Realty rocks their world
John and Lynette McFadden are well known Christchurch real estate professionals, with more than 26 years in the industry. They own New Zealand’s No 1 residential office and francise for Harcourts. They talk to Metropol about working together and philanthropy.
Not everyone would find it easy, or preferable, to work so closely with their partner, so it’s interesting to discover some of the lessons John and Lynette McFadden have learnt over the years while excelling in a highly driven and competitive industry.
Lynette says she has always considered herself lucky to work with John.
“We have entirely different skill sets and have learnt over the years to let those speak for themselves. The acumen John brings to the business, his comprehensive contractual knowledge and ability to problem solve difficult matters in a calm way leaves me in the dust,” she explains.
“I’d end up with palpitations and go off on some tangent. I’m not a particularly practical person. Equally I have a lot of influence over the tone of our business, what our marketing looks like, how we can enhance the experience for the team we work with and the people we work for. I’m the creative force and John encourages and trusts that to me so we are not second guessing and questioning each other. I guess you’d say we stick in our own lanes, and we are also big goal setters.”
“We have done this for our entire lives together,” she adds.
John is also full of praise. “I’ve always thought working together had some real advantages. You can work on the business beyond the usual working hours, reducing the chance of opportunities being lost because you can’t deal with them till the following week when you get back to the office,” he says.
“It’s also very satisfying achieving shared goals and dreams, and knowing that working together you’ve made a real difference for your family.
“I love working with Polly (which is the name I have for Lynette) and I make sure that we still make time to remember there’s more to life than work. We travel a lot. Due to my long time interest in cycling, we’ve been to France and other parts of Europe many times where I’ve enjoyed some fabulous cycling. Despite my encouragement Polly has passed on the cycling, preferring to check out the local villages and galleries instead. We also have our eldest son Harry living in the Northern Hemisphere for six months a year, so we’ve travelled extensively to visit him, often with our younger son Louis.”
Both agree that real estate has been kind to them, and that giving back is extremely important.
“For us that involves families in need, and children. We have a significant involvement, personally and as a business, with KidsCan, and have taken on helping a local cause called Full Bellies, which provides hundreds of lunches weekly to local schools,” they say.
John is also involved in helping young sports people trying to break into their chosen field, and collectively the McFaddens are committed to assisting Scape in its quest to secure incredible art for the city.
“Giving is one of our values as is family and friendship. It’s that simple really.”
