5 minutes with Brent Hailey
We spent 5 minutes with Brent to hear about his journey in Queensland’s property industry.
What was you first role in development?
I graduated as a civil engineer in 1980 and went straight into land development consulting, designing, and supervising construction of subdivisions in SEQ.
What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned in your career?
Patience, resilience, and agility are all very necessary if you intend having a long-term career in the development industry. I also recommend to all new participants in the industry to find mentors with a range of skills and backgrounds (both inside and outside their company), that they can refer to and interact with, to assist with building their skill base and knowledge.
Tell us about the impacts COVID-19 has had on Orchard Property Group
OPG has been very fortunate in that construction of our projects has been able to proceed without any impediment to cost or progress. With regard to sales, while we saw a significant drop in overall online activity when the lockdown first occurred, the reduction in activity through our sales offices was very minor and our sales volumes have actually been maintained at pre-COVID levels. Since the announcement of the HomeBuilder grant, there has been a heightened level of enquiry, which should lead to elevated sales numbers going forward. From a team perspective, the adjustment to online meetings will likely lead to permanent adjustments to how we operate in the future.
Where do you see the property industry this time next year?
Hold on, I’ll just find my crystal ball! There are so many moving parts and so many varied responses to the economic fallout from the pandemic that it is impossible to weigh it all up in any sensible, structured way. Instead, all I can hope is that the industry is in a continuing recovery phase. Rest assured, I will be reverting to the lessons that I have learned: patience, resilience, and agility.