Dream Team

THE TEAM THAT MAKES THE DREAM

The early 2020s were amongst the most difficult and challenging periods that many Australians have faced, so it’s heartening to see that so many of our valued JLF clients have managed to weather that storm.

Our aim at JLF has always been to act as a guiding light for all of our clients, big or small, to provide the expert advice needed to help them emerge on the other side of any challenge, financially stable and on their way to financial independence. We couldn’t have done this without our amazing staff. Over the years the faces may have changed, but the dedication and professionalism has not. Our team is the heart and soul behind JLF, who have guided the business and clients through the rough waters that were the start of the 2020s.

To celebrate our 40th anniversary we asked some of the team, past and present, to reflect on what working at JLF meant to them and what working with John taught them.

A company must be doing something right when its own staff become its customers.

JLF CFO Dora McBain, like many of the team at JLF has invested in several properties through Custodian.

And she can understand why their customers are so loyal and keep coming back for more.

“We make sure that we communicate with our clients, especially when they need it most, the pandemic was one of those times” she said.

“It’s not just set and forget, we are constantly trying to be there for our clients guiding them with their investment journey, making sense of all the noise provided by the media in particular.”

After starting out as Group Accountant with JLF 26 years ago, Dora said she was always looking for different ways to challenge herself and learn something new.

She completed her Accounting degree at Monash University in Melbourne before making a move to the Gold Coast when she was 26 years old.

“I decided to do something different from what I was doing in Melbourne and take a little bit of a risk with John because I had always been interested in property and it was something that I wanted to learn,” she said.

“Back then the office was in Southport and there were only six of us. In that first year we settled 25 properties, back when the average land sale was circa $60,000.

“I was lucky enough to be part of the development of the Custodian brand and launching the business, setting up offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane.

“It’s like I just blinked and then 26 years flew past. It’s been a great experience to work with John to build the business to what it is today and leave a legacy for the next generation: John’s nephew James and his daughter Alex.”

That decision to take her first Gold Coast job with a property company was a real ‘sliding doors moment’ for Dora, reinforcing her belief that if you always do the right thing for the right reasons the universe will always have your back.

“Don’t get me wrong, there have been many tough times,” she said.

“There has been stress and sleepless nights, particularly in 2000 when the GST was introduced and in 2007 when the Global Financial Crisis hit, but that’s what we are here for, to weather the storm and help guide our clients through those tough times.”

TERRY NASSER

When Terry Nasser first saw the way JLF operated, he decided that was something he could really be a part of.

He has now served more than 21 years as JLF’s Licensed Real Estate Agent and intends to chalk up many more.

“I was working for another company doing similar stuff, when I was introduced to John Fitzgerald,” Terry said.

“I liked his approach to business and felt it aligned a lot with how I thought you should treat people, so I came on board.”

As the Licensed Real Estate Agent Terry is across all land transactions for JLF, whether it is in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria or South Australia.

While there have been some tough times since then, bought on by external factors such as the Global Financial Crisis, one thing has never wavered in the way JLF approaches their clients, which according to Terry is, communication and honesty.

“We are fully open and fully transparent, we are like a big family to be quite honest, we involve all our clients in everything we do,” he said.

“We communicate with them probably better than any other company in the country on a variety of channels.”

Terry said it was the long-term relationships he had built and the friendships he had gained over his journey at JLF that he enjoyed the most.

He said the fact that he was still dealing with clients now that he met when he first joined more than 21 years ago showed they were doing something right at JLF.

“Sometimes the hardest thing to learn is you have to be comfortable with asking an uncomfortable question,” he said.

But he said it’s John Fitzgerald’s philosophy that you should always strive to be better which really stuck with him.

And what is the funniest story he has about working at JLF?

Well, that’s something Terry won’t reveal other than saying, ‘Christmas parties’, those who know will know, he reckons.

CHRISTINE BOUNDS

Christine Bounds was proof positive that once you are part of the JLF family you are always part of the JLF family.

Sadly Christine, a former Director at JLF, passed away in 2020 and while she had left JLF in 2000 the contribution she made will never be forgotten.

“Christine was there with me in the trenches from the start,” John said.

“We built a great working relationship based on mutual respect and trust, so much so that when Christine left JLF she would still get in touch with me about blocks of land she thought I would be interested in buying.”

Christine’s spirit is still very much remembered in the JLF offices in the building at Nerang that she managed the construction of.

“I very much miss Christine’s wise counsel,” John said.

“I respected her opinion and treasured her friendship and those are things that I will really miss.” “John had a lot of inspirational sayings: ‘There’s only truth in numbers’, ‘Success is repetition’ and ‘Learn to like your dislikes’, were three that really struck a chord with me. JLF is family – I still stop by head office once or twice a week, it’s like I haven’t left.”

Cory Palazzolo, Former JLF Finance manager

“I use a lot of what I learnt at JLF still today and not just the workrelated things. I learnt a lot of life skills as well, the team at JLF really embraced me, it was a like a family.”

Ramon Palomar, Former JLF Development Manager

“(John) taught me to have faith in the numbers, and most importantly not just to read them, but to understand what the numbers mean, understand how they got there and develop a deeper knowledge of what you are looking at.”

Fletcher Davies, Former JLF Qld acquisitions manager

“During my four years at JLF I learnt that you should always bring a proposed solution to any challenge or problem that you need to table for discussion. It was a very inclusive and collaborative work environment full of opportunities and that there’s only truth in numbers.”

Tessa Calver-James, lawyer