Dean Rafferty

DIRECTOR – MANAGER
Diploma of Project Management

“We actually meet with our clients to make it convenient for them and to streamline it so that they have a pretty much stress-free transaction.”

If you’ve experienced Dean’s in-person approach to settlement, you’ll know why families consider him part of the furniture. As Manager of Refreshing Settlements, Dean is the main connection with clients all throughout the settlement process. That means meeting with the client, making enquiries on their behalf, and coordinating their transactions, from Verification of Identity (VOI), to signing documents, preliminary financial statements and title information. Warm, friendly and caring by nature, Dean genuinely loves connecting one-on-one, a refreshing change in an otherwise faceless industry increasingly dictated by technology. While well and truly one to live in the present, Dean believes something important was lost when we replaced real conversations with texts and emails – especially when it comes to property transactions. With millions of dollars at stake, if ever there was a time for face-to-face communication, it’s settling your home.

This is the driving belief behind Refreshing Settlements that lives on today. Dean picks up the phone, drives out to your home, sits down with your family, gets to know you, runs through information and regularly touches base. This has two major advantages on the settlement journey. First, connecting with people sets up familiarity, rapport and trust. Secondly, it manages expectations. When clients are fully aware of what’s in their contract and what’s going to happen in advance, they can relax and simply let the settlement process play out knowing it’s in good hands. Dean is incredibly organised and process-driven – and for good reason. He believes when you have a clear, simple system in place, everything falls into line and the process become effortless. Whether it’s colour coding files for fast reference, or proactively prompting clients to discharge their mortgage, Dean gets ahead of the game, forever finding the path of least resistance to ensure everything progresses smoothly, and stress-free. The sense of relief clients experience is what makes Refreshing Settlements live up to its namesake.

For Dean, it’s incredibly rewarding being involved in different property stories that unfold alongside his clients’ life journeys. The bonds he forms with people mean he’s often part of their journey as they get married, have kids, buy their first home, sell up and upgrade to a bigger place, right through to harder times like divorces, where couples go their separate ways and bring Dean along as part of their new journeys. That’s the trust that comes from turning the provision of a service into a real human relationship. So while technology can be a useful tool in the settlement process, one thing’s for sure – it can’t hold a baby while you sign documents, can it?

I look forward to meeting you and hearing your story.

Dean Rafferty
0451 059 901