This Mother’s Day, two very different real estate businesses are telling a similar story: family connection, when carried into the workplace, can become a commercial advantage, not just a sentimental footnote.
At Woodards Croydon, Wendy and Sarah Steel manage more than 500 rental properties in a market defined by near-record low vacancy rates, rising compliance pressure and growing tenant demand. Their business has been built over decades, but their approach remains deliberately simple: relationships first, process second.
But they are not the only mother–daughter team reshaping how real estate is practiced from the inside.
At Ray White CEBICO GROUP PTY LTD, senior sales executive Moira Verheijen and her daughter Bianca Verheijen are building a sales focused partnership that blends experience, marketing capability and operational discipline, and reflects a different but equally interdependent version of the same dynamic.
“I never call her mum at the office”
For Wendy Steel, director and head of property management at Woodards Croydon, the philosophy behind managing hundreds of rental properties has never changed, even as the market has tightened significantly.
“It’s not the property that needs managing,” Wendy says. “Property management is actually all about managing people.”
That mindset has become more critical as Australia’s rental market continues to strain under demand. Around one in three households are renters, vacancy rates sit near 1 percent nationally, and renters are now spending roughly a third of their income on housing.
In that environment, Wendy says the role of a property manager has shifted away from administration and towards advocacy.
“You need renters,” she says. “If you don’t have a renter, your landlord’s got nothing.”
With more than three decades in real estate, Wendy is a director at Woodards Croydon as well as head of property management. She leads a team of five, overseeing a portfolio that continues to grow as demand for experienced property management increases.
Her daughter Sarah joined the business 14 years ago at 18, starting at reception before moving through assistant roles and eventually into property management itself, a progression that gave her exposure across every layer of the business.
“I never called her ‘Mum’ at the office, it was always Wendy,” Sarah says. “But it was difficult, especially when it’s your mum telling you, ‘That’s not good enough. Go and photograph that property again, or that condition report isn’t detailed enough’.”
Wendy says she was conscious early on of perception, particularly in an industry where family run teams are still relatively uncommon at a formal level.
“I thought everyone was going to think she was getting special treatment,” she says.
“In the end, I was probably tougher on her than anyone.”
Over time, what began as a strict learning curve evolved into a working partnership defined by mutual respect rather than hierarchy.
“We’re mother and daughter at home, but at work it’s professional, it’s all about respect,” Wendy says.
“Our relationship got stronger because we were experiencing the same things,” Sarah adds.
Now, the pair oversee more than 500 properties, with referrals and repeat clients playing a significant role in growth.
“We’ve had people rent through us, then come back and say, ‘we loved you, can you manage our investment?’” Sarah says.
But both say the emotional side of the job is just as important as the operational one, particularly in a market where competition for rental homes has intensified.
“It’s great when you see someone finding a home,” Sarah says. “If you hold their hand and guide them through, it tends to give them a little bit of assurance that it’s going to be okay.”
Still, the sector is becoming more complex, particularly in Victoria, where evolving legislation and compliance requirements are increasing pressure on landlords and agents alike.
“It’s a tricky time at the moment,” Sarah says. “Lots of the laws are changing and owners are questioning whether it’s worth it.”
Wendy says adaptability has become essential.
“We have adjusted our processes and we will work with it,” she says.
And through it all, both say they’ve learned as much from each other as they have from the industry itself.
“My mum has a good way of dealing with conflict,” Sarah says. “She’s taught me resilience, how to manage situations without making it personal.”
“She’s taught me to open my mind and to look at things differently,” Wendy says.
“I’m very fortunate,” Wendy adds.
“We’re not just mother and daughter and we’re not just work colleagues, we’re also friends.”
“I’m grateful, I love having my kids around me”
At Ray White Surry Hills, Moira Verheijen says she did not originally expect her daughter to enter real estate at all.
“Not at all,” she says. “Bianca is a creative. I thought she would be in a media agency doing social content or interior design. She has an unbelievable eye.”
But after Bianca moved away from retail management, Moira saw an opportunity.
“I suggested real estate knowing she would be an amazing asset to any agent. So I offered her the position in my team.”
Moira says the decision to bring her daughter into the business has paid off, with Bianca adding strength across key operational areas behind the scenes.
“Compliance, finesse on presentation of our documents, social media presence, and customer care,” Moira says.
For Bianca, the move into real estate was not planned, but increasingly natural.
“I’ve always had a genuine interest in property,” she says. “While most people my age were scrolling through Instagram, I was browsing property websites and looking at homes.”
She also watched closely how her mother worked with clients.
“Seeing the happiness she brought to people naturally drew me closer to the industry.”
Once inside the business, Bianca says she gained a new respect for the work.
“I didn’t fully understand the level of discipline and consistency she brings every day,” she says.
“It gave me a whole new level of respect for what she does.”
While working closely together, Bianca says she is also carving out her own identity.
“Mum and I are very alike in a lot of ways, especially when it comes to our values and work ethic,” she says. “But I try to bring my own perspective, whether that’s through clients, technology or marketing.”
Despite the intensity of working together, both say the relationship has remained strong.
“We have a great relationship,” Moira says. “I think we are actually better at work than at home.”
“She’s never home, so I’m very grateful to have her working with me otherwise I would never see her,” she says.
For Bianca, the experience has strengthened their relationship.
“It’s brought a lot more mutual respect,” she says. “We understand each other on a different level now because we see the pressures and responsibilities each of us carries.”
For Moira, working alongside her daughter this Mother’s Day carries a simple meaning.
“I’m grateful,” she says. “I love having my kids around me. I’m very proud of them, knowing their work ethic and level of service.”