How did you start in the real estate business? 

I was born and bred in Euroa (north eastern Victoria) and spent my first 28 years in the country, including jackarooing in outback South Australia and running a landscaping and pool business on the NSW coast. When the physical labour of landscaping became too much I decided to begin the real estate course by correspondence.

Eventually I moved to Melbourne to do the course at RMIT and bought a home through one of hockingstuart’s founders. I knew right away that this was the type of real estate agency I wanted to be a part of and waited until they offered me a job.

I listed 50 properties in my first year, and opened the Elsternwick and Brighton offices in the years following. I’ve been with hockingstuart for the entirety of my 30-year real estate career.

What do you love about your job?

I get a thrill from negotiations. It requires a certain skillset to try and maximise the price for vendors, and each negotiation is completely different from the next.

However, the greatest compliment you can receive as a real estate agent is when people you’ve sold a property to in the past come back to you, to resell that same home some years later. It shows that you’ve made a good impression to begin with, and this vendor is willing to trust you with their largest emotional and financial investment.

What changes have you seen in your 30 years in the industry?

Property listings used to be released once a week in black and white in the press – however now they’re available 24/7 online, with colour photos, videos & even 3D tours.

As a result of this, we’ve seen the emergence of property styling, or home staging as some call it. In order to have their properties stand out from the crowd, vendors are spending just as much time and money on styling their home with loan furniture as they are on advertising and marketing.

In my experience, both promotion and presentation are equally as important in maximizing the end result for the vendors. Staging doesn’t just help the property stand out – it can also make sure the home looks spacious, modern and generally more attractive, so the property may appeal to a different buyer demographic. Basically, the better the home looks, the better the result for the vendor.

In the next five years, I think we’ll see vendors splitting their budget between one third promotion and two thirds presentation.

What would you like to see done differently in the real estate industry?

Too many agents discount their fees in order to win business, rather than earning the right to sell someone’s biggest asset through proof of their hard work. We’re specialists - no different to a surgeon or lawyer.

You’ve worked in the Bayside region for 30 years. What impact has higher density living had on prestigious suburbs like Brighton?

As longstanding Bayside residents move into their encore years, they no longer want to spend their time maintaining a large family home. Fortunately, there are now plenty of options which enable them to remain in the Bayside area - like newly developed apartments or townhouses - and still be amongst their friends and family.

The introduction of townhouses and apartments in Brighton has also meant that young professionals have the opportunity to buy or rent in the area they grew up in, adding to the upbeat vibe of the community.

Where do you live now?

I lived in the Bayside area for close to 30 years, but have recently made the move to the Mornington Peninsula for a lifestyle change, returning to my roots in the countryside. I will be commuting to work in Brighton daily.

What’s your dream home, anywhere in the world? 

A ski chalet in Aspen Colorado, or a beautiful beach home in Wategos Bay in Byron Bay.