Meet Nicole French, who got her start in real estate via 3AW's Buy, Swap and Sell

A specialist in selling Melbourne’s finest homes, Marshall White partner Nicole French’s passion for property was sparked early. She visited display homes as child, worked as a real estate agency receptionist as a teenager, and has just finished renovating her house. Bricks and mortar are in her blood.

Are you from Melbourne?

Yes, I went to Star of the Sea. It was an all girls’ school, an independent school, that was about being the best you can be. I still have great friends from there.

What were you like at 15?

I always thought I was going to be an accountant, that was the direction I was heading in. But, also, my parents looked at display homes every weekend. I remember mum and dad buying a block of land and settling on the house’s design. At night, Mum would pick me up from school and we would go and see the progress on our house. I found it all very interesting.

And do you still enjoy that now?

Yes, I walk into a home and see this floor plan will work for an empty-nester, a young family or a couple. I am on site a lot, in a high-vis vest and hard hat, helping developers decide on finishes, and later I’m in a $15 million house. I sell the luxury homes of Melbourne from about $4 million up to $15 million or $20 million.

What was your first job?

It was as a weekend receptionist at a real estate agency. My aunty was listening to 3AW’s Buy, Swap and Sell and heard a firm wanted a weekend receptionist. That was 29 years ago.

What did you do there?

I would give out keys for rental properties, take a $50 deposit and their licence. I’d receipt rents, type up the ads and type the window displays.

Did you complete school?

I finished VCE and then went to uni and did about two years of a Bachelor of Business at RMIT. I then thought: “I’m not going to be an accountant.”

But the basic knowledge must still be useful?

Over the journey I’ve done every job, including handling trust accounts and all those sorts of things. When you look back, all those pieces in the jigsaw have helped me. Steve Jobs said: “You can only connect the dots when you look back.” I’ve done it all.

Have you ever made a mistake with your own property purchases?

No, but I remember when I sold my apartment it passed in at auction and I’d already bought the next one. It was such valuable education for me; I know how my vendors feel.

It just put me in other people’s shoes. I had to listen to my own advice about moving forward.

Are the time demands the greatest challenge in real estate?

I just knew I had to put in to get to where I wanted to. One of the challenges is that you want to be so much further along but it’s experience that you need. It takes time to learn the strategy of selling.

You sell in a relatively small physical area but with discerning buyers. Do you immediately match a property with a buyer in your head?

Yes, even when I’m walking through a potential listing, I think, “this will appeal to this person or I can’t wait to show this to this person”. I always have the list in my head.

Do women in real estate support each other?

Yes, at Marshall White, the female agents go out for dinner together occasionally and I mentor a few younger ones coming up.