Dion Tolley is a high achiever who has made real estate a part of his life, rather than just a 'job'.

Mr Tolley's clients love his enthusiasm for his work and local knowledge.

How did you start out in real estate? Have you always worked in the industry, or did you do something else previously?

I never left school wanting to be a real estate agent, in fact I knew next to nothing about the industry and had no idea what was ahead of me.

I had an interest in aeronautics and decided to attend full time study at Aviation Australia, and I completed my Cert 4 in theory of Aeronautical Mechanical Engineering.

After this I decided I wasn’t ready to enter the industry and wanted to explore my options whilst save some money and do some travelling.

After 2 years of managing a franchise store owned by Wesfarmers, selling bottles of wine ranging from daily crowd pleasers around $20 a bottle, to premium bottles of wine up to $800 a bottle, I had learnt great people skills, systems within a business, and had a genuine passion for providing great customer service.

Whilst it was a great experience, the current and future for wage growth weren’t and wouldn’t be at the levels I had dreamt of.

After researching what industries involved dealing with people and being rewarded financially for the efforts I would put into my work, I came across real estate and enrolled myself with the REIQ for my registration of sales.

After completing this, one of my clients from the bottle shop became my first boss in the industry and I never looked back.

In the first two years I gained experience as a sales associate and sold just under 50 properties with my first company. 

I then moved to Place Estate Agents in Bulimba where I gained more experience under a lead agent but in a hybrid position, similar to a Sales Associate/Lead agent role (Leverage Agent).

The rest is history and I am now fully qualified with my full real estate license, and I am currently building my own team under the Place brand, and have over 100 sales under my belt in the four years that I have been practising.

Related reading: Sell for success under 30

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I don’t really refer to what I do as a ‘job’ as I believe if you want to make it in this industry you have to make it part of your life, but treat it like a hobby/passion.

What I enjoy most about what I do is that there is always something to be done and you have the opportunity to put a smile on someone’s face every day.

Can you tell us about an interesting property you’ve sold?

The most interesting property I have worked on was with my colleague last year at the end of 2017 – Fairholme.

This was a heritage listed home on the highest point of East Brisbane with city and river views on a 1,712sqm allotment.

On the day of the auction Shane and I had 26 registered bidders and achieved a sale price $1,000,000 over the reserve, the home was sold for $4,000,000.

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What’s your advice to young people starting out in real estate?

My advice to young men or women is to not get disappointed when you see your colleagues or influencers in the industry driving the latest Mercedes, going on extravagant holidays, or buying a Rolex watch.

Set yourself a minimum of five years to really learn all the ins and outs of real estate from somebody who has a good reputation - consider it a university degree.

Read all the sales psychology and property investing books, and go to seminars to meet people.

The only difference is you won’t acquire a hex debt and you’ll be able to earn a basic wage.

If you’re a go getter and put the effort in there should be a bonus along the way to tip your income up.

The money most certainly comes, particularly when you change to a commission only pay structure, and when it does it feels great.

If there is one thing I could leave you with on this topic, is to find industry leaders and surround yourself with positive successful people.

They can rub off on you and really speed up your career.

If you could change one thing about the real estate industry, what would it be?

I think there is a perception out there of the ‘real estate agent’ which relates to a negative connotation.

Yes, in the past I have heard some stories, but my goal would be to restore the faith in this profession.

I think this is achievable and know that other states such as New South Wales are having a reform about the requirements needed before listing and selling a house.

The industry is evolving at a rapid rate with the introduction of new technologies, and the young are starting to keep up with some of the older heavy weights (I mean this respectfully).  

Related reading: Get to know Sarah Hackett, managing director of Brisbane agency, Place

What’s your outlook for the property market in Bulimba and surrounding suburbs for the next 12-18 months?

It has been an interesting couple of years in Brisbane and across Australia with the property boom in Sydney and Melbourne, the large influx of units, and tighter lending requirements for finance.

What I have really noticed over the past six months is that Brisbane is now receiving a lot of interstate migration from some of these states that have been cooling off since the end of 2017.

Properties in Bulimba and surrounding suburbs are still transacting quite well but I don’t think we will experience a run like our friends down south did.

We’ve always been the slow movers and I feel the upward trend will continue but very slowly now that the royal commission has been overseeing lending by the banks.

Where do you live now, and what would be your dream home if you could live anywhere in the world?

I live in the neighbouring suburb to Bulimba, in Hawthorne, and love living and selling local.

After I have built up my property portfolio through developments and buying and selling, my dream home is on the beach along the coast of Australia somewhere between Noosa in Queensland, and New South Wales.

Catching waves with my family and friends and enjoying the later years sounds pretty good to me.

Related reading:

Get to know Carol Carter of Queensland Sotheby's International Realty

Get to know Ian Moore, award-winning architect'

Get to know Michael Vettoretto, Senior Sales Executive and Auctioneer at Queensland Sotheby's Realty