Tai Menz, sales associate with Coastline Realty, was born and raised in Cape May. Tai’s wife Julie, as well as her family, are the owners and operators of Victorious, a well-known boutique celebrating their 27th year of business in town. With their lovely 11-year-old daughter, Piper, raising his family in Cape May County has been an incredibly rewarding experience. Tai has been the executive chef at Aleathea’s restaurant for the past 17 years and enjoys the culinary world.
His true passion is the outdoors: surfing, fishing, paddling, hiking and all things that this great area delivers is at his front door.
1. How did you get involved in the real estate industry?
My mother carol purchased coastline realty over 19 years ago. Since then,she and my father Duck started growing the business from a leased space into their own free-standing location at 941 Columbia Ave. Since then, they have added my sister Ami, my brother Cody, and myself, to the team of over 35 agents and staff.
2. What qualities should buyers look for in a real estate agent?
The best agents are attentive, adaptive, hardworking, and honest. You really need to develop trust with buyers and sellers, and they need to know that you are constantly working for them. The best agents are also thoughtful to their clients’ needs and can adjust accordingly.
3. How would you characterize the local market right now?
We have seen growth in home values across the board. The inventory is tight which benefits sellers
immensely and when working with a buyer it creates a bit more leg work sometimes finding the property that fits. The hardest is that with such demand and rising home prices, it put a squeeze on a lot of our local workforce when buying a home or finding suitable year-round rentals.
4. What advice do you have for those looking for a first-time home?
Patience!Speak with your local lender and get finances squared away. My most memorable transactions are with first time homebuyers; you become part of a process. We are families selling to families, we know them for life. Feels good.
5. What’s your favorite part of the job?
I enjoy the variability. Every home is different; every seller and buyer is different. It keeps life interesting to always have to adapt. It becomes fun for me. I get to work with everyone from multi-million dollar buyers and sellers, commercial business owners, investors, builders, flippers second home buyers and first-time home buyers. At the end of the day, it’s the relationships that you develop with your clients that are the most valuable paybacks for years to come.
