Village Realty Celebrates 20 Years
Nags Head, N.C. (PRWEB) July 25, 2013 -- In just two decades, Village Realty has grown from an office in a closet at The Village Beach Club in Nags Head to four offices in Nags Head, Corolla, Columbia and Ocracoke. Their rental brochure has evolved from two black and white pages of west side homes to an innovative online booking system of more than 900 Outer Banks properties — 600 in Nags Head and Corolla, and 300 more in Ocracoke.
Their staff has grown from two employees to 120 and includes an association management division. Their 18 real estate agents consistently rank in the top four real estate companies on the Outer Banks, both in dollar volume and number of transactions, despite the fact that they are competing against much larger firms with many more agents.
All of this started when Bob Oakes and two partners formed Village Realty Management Services, Inc. on August 1, 1993. But Oakes’ history in property management dates back to 1986, when he was hired by the Nags Head division of Capitol Dominion Corporation to manage The Villas condominium association and assist with association tasks at The Village at Nags Head.
A graduate of the English Department of the University of Virginia, Oakes was waiting tables at Restaurant by George in Nags Head when a friend took him fishing and offered him the property management position. A year later, Oakes saw the company foray into the vacation rental market with The Villas and The Village at Nags Head.
In 1993, Craven Williams of Capitol Dominion was offered a job as president of Greensboro College and offered to owner-finance the Nags Head division of Capitol Dominion to Oakes. On a handshake deal, Oakes accepted. On August 1, 1993, he and his wife, Sophia, and two other couples — Brant and Bobbie Murray and Webb and Dorie Fuller — signed as collaborators in Village Realty and Management Services, Inc.
“I knew the numbers and I saw the potential, especially with The Village at Nags Head getting bigger,” says Oakes.
From then on, growth came quickly. The sales agents from Ammons Dare shifted to Village Realty in 1995. The company added the management of commercial condominiums in 1996, built and moved into its new Nags Head office in 1998 and opened an office at The Currituck Club in 2001. Village Realty purchased Ocracoke Island Realty in 2005 and folded in Sandy Shores Realty, also on Ocracoke Island, following its purchase in 2006. The Columbia office was opened in 2004.
Village Realty manages the First Colony Inn in Nags Head as well as The Castle on Silver Lake Bed and Breakfast Inn on Ocracoke. Oakes is also the owner of White Cap Linen, which processes 300,000 pounds of vacation rental and restaurant industry laundry a year. He started the business in 2000 when he couldn’t find anyone to handle the laundry load for Village Realty’s increasingly large vacation rental homes.
Of all the things Village Realty has accomplished over the last 20 years, Oakes says he is most proud of their number of repeat guests.
“Our repeat rate is 70 percent,” Oakes says. “We have formed relationships with whole family groups. We have generations of the same family who come back and rent with us.”
He attributes this to Village Realty’s customer service philosophy.
“The key is relationships,” says Oakes. “Treating people right has worked, and we’ve grown organically from there. We know that vacation time is special for families. We see that they are placing enormous trust in us, so our world revolves around making sure they have a great vacation.”
Repeat renters in turn create loyalty among property owners. Sixteen of Village Realty’s property owners have been with the company for all 20 years.
“A good customer base is the best thing you can do for an owner,” says Oakes. As homeowner, Emma Lopo-Sullivan says, “This is our 8th rental season with Village Realty and every year they confirm that we made the right choice – our home is solidly booked with great guests year in and year out. Housekeeping does a great job of cleaning our home, and maintenance does a fantastic job of staying on top of any repairs. Village Realty is like Mary Poppins – perfect in every way!”
Oakes also credits his staff as another of the keys to Village Realty’s success.
“We hire good people and give them the authority to make people happy,” says Oakes. “Everyone operates under the unified company philosophy of how we take care of our guests and property owners.”
The growth of Village Realty’s rental management program has also been fueled by innovations. Village Realty was the first Outer Banks rental company to bring housekeeping staff in-house as employees instead of subcontractors. They were the first to eliminate printed rental brochures and switch entirely to a web-based rental brochure. “We didn’t miss a beat,” says Oakes.
In addition, Oakes and General Manager/part owner Dorie Fuller, who has been with the company since 1992, are highly certified, having completed the 300, 400 and 500 courses at the Institute of Real Estate Management and earned the Certified Property Manager designation.
Oakes and his co-workers understand that every customer is someone who will want to come back to this beautiful place, so they makes sure they send everybody home happy. And they hope to continue doing it well beyond the next 20 years.
Elaine Myers, a Seaside South homeowner who has been with Village Realty for 20 years, recently expressed the sentiments of many Village Realty customers. “Thanks to each of you for your team effort. Congratulations, our friends, Bob and Sophia. We wish you many more years of success!"
Jenny Myatt, Village Realty, http://www.villagerealtyobx.com/, 252-480-2224, [email protected]
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