Bringing fresh thinking to real estate: My REA Hackdays experience

Real estate is built on people, relationships and trust. It also benefits from fresh ideas—and a willingness to explore how we can do things better.

Taking part in REA Group’s Hackdays 2026 gave me the opportunity to bring those things together: practical experience from working with sellers, a business challenge I wanted to address, and a team with the expertise to help develop an idea.

From an everyday challenge to a working concept

I was one of 10 REA customers selected to take part in this year’s event, working alongside REA’s technology, product and design specialists.

The idea I brought came from a familiar conversation in real estate: helping sellers understand how their property compares with others and what those differences mean when considering price.

A home carries personal significance. Renovations, memories and future plans all shape an owner’s expectations. My aim was to explore a clearer way to bring market evidence into that conversation while respecting the person behind the property.

Together, we developed realContext, an AI-assisted prototype designed to make property comparisons more understandable through data and visual context.

I originated the idea and led the team developing the prototype, with REA specialists contributing the technical, product and design expertise. Seeing those different perspectives come together was a highlight of the experience.

Commercial experience meets new possibilities

My interest in solving problems and exploring new approaches began well before my move into real estate.

Through running businesses and holding corporate sales and management roles, including with 3M and BASF, I developed an appreciation for preparation, clear communication and understanding what matters to the customer.

Hackdays gave me an opportunity to draw on that background in a corporate innovation environment. It called for listening, explaining a problem clearly, considering different perspectives and working towards a shared goal.

Those are qualities I also bring to real estate. Understanding a client’s priorities, developing a strategy and communicating the reasoning behind it all require commercial judgment and a collaborative approach.

What this means for my clients

For me, being forward-thinking means staying curious and being willing to improve how I work.

Technology has a useful role when it helps make information clearer and supports thoughtful advice. The personal relationship remains central: listening carefully, answering questions and helping people feel informed throughout an important decision.

My Hackdays experience reinforced the value of bringing practical industry knowledge and specialist expertise together. It is an approach I want to keep building on—combining experience with fresh thinking to better support the people I work with.

Thinking about selling in the Macarthur region? Let’s talk about your property, your plans and how I can help you prepare for your next move.