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A circuitous path of self-improvement led this agent to try her hand at real estate. She now credits two decades of consistently high performance to the challenges she set up for herself – and conquered.
Betty Ockerlander is now a partner and sales agent at McGrath Epping, a business she owned and ran for 17 years before selling to the major national network.
As she tells it, she made the decision to sell when she realised she needed more of “a life outside of work” as she was generally on the clock “over 100 hours a week”.
A modicum of work/life balance was certainly due for the high-performer, who built not only the business, but her entire career from scratch after finding herself financially independent.
“I left my husband, and had nothing – except two beautiful kids – in the late ’80s,” she explained to REB.
The changes she made at that point encompassed every part of her life.
“I did an accountancy certificate then diploma at TAFE at night. I also wanted to work on my health. I read a lot, and attended Tony Robbins’ first event in Australia,” she explained.
A foray into the world of auctioneering led her to consider venturing into the real estate industry, but there were still some hurdles to overcome.
“I got a better job as financial controller for a very large firm of auctioneers,” where Ms Ockerlander said she learned she had to get out of her comfort zone.
“I was working on overcoming my shyness,” she said. The job instilled in her an interest in the auction process, so she enrolled in TAFE for a few nights a week for three years to study in that area.
After learning more about real estate through the course, including gaining an understanding of what led to the insolvencies in the late ’80s and early ’90s, she decided to switch gears.
“It was the same certificate,” she explained. Still, she met with some resistance to her goal.
“I was told I couldn’t do it, but I did,” she said, and within four years Ms Ockerlander had established the business which she would helm for 17 years, before selling to McGrath nine years ago to find more of the balance she was searching for.
Ms Ockerlander describes herself as “very happy” working as a sales agent and partner at the firm. She’s been successful, too. This year alone, she placed seventh in REB’s Top 50 Women in Real Estate for 2023, 32nd in REB’s Top 100 Agents for 2023, and 31st in REB’s Top 50 Agents NSW for 2023.
It’s those lessons that she learned early in her career that have informed her way of working ever since.
The challenge in overcoming her shyness, for example, served her well when adapting to the changes of her market.
Epping, she explained, became home to a growing number of migrants from China after she began working there in the ’90s.
“I don’t speak Chinese,” Ms Ockerlander said, “but once I overcame my shyness I loved learning how to work with such a beautiful multicultural buyer pool and now vendor pool”.
Now, she finds the greatest joy in confidently sharing what she’s learned, for the good of the industry and her business.
“Almost every day is a big achievement in that I am still able to share some knowledge with my team that I mentor,” she said.
Such insights include how to navigate a changing market, as Ms Ockerlander has experienced numerous highs and lows during her time in the industry.
“Some time ago in a down market, there were no listings and no sales for six months. It was hard to keep the office open, but I did. I learnt that consistency always produces results, making times like COVID easy to work through,” she said.
Ms Ockerlander doesn’t complicate the picture. She focuses on consistency, and a simple goal, as she’ll continue to do in the year ahead.
“Just being able to continue to do my best for every client and my team,” is her goal for 2024.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Juliet Helmke
Based in Sydney, Juliet Helmke has a broad range of reporting and editorial experience across the areas of business, technology, entertainment and the arts. She was formerly Senior Editor at The New York Observer.
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