By Tina Liptai
Michelle McLean’s property management career has taken her from the southern suburbs of Sydney to the picturesque shores of Lake Macquarie. Here she explains why passion and resilience are at the core of her career success.
After close to 25 years in the real estate industry, Michelle McLean appreciates that passion will take you a long way. However, one thing she knows for sure is that resilience is the key to longevity in the real estate industry – especially if you choose to specialise in property management.
“Whether you’re just starting out or are more established in your career, resilience is a must,” the Senior Property Manager at specialist property management agency Leah Jay, said. “My number one tip? Don’t take everything to heart. The sooner you learn to let things go, like water off a duck’s back, the better.
“Resilience is a word you hear a lot these days in business. But it’s not just a buzzword. It’s an important skill and one that, when it comes to real estate, I believe is essential to develop from the earliest stages of your career.
“Don’t get bogged down in the emotion of every situation, because you’ll burn out. This is especially true for property managers, who face situations every day with landlords and tenants where emotions can run high. You need to be objective when everyone else is acting from a place of emotion and do what you can to help find a solution to whatever the problem is that they’re facing.”
Michelle is passionate about her work and is dedicated to helping both her clients and colleagues. Like all agents, she’s had to overcome a range of professional challenges that have been thrown her way over the course of her career. What she’s learnt, however, is the importance of being focused on solutions.
“Yes, I’ve developed a depth of knowledge and experience over the years, and this is incredibly useful to draw on when it comes to dealing with the emotionally-charged situations we face as property managers every day. I take every opportunity I can to pass my knowledge and experience on to other property managers.
“My advice? You need to be passionate about what you do and property management needs to be more than just a job for you. But, importantly, you need to find some balance if you want to last.”
Embracing opportunities for growth
After eliminating other possible career paths, Michelle decided that working in the real estate industry was the best way to follow her passion for housing and design. She landed a role as a receptionist in a real estate office as soon as she finished high school, and it quickly became clear that she’d made the right career choice.
“When I was at school, I was really interested in design, particularly when it came to houses,” Michelle explained. “I loved looking at floor plans and was interested in architecture, but I knew at that stage that university wasn’t a possibility.
“I started thinking about what else I could do that included some of this passion and interest – and that’s how I came to real estate.
“I knew early on that sales wasn’t going to be for me, but I was really drawn to property management. I love that a key part of property management is focused on building long-term relationships with both landlords and tenants. They each have very different needs and you must be in tune with these to provide a great service to both. When you get the balance right, it’s incredibly satisfying.”
By the age of 20, Michelle was managing her own portfolio and had her sights set on taking on the next challenge.
“I was determined and always looking for growth opportunities,” she said. “Early in my career, it wasn’t always easy to find opportunities for progression. So, I took on varied roles, in bigger agencies with bigger rent rolls, to get the step up and take on the increased responsibilities I was hungry for.”
Satisfaction in service
Very early on in her property management career, Michelle crossed paths with Sandra McGee. Widely acknowledged as one of the foremost professionals in the property management sector, Sandra has been a valued member of the REINSW Property Management Chapter Committee for more than two decades and received the Woodrow Weight Award, REINSW’s highest accolade for service to the industry, in 2010.
Meeting Sandra at an REINSW seminar inspired Michelle to join the Property Management Chapter Committee. Seventeen years on, she’s still volunteering her time as a member of the Chapter Committee and is currently serving her second term as Chapter Chair.
“Honestly, I get so much more out than I put in,” Michelle explained of her years of service on the Chapter Committee. “As a Committee member, you’re across ever-changing legislation and what it means for agents.
“Personally, I find the legislation side of things really interesting, though I know it can be challenging for some property managers. Being in a position where I can help others understand and implement the law is something that I find very rewarding.”
In addition to being a Senior Property Manager at Leah Jay, Michelle is also the agency’s Compliance Manager. Her keen interest in legislation and reform is a core part of her role, which involves the implementation of training, policies and procedures for any legislation changes and ensuring all property managers in her team understand their obligations.
“I believe mentoring is incredibly important,” she said. “Mentoring people who are new to the industry helps them to be successful on their chosen path and is an important part of professionalism. At the end of the day, it’s all about helping the industry improve, so everyone coming through is the best agent they can be.”
In the future, in addition to the mentoring she already carries out, Michelle would like to extend her formal qualifications to include being able to provide training for a wider audience of agents.
A change of pace
Eight years ago, Michelle and her family decided they wanted a change of pace and moved from the Sutherland Shire to Lake Macquarie.
Living in a regional area delivered all the benefits Michelle and her husband were seeking for their family, including a more relaxed, affordable lifestyle and more time to spend together. After working in Sydney for most of her career, Michelle admitted she was surprised by some of the new challenges she faced as a property manager working in a regional area.
“To be honest, I think I was a bit naïve about how different things would be working outside of Sydney,” Michelle said. “For example, the difference in the market was greater than I expected. There was less competition for properties and the challenges I was faced with as a property manager shifted from working with highly-demanding clients to a greater focus on affordability, with issues more frequently being resolved through the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.”
Four years after moving to Lake Macquarie, Michelle landed her current role at Leah Jay, which she says has renewed her passion for her career – and she’s ready to take on bigger challenges again.
“It’s a nurturing and supportive environment, which makes a huge difference to how everyone in the business operates,” she said. “The support I’ve received working with Leah Jay herself is a big part of the reason I became Chair of the Property Management Chapter Committee and have continued on for a second term. It’s given me my confidence and energy back, which has changed the way I approach every aspect of my work and life.
“Having worked in offices with a poor culture, I value the positive environment we have at Leah Jay. We all work together to support each other. There’s real empathy and understanding between us.”
While the move to a regional area threw up some initial challenges, Michelle said she’s never looked back. The benefits for her family over the past eight years, combined with her renewed sense of purpose and passion for the industry, has made the change of pace completely worthwhile.
“Mentoring people who are new to the industry helps them to be successful on their chosen path and is an important part of professionalism. At the end of the day, it’s all about helping the industry improve, so everyone coming through is the best agent they can be.”
Leading by example
For Michelle, who recently completed a Diploma in leadership and management, the most important thing she believes she can do as a leader is to be approachable.
“I believe a good leader is open and approachable,” she explained. “You never want people to be hesitant to come to you.
“I’ve also learnt that there’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to leading people. Everyone is different. The best thing you can do is try to understand the person in front of you and their situation, and be adaptable. There’s absolutely no value in having a ‘your way or the highway’ attitude, as it doesn’t build trust and strong relationships.”
Michelle admitted that being a leader can be challenging, but this is something she embraces.
“I learn from my team and colleagues as much as they learn from me,” she said. “People want to be listened to. If you do this well, then you’ll see how you can support them to grow and succeed.
“I get genuine pleasure in seeing other people succeed and knowing I’ve used some of my experience to help them.”
Why I love real estate
This industry is all about people, which I love,” Michelle said. “I enjoy the interaction with clients – even when it’s challenging.
“Everyone has a story and needs different things, and I enjoy doing what I can to help both landlords and tenants. It’s satisfying to know that you’ve placed the right person in the right home.”
After working as a property manager for so long, Michelle said she can’t imagine doing anything else.
“I’m doing what I love,” she said. “I also really enjoy the legislation and reform side of the industry. I believe it’s important to be constantly challenged and continually learning, which is one of the main reasons I enjoy being part of the REINSW Property Management Chapter Committee. Playing a role in reforming the industry and, together as a Committee, doing the best we can for both agents and consumers is incredibly important to me.”
Career insights
Michelle shares her tips for building a strong and thriving career as a property manager.
1. Keep learning
There’s always something new to learn and you need to continuously commit the time and energy to improving your knowledge and growing your skillset.
2. Be adaptable
Being open to new situations and adaptable to whatever life throws at you is important and being able to see setbacks as blessings in disguise is invaluable. Not everything is going to work out according to plan, but if you have passion and are willing to find alternative ways to achieve your goals, you’ll get there in the end.
3. Be determined
Nothing worthwhile is ever just handed to you, so you need to be willing to work for what you want and this takes determination.
4. Establish networks
Look beyond your agency to establish strong networks that span across the industry and your community. The wider your network, the better.
5. Embrace healthy competition
Don’t be afraid to ‘share secrets’ about how you achieve your success with other property managers, even if they are with other agencies. The whole industry benefits when we share ideas and learn from each other.