Agent aceing luxury sales

HAVING NEVER PLANNED A LIFE IN THE REAL ESTATE GAME, EXECUTIVE SALES AGENT TOM QUAID IS KICKING GOALS IN PRESTIGE PROPERTY SALES IN CAIRNS. HEADING INTO 2019, HE IS HOPING TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND

HAVING a dad, a grandfather, two uncles and an aunt in the real estate game, being a realtor was not high on the list of potential career paths for a young Tom Quaid.

“I had no interest in it whatsoever. It was always everybody’s assumption I would do it and I was determined not to,” he said.

Now the 28-year-old executive sales agent is spearheading a campaign to drive high-end property sales through Colliers International (Cairns) and Quaid Real Estate and is the youngest person to represent the Real Estate Institute of Queensland as the zone chairman for Cairns and the Far North.

Mr Quaid’s interest in the property game was piqued when he filled a temporary vacancy in the industry. He then took on a full-time role and in 2013 became a licensed real estate agent.

Getting into the game when the fallout of the global financial crisis was still being felt and the company was experiencing an exodus of senior staff threw up some challenges for the fresh agent.

After identifying a gap in the market, Mr Quaid is now focusing on the prestige market in Cairns. Defined by any sale north of $2 million, highend sales by Collier International and Quaid Real Estate account for a good proportion of total property sales.

“I find that it is a market that expects more and is happy to pay a premium for a premium service,” he said.

“This is something that no one else is chasing effectively … and no other agents have that market as their key focus. And so far it has been reasonably successful.

“We had three transactions at $2 million and above in the last 12 months that relatively few agents can say they have done and I don’t thing anyone else in Cairns under 30 has done it recently.”

Having never planned to sell real estate for a living, Mr Quaid studied business and French at university and studied in Belgium for a year.

Stepping out on the floor as a competitive ballroom dancer, Mr Quaid waltzed his way to matrimony by meeting his future wife while dancing in a competition on the Gold Coast.

A year after they met, Renee moved to Cairns and the pair started dating before getting married a year ago.

Together they have an 18month-old daughter and are expecting another in June.

“(Having kids) has definitely been an eye-opener. You

WE HAD THREE TRANSACTIONS AT $2 MILLION AND ABOVE IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS THAT RELATIVELY FEW AGENTS CAN SAY THEY HAVE DONE. TOM QUAID