When Principal Brett McDonald began Raine & Horne Lismore three years ago, he opened the doors in the Strand Arcade on Molesworth Street.

Going into 2026, Brett needed more space as his staff numbers were increasing, and he had outgrown his original building, as much as he loved being next to the Dark Horse Espresso.

"The Molesworth site at the Strand Arcade is a beautiful location, and Dark Horse Cafe did wonders for bringing a client base to us, but this building is so visible as you drive up and down Woodlark Street. And it has such great history. For about 60 years, it's been a real estate company and very successful, with the Patch family running their business here for such a long time, as Patch and Taylor, which was sold to an Elders franchise.

"So, it really has a great history and a great energy in here, but you can't go past that visibility. As people go up and down this street, you can really see our signs. And when someone is coming into town looking for a home, then how fabulous to have that visibility. And for people who are selling through us, I think that's an extra win for them to have that attraction.

"We've had the phase of being a fledgling business and starting from the ground up, and now we're really flat out having to employ more staff, which is really exciting.

"So, space for our staff was another consideration in moving into this building, because we're growing at the moment so much, and we just needed a more staff-friendly space, but I didn't want to do that at the expense of a client-friendly space.

"I wanted to still be in the CBD, but accessible, looking like a real estate office, but with the differences of getting away from the traditional look and trying to be a little bit more welcoming, were all considerations."

"We didn't have any office space upstairs at all in Molesworth Street. It was just one great big room. And while it looked beautiful, it didn't give us the practicality of a workspace. So everybody was in together."

You know you are doing something right in business when people are knocking on your door asking for a job.

"Isn't that wonderful?" Brett enthused, "People are knocking on the door and saying, Hi, we've heard you've got a great work culture here, really interested in working with you, and that's led already to a couple of hires and other people that we're talking to as well.

"So, it's really nice to become an attraction business because of the reputation of the culture that we've created, and hoping that that translates into how our team look after our clients and works with them and cares for them, because that's my focus,

If you are buying or selling a house or looking for a Property Manager for your rental properties, pop in and have a chat to Brett McDonald and the team at 76 Woodlark Street, Lismore CBD or call (02) 6610 9866.