So I have been on stage and in performance for over 33 years and acting for over 20 and have loved every minute. From the early days in dance, music and fashion to acting in theatre, TV and film and everything in between.

I enjoyed a degree of success in the UK then moved to L.A 14 years ago to try to take my career to the next level, I can’t imagine not following your passion but fully understand what serves your spirit doesn’t necessarily serve your wallet.

I’ve worked on over 50, on camera projects, although very enjoyable that doesn’t necessarily equate to riches. I believe there comes a time in your life when financial stability becomes very important, it certainly did for me so I started working in real estate. It’s a different type of challenge but certainly has it’s own difficulties and rewards.

I would say the skill set is more akin to producing, putting out fires and overcoming obstacles on the daily. I have been licensed for 9 years in LOS Angeles and have had the privilege of working with many of my old contacts from the TV and film industry which has served me very well.

Over the years the deals have got bigger and now I’m mostly in luxury residential real estate working alongside Ben Bacal and the agents at Revel Real Estate in Beverly Hills.  I also have a partner in our commercial division for commercial deals and partner with some outstanding agents with other brokerages if we feel bringing the power of two different brokerages will help a specific listing.

I’m just a fun loving guy with a love of life and who likes to laugh. I share my life with my amazing wife Stephanie and our two pet bunnies Treacle and Honey. As a former boxer many of my early roles was playing boxers, gangsters and tough guy roles. But I’ve always had a flair for comedy and in truth was probably at my best playing funny tough guys. In the last ten years I’ve leaned more into comedy and really enjoy making people laugh. If i can make someones day just a little better by putting a smile on their face, that will do for me.

Most actors have at least one second job and real estate has always been my second string. My introduction to real estate was buying my first property when I was 21 years old, actually buying my parents home for them when they ran into financial difficulty but that’s another story.
But it taught me the value of real estate, especially appreciation and creating wealth and has served me well over all the transactions in the 30 years since.

People often asks me what sets me apart from other agents? Well I try to take the creativity of film and TV into every transaction. We shoot incredible drone videos for every listing whether it be a $500,000 condo in the valley or a $30,000,000 dream home in the Hollywood Hills. We also shoot 3D walkthrough tours for every home so potential buyers can digitally walk through every home even if they are out of state or even out of the country. Coupled with architectural digest quality photography and the fact that me or one of my team show every property personally we feel we offer our clients an unparelleled service, (often selling homes where other sgents have failed especially in the current market with home sales down and high interest rates) and  breaking the price per square foot record in many areas all over Los Angeles.

We also have great relationships with every vendor you can imagine from contractors to handy men, to painters, pest control, roofers and anyone you could possibly need to maintain or improve your home.
In many transactions we negotiate for our clients to have all the necessary work done to maximize the profit when selling their home with them only paying from the close of escrow so they don’t encumber any out of pocket expenses.

Nowadays it’s fair to say I’m a real estate agent does does a little acting rather than an actor that does some real estate. But believe me none of these paths is especially easy. I recently became an American citizen which was the end of a 15 year journey.

Going through the visa process is not for the faint hearted. I actually had two different O1 visa’s, then a Greencard then finally citizenship and every piece of that journey was nerve racking and I had a brilliant immigration attorney in Kate Raynor. Unless you have been through it, it’s very difficult to understand but try to imagine you are trying to build a life in a new country and at any moment the rug can be pulled from under you and you can be forced to leave. There is an incredible amount of press and paperwork you need to gather together not to mention the expense with no guarantee of being accepted.

As an actor you come to Hollywood expecting to set the world on fire (I did) thinking surely there can’t be another actor here anything like me, only to go to your first audition only to find another 50 guys who look and sound a lot like you. It’s a very competitive industry and I have met so many extraordinarily talented people that have barely made a living let alone found fame and fortune.

Speaking of competitive, when I first got my real estate license (after one year of study) I thought it would be easy, I mean I knew so many people already, how hard could it be? Well I soon learnt that even if you know lots of people, it dosen’t mean they will trust you with the biggest transaction of their life which most peoples home purchase or sale is.

Well I didn’t sell my first home for 2 years! It takes time for people to trust your expertise and experience and it seems that every second person in L.A has their real estate license. It’s actually a statistic that 85% of newly licensed agents nationally fail in their first 3 years, in Los Angeles I wouldn’t be surprised if that number is more like 95%. In fact I advise new agents that they may well need a second job to support their early real estate career rather than have that support whatever else they are doing.

In todays society it’s hard to deny that social media doesn’t play a part in any business. It’s certainly not the be all and end all but I don’t think any of us can afford to ignore it. As an actor I’ve always looked at it as free PR, a way of letting your fans and friends know what you are currently working on and what you are involved in. It’s not something I have tried to monetize and have been offered to become a brand ambassador for certain projects and products but it’s not something I have any interest in being a part of unless I really believed in it.

As a business owner, yes I have done a few real estate deals directly from social media but I look at it as more brand awareness for my audience and specific marketing for any given listing. We have had successful social media marketing campanes and include it for every listing but as said, mostly for awareness.

In regards to building your audience that question is probably better answered by a teenager who will go into great depth about the algorithm and what to post at what time of day etc. I’ve found that I seem to get less engagement at the weekends so I try to post engaging videos, pictures and reels on most weekdays, with normally 4 stories a day seems to get the most engagement for me on Instagram. I like Facebook as I feel it’s more personal and generally it’s more people that I have known the longest but we are active on all platforms, including You Tube and Tiktok. Sometimes super high end drone videos with amazing edits and angles with incredible production values and other times perhaps just giving a market report from my car while running and gunning to get to the next appointment. I think perfection can be the enemy of production so it’s good to give your audience both but consistency and especially authenticity is everything. I think people really want to get an idea of the real you, so give it to them, after all we are all one of a kind so let’s shine. Lastly enjoy yourself and remember to enjoy the journey, you can still be a consummate professional and perhaps spread some joy and laughter along the way.