FOR thirty years, there has been one name in real estate that hasn’t changed, and that’s Kevin Keogh.
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On October 30, the familiar face from Bathurst Real Estate celebrated three decades working in the industry and at the same agency.
It’s uncommon in a lot of industries for a person to stay with just one team, let alone in real estate, where agents tend to move around a lot.
READ ALSO: Big milestone for loyal Kevin
But for Kevin, he has always been content right where he is and has had a lot of reasons to stay.
“Loyalty, and if you like the people that you work with and the people you work for, then why change?"
When he got his start in the industry it was at Peter Rogers Real Estate, which was later renamed to Bathurst Real Estate after a change in ownership.
"It was through a colleague that I worked with who started in real estate, and then he asked me if I'd go along and work with him, which I did,” Kevin said.
"It was Pete Rogers, he asked me to join his little crew."
Real estate is by no means an easy field to work in, it being reliant on an agent’s ability to read their buyers, meet the expectations of a vendor and really know the marketplace.
Over the years, Kevin has built up his expertise, treating each house with the same level of care no matter the price pegged against it.
It requires a lot of dedication, with work outside of the regular nine to five hours commonplace, as well as working Saturdays.
That meant missing out on a lot of time with family, which for Kevin was a wife, two children and now four grandchildren, but they handled his absence well and have been very supportive.
Getting the best outcome for his clients, who he inevitably develops strong relationships with, helps drive Kevin to keep his foot firmly planted in the industry and still enjoy it after 30 years.
“It's just the interaction with people and the satisfaction you get out of listing [homes] and selling them, and obtaining as much money as you possibly can for them. You get great satisfaction out of that," he said.
Kevin’s commitment and determination to deliver results for his clients has helped him to secure a number of return clients over the years.
He said that there are some people he has sold houses for on up to four occasions, they choosing to come back to him after a great experience.
Knowing that people trust him that much with what is a very valuable possession is very rewarding for Kevin and another aspect he loves about his job.
“You do the right thing by people, they'll come back to you,” he said.
Although he has some familiar clients, a lot has changed in the industry since Kevin’s early days as an agent.
He said there have been a few changes regarding paperwork and that buyers are now "more internet active".
“And now people tend to meet you at the house, rather than be escorted by us, which is a big change,” he said, adding that things were very different early in his career.
“Very rarely did we meet someone at a house, it was all 'Come to the office, jump in my car', and you got to know people better.
“While they're in your car talking to you, the interaction, you just got to know them a lot better.”
Kevin has also witnessed huge growth in Bathurst, something that certainly came as a surprise.
“It has grown out of sight it has, and from the pricing side of it, I won't quote figures, but it's amazing how they have risen over the years,” he said.
And he will undoubtedly be around to witness more change, as for this enthusiastic agent, his long career is not over yet.
