Tell us how Live Love Mount Eliza came about:
Mount Eliza is very close to my heart. I have deep connections here – family, friends, businesses and community organisations and many great memories and stories. Not only did I grow up here, my mother’s family, my father’s family and even my husband Paul’s family have history in and around Mount Eliza. In our Live Love stories, I’ll share some more about my historic connections to the village - and those of other locals too. So many stories!
I loved growing up here, and I’ve never truly left the area. Even when I moved to the city to study, I always came home for weekends. The city was a place to stay, Mount Eliza was home.
Live Love Mount Eliza has been on my mind for many years. I’ve wanted to find a way to share all that Mount Eliza has to offer. I’ve so many stories that I hope local people and people aspiring to live in Mount Eliza will enjoy. For as long as I can remember, Mount Eliza has always offered a village lifestyle. Villages are built on stories.
The village is full of incredibly talented business people that take great pride in adding to the unique tapestry and lifestyle that is Mount Eliza. I want to offer local businesses a platform that they can share their wares and stories too. Did I mention I can get a little carried away when I talk about Mount Eliza?
Tell us more about your connection to Mount Eliza:
I was a Mount Eliza North Primary School student when the school was brand new. Architecturally it was well ahead of its time, so a really exciting space to learn in – and still is. From Year 5 I was at Toorak College. My daughter Ella is there now. I love that she is experiencing some of what I did. It has changed a lot, but there is a lot that is still the same. My son Oscar is at Penbank School. We are so spoiled for choice with schools here.
And what do you do?
I work as a Licensed Estate Agent for RT Edgar. I love what I do.
Why real estate?
Real estate has always been in my blood. In fact, I’m pretty sure that living in seven different Mount Eliza homes locally throughout my school years had a little bit to do with how much I love property in and around the village.
Moving from house to house had a huge impact on my life. It ignited my love of property and the diversity of this incredible location. I’ve lived in 28 different houses in my life. What moving house taught me was that you don’t need to stay in one house to have a strong sense of family and community. Changing houses opened up opportunities, friendships, connections and shifting lifestyle perspectives.
Having had a really good formal education, I put an expectation on myself that I had to honour my educational opportunities through further study. I am a people person and was drawn to humanities and science. Taking this path early in my career helped create good relationships with people, a great start for real estate. Real estate for me is all about people.
For many years when friends, family and colleagues needed an opinion on the value of their home, they would come to me. I didn’t have formal qualifications at that stage, but I had a keen interest and people knew I had an eye for it. Friends kept asking me when I was going to do something about it. In 2009 I started making a very organic transition to making real estate a career, and here I am doing what I love, in a place that I love.
What do you love about real estate in and around Mount Eliza?
Real estate for me is a little bit about houses, and a lot about people. It’s about people and the relationships built along the way.
I love going into homes knowing that in many cases, I’ve been there before. It means I have an intimate understanding of what makes Mount Eliza houses homes, based on the history that has gone before.
For me, having such deep roots here makes it a personable opportunity to sell the lifestyle that I love, to people moving in to, or around the village. As a parent of school aged children, I truly understand the broad benefits of growing families here.
I love meeting people every day. I often find when I meet with someone, or a couple or family that have been away from Mount Eliza for some time and have come back to the area – that we’ll find a connection. It might be a sibling, a cousin or a friend. My career here gives me the opportunity to keep connections going – not just mine, but connecting others too.
I particularly enjoy being a part of people’s dreams. That’s what buying and selling homes is all about.
Tell us more about being a part of people’s dreams
As an example, I sold a house on behalf of a lovely family recently. They were good listeners. They took on my advice and presented their home beautifully. On the other end of the deal, the buyers were divine people that were very grateful for their decision to buy this much loved home. This is why I love my job. It is this type of relationship transaction that makes for a perfect day.
At the same time, it is not always happy stories that drive people to buy or sell their homes. Sometimes life circumstances such as the death of a loved one, or a marriage breakdown, are the driver behind the transaction. If I can help to make that experience a little more comfortable, it feels like a worthy role beyond the numbers and pre-conceptions of a real estate career. It is such a privilege to help people through life’s challenges.
What does Mount Eliza offer in terms of property and lifestyle?
Mount Eliza is a great place to live. Every pocket of the village offers different perspectives. In some of our Live Love stories, we’ll share more about the history of the distinct pockets of Mount Eliza that contribute to the overall tapestry of the village lifestyle.
If I had to sum up the Mount Eliza lifestyle in three lines it would be:
· A warm, welcoming, vibrant village lifestyle
· A strong sense of community, and shared pride in what the community has built together
· The best of a beach and bush retreat, yet easily commutable to the urban delights of Melbourne.
Clearly you enjoy your work. What do you love doing outside of work?
Like most parents, I don’t give myself enough time to indulge much. But I do love playing tennis. I’m not competitive. I get enough of that being in property. I’ve committed to a tennis lesson once a week, purely for enjoyment and to challenge myself. It gives me physical exercise while I improve my tennis skills.
I enjoy food and wine, perhaps a little too much! You’ll often find me in local restaurants, wineries and cafes. I genuinely love what the Mornington Peninsula has to offer. I’m often trying out new businesses, services and attractions. Taking mini breaks are a favourite indulgence. Thanks to the accessibility of Melbourne’s CBD, I try to meet up with a friend to see a ballet, theatre or the opera throughout the year.
Skiing in winter with my family allows me to step away from my work. I’m still available and have closed a few good deals knee deep in snow, but it is still a different setting to reset and refresh in.
Closing thoughts?
The majority of my Mount Eliza childhood friends are still my closest friends today.
Like me, many of them moved away but have come back to have families and access great education and an idyllic lifestyle.
A number of these friends have set up businesses within the local area. Mount Eliza has grown and evolved over time to be a very attractive location to grow families.
I can’t wait to share more stories, and hear stories from other passionate locals.
Written by: Julie Pearce, Content Services Melbourne