Rural expansion for Ray White Whitsunday

RAY WHITE Whitsunday Principal Mark Beale will be adding a new feather to his cap with the opening of the office’s rural business this month.

Opening September 2, Mr Beale (pictured above) said the rural segment will be run from the existing office with the current Ray White systems and procedures integrated into the new Whitsunday office division.

“It should be quite straightforward and I see it as being an easy transition because the rural area starts within a matter of kilometres from the office and in a lot of ways we are already servicing rural areas,” Mr Beale said.

“But the rural branding will give us the credibility to sell the bigger farms and we now have a new specialist who can manage stock and cattle as well.”

Alongside Mr Beale, rural specialist Shaun Dobbins will be bringing his extensive farm and agricultural experience to the Ray White Rural Whitsunday team. A local of the area, Mr Dobbins has spent his life living and working in the rural sector as well as boasting more than 10 years of real estate experience.

Mr Dobbins hopes to bring his knowledge of agribusiness to the office and said he is excited to assist buyers and sellers in the Whitsunday rural market to get premium outcomes.

“After being a farmer for so many years, I have the experience to effectively and successfully communicate with rural buyers and sellers,” Mr Dobbins said.

“I understand their mindset and through the experience of selling farms previously I have the ability to get the best results for my clients.

“I also have a love for the area personally and I really believe in it as somewhere to both live and work. It’s been amazing to watch the transition the area has undergone in the last 40 years.”

The new rural office territory will span from Mackay to Ayr and even as far west as Emerald with much of the area taken up by sugar cane and cattle grazing farms. Mr Dobbins (pictured above) said it's one of the best places to farm in the country.

“Being a coastal area there is high rainfall which is good for sugar cane and in the hinterlands there are the bigger cattle properties and with the mining boom it’s opened up the market to some higher prices on properties,” he said.

“There is increased availability for thousands of people and the high income of miners means purchasing some land in the area has become attractive.”

The Ray White Whitsunday office has been owned by Mr Beale for 15 years with more than 40 staff members and a recorded 51 per cent residential market share.

“Our office has grown dramatically since opening, we now have the largest property management division in the Whitsundays with nearly 1000 properties. We also do commercial sales and leasing to a large percentage of the market,” Mr Beale said.

“Our goal with rural is to grow and employ more staff to service our nearby regional areas as we aim to be the go-to rural office in the Whitsundays.”

Ray White Rural Managing Director Stephen Nell said he is excited to welcome Mr Dobbins to the Ray White family and is looking forward to continuing to work with Mr Beale.

“I am thrilled to welcome two of the best in the business to the Ray White Rural network,” Mr Nell said.

“I look forward to working with them both and watching them take the Ray White Group even further with their hard work and dedication to the Whitsunday rural community.”