James Bailes

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BUSINESS BASICS

Started as a Realtor in: February of 2012

Specialization: Richmond

One piece of advice for your clients: Relax and trust your Realtor.

Why Sutton Seafair Realty? Sutton Seafair has a family-like vibe. We are all willing to help and support each other; even just sit and talk sharing expertise and stories. I find this style of learning one of the best and fastest ways to grow as a Realtor. Other offices may have more Realtors as part of their database, but they don’t have the close network and openness we have at Sutton Seafair.

“It was a pleasure working with James. He was professional, very prompt and his follow up was fantastic. The overall experience was very pleasant, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him!” -Dhillon, Client

Q & A

1. What differentiates you from the 11,000 licensed real estate agents in the Greater Vancouver area? I work full-time, not part-time. This is not a hobby for me. I’m a career agent and I love what I do. Clients always come first and I go above and beyond. For example, one of my last clients – I cleaned out their attic for them because they had forgotten to.

2. What inspired you to be a real estate agent? I knew at a young age that I didn’t want to work in a cubical, I needed to be out working with people. I always excelled in sales and management roles because of my ability to relate to clients, naturally this led me to become a Realtor. I truly love the flexibility and diversity of the job and I enjoy not being nailed down to a desk. My office is where ever I want it to be, as long as there’s WIFI!

3. What are your thoughts on the current market? Buyers: No point in waiting. Mortgage rates are unbelievable and inventory is good. With the GST transition a lot of new developments are also becoming available. There are also a record number of housing starts on the go in the lower mainland. Borrowing can’t get much better; this is the time to get locked in.

Sellers: It isn’t what it was 5-years ago, not even 6 months ago. The market has balanced itself, but in most cases the value of your home has still shown a significant increase.

4. What do you do to keep yourself educated and informed on the market? I read everything I can get my hands on. I am part of a coaching program and I try to read a book a week. In my car, I don’t listen to the radio, it’s audio books all the time; a “Driving University!’

“James goes the extra mile as a Realtor. He even helped me move in after he sold me my place. I would recommend him to anyone. A++ service!” -Cody Darby, Client

PERSONAL SNAP SHOT

About: James was born and raised in Richmond, BC and he has lived in every corner of the city. He left high school to travel before entering the culinary arts, which took him to Calgary, Alberta. He eventually shifted to self-employment as a Personal Trainer and bootcamp instructor, a personal passion for him. He enjoys fitness and sports with particular interest in hockey.

Likes (If you had more time, what would you do more of): Cook, I love to create big meals for family and friends. Other than that, Fitness, sports, and getting to know people and building relationships.

Loves (can’t live without): My Dog, I’ve always been a dog person. Richmond has many great dog parks and I am lucky enough to live right near the dyke in Tera Nova so going for walks is always fun.

THE EXTRAS

James believes that clients are looking for a Realtor that can handle their needs properly and would represent them the same way they would represent themselves in the business. He thinks his honesty is one of his best features and that clients perceive him as a sensitive person who able to understand their needs.

He loves that his career allows him to help coach and support his clients while building long-term, lasting relationships. The flexibility of the job also allows him the time he needs to care for his dog, health, family and friends.

Contact James

Sarah Warren

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BUSINESS BASICS

Started as a Realtor in: Spring of 2010

Specialization: Vancouver West Side, but is happy to work all over the lower mainland. Working with single family homes is also an area of expertise.

One-piece of advice for your clients: Choose your realtor based on best personal fit, not necessarily on resume and credentials. Be clear on what you want and expect.

Why Sutton West Coast? Sutton West Coast is the #1 brokerage in the lower mainland with 20 offices. There is an extensive team working in tandem to deal with all aspects of a transaction.

Q & A

1. What differentiates you from the 11,000 licensed real estate agents in the Greater Vancouver area? The little things; I pride myself on personal, detailed-orientated service to clients, always going a step beyond.

2. What was your favorite success story? A young family was surprised with a new addition to their family and they were in immediate need of finding a bigger home. They were nervous and consumed with the changes going on with their life. It was a gratifying experience to guide them through the process of purchasing the home in which they would raise their new family.

3. Who has been your most interesting client? Helping a gentleman from Korea relocate to Vancouver. He did not speak English well. It was interesting to learn more about other cultures and customs and to communicate with someone who doesn’t speak the same language.

4. What inspired you to be a Realtor? My experience as a first-time homebuyer was nerve racking and I had a lot of questions and concerns. I didn’t feel like I was given the time and attention that I needed to feel comfortable with the process. I was young and felt undervalued as a client. I wanted to be a realtor that made the experience fun and exciting for that first time client and would deliver the same service weither they were purchasing a studio apartment or a 5 bedroom home.

PERSONAL SNAP SHOT

About: Sarah is a new mom to a baby girl born in late September. She lives in Kerrisdale with her husband, baby and dog. She loves her neighborhood and community and enjoys being involved with it. She enjoys the arts, music, and theatre and prides herself as a foodie and wine lover!

Likes (If you had more time, what would you do more of): Spending more time outside and being active; that always gets pushed aside when busy. The schedule always gets booked so fast that fitting more time with friends would be wonderful.

Loves (can’t live without): The love of food of wine, and of course, family!

THE EXTRAS

To Sarah every client is different when it comes to what they want out of a Realtor, that’s why it’s important to listen well and understand a client’s needs. One of Sarah’s best features is her intuition. She has always had a talent in interpreting and identifying with people. She can work well with a variety of people and can anticipate their needs.

There are challenging aspects to the job, but Sarah thinks the challenges pale in comparison to what she loves most, which is helping to find the perfect house that her clients can will call their home.

Contact Sarah

Rob Zwick

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BUSINESS BASICS

Started as a Realtor in: 2006, but has worked in related industries since graduating from UBC in 2002.

Specialization: East & West Vancouver, North Shore and Downtown.

One-piece of advice for your clients: Be patient, but pounce the second you find something that meets all of your criteria.

Why RE/MAX? Rob started at a boutique firm, but found that it didn’t give a strong brand name behind him when it came to selling higher priced properties. RE/MAX allowed Rob to step into higher-end properties and enabled him to be surrounded by the best of the best.

“Beyond his expertise in the lower mainland real estate market, which I seriously needed in a volatile and fluctuating economy, I found Rob to be a genuinely caring human being. His patience, determination and commitment to meeting my needs rose above and beyond what I could have hoped for. He is bar none a great realtor and more important to me, an integral and hard working person that shows up, does the work and gets the job done.” -L. Johnson, Ubber Happy Client.

Q & A

1.What differentiates you from the 11,000 licensed real estate agents in the Greater Vancouver area? A combo of factors:

• I studied urban geography, which is the pre-requisite to urban planning
• My OCD mentality with customer service
• Finally, my work ethic

2. Who has been your most interesting client? One client tested me more than anyone; they were extremely diligent and worked Finance and Law. I worked with them for well over a year to find their perfect new house, then was hired to sell their older townhouse. They analyzed every part of my contract, requested multiple inspections and took their time to look at over 100 homes in multiple areas. Although it tested me, it also validated the level of my knowledge, will, and patience as a Realtor.

3. What was your favorite success story? I sold a 3-story sky loft in the Woodwards building. We put it for sale during the downturn in ’08. It was an impressive home, but limited to a particular seller. It was essentially a 1 bedroom, with lots of stairs, 2000 square feet and a 1.5 Million price tag. It was challenging to find the right person. After 5 months, with no sale, the owner who had an investing partner gave them an ultimatum to fire me or to lose their investment money. I was fired for the first time in my career. The owner hired another Realtor, the leading Realtor in the downtown market at the time. They couldn’t sell it. The owner came back to me and I encouraged them to rent it for a year before we put it back on the market. Once I was again hired to relist the property, we were able to sell it for over $100,000 more than our previous listed price. It was nice to have a client compare what I was doing versus an industry powerhouse, and clearly see the benefits of what I brought to the table.

4. What inspired you to be a Realtor? It was a situation of circumstance. Growing up my dad built architectural models for some of the best developers in North America. From school, my urban geography developed to an internship with Concert Properties where I realize I wasn’t meant for the corporate world. I was much more entrepreneurial. I started a real estate magazine with a couple of my friends in 2001. I ran it until 2007. In the last year, I stepped away after I got my license. It made me realize that this is what I was meant to do.

“Of the 1100 plus Realtors in town, Rob is definitely one of my favourites to work with. He’s smart, professional, hardworking and he really cares about his clients.” -Gina Rossi, Relator

PERSONAL SNAP SHOT

About: Rob’s wife is a massage therapist and they have two kids. He lives along Main Street (which was a home he jumped on the second he saw it. From the moment it was listed until his offer to purchase was agreed upon, only 90 minutes transpired).

Likes (If you had more time, what would you do more of): This past holiday season Rob had the opportunity to spend some quality time with family for nearly a month straight. He realized that value that he brings to his family when he is around more. With that he candidly noted his needs to limit the time he devotes to his work. He understands the importance of working with clients who value and appreciate his time and the work he does. He wants to focus his time to working with people that he wants to work with.

Rob wants to give more time to his family, get more social hours in with friends and spend quality working hours with his clients.

Loves (can’t live without): The guy stuff: electronics, cars, and photography. In particular, photography is a personal passion. Originating from his job as Realtor and wanting to capture the right pictures for his clients. He has been working on his art for the past 5 years and has enlisted friends to give him private lessons on specific aspects and perspectives. He’s appreciating that photography is become much more mainstream these days.

Thoughts on the current market: After seeing the run up, he thinks it’s nice to see a pull back. The market has been very inconsistent for both the buying and selling. The media is feeding the misconceptions, however, the stats are supporting what is happening. It’s a slow market, but there is little to choose from, the market is flooded with poor quality listings. The goods listing are selling quickly. There are a lot of buyers that are nervous and waiting for others to flinch. It’s a game of who looses patience first, the buyers or the sellers?

THE EXTRAS

Rob believes that clients are looking for someone to do their job in an ethical way. They want customer service and advice without being pushed. They need someone who can discern different patterns and developing neighbourhoods for future values. A person with neighbourhood and construction knowledge. Ultimately, they want an expert.

He thinks clients perceive him as a nice guy that works his ass off – who also has their best interest in mind, with a mentality to never give up.

Rob’s typical client tends to be young couples with kids. It’s an ideal client as he can relate as he has been through it and can provide recommendations on what to stay away from.

Rob enjoys working with great people and loves that no two days are the same. He reflected back on showing a float house in Ladner, a penthouse suite in downtown and a waterfront property in Indian River (North of Deep Cove) all in one day.

There are challenging days, which include dealing with highly emotional and stressful situations. In a buying situation, clients sometimes need things to happen instantly that are next to impossible, but Rob has built a network of contacts to manage and support their needs.

More than that, Rob maintains strong relationships with top Realtors in the community, which he believes helps him and his clients gain invaluable information about the market.

Contact Rob

Bernadette Dunnigan

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BUSINESS BASICS

Started as a Realtor in: 2010; currently #1 in Edgemont for attached home sales.

Specialization: North and West Vancouver, with particular expertise in the beautiful Edgemont Village Community (North Vancouver).

One-piece of advice for your clients: Location is key, but trust yourself! Trust your instincts.

Why RE/MAX Crest Realty? They are the #1 brokerage in North Vancouver for number of sales, year after year and part of the group of brokerages (RE/MAX Metro Vancouver), which is #1 in the world! RE/MAX is known internationally as well has #1 in North Vancouver.

"She was super professional and even helpful after the transaction during the move process. She really cared about us!” -Susanna Li, Client

Q & A

1. What differentiates you from the 11,000 licensed real estate agents in the Greater Vancouver area? I work hard, harder than any one I know. I do whatever it takes to provide the top level of service to my clients and to meet their goals. I sincerely care about my clients and I support what I do with market knowledge and the ability to negotiate.

2. Who has been your most interesting client? I live and work in an area that has a smaller community; we all know each other. I had a recent client who had a reputation amongst our local Realtors for being hard, abrasive and difficult to work with. My experience was nothing like that. They were lovely and even wrote a beautiful testimonial for me, noting how they never felt pressured and that they felt as if their interests were always first and foremost. It validated my professionalism and character that everyone should be treated with respect.

3. What was your favorite success story? I had a client not willing to sell under the asking price. Four Realtors were asked to provide estimates on their property value. We were all within range from one another, but a decent amount below what the clients wanted.

The client chose me as their agent and said to me, “I believe in you and that you will get me my price.”

I gave the client a detailed list of “to dos” to prepare their house for listing and to maximize the sale price; paint, purchasing pillows, carpets, etc. The cost wouldn’t have even been $1000.00 and I helped stage the whole house.

We received offers very close to the original price estate, but they turned them down. We eventually negotiated an offer just shy of the asking price. …I made them a promise and I delivered.

4. What inspired you to be a Realtor? I was obsessed with real estate and always knew what was going on. I knew houses, pricing, inventory. I would search for friends and families all the time and help them find their homes. I knew I had the potential for a successful real estate career. Even while I was in the midst of a successful career in project management, with my husband’s encouragement, I made the move that I always wanted to.

“I have had the pleasure of working alongside Bernadette Dunnigan in a Real Estate transaction and would highly recommend her. She is professional, thorough, diligent, and makes her clients’ best interests her number one priority. She is extremely knowledgeable about the market she works in, and her business background and strong negotiating skills make her a wonderful asset to have when buying or selling a home.” -Michelle Vaughan, Realtor

PERSONAL SNAP SHOT

About: Bernadette loves living in her Edgemont community with her husband and three kids, 6, 4, and 2. Her high energy and enthusiastic personality thrives by meeting new people and being social. She enjoys playing tennis, snowboarding, and being active with her family and friends.

Bernadette runs a busy life, but she prides herself in focusing on doing the work she is good at, creating systems for efficiencies and teaming with partners and support staff to make it all run smoothly and let her focus on servicing her client and providing top-level negotiation. She has a background in project management and banking with a finance degree. She uses her past education and experience to access higher-level reports for her day-to-day research on current economic and market conditions.

Likes (If you had more time, what would you do more of): I would do more of everything. More business development, more time with friends, more time with family. More!

Loves (can’t live without): My Starbucks in the morning at minimum. I love to tuck in my kids at night. Going out for dinner, I’m definitely a foodie. I love to snowboard. I love to be social and I love that I’m going to Maui soon!

If she wasn’t a Realtor she would be a: Architect/designer or own her own business.

THE EXTRAS

Bernadette believes that clients are looking for a Realtor they can trust with their biggest investment; someone who has market knowledge with an area-specific niche and has proven success.

By virtue of her area of specialization, she tends to work with young families or those looking to downsize.

She finds her clients appreciate that she cares about them, is warm and a hard worker who knows the market well.

The process of paperwork is Bernadette’s least favorite aspect of the job. However, process and paperwork is largely trumped by how much she loves finding people their home. “I know it’s their home before they do, I’m like a home matchmaker!”

Contact Bernadette

Linda Lait

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BUSINESS BASICS

Started as a Realtor in: 1981 when the interest rates were at 22.25%!

Specialization: Richmond

One-piece of advice for your clients: Look closely at what your monthly costs will be, including all transactions you know so you’ll understand what to expect at the end.

Why MacDonald Realty Westmar? Linda has been with MacDonald Realty for the past 21 years and appreciates that each MacDonald office is individually owned with 19 offices in the lower mainland and BC. They provide great support and a good working atmosphere along with full-service options including property management.

“Linda has been very warm and friendly right from the beginning when we met. She took us through the buying process and gave us useful tips along the way (meeting with the bank, notary public, etc). After the transaction, she continued to stay in touch with us. There was one incident when we had some issue to deal with BC Hydro and we ran in to the problem of potentially getting a power cut-off, but she covered for us and helped us resolve the issue smoothly.” -Victor He, Client

Q & A

1. What differentiates you from the 11,000 licensed real estate agents in the Greater Vancouver area?

1. I listen carefully
2. I find my clients what they are looking for and what’s going to be comfortable for them – and their need for the future.
3. I prepare my clients for the buying and selling process, aiding in making the transaction a smooth one.

2. Who has been your most interesting client? In early 2011 (during the hot market period) my client had a place to list in the desirable Sunnymede community found in Richmond, near No. 3 and Blundell. We knew it would be a very active listing. It was. We had 10 different offers. Realtors had to prepare proposals and present them one after another. We ended up selecting an offer $300,000 over asking with no subjects. A successful experience; we achieved the highest price in the subdivision.

3. What was your favorite success story? Four years ago a young women contacted me to help find her a home. She mentioned that I had helped her family purchase a townhouse over 20 years ago. I recalled the home and family and could visually remember 3 young girls. I asked which one she was and she said the middle one. She was now 25 and wanted to buy and she called me; a wonderful reminder that my clients have good experiences with me.

4. What inspired you to be a Realtor? In 1980 I attended a session on investing in Real Estate put on by two realtors and found it to be fascinating

“We have been co workers for well over 20 years. Having known her for such a long period of time……….. Linda has proven to be trustworthy, hard working and reliable. She has a warm personality and easy to talk to. I can honestly say, it has been a pleasure to have known Linda and you will too!” -Alice Lai How, Realtor

PERSONAL SNAP SHOT

About: Linda is married and has two grown children. She was born in England and came to Canada as a small child. She has lived in Richmond for the past 34 years

If she wasn’t a Realtor…Linda could see herself as a social director on a cruise ship.

Likes (If you had more time, what would you do more of): Crafts, mainly working with wood carving, painting, and pottery. Travel and volunteering are also important to her.

Loves (can’t live without): Family and friends.

THE EXTRAS

Linda spends most of her time thinking and doing “Real Estate” related business, which includes the moments she spends in her car with and without clients. She puts herself in her client’s shoes so she can feel and understand their perspective and type of stressors that impact them. By taking this approach, her listening skills and patience are keys to the success of navigating clients to the home that they truly want, yet still fits all of their needs.

Linda believes that clients are looking for someone they can trust, has their best interest in mind (no other agenda) and provides good honest advice. With the amount of repeat business she has, she feels she accomplishes this and that people like her style of business.

Though there are challenges to the job, the hardest being the constant change of market conditions, for example: in a hot market, buyers not having time to decide and in a slow market informing sellers that their home is not at the value they expect, Linda still loves the experience she gets when people are happy with their purchase or sale and that she helped them get to that point.

“It’s wonderful working with and meeting such nice people. You can be out at the mall and run into them and it’s like bumping into old friends – a fortunate effect of the industry!”

Contact Linda