Having no Plan B and taking a different approach to the business of real estate allowed Amy Young to launch the agency of her dreams and combine her love of property with a strong philanthropic focus. Here she reveals what motivates her and drives her career success.
By Tina Liptai
By the time she turned 20, Amy Young estimates that she’d moved house at least 20 times. The experience of living in so many different places during her younger years fuelled Amy’s fascination with property and also made her determined to buy her own home as soon as possible.
“I was interested in a career in real estate and thought that being part of the industry was the best way for me to achieve my goal of becoming a homeowner,” she explained.
Amy landed her first job in the industry as a receptionist at Newton Real Estate in 2002 and she credits agency owner, David Newton, with guiding her on the right path to creating a rewarding real estate career from day one.
“David, the owner and also an REINSW member, leads by example with a client-focused attitude, high standards of working and is very committed to ethical practice,” Amy said. “David taught me so much and he really knew the importance of good training. I think having that as my base really helped me to establish a great work ethic early on and a deep understanding of what it takes to be a great real estate agent and business owner.”
By 2007, Amy landed a role working with a property developer on high-profile luxury residential developments including the Pacific Bondi Beach. In this role, she had the opportunity to work with architects, co-ordinate the sales team and work alongside commercial agents, who were also involved in the projects. Throughout this time, Amy’s client-focused approach and dedication to providing excellent service continued to develop and provide great career satisfaction, as well as outstanding results.
No Plan B
In mid-2020, Amy and her husband Matthew decided to take a leap of faith and make their dream of opening their own real estate business a reality
“Matthew is from Avalon Beach and we had always planned to move our family to the Northern Beaches,” Amy explained. “We’ve always loved the area – it really is like living in paradise – and having extended family already living here was a big factor in our decision to move.”
Despite being new to the area and not having a local database or any local business connections, Amy saw the move as a catalyst to launch her own agency – Laing+Simmons Young Property.
“There was no Plan B; David taught me that,” Amy explained of her bold business move. “If you have a back-up plan then you aren’t going to give 100 per cent of your focus and energy to what you set out to achieve.”
And, just two years after launch, that focus and determination has paid off for Amy, her family and also the community.
Leading the way
Just two years since launching, Laing+Simmons Young Property has firmly established itself in the community as a boutique agency with a big heart and a bright future.
“We’re a team of six, including myself and Matthew as Principals,” Amy said. “Sales are our main focus, but we have a small property management service that is growing.”
Although relatively new to running a business, Amy is embracing the opportunity to learn and become an effective leader.
“I think a big part of the success I’ve had in my career is understanding that consistency is key to achieving great results and I apply that to everything I do,” she said. “At the moment, I’m really focused on learning as much as I can about being a good leader. Of course, as a business owner, agent, wife and mum of three, I’m really busy – like everyone – but I’m using my car as my library and place of study. I’m always listening to an audio book when I am on the road and never let a second go to waste.
“I believe that to be a good leader you need to have a combination of career success, empathy and action. I also believe that it’s so important to lead by example, do the things that you expect your team to also do and be a good listener.”
Regardless of how far she has come in her 20-year career, Amy said her motivation and the values that gave her early success are still a vital part of how she works today.
“For me, real estate is the business of helping people,” she said. “And figuring out how to do that for each individual client to support them and get the best result for them is what motivates me. As long as you are true to yourself and do the right thing by other people, then any challenge can be overcome and you can enjoy a rewarding and successful career.”
“There was no Plan B. If you have a back-up plan, then you aren’t going to give 100 per cent of your focus and energy to what you set out to achieve.”
“We knew we couldn’t compete with the networks many of the established agents had and we simply didn’t have the capacity to spend big like larger agencies. But we wanted to become part of the community, so we focused on what we could do to really embed ourselves and make a positive difference.”
“As long as you are true to yourself and do the right thing by other people, then any challenge can be overcome and you can enjoy a rewarding and successful career.”
Why I love real estate
“Properties are beautiful and I’ve been able to work alongside world-class architects on some incredible projects,” Amy said. “But, right from the beginning of my career, I’ve always felt a buzz from helping people navigate the process of buying or selling property, which is one of the biggest financial and life decisions they’ll ever make.
“As a real estate agent, by helping get the result that’s right for your client, you can really have a positive impact on people’s lives. I’m so proud to be a real estate agent for this reason.
“Over the years, I’ve had so many people say to me ‘I didn’t realise a real estate agent could be so nice’, and I love that through my work I can help change people’s minds about this industry. Every day, I get to show people that real estate agents can be trustworthy, credible and deliver on promises.”
Career tips
1. Make customer service your priority
Put your client at the centre of everything you do and everything else will fall into place.
2. Be consistent
This should be your approach to work and also how you communicate with clients. Having processes and a methodical, consistent approach to how you work every day will help you to deliver the best results for your clients every time.
3. Create raving fans out of your clients
In every transaction, you have a buyer and a seller – that’s two people and two opportunities to make a great impression by doing the right thing by them and getting a great result. These people are going to tell their family, friends and colleagues about their experience and glowing word-of-mouth recommendations will set you apart from your competitors.
The Studio
When Amy and her husband Matthew opened their agency on the Northern Beaches, they knew they needed to think outside of the box if they wanted to stand out from the larger and more established agencies in the area. The Studio is the result of the pair finding a way to combine their love of art with their passion for giving back to the community and supporting local charities. And, as a bonus, it also gives them a point of difference in the market.
“My vision for The Studio was to create a dynamic, flexible, engaging space for artists to exhibit their work to the community that’s also a welcoming space for locals to enjoy free art exhibitions, seven days a week,” Amy explained. “I also wanted to make the most of the beauty and culture of the Northern Beaches lifestyle, so The Studio is also our office, which means anyone can come in, look at the art and have a chat, even when they aren’t in need of real estate services.”
Every month, there’s a new exhibition at The Studio to showcase a local artist’s work and raise money for a charity of the artist’s choice. An event is held for each launch, organised and hosted by Amy and her team.
“The Studio is truly a hybrid community space and most people don’t realise it doubles as a real estate office,” Amy said. “The Studio and the events we host have truly become part of our ‘business as usual’. It’s part of who we are as a team and what we’re known for in the community.”
Amy said the community embraced the concept almost immediately and The Studio has received regular local press coverage. More than 2,000 people have attended events at The Studio since it opened and more than $25,000 has been raised for charities. Dozens of new volunteers have also signed up to help the charities as a direct result of the events.
Artists interested in exhibiting at The Studio can submit an expression of interest, including their chosen charity and why they support the charity.
“During the exhibition launch event, the artist explains what inspires their work and a representative from their chosen charity also has time to share the work they do and how it benefits the community,” Amy said. “Usually, the artist agrees to donate a percentage of their sales to the charity and guests can also make a donation or buy charity merchandise at the event. The benefit for the charity goes far beyond the monetary donation, as the event helps to raise the profile of the charity in the community and the important causes they stand for.”
Some of the charities supported by The Studio include: OneEighty, which aims to prevent youth suicide; BeCentre Foundation, which empowers children through play therapy; environmental not-for-profit group Living Ocean; Seabin Projects, which create microplastic filtration systems for waterways; and Dreams2Liv4, which makes dreams come true for people living with metastatic cancer.
Through her work with The Studio, Amy has built strong ties in the community with the added benefit of building her business with a loyal customer base. She was also awarded the John Greig OAM Community Service Award at the 2022 REINSW Awards for Excellence for this initiative.
Amy has seen first-hand the positive impact that The Studio and her team has had on the local community. She believes that anyone, at any stage of their business, can give back to the community.
