Real estate is a fast-paced, performance-driven industry. Too often, strong business results come at a cost of employee mental health and fatigue. At Gartland Property, prioritising our people is our guiding philosophy. Over the last four years, we’ve consciously implemented ways to ensure that we attract, support and retain Geelong’s top property professionals. This coupled with our desire to add value to our community has seen Gartland Property grow into one of the region’s leading real estate brands. The past four years have been pivotal in the development of our unique team culture. Following Michael De Stefano’s acquisition of the business in 2015, Gartland Property has undergone a series of significant transformations. Externally, there have been many visible changes – we’ve moved premises to Little Malop Street, our team has expanded and we have developed our residential division. We’re proud to note that a core focus on our Residential Property Management portfolio has made it one of the fastest-growing in Geelong. Perhaps though, the changes within our business have been even more significant. Over the last few years, we’ve invested in building a cohesive team with a strong dynamic. Michael says “It’s important for us to acknowledge and leverage our personal strengths, whilst consciously creating an engaging and approachable team culture. Together, the team is challenged to perform well, and together, the team is acknowledged and rewarded. I want people to strive to work here because it’s an enjoyable place to be”.

Gartland Culture
In 2018 we were very proud to be awarded the Geelong Business Excellence Award for Health Promoting Workplace, by the Geelong Chamber of Commerce. Michael and I felt that receiving the award was a great opportunity to reflect on the milestones the Gartland Property team has reached, as well as to appreciate the positive workplace that it has created. Michael says, “For us, our culture is about supporting each other – being comfortable within your work environment and trusting each other. I’m passionate about my commitment to health and wellbeing as an employer. We’ve implemented mental health days, as well as a program where we pay for personal training or yoga sessions, which is available to all of our staff. We also have a corporate wellbeing masseuse come into our office each month. “Real estate can often be demanding, so we’ve engaged these health services to ensure that our staff don’t experience burnout. I appreciate that I need to ensure that our staff are in a positive state of mind to be of value to themselves and their families, but also to our business as well. I feel that if you’re healthy in your body, you’re able to be healthy in your mind.”

The Gartland Difference
At Gartland Property, our team are local experts in the Geelong market, employing a reactive approach to current property trends, rather than a ‘one size fits all’ method. We’re proudly an independent agency rather than a franchise.  We’re able to solely focus on Geelong’s unique market, enabling our team to reap the benefits of developing strong relationships with our local clients.

Contributing To Our Community
As mentioned in Michael’s previous blog, Gartland Property is heavily involved in the Geelong community. The team is enormously proud to continue to invest back into Geelong through charitable donations and sponsorships of local sporting clubs and events. Earlier this month, Gartland Property sponsored the Blondie Catwalk 4 Cancer. The event raised $42,000 for Barwon Health’s Andrew Love Cancer Centre and has raised more than $450,000 over the past 10 years for Cancer Services at Barwon Health. Gartland proudly sponsored the St Joseph’s College Parents and Friends Fashion Dinner on the 19^th of September at GMHBA Stadium. The event raised funds for communities in Uganda. Once again Gartland Property has signed on to be the major sponsor of the River Run Geelong in 2020, supporting SIDS charity River’s Gift. Held on the 1^st of March at Barwon Valley Park, runners and walkers can choose to participate in the 5km or 10km courses. Additionally, Gartland is a platinum sponsor of Geelong Tryboys Basketball Club. This sponsorship supports the running of weekly basketball games and events.

If you’d like to speak with Michael or myself about what a career at Gartland Property might look like for you, please contact us for a confidential discussion.