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Bigger doesn’t necessarily mean bet-  “I realize it can be a lot of nights and week-  have come to rely on.
      ter is a philosophy that resonates at   ends,  but  you  can  also  make  your  own   Technology  and  the latest trends  were al-
      Howie Schmidt Realty Brokerage Inc.   schedule  and  make  things  happen,”  says   ways embraced by Howie.
                                            Christina. “I remember my mom never miss-
      Founded in 1981 by the late Howie Schmidt,   ing out on any of our school field trips or ac-  “He loved the newest toys,” says Christina,
      the  Cambridge  real  estate  brokerage  is  a   tivities.”                 referring to her papa. “He always knew what
      family business that prides itself on fairness   Her  uncle  agrees  and  says  family  commit-  the latest gadgets were and was excited to
      and going that extra mile for its clients.                                  be ahead of the curve using them.”
                                            ments become priority in terms of schedul-
        “I  think  we’re  known  for  putting  good  ing.                         But a solid business reputation has been an
      quality homes on the market in an ethical                                   even more important asset and Teri says her
      way,”  says  realtor Tony Schmidt, seated in   “But it can be difficult sometimes because   father’s legacy in the local real estate indus-
      the company’s Westminster Drive office in   some things can be very last minute,” says   try has been a benefit.
      downtown Preston. “We’re known for being   Christina.
      fair when we negotiate.”              “In our family business, we have each oth-  “Dad showed us how to treat a client,” she
                                                                                  says.
      Schmidt, who joined his father in the busi-  er’s back. We can depend on each other in
                                            the event there’s a time conflict. We work  Tony agrees.
      ness  in  1995,  grew  up  in  the  real  estate
      business as did his sister, Teri Vincent, who   together  and do what  we  need to do to   “You  always  have  to  respect  the  person
                                            make it happen,” says Tony.
      joined a few years before him in 1989.                                      you’re working for or working with,” he says.
      “Back  in  the  day,  dad  was  involved  man-  The “team or family” concept was always an  That same dedication the family has to their
                                                                                  clients also  reaches into  their community
                                            integral part of the brokerage’s philosophy.
      aging the largest real estate office in Cam-  Besides  juggling  schedules,  all  three  have  involvement.
      bridge, but he decided to step away from it   faced  different  challenges  in  their  real  es-
      to open his own brokerage and to get back                                   HSR has been involved and continue to sup-
      to selling homes – something that he loved   tate  careers. Market  changes  and techno-  port a variety of charities and causes, includ-
                                            logical changes never stop.
      to do,” says Teri.                                                          ing ALS, Kids Can Play and cancer research.
      Opening your own brokerage was a leap of   While  Teri  and  Tony  experienced  a  time  Tony is the past president of both the Cam-
                                            when housing prices dropped, Christina on  bridge and Kitchener Waterloo Associations
      faith  and  Howie’s  perseverance  and  good   the other hand has had to navigate a land-  of Realtors and is the current chair of the
      business practices were lessons well noted   scape  of  skyrocketing  prices  and  bidding  Preston BIA.
      by his children.                      wars.                                 Teri says giving back to the community was
      When Teri was first approached by her fa-  Christina’s first offer presentation involved  always important to their father.
      ther to join him in the business, she says she   11 offers.
      didn’t hesitate because she knew what to                                    “A lot  of  the  times  you  see a  need  in  the
      expect.                               “That means that there’s going to be 10 peo-  community and you just jump in,” she says.
      “We were exposed to the business all our   ple who will be leaving without anything,”  “It’s  important  to  do  our  part  for  a  com-
                                                                                  munity that has been good to us over the
                                            says Tony, adding it can be emotionally tax-
      life  and  we  knew  what  our  time  commit-  ing  for  both  the  client  and  them.  “When  years.”
      ments would be like,” she says, noting their   someone  misses  out  on  a  house,  due  to
      schedules can be very flexible. “We learned   multiple offers, we take it just as hard.”   Besides staying true to their community in-
      to use our time well!”                                                      volvement, the family also remains firm that
                                            “It’s certainly great for the seller right now,  their sales team will not be expanding.
      Tony started working for his father deliver-  but not always for the buyer,” adds Teri.
      ing fliers door-to-door on roller skates at 11,                              “We’ve been approached by larger broker-
      and then moved up the ladder to the sign   Besides  market  forces,  he  says  the  expec-  ages  on  a  regular  basis,  but  it  was  never
      division when he had his own truck at 17.  tations  of  clients  have  changed  over  the   dad’s  motto  that  bigger  was  better,”  says
      But that was as far as Howie would permit   years when it comes to finding their “dream   Terri.  “We’re  a  boutique  brokerage.  Dad
      his son’s involvement until he felt Tony was   home.”                       always encouraged us to resist the temp-
      ready.                                “Affordability  has  made  people  adjust  to   tation  to  add  more  salespeople.  Instead,
      “‘Never  race  a  horse  before  it’s  time’,  he   what they can actually fit into,” says Tony,   he encouraged us to focus on our business
                                                                                  staying ‘family’ and to continue to grow the
      would say,” says Tony, explaining his father   adding Cambridge is on par with the latest   business  with  satisfied  clients  who  were
      felt it was important that there was some   housing trends with other communities.  treated like family. A job well done always
      real-world  experience dealing  with  people  As well, Teri says clients have also changed   has  the  ripple  down  effect  of  friends  and
      prior to entering the real estate profession.   in terms of what they are willing to invest in.   family referrals.”
      When Tony was 25, his father asked him to  “Before,  we  had  clients  who  were  ready
      get working on his licencing courses.  to  do  a  lot  of  renovation  work,”  she  says,  The  family  says the brokerage’s storefront
      A third generation, Teri’s daughter, Christina   adding that staging properties has become  window  embraces  this  message:  Let Our
      Hunke, joined her mother and uncle in the   an important factor in  closing  a deal.  The  Family  Business  Look  After  Your  Family’s
      brokerage in 2016.                    popularity of the HGTV programs have had  Business.
                                            an impact on the buyers’ expectations for a
      Hunke,  a  mother  of  three  young  children,  “move in ready” home.       PHOTO: Howie Schmidt Realty Inc. has been a staple
                                                                                  in the local real estate industry for decades. The family
      says  she  also  knew  what  she  was  getting                              business includes, from left, Teri Vincent, Tony Schmidt
      into after being surrounded by real estate   Staging, social media and the use of drones   and Christina Hunke.
                                            are just a few of the valuable tools realtors
      her whole life.
         www.cambridgechamber.com                                                                                  29
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