Whistler Realtor Q&A: Donnie Carmichael

February 15, 2018
Donnie Carmichael

Q: Why did you move to Whistler?

A: Like everyone else I moved for the lifestyle – I love skiing, love running, and cross-country. I’d pretty much had enough of living in Vancouver and moved to Whistler in 1986 with my partner Danny.

It was a very small town at that point, maybe just 1,000 people. Very few people made that decision then, but we never looked back!

Q: What did you do when you first arrived?

A: I served tables at Trattoria for 7 years, and Danny was General Manager’s Assistant at Il Caminetto. We were always in the restaurant/service industry.

Q: When did you get into real estate?

A: One of the clients of mine at Trattoria was opening up Club Intrawest on a points system and approached me to be on the first sales team for their timeshares division, and after five years of doing that I went out and got my real estate license.

Q: What advice would you give to someone looking to buy in Whistler?

A: You can’t go wrong with purchasing anything up here. It’s definitely 100% a lifestyle choice. Yes, the resale value will probably always be there. There will be ups and downs in the market, but at the end of the day if you’re moving here to live full time then that’s your permanent residence. If it’s a recreational property you can’t beat it, especially when you’re just two hours away from Vancouver. And it’s the best resort in the world, so you can’t go wrong!

Q: What is your favourite thing about working with your clients?

A: Probably just getting to know them. Finding what we both agree is what they’re looking for, and taking their time to find it so that when they do move, there is no hesitation!

For me it’s about taking your time, but as soon as you know you’ve found the right property then you act immediately.

Q: What is your favourite season and why?

A: I would definitely say winter is still my favourite season, and it’s just about loving skiing since I was young.

Q: How would you spend your ideal day?

A: My ideal day would be getting up at 6, doing some exercises for an hour, meeting the ski group, skiing till noon. Then I would go home clean up and go into the office. The other way I de-stress is in the spring, summer and fall, going out running everyday.

Q: What makes you smile the most?

A: I think just waking up here every morning and knowing that I can just walk out the door and do whatever I want.

Q: What do you think you would be if you weren’t a Realtor?

A: I would probably still be in the service industry, or retired by now!

Q: What accomplishment do you consider to be the most significant in your life?

A: I would say meeting my partner Danny back in 1981 and having five years in Vancouver, before moving here together and creating this wonderful life. We’re still very happily married and together after 37 years and hopefully will be forever and ever!

And we’ll both be skiing until our knees give out!

Q: Finally, in one sentence, why should people come to live here?

A: Waking up every day to the best place in the world – it’s clean, everyone’s happy, and it’s all about lifestyle and no regrets!

 

Find out more about Donnie, and view his current listings HERE.


Our Team
View Favourites

Compare listings

Compare