James Young rates his family farm, some of the best surf breaks in the country and a thriving community as three top reasons to live on the NSW north coast. The son of cattle and banana farmers from the tiny township of Newrybar, just a few kilometres outside Byron Bay, James' knowledge of the local property market is second-to-none. James was educated in Tintenbar and Ballina, trained as a carpenter/bricklayer and played rugby union for Australia before making a career leap into real estate more than 15 years ago. Since then, he's cemented a reputation as one of the shire's top agents with a proven track record in fetching top dollar for residential, rural and commercial real estate across Byron Bay, Bangalow, the hinterland, Mullumbimby and Ocean Shores. (James is also known for having the memory of an elephant and can recount every detail of every property transaction.) James is one of the original First National Byron Bay 'A Team' and a Director of the company. He names his career highlight as being part of a consistently award-winning real estate team (though we reckon playing professional rugby in the UK and Japan must rank high on the list). Married with a young son, James can often be found surfing Lennox Point or hanging at the farm with his family when he's not out chasing the best price for every property he lists.