For the last four decades, Stickney Real Estate has provided a white-glove level of service to homebuyers across the Twin Cities and beyond, coming to employ not one, but all three of George and Joan Stickeny’s sons, David, Kevin, and Jacob.
And it all started with a single question.
“Could I get into real estate?” George asked his wife in 1985. George had recently lost his job selling sporting goods and, during this time, was looking at so many properties, Joan was at her wits’ end and encouraged her husband to turn his obsession into a profession.
Forty years later, George is still making deals and selling properties. Joan might have been on to something.
Despite the multigenerational family appeal of the firm, George’s origins in real estate didn’t start with such ambitions. He started with Edina Realty and describes the real estate industry in the 1980s as the “caveman days.” Deals were far slower, and many tasks were still done by hand, like cutting and pasting ads.
George won rookie of the year in his first year, as he built relationships and contacts across the Twin Cities real estate industry, and his career grew from there.
“It just kept growing every year a little bit,” says George.
George’s passion for making deals was apparent even to his kids, who grew up in and around the industry.
“If you’re around George for a minute, you can feel his excitement. We all felt that from an early age,” says Kevin.
David, Kevin, and Jacob were all sucked into the family business as teenagers in various forms, from weed-whacking vacant lots to moving in and out of properties to other manual labor jobs. Even their friends were roped into such jobs, says Kevin. None of them intended to join the business beyond that, however.
“I didn’t know if I wanted to get into real estate,” says David, who worked as a financial planner before joining the soon-to-be full-family business in 2008. David was increasingly dissatisfied with his job and credits a golf trip to Arizona with his dad as putting him over the edge to get his realtor’s license.
Coming into real estate mid-recession might put some off the industry, but David calls his entry beneficial in part because he “didn’t know any different,” as he quickly learned from working alongside his dad.
Two years later, Kevin joined the firm, following in the footsteps of his older brother David. “It’s always helpful to see someone do it first,” says Kevin.
Jacob pivoted during college to a real estate degree from St. Thomas University and joined his father and two older brothers just a few months after graduation.
“Thankfully, he said yes, and we didn’t have to do a job interview,” says Jacob.
“Not a long job interview,” quips George.
When asked about the key to their success, the Stickneys overwhelmingly answered communication and building quality relationships with both clients and industry professionals.
"Communication is the most important thing in our business,” says David.
“Our business is 100% communication,” adds Jacob.
“It’s a relationship business,” says Kevin, explaining that the goal for each transaction is always “Giving a one-of-a-kind service to people because they deserve it.”
From helping clients move out to repainting cracked paint to simply getting the buyers and sellers together in a group chat to keep everyone on the same page, the Stickneys seek to “Go over and above what normal agents would do.”
For George, the answer is even more simple: “It comes from being nice to people and respecting them,” he says, adding, “even if you don’t want to get lunch with them.”
A deep list of contacts from handymen to movers and decades of industry experience doesn’t hurt either.
“Our knowledge base is the best in the industry,” says Kevin.
In the decade since the final Stickney brother joined the firm, “they are the guys that are running it,” says George, and keeping the business within the family is a particular point of pride for him.
“People know they can trust us, talking just to the family,” explains George, “I’m very proud of what we’ve created.”
While George says the heavy lifting of the business isn’t for him anymore, Kevin is not so sure.
“He’s still the first in and last out each day,” says Kevin.
“There’s something exciting about putting a deal together,” says George, who readily admits that he has no plans to ever fully retire.
“I’ve got the bug,” laughs George.
Beyond the industry knowledge, the contacts, and white-glove service, George has a final secret to success:
“Real estate is an up-and-down business, but staying positive is invaluable.”
George’s passion for making deals was apparent even to his kids, who grew up in and around the industry. “If you’re around George for a minute, you can feel his excitement. We all felt that from an early age,” says Kevin.