence from the area and taking away an opportunity,” he said.

“To my knowledge, Christelis is the only agent in this area who removes other agent’s boards, and if we catch him doing it again we are going to take it further.”

Christelis, whose company last year awarded him brand ambassador of the year, said that, if anything, the video had highlighted how difficult the market was.

“It has always been a cut-throat industry,” he said.”But now, agents are facing tough times as there are many agents out there, and there is uncertainty in the market resulting in very few homes being put [up for sale] at the moment.”

He added,”I think this should be a warning to sellers to be sure they are dealing with agents who are properly qualified, as the process of selling a home has become a lot more difficult.”