The Private Office: Real Estate | Trevor Kearney

You have been in the industry for many years, in a nutshell, where did it all begin? 

Twenty-two years ago, I started my career in a high-street agency in Surrey. The first property I ever sold was for £237,500- a two-bedroom ground floor flat in Albany Crescent in Claygate and I still remember the feeling of immense pride I felt when the clients collected the keys to their new home. As my career has progressed, many things have changed – but that feeling of pride I experience when a client completes on their dream property; that remains.

‍What do you love most about the world of super-prime property? 

I feel immensely lucky to work in the world of super-prime and feel privileged that my work with clients has become an integral part of the super-prime ecosystem. Being able to service clients, many of whom have become friends, whilst actively buying, selling and curating the finest properties available anywhere globally – that is a real privilege. The talent, craftmanship and execution of works within super-prime properties never fails to impress me; from smart-home technologies to best-in-class joinery, super-prime finishes surpass the wildest of imaginations.  

‍You have the most enviable black book in the industry, where are your current favourite places to wine and dine? 

Personally and professionally; wining and dining is a real passion of mine! In Surrey, a Saturday night spent in Grappelli (Cobham) is always a winner. Another Surrey favourite is Beaverbrook hotel – I’ve hosted countless client lunches in the Garden Room and have spent many happy weekends at the hotel with friends and family.

In the Cotswolds, I think Estelle Manor is hard to beat! Their Billiards Room is my favourite dinner spot when staying.

In London, I feel spoilt for choice. So far this year the team and I have spent a lot of time in the new Raffles hotel, at the historically iconic OWO building and across the road at the Corinthia.

‍What brands are catching your eye this year? 

As you’d imagine, as I’ve been building The Private Office : Real Estate brand this year I have been paying very close attention to the established businesses I patronise and taking note of what makes their brand so special. I find myself drawn to those heritage companies, who deliver exceptional customer service and keep the customer in mind through every interaction. Brands like Louis Vuitton and Hermes, I also admire and keep up to date with the automotive industry, specifically Bentley and Rolls Royce.

When you put your out of office on, where is your dream destination and why? 

It would be a very, very rare occurrence for me to put an out of office on. I’m a self-proclaimed workaholic– but I do enjoy a holiday and whilst I do remain online, I do make sure I am relaxing and enjoying the surroundings too. I think my dream holiday destination would have to be the Maldives. The white sands, the weather, the peace and the plentiful fresh fish and seafood - heaven! In the UK, I do enjoy a weekend or two at Soho Farmhouse. It’s such a beautiful site, and because they limit the use of laptops and mobile phones – I am forced to pop the laptop away and relax!

Congratulations on the launch of The Private Office: Real Estate, why did you decide the time was right to launch your own business? 

Thank you. The Private Office : Real Estate has been a dream of mine for years. I could see how quickly the market was evolving and how the traditional business model of agency was no longer serving clients properly, or benefitting the best agents who are working in the prime and super-prime space.

I truly believe I had the best seat in agency, and having reached the pinnacle of the corporate world, at the beginning of this year I decided that the time was right, and I was ready to step out and build something that delivers more. I truly believe that The Private Office : Real Estate is the opportunity I would have left traditional agency for as an agent and the most exciting development our industry has seen in years.

TPO is more than just an agency, tell us how you are curating your offering with the super-prime client in mind? 

We are so much more than an agency, but of course we are property centric. We understand our clients, their lifestyles and their needs. That’s why The Private Office : Real Estate has introduced services such as Protects; our protection and security division that ensures the safety of you and your loved ones, whether at home or internationally. And The Private Office : Lifestyle, our lifestyle management service that effortlessly and seamlessly works with our client to offer fully bespoke levels of support.

Your client’s trust you to deliver the best, how has this informed the core values of TPO? 

Our clients are at the heart of everything we do at The Private Office : Real Estate. Every single decision we make is informed by one line – does this help us deliver more for our client. The whole team share the same, people first ethos and as we grow –that is the core value we will need to see reflected in every new hire. We take our clients trust in us very seriously – it’s an honour, and one we intend to uphold forever more.

We love that your logo represents the four pillars of your business, can you tell us a bit more about them? 

Of course. The four pillars we have built our brand on is:

1.      Putting people first

2.      Being a trusted partner

3.      A commitment to forward thinking

4.      Delivering excellence in everything we do

More than reading about them, or spotting them in our logo, we hope that clients and colleagues feel our values during our relationship and come to realise that they are lived and executed as well as written and captured in the logo.

You have built your reputation in super-prime surrey but with a desire to take TPO global, how do you ensure your core ethos remains as you grow? 

Surrey is home, it always has been and I suspect it always will be. And, as you say, I have been lucky enough to build a career and reputation in this beautiful county. But our clients are global citizens, and we are delighted to be building a business that serves them as well in Surrey as it does in the Caribbean, America, the South of France.

We appreciate that no matter where we are in the world, the world of super-prime is actually fairly small. It is a community of buyers and sellers who have a very similar set of requirements, lifestyle considerations and expectations.

As a team our core ethos is always honesty, integrity and discretion – we’ll only hire agents who share those values and ensure that no matter where you are in the world, your The Private Office : Real Estate experience is the same.

The TPO are looking to recruit via a brokerage model, do you feel this is the only way to secure the very finest talent in the industry? 

I believe it is the best way to secure the industries finest talent. I think the traditional agency model is no longer serving our most talented agents in the way it should.

I have structured The Private Office : Real Estate in a way that would have appealed to me as an agent, it’s the business model successful agents deserve. Because it didn’t exist, I have stepped out and built it.

As an Interior Design Studio, we pride ourselves on understanding the client brief and delivering a concept that brings their vision to life. What are the key questions you always ask your clients to ensure you really get to the bottom of their property needs?  

And you nail it! At The Private Office : Real Estate we are all huge fans of your work, it is abundantly clear how well you understand your client.

There is a real art in asking the right questions, and an even greater one in knowing how to listen. I like to ensure that I have fully understood my client – their lifestyle, their needs, what work looks like, what fun looks like, what home should feel like.

I communicate with clients in a variety of ways; utilising Whatsapp, face to face meetings, Instagram messaging, phone calls, zoom, teams – the list goes on. I make sure that we have very open channels of communication and that clients can continue the conversation way beyond our initial meeting.  

While the business is very much property centric, how are you going about curating the very best experts across the super-prime space? 

I am incredibly fortunate – since starting my Instagram page @Superprimesurrey I have been introduced to, connected with and been contacted by some of the most talented individuals and innovative businesses that anyone could hope to meet. Relationships that I have built online and in person over the last few years have evolved too, and now with The Private Office : Real Estate I have an opportunity to work with partners in a way that I was not able to do before. At TPO, all our partners are the VERY best in the industry. They are people I am proud to work alongside and trust wholeheartedly.

‍How do you see social media playing a role in super prime agency going forward? 

I think social media is an incredible tool for connection and communication. Being able to share properties, stories, services, recommendations and snapshots of who we are as individuals – for me it often means that clients know me before they need me and it has an incredible impact on how easily we can communicate, introduce ourselves and start building a relationship.

I love social media and I think that, when used well, it is the jewel in the crown of a brand. In my opinion, you should be using it to show clients who you are, what you stand for and how you can help them.  

How are you finding the super-prime market so far this year and what are your predictions for the remainder of 2024? 

I think that globally, we have all seen and felt the impact of increased interest rates on activity levels. And with an election and new government here in the UK and a presidential election in the US, it would be all too easy to feel slightly unsettled about how the rest of the year will play out.

The truth is – I’m feeling positive! Interest rates will come down, lenders will become more competitive with rates and the market will pick up. I suspect that with a few months of political stability, we’ll see a real increase in activity towards the end of the year and a fantastic start to 2025.  

The luxury goods sector has long sounded the alarm over the loss of VAT-free shopping, have you seen this directly impact super-prime sales in the UK? 

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While the UK was once seen as an attractive place to invest, live and work in, wealthy foreign individuals will now face the removal of their rights to avoid taxes in their first four years of residency and to avoid inheritance tax on foreign assets held in a trust. 

As such, we should expect to see a flurry of nom-doms forced out to other European countries, such as Switzerland and Italy. The knock-on effect of this will be significant – we’ve already seen what harm decisions such as the removal of VAT recovery for foreign tourists can do.

The government need to clarify and refine their pledges. Is a global crackdown on the super wealthy a bigger priority than attracting foreign investment and overseas money? With their aims engrained in growing the economy, the onus should rest with the latter.

What can we expect from TPO in the future? 

The EXCEPTIONAL.

You can expect us to grow, to build and to expand across the globe. You can expect us to remain true to our values, and that our clients and colleagues will be at the centre of everything we deliver.

It’s bold – but I think you should expect to see The Private Office : Real Estate emerge as the obvious choice for talented agents looking for their next step, and the obvious choice for clients looking for a personalised, professional and personable service.

We can’t wait to get going!

‍

Trevor Kearney ‍

Founder and CEO, The Private Office: Real Estate

Website: theprivateofficere.com

LinkedIn: Trevor Kearney

Instagram : @SuperPrimeSurrey and @ThePrivateOfficeRe