Where it's @: One real estate firm's growth in Southeastern Wisconsin
“There’s a quality of life aspect to Southeast Wisconsin that few other areas can match,” said Don Shea, of @properties.
The most expensive sale handled by @properties in the Lake Geneva area occurred Aug. 1. Pictured is the property, located at W3124 South Lake Shore Drive, town of Linn. It sold for $21.85 million.
This property, which features a 10-bedroom, 12-bath, 16,000-square-foot home, was the most expensive sale handled by @properties.
Editor's note: This article appeared in the September edition of Welcome Home.
The at sign is becoming synonymous with a rising real estate company in Southeastern Wisconsin.
Since setting up shop in Lake Geneva, @properties has handled numerous property transactions, growing throughout the region.
@properties was established in 2000 by Thad Wong and Mike Golden.
The name is intended to position the firm as a forward-thinking company during the cusp of the Internet Age, according to a 2022 @properties blog post.
Wong came up with the name after riding a department store escalator past a Christmas tree which had ornaments bearing the “@” symbol.
The Chicagoland real estate company has since branched out into various Midwestern markets, including Southeastern Wisconsin. In 2015, it opened an office in Lake Geneva.
Managing the @properties offices in Lake Geneva and Evanston, Illinois, is Don Shea. Originally from New York, Shea moved to Evanston in 1985 to attend business school.
“My wife and I loved the area so much that after graduation, we decided to stay,” said Shea in a recent email interview.
After school, he worked in advertising and marketing with several packaged good companies in the Midwest.
“I was in the client service side of advertising and worked with several brand groups, helping them develop and launch new products,” Shea said.
In 2001, he worked for an athletic company in Chicago, taking charge of new product development while also working with partners who licensed the company’s brand and technology.
“A few years later, in 2003, we sold the company to a larger group and I used that as the chance to make a career change,” he said.
Shea tells the rest of his story in the following Q&A, as well as the story of @properties’ Lake Geneva connection. Note: The following has been edited for length and clarity.
Welcome Home: What inspired you to pursue a career in real estate?
Don Shea: About the same time we sold the athletic company, real estate was beginning to become the “hot industry.” One aspect that I loved about working for the sporting goods company was working on client partnerships and developing successful contracts with licensing partners. As I looked at real estate, the importance of contracts was appealing. My wife had already built a successful real estate business, and we decided that I could help broaden our reach and increase our ability to handle more clients.
Welcome Home: Why did you open the @properties Lake Geneva office in 2015?
Don Shea: Backing up a bit, my wife and I joined @properties as agents in 2010. In 2012, Thad Wong, one of @properties’ founders, asked me to manage the firm’s Evanston office. I was absolutely thrilled to join the management group because, as an agent, I saw how the company was growing and I had been a beneficiary of the new tools and technology that it was developing in-house. Thad shared his vision of how the company would continue to grow by focusing on the agents’ success. I wanted to be all-in on that vision. Our growth, opening new offices in new markets, has always been driven by following our clients. First to Evanston, then the North Shore of Chicago and then north and west to the areas we serve now. Opening in Southeast Wisconsin and Lake Geneva was a logical move for us as many of our clients had homes here and several of our agents have vacation homes in Southeast Wisconsin. This has been nine really exciting years!
Welcome Home: How has the local market changed in the last 9 years?
Don Shea: Prior to 2020, Lake Geneva had always been a strong market. The attraction was the amenities and benefits that Walworth County offered year-round. In 2020, Covid supercharged the local real estate industry as more people came to the area trying to get away from densely populated neighborhoods and cities. Many came wanting to get close to the lake. If not right on the lake, near the lake. Also, communities like Geneva National that offered off-water recreation were highly sought after by people coming to Lake Geneva. That excitement and energy are still at work today. Our real estate market is active and busy.
Welcome Home: Why do people want to live in Southeastern Wisconsin?
Don Shea: There’s a quality of life aspect to Southeast Wisconsin that few other areas can match. We have thriving communities, strong school districts that pull in families, and as I noted, if you want water sports — sailing, fishing, water-skiing or just enjoying a day on the water — this is the place to be. We need more housing to meet the demand. The ease of access to major metros like Chicago, Milwaukee, to the I-94 corridor in both Illinois and Wisconsin, completes the picture.
Welcome Home: What makes the Southeastern Wisconsin market unique?
Don Shea: What makes Southeast Wisconsin unique is its appeal to a very large population of people nearby who want the lifestyle and recreational benefits. Southeast Wisconsin and Lake Geneva are, frankly, easy to get to versus Southwest Michigan and areas east of Chicago. Even when some of our roads are under construction, so many of the towns and areas along Highway 50 to Lake Geneva, Lauderdale Lakes, East Troy and Delavan are less than a 90-minute drive. That is unusual.
Welcome Home: How has @properties grown to meet the demands of this market?
Don Shea: In 2021, @properties acquired Christie’s International Real Estate. For years, @properties has been the sales leader in its markets. In Chicagoland, we are also the region’s Number One luxury brokerage by market share. Strategically, the acquisition of Christie’s International Real Estate gave us a globally recognized brand. Our agents have embraced it, leveraging not only the luxury materials we have created, but also the Christie’s International Real Estate national network to reach and attract buyers in other luxury markets. We have had agents tap into our partners in Naples, Florida; Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York — basically every market that Lake Geneva draws visitors from.
Welcome Home: Where do you think the market and @properties will go in the next few years? Why?
Don Shea: The one issue the real estate industry has right now is a lack of inventory. That will settle itself out. People want to or have to move. Life happens. Lake Geneva, the surrounding areas and Southeast Wisconsin will continue to draw people to this incredible area year-round. We have a healthy market and that will continue. For our brokerage, we are going to continue to prioritize our agents and, by extension, our clients. Our focus on innovation will help us develop tools and materials that add efficiency to our agents’ businesses. We are rolling out training programs to help them enhance their skills and improve their business practices to succeed. The next few years will be exciting!
For more about @properties, go to atproperties.com.
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