Career changes and canines: Agent Monique Lavers on the plot twists that have shaped her life

When Monique Lavers told her real estate agent she was thinking of walking away from her career as a corporate lawyer, she didn’t expect it would lead to a new job selling inner-city apartments.

Away from work, the sales agent at Sydney Cove Property is proudly obsessed with her three American Staffordshire terriers.

Are you Sydney born-and-bred?

I grew up in the inner west and went to PLC in Croydon. I was very studious and I got good grades. The usual choices when you performed well academically were law or medicine. I enrolled in a combined commerce and law degree at the University of Sydney. I thought it would be a good way to set my career path.

Did you practise law?

I was working in corporate law. It’s a rigorous, demanding field. If you don’t have that complete passion for it, it’s not a sustainable career. I didn’t see myself doing corporate law work for the next 30 years. I wanted something with more interaction with people, where you could get out more and have more flexibility.

So how did you shift into real estate?

I was renting an apartment from Sydney Cove Property. I mentioned that I was looking to transition into something different. They told me there was a job as a sales agent. I had zero experience but they took me on in 2006. It’s a boutique agency that specialises in city apartments, particularly the waterfront areas.

It seems like there’s no such thing as a standard path into real estate.

A lot of people who are really successful in real estate come from such a diverse range of backgrounds. It’s very competitive. You have to be self-motivated, and enjoy setting your own schedule. You’re a bit of a lone wolf too: you run your business within a business, with your own clients.

What’s your most memorable sale?

I sold a sub-penthouse in the Cove building for $7.5 million. That’s a thrill when it’s such a high dollar value. Some sales are memorable because you’re dealing with spectacular properties. Other times, it might be a one-bedroom apartment but you remember the sale as the people have been so lovely to deal with.

What has this job taught you about people?

When I started out, I just thought it was about getting the deal done. As you progress, you start to really put yourself in your clients’ shoes. You realise that when people are selling a property, it can be at a pivotal moment in their lives. They might have lost a partner or divorced or had children. You have to be sensitive to that.

Do you still live in the inner city?

I moved out to the suburbs, to north-west Sydney. My husband’s a car fanatic, so we needed a garage. We also needed the space for our dogs. I was never a dog person but my husband had always wanted to get a Staffy. As soon as we got Hunter, I was obsessed with him. We got our second pup, Brock, and then we got a little girl, Belle. I spend a lot of time walking and playing with them.

How else do you like to unwind?

We love going to nice restaurants, especially Japanese. I love Sake at The Rocks and Sokyo in Pyrmont. I spend so much time engaged with people at work that I also enjoy having down-time watching TV shows like Game of Thrones. Now that it’s over, I’m searching for the next show.