MANAYUNK

There is no one who knows Philadelphia better than Jack Malloy! Born in Lawndale, lived in Rhawnhurst, and graduated from Temple University, Jack had decided to keep sharing his talents in the area by selling real estate properties all over the city for last 30 years. Long and Foster on Main Street is the lucky location for where Jack currently resides and works. Jack has his hands full as a licensed realtor, a Director and Trustee for the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors, a Government Affairs County Chairman for Philadelphia, and a Jury Member on the PA Professional Standards Panel. “That’s why I’m here seven days a week!” he says. Even if he wasn’t volunteering his time and knowledge he would still be in his office just as much: “I just like working [and when] you’re marketing something and you’re selling something, you have to be available outside of business hours – most of your customers are in business hours. I’ve had customers that say ‘I didn’t want to call you on a Saturday.’ But I don’t even know what TGIF means!”

Jack pursued a Temple University degree in political science, but his path lead him into the retail industry. While there a few friends told him that he would excel in a real estate career. “I’d never even thought about it but when some friends see something in you that you might not have ever thought about, I said ‘Okay!’” He was hired by Lawncrest and after making his first sale his supervisor had seen the same potential Jack’s friends did and offered him a full time position. After 10 years at Lawncrest he took his gift for real estate to Coldwell Banker. History repeated itself: “Same thing happened there; first week I made a sale!”

The warm personality, friendly conversation and obvious passion for his job are what make Jack Malloy an incredible realtor. His value of knowledge and ethics bolster his character of being thorough, detailed and thoughtful. Jack is a proud member of the National Association of Realtors which he explains is not the same as being a real estate licensee. Being a realtor requires one to take courses in ethics and educate oneself in the industry.

Jack’s character, intelligence and involvement in the real estate business make him a triple threat within the industry.  But sometimes the economy and the macro environment are powerful and effects business. How has Jack maintained and gained success throughout the economic rollercoaster of the last 3 decades? “It’s the referrals of people who not only know me today but buyers and sellers of all those years. I have one or two clients that are the children of the parents I sold a house to, years ago and they send their kids to me. Part of that is you have to stay in touch with people no matter how far back it goes. You have to maintain contact.” He sends his clients holiday cards, relevant home-owner articles, anything going on within their community. Check out our past article on Jack’s advice for what to look for when buying a home.

Maybe it’s the rugged terrain of the area but open houses are not as effective in Manayunk as they are in other Philly neighborhoods. So how does he attract people’s curiosity to delve further into the wonderful world of Manayunk?  “I proudly have MDC magazines out in front and homes we have for sale. I actually bring the MDC magazine to the open houses because a lot of our first time buyers are not born and raised here.”

When Jack answered the very commonly asked question (from his clients) “Why Manayunk?” his focus was on what the community had to offer: Historic Manayunk and all of its brilliant characteristics, from the delicious restaurants to the unique shops, to the nature-filled towpath and the community events. “When people walk by or come in to the office or open house and say ‘We’re not from here but we’re looking for a restaurant’ and I love that because it gives me a chance to pitch the neighborhood! I do like to support who’s in the MDC association. Having a development corporation has to be greatly responsible for [building up our community] but if you have an association that benefits the businesses along there that those businesses then create a demand to live here. ”