As part of our Agent Spotlight series, today we’re talking with Allie Rempel, who has been part of the BREL team since May 2018.
Why did you get into real estate?
I emigrated to Canada from England in 2008 and some years later experienced my first Canadian home purchase with a REALTOR friend and I was enthralled by the whole process. It’s very different here than in the UK, much more customer service focused – the UK doesn’t have any Buyer Agents to do due diligence on the Buyer’s behalf so unfortunately ‘Estate Agents’ there have a bad reputation. Here in Canada, REALTORS provide such an amazing service that I really thought it would be something I’d really enjoy and would suit my skill set.
What did you do before becoming an agent?
I come from an Account Management, Sales and Marketing background so I love dealing with people. I used to sell corporate promotional gifts (anything you can put a logo on), it was so fun, I had a briefcase full of essentially ‘toys’. I also had a mini mid-life crisis and went to study and work as a professional photographer in Melbourne!
What’s it like being on the BREL team?
Being a team player, I’ve always wanted to be part of a team, but joining the BREL team has been simply amazing. Within the team, there is a fountain of knowledge, so if you’ve not been in that situation before you know someone will have some great advice or experience with it. One thing I have noticed is just the sheer generosity of my team members, whether it’s doing a showing for you, hosting your open houses, giving you advice on a tricky situation at 11pm or even if it’s just a ‘well done you’! And it’s not just generosity amongst the team, it’s also witnessing the generosity with the clients too – from selling a client’s car, getting stuck into cleaning/wallpapering, taking stuff to the dump, taking the dog for a walk, putting up clients in a holiday cottage, our agents and staff have done it all to help out their clients. Talk about going ‘above and beyond’!
What do you love most about buying and selling homes?
I love working with first-time buyers who have perhaps watched the market for a few years while saving hard for their down payment and then being able to educate them on the home purchasing process and allaying any fears they may have. Just getting on the first rung of that ladder is so satisfying for people and I love the journey with them.
Watching Buyers trade up from a condo to purchase the property of their dreams is a favourite of mine too. I also love the negotiation process on offer night, whether I’m on the buying or selling side, figuring out the best tactics to ensure my clients get the best possible outcome.
Tell us about where you live.
I live in the Beaches (or Beach, don’t get me started). My husband and I moved to Toronto directly from the UK, via B.C. to get married, with 10 suitcases (yes we were crazy and decided to move country and get married at the same time). It’s the only place in Toronto we’ve lived and I don’t ever see us leaving. The Beaches have an amazing vibe, Woodbine Park has some really great festivals (I remember listening to The Cure) and everything is walkable. I really love walking along the boardwalk and watching the seasons change.
What does ‘home’ mean to you? 
When I first moved to Canada, 3500 miles away from my small English town where I lived most of my life, home was a long way away, but since having a family I believe home is wherever your family is.
What’s your craziest real estate story?
I haven’t got many crazy stories thankfully. But a story with a great sense of achievement happened recently when I was helping a Buyer purchase a condo. His bank was taking a long time with final mortgage pre-approval (and he worked for that bank!) and we saw the perfect condo that was taking offers that night. We put in an offer with a condition on pre-approval, that expired the next day. Even though we were in a multiple offer situation I knew we had to put in that condition. I negotiated tirelessly with the agent all night and into the next morning to get them to accept our offer and our amazing mortgage broker Jake who we work with, pulled everything out of the bag and got him pre-approved in 1.5 hours, we took out the condition and he got the condo!
In 25 words or less, what’s your best advice for a Toronto home Buyer?
Get your mortgage pre-approval done before you start looking at properties, this market is fast-paced and you need to be confident to act fast!
In 25 words or less, what’s your best advice for a Toronto home Seller?
If possible, add value with bathrooms and kitchen make-overs and curb appeal is also important. Also, stage it and add $$!
What we ❤️ best about Allie:
By Melanie – Broker/Owner
When I first met Allie, I knew right away she belonged on the BREL team. One of our agents had just been on the other side of a sale with Allie, so that glowing first-hand experience combined with Allie’s obvious enthusiasm and passion for helping people made it an obvious fit.
Allie is particularly skilled at protecting her clients – she goes above and beyond to make sure they are never put at risk. She’s also a great listener who puts her Buyers’ and Sellers’ goals at the centre of every one of her recommendations. Her patience and always-calm demeanour are especially great when she’s working with first-time Buyers and first-time Sellers, when stress is at a maximum. People trust Allie and that goes a long way to ensuring a smooth sale.
Bonus: I could listen to Allie’s accent all day – even when she’s delivering bad news, it sounds beautiful.
