"Out of touch": Property ad sparks major debate
A property advertisement has sparked a major debate online after its controversial tagline went viral for the wrong reasons.
The billboard in Perth’s western suburbs is on a popular train line and was posted online by a woman who described it as “sick and twisted” in the comment section.
The ad for property advisory firm WhiteFox that boasts the company has been making “homes more expensive since 2017”, which struck a wrong chord with online audiences.
“Maybe not the message to be gloating about in the middle of a housing crisis”, the woman wrote.
The clip has amassed more than 200,000 views and sparked a massive conversation online and people were divided on if it was a tone deaf message or simply good marketing.
One person who saw nothing wrong with the advert said, “If you’re selling, you want to get the most for your home”.
Another replied to that comment and said that it “comes off so bad” and that the language should have been changed to add value instead of making “homes more expensive”.
Others claimed the advertisement was “out of touch”, with one person saying they were “outraged” by the billboard, while another said they were “shocked” to see this advertisement, and someone else called it “insane”.
“The only people upset at this are not the target audience because they can’t afford a house, including me,” one claimed.
The CEO of the property agency was quick to respond to the backlash, telling news.com.au that it is the company's job to get the best price for their clients selling their homes.
“Think about it, if you are selling your house, would you like to sell it for below market value? I don’t think so. You want it to be as expensive as possible, right?”, he said.
Mr Fox said the real issue is the cost-of-living crisis, which is making life so “hard” for Australians who are getting hit hard by rising prices from groceries to interest rates.
“So, if you’re a home seller and you see this billboard, it’s actually exactly what you want,” he argued.
Image credits: TikTok