The Wrap on Gladman
We welcome Chris Gladman to the Integra Land Sales team with a Q&A and a shocking headline.
Tell us a little bit about yourself? Where do you live (suburb or area) and what do you like about where you live?
Husband, dad of two boys (Ted, 7 and Louie, 4), and Alfie the Groodle, born and bred in Ballarat. Currently live in Alfredton – love the proximity to Coltman Plaza, good schools, bike paths into Vic Park, and it’s a great family area.
What is you favourite thing to do in your spare time/with the family?
We love holidays to Merimbula every Christmas and exploring our region – bush walks and waterfalls are great on a Sunday. I’ve just taken up cycling (MAMIL) so I do that quite a bit.
You had a little hiatus from Real Estate to a Building apprenticeship – are you glad to be back in real estate?
Absolutely. I think I missed the variety in clients and people that you just generally dealt with on a day-to-day basis. And the Winters are pretty long and cold – so an office with a heater is pretty good also. It certainly gave me a huge appreciation of the knowledge and work ethic great tradies have in the Ballarat area.
The real estate industry has changed a lot over the past five years with the ups and downs of COVID and the effect that has had on the real estate industry – what has been the biggest change you have seen and how have you adapted to that change?
It certainly went a bit nuts, didn’t it! I saw a lot of people now considering Ballarat as a genuine place to live, work and play. Previously I felt a lot of people were still looking to commute for work, while living here. COVID certainly made some changes there. Also, adapting to technology and new ways of doing things – the number of virtual tours and meetings happening was insane at the time.
What is your background in the real estate industry – how many years have you worked and do you specialise in anything in particular, or have any experience in a particular field of the industry?
I spent three years in Property Management and the remaining seven in Sales. I’ve had a crack at everything – I’d previously worked in an agency without “specialists” in particular fields – so at any given time, I could have multiple residential homes, rural properties and even commercial properties for sale at once. I always found that it didn’t matter what it was, or what the asking price was – it just came down to people and I’d always approach it as genuinely as I could to get the right outcomes for each party involved.
What is your favourite thing about real estate?
I’ve always loved and been involved with property. And to be honest, I’m not 100% sure what it is about real estate that gets me – I’m the guy on holidays looking in the coastal real estate window – even though I probably know not that much about real estate in the area! I love being a positive part of people’s journey into another stage of their lives – it could be first homes buyers, or people downsizing or relocating.
What do you love about Ballarat?
I love how much it has changed over the last 10 years. Growing up here, there never really seemed to be too much happening in and around the city. Over the last 10 years, the explosion of quality and diverse cafes/restaurants along with events has been amazing. Even though it may be cold and grey for a lot of the year – there now seems to be loads happening around the city… Just rug up!
If you could give one tip to someone looking to buy a block of land right now, what would it be?
Just do it, and do it as soon as you can. Ballarat has seen huge growth in the last couple of years, but prior to that we always had steady capital growth in property – prices aren’t going backwards anytime soon, so breaking into the market is so important. Get yourself a great local broker and make a plan to make it happen.