Stawell’s Jim Barham has been real estate agent for almost 70 years

Jim Barham is regarded as a legend of the real estate industry. This is how the boy from Marnoo built a career that now spans almost 70 years — and counting.

Property maestro: Real estate agent Jim Barham. Picture: Peter Hemphill

WIMMERA real estate agent Jim Barham sold a 240ha property west of Marnoo last year.

It was the fourth time he had sold the land, called The Clump. The first was in 1970.

Such is the respect Jim has in the real estate business, the progressive chain of sellers and buyers of the property kept coming back to him to trade the land.

“I knew the paddocks pretty well,” he says, with a wry smile.

Selling the same patch of farmland four times over 49 years might have set a few records.

But one record might be hard to beat.

Jim, 89, is Victoria’s longest practising real estate agent, with 68 years under his belt.

The Real Estate Institute of Victoria says it has six members that are the same age or older, but none received a licence to practise as early as Jim.

Horsham real estate agent Bill Ower says Jim would be regarded as a legend of the industry.

“He’s the most professional real estate agent I’ve ever come across,” Bill said.

In 1952 Jim, then aged 21, was granted a subagent licence under his father Tom’s licence and has been practising ever since.

Tom had moved to Marnoo from Stawell in 1919 to work in Anthony and Co.’s general store.

Aubrey Brotherton, a young worker at Marnoo’s other general store, McDonalds, wanted to go out on his own. He convinced Tom to become his business partner in what became known as Brotherton and Barham.

They later married local sisters, Isabell and Doris Aitken. In 1942, Aubrey and Isabell moved to Melbourne and the business became owned by Tom and Doris. It was renamed TP Barham.

Jim joined his parents’ business in 1947 after finishing his schooling.

“I was more interested in the outside work, with the sheep and wool,” he said.

Tom had a real estate licence but selling properties was not the main game.

“We were getting the odd land sale,” Jim says.

“In 1952, my father suggested I get my subagent licence to him. My father died in 1957, aged 56 years. That’s when I had to get a full real estate licence.”

After Tom’s death, Doris became the driving force behind TP Barham, with Jim, his brother Bob and sister Millie all working in the business.

It sold groceries, drapery, electrical goods, motorbikes and chainsaws, fuel and bottled gas.

It was an agency for stock sales, insurance and real estate.

Jim played cricket and football for Marnoo and Rupanyup and later a lot of golf.

While Jim enjoyed sport, it was also about old school networking for his real estate business.

About 1960, with the backing of New Zealand Loan — the company they were agents for — the Barhams built the Marnoo stockyards on land sold to them by the Carter family of Wallaloo Park.

Long career: Jim Barham. Picture: Peter Hemphill

Stock agents would pour in from St Arnaud, Stawell and Donald to buy sheep.

“We had some of the best sheep in the state around Marnoo,” says Jim. “That’s why I decided to build the yards.”

New Zealand Loan was later taken over by Dalgetys and the regional manager at the time was Bill Ower.

“He was the leading light at those sales apart from the auctioneer,” Bill says.

In 1972, Doris retired and moved to Stawell. Two years later, Bob left to run a caravan park in Warrnambool.

In 1974, the family sold the general store, with Jim and wife Betty keeping just the real estate, insurance and stock agency businesses.

They operated out of the former ANZ Bank building in Marnoo. It was just across the road from the pub and at the end of many a day, he would sneak across the road before dinner for a quick bit of “networking”.

Dalgetys bought the stock agency in 1982 and Jim and Betty’s son, Peter, took over the insurance business in 1993.

Jim continued to sell real estate but operated out of Stawell, where he and Betty moved to in 1987.

On the day he opened an office one Friday in late May, Jim got a real estate listing in conjunction with Dalgetys for Bretton Estate, a prime 2000ha sheep property at Campbells Bridge.

He was still unpacking boxes in his new office the following Monday when he sold it. It was the first of three times he sold the property.

Jim’s “patch” stretched from Watchem south to the Western District, Rupanyup in the west and Donald to the east.

In 1988, a St Arnaud family asked him to sell a property at Chatsworth, northwest of Mortlake.

“I was right out of my comfort zone,” Jim says. “I did not know a soul down there. I would just go around and knock on doors.”

Jim rocked up to Chatsworth House to ask the owner if he was interested in the property.

“He said ‘no’ but then asked if I would be interested in selling his place,” he says. “He showed me around and off I went.”

Jim sold Chatsworth House to the Ashby Merino breeding stud in South Australia. It was probably his most prominent sale.

“I got a bit of a clue (on the Ashby family’s interest),” he said.

“And it’s like the colonel at the progressive barn dance: you keeping asking until one comes through.”

At a sprightly 87 years of age, Jim sold Marnoo cropping property Maori Lodge, home of Australia’s greatest trotter and another Marnoo legend, Maori’s Idol, which had won a record 24 races in a row in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

“That triggered another three properties in a week,” he said.

Jim has sold a number of properties to overseas buyers, and also sold properties to three generations of the same family.

It is that respect which prompts farmers to seek Jim out when it comes to sell their farms.

“I don’t take that respect for granted,” he says. “You have to earn that respect.

“I know that if you kick a bloke in the bush in the a---, you kick about 200 of them: they all know one another pretty well.”

In 2006, Jim sold the real estate business to Rodney Baxendale, an auctioneer he employed some years earlier to handle the residential side of the business in Stawell.

At 76, most people would have retired by then but Jim remained on as the business’ key seller in rural real estate.

Rodney said initially Jim’s continuance in the business was a “transition thing”.

“It’s hard for him to stop if the demand is still there,” he said.

“Jim’s a people person: he knows everyone, knows the district and he enjoys what he does.

“It will leave a big hole if he left.

“I couldn’t do it as well as what he does.”

Jim said he would continue to sell real estate until ill health forced him out or Rodney sold the business.

He said most people retired to take up pursuits they enjoy, such as travelling. He considers himself retired because he was still enjoying the pursuit he enjoyed most — selling real estate.

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