Opes

2 min read24 Aug 2025

Why does Opes sometimes delete the comments?

Wondering why Opes Partners deletes some social media comments? Discover our approach to moderation, respectful debate, and creating a safe space for property discussions

Author: Ed McKnight

Resident Economist, with a GradDipEcon and over five years at Opes Partners, is a trusted contributor to NZ Property Investor, Informed Investor, Stuff, Business Desk, and OneRoof.

Reviewed by: Laine Moger

Journalist and Property Educator, holds a Bachelor of Communication (Honours) from Massey University.

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If you follow us on social media, you might see that here at Opes, we sometimes delete certain comments.

And you might think: “They’re deleting comments! Why?”

Our team at Opes pride ourselves on being upfront and honest. So here’s how we decide which comments to delete (and why).

Why we love comments on social media (even the ones we disagree with)

Ultimately, our goal is to help Kiwis get freedom and choices through property investment.

So, we want to have an open and respectful discussion. One that helps people invest better.

Especially, since property investors often get a bad wrap in the media. That’s why we want to create a safe space where people can respectfully discuss property.

Of course, here at Opes, we have a certain strategy we help investors use (the build and hold). But, that way doesn’t work for everyone.

So, in our comments section it’s ok to disagree with what we say, as long as people do it respectfully.

That’s why we don’t delete comments that:

Disagree with our strategies or philosophies
Criticise property investment in general
Ask tough questions in good faith

We get it. Deleting comments can look like censorship. But we see it more like steering the conversation to the debates that really matter.

Don’t agree with us? Good. Tell us the reasons why. Maybe even suggest an alternative. Help make the conversation better

But, want to tell us that we’re wrong … you’re right … and you don’t like how our presenters dress or sound … that’s taking the focus away from the conversations that make the community better.

When we’ll delete comments

Some online commenters are disrespectful or consistently antagonistic. That creates an environment where others don’t want to comment.

Think of it this way. Let's say you’re genuinely interested in discussing property investing.

You see one of our posts and have a question. Then you see that other commenters are getting ripped apart. People are being mean to them for asking a question. Are you really going to comment?

Probably not.

You’re here to learn about property … not to get involved in a never-ending argument on the internet. (Who really gains from those?!)

So we do delete comments that are either disrespectful or antagonistic.

If your comment is persistently mean-spirited. If it includes personal attacks. If it targets our presenters, or contains offensive language, we will remove it.

We don’t delete comments because we can’t handle criticism. We delete them to create a space where you feel safe asking questions and engaging.

How we decide which comments to delete

We think of our social media profiles as our house. It’s our place on the internet.

And just like at a dinner party, everyone’s welcome – but not if they come in yelling at the host or picking fights with the guests.

So yes, ultimately, we decide which comments to leave (which are 99%+ of them) and which to delete.

And this is a subjective decision.

But, we follow one very simple principle when it comes to comments:

“How would we react if someone said it in person?”

If someone said their comment out loud at an in-person event – and we’d feel the need to ask them to leave – that’s a clear sign we’ll delete the comment.

But, if on the other hand someone says: “I disagree with you for x, y, z reason,” we’d have the opposite reaction.

That leads to an interesting and constructive discussion. So those are the sorts of comments we want.

Ultimately, this isn’t about deleting comments. It’s about creating a community where people can have honest and respectful discussions about property.

Ed McKnight

Resident Economist, with a GradDipEcon and over five years at Opes Partners, is a trusted contributor to NZ Property Investor, Informed Investor, Stuff, Business Desk, and OneRoof.

Ed, our Resident Economist, is equipped with a GradDipEcon, a GradCertStratMgmt, BMus, and over five years of experience as Opes Partners' economist. His expertise in economics has led him to contribute articles to reputable publications like NZ Property Investor, Informed Investor, OneRoof, Stuff, and Business Desk. You might have also seen him share his insights on television programs such as The Project and Breakfast.

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