WAKELIN PROPERTY ADVISORY - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Manager - Property Advisory
- Property Advisor
Brenton bought his first property at 21; he's been helping others transact since 2008, buying property since 2013.
Brenton started in the real estate industry in 2008, after developing a passion for residential property when he bought his first asset at just 21. Brenton has been a buyer's advocate since 2013. His ethos is "treat others like you want to be treated". He understands the importance of guiding clients through the buying process. The hard work is worth it because the final result - seeing someone secure a property - remains a thrill to this day, according to Brenton, and just doesn't feel like a job!
Dean's 20 years of experience in the accounting and financial sector is diverse. He started at Wakelin in 2012.
Dean's 20 years of experience in the accounting and financial sector is diverse. Seeing himself as a streetwise accountant with a wealth of knowledge on finance matters such as tax compliance and internal accounting, Dean also understands the pressure on small business owners, having run his own.
Dean began as a graduate accountant at a chartered accounting practice in 1993, working his way up from a junior role in Mount Waverley to a senior accountant in Ringwood in 1997. In 2000, he became a manager at a chartered accounting practice in East Doncaster, staying for a year before becoming CFO at a sport's insurance underwriting agency. In early 2005 he joined an insurance brokerage house in Cheltenham as CFO, where he remained for almost eight years. He also became an owner and operator of a bookkeeping practice in Mount Eliza in this period.
Dean came to Wakelin Property Advisory in April 2012, becoming the in-house accountant. His role subsequently expanded to General Manager. In 2018, he became a director.
Deanne provides high level administrative support to ensure the Wakelin team delivers meticulous service and long-term wealth for our clients.
Deanne joined the Wakelin team in late 2021, bringing with her nearly two decades of administrative experience across the financial services sector & health industry.
Although she has lived and travelled extensively throughout the globe, her hometown of Melbourne remains her favourite city.
Her Kiwi husband is equally taken, and together they have bought a family home in Melbourne's eastern suburbs, where they are raising their son.
Deanne believes nothing beats Melbourne for its diverse cultural and culinary offerings; and loves getting away when she can, to enjoy the nearby coastal towns, bushland, ski resorts, and wine regions.
With more than two decades in property - across valuations and investment advisory - Jarrod delivers for clients.
With more than two decades in the property industry - across valuations and investment advisory - Jarrod has shaped a skillset that delivers for clients. His background in valuations underpins a keen sense of what makes a good investment. And combined with a tremendous depth of contemporary knowledge about the Melbourne inner suburban market, Jarrod brings a confidence-born-of-experience to negotiations that makes him especially effective in these high-pressured moments.
Jarrod also values the importance of ‘people' skills, and makes it a priority to genuinely listen and really understand clients' needs while, in his role as property team manager, mentoring and developing his colleagues.
Jarrod developed an interest in property from a young age, ever since he completed work-experience for a family friend's real estate company in high school. Studying a Bachelor of Business (Property) at university, he completed his studies in late 2000 before putting his skills to use as a property valuer. In mid-2005 he moved to Melbourne to work at a large multi-national agency, preparing property valuations principally with a commercial focus. This role clarified that his greater passion was for residential property, which led him to an inner-city residential valuation role in early 2007.
Jarrod commenced with Wakelin Property Advisory in 2010, where he took up the role as manager of the property advisory team. In 2011 he became an Associate Director of the company, and in 2018 a Director. Jarrod is an active property investment educator, delivering webinars and seminars, and he also contributes frequently to various media sources.
Jordan's relationship with us began as a client, buying a property through the firm
Jordan's relationship with Wakelin Property Advisory began as a client, buying a property through the firm in 1997. For this reason he is a ‘true believer', delivering advice that he himself has benefited from. Jordan's experience working in property valuation also allows him to see true value and gives him the upper hand in negotiation, knowing what will and won't grow in value.
Jordan's employment started after he sought Richard's advice in early 2000. Richard, realising Jordan's value, offered him a job at Wakelin Property Advisory, where he remained a part of the team until 2006. It was then that he left to further his studies, working and completing a property valuation course in the late 2000s. Jordan remained a property valuer for eight years before returning to Wakelin Property Advisory in 2014 to resume property investment advisory.
Job Titles:
- Communications and Client Relations
Kate is a solutions-oriented person with more than 30 years experience in the PR and communications industry.
Kate is a solutions-oriented person with more than 30 years in the PR and communications industry. She is responsible for our marketing and media relations, the administrative side of client relations and managing our CRM platform. Her marketing role is varied - liaising with the media, producing Wakelin's series of expert advice videos, podcasts and webinars, maintaining the company's website, and content creation for our social media.
Kate has a long history of working in communications and keeping things running. Her career began at Channel Nine as a publicist. In 1995, she joined a public relations agency as an assistant to consultant and chairman Mike Smith. In 2001 Smith left to set up his own firm. Kate moved with him and was instrumental in setting up and managing the operations of the new business. She has also run her own import and distribution company.
Kate's creative, can-do approach to problems is extremely valuable at Wakelin. She's our go-to person for anything to do with IT and our CRM system, Zoho.
Kate is a consummate DIY-er. Her dream property would be a fixer-upper on several acres of land on the Mornington Peninsula, where she could plant fruit trees and enjoy the outdoors.
Lucy has decades of experience across Melbourne's property market, but her passion began as a child. She would regularly scroll through the old ‘Melbourne Weekly' searching for exceptional properties, before convincing her parents to take her to the open for inspections.
This same drive, dedication and meticulous attention to detail carries through to her clients today - unlocking unique property investment opportunities that create long term wealth.
As well as property advisory, Lucy also has extensive experience across property management and sales.
Prior to working in real estate, Lucy studied marketing and business fashion. Lucy has lived in the UK and was an intrepid traveller, before eventually returning to her be-loved home city of Melbourne and starting a family.
"Buy, hold and never sell" is Richard's core philosophy and one that he has weaved through the company over 25 years.
"Buy, hold and never sell" is Richard's core philosophy and one that he has weaved through the company over more than 20 years. Richard believes that investments should only be of the highest quality, with long-term capital growth as the primary aim.
Richard began his career some 40 years ago as a property manager before shifting to property investment in the 1980s. After realising the potential for a buyer-based advisory firm in a market rich in seller-focused advisers or traditional estate agencies, he co-founded Wakelin Property Advisory, Victoria's first property advisory, in 1995.
Richard has many skills, but his ability to select a quality property and to negotiate it to purchase stands out. Most notably, he achieves tremendous results for his clients through calm, respectful discussions with counterparties in those negotiations; he eschews showmanship or the strongarming techniques that many others favour.
Integrity and expertise has made Richard a trusted source of choice by journalists over the years. He has been a regular commentator on property with countless appearances in well-known print media such as The Australian Financial Review, The Age, The Herald Sun, The Australian and various property and investment media outlets and websites such as Smart Investor, Domain, Money Magazine and Australian Property Investor. Richard is also a co-author of the book Streets Ahead: How to Make Money from Residential Property.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director, Colleague and Friend, Sadly Passed Away
Paul's earliest lesson in property was that asset selection should be the primary goal, as it doesn't matter how well you negotiate a price, if it's the wrong asset, it's a backward step.
Paul was unapologetic in expecting the Wakelin Property Advisory team to undertake a robust due diligence on every property they assessed and to always be careful in the selection process. He also actively mentored the team on the art of negotiation, sharing the experience of a broad and rich property vocation.
Paul's career began in urban and town planning in 1985. From there he worked for a building company before becoming a property consultant in the late 1980s.
He spent many years in real estate roles before coming to Wakelin Property Advisory in 1999. His 30-year career saw him work across many different areas, gathering a breadth of knowledge of the real estate industry uncommon to most property practitioners.