CT Real Estate

What CT Real Estate does

CT Real Estate is a boutique, family-owned residential real estate agency headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 2017 by partners Lany Tio and F.R. Chee, the firm operates two office hubs — one in Footscray (46C Cowper St) covering the inner west, and one in South Melbourne (G01/223 Park Street) covering the CBD, Southbank, South Melbourne, and Carlton markets. It serves individual buyers, sellers, investors, landlords, tenants, and property developers across Melbourne's inner suburbs with a sales-led engagement model delivered through direct agent relationships, property appraisals, and referral networks.

The company's service portfolio spans the full residential property lifecycle: pricing strategy and campaign management for sales, ongoing leasing and property management (tenant screening, rent collection, maintenance coordination), off-the-plan project marketing, and developer-side feasibility and advisory work. Notable mandates include Cowper Residences (a 354-apartment, 10-townhouse mixed-use precinct in Footscray for which CT Real Estate served as sole sales and leasing agent, winning the 2023 REA Apartments Campaign of the Year (VIC/TAS)) and the 223 Park Street South Melbourne mixed-use redevelopment. Revenue is generated primarily through transaction commissions of 1%–3% of sale price (or flat fees of $4,000–$10,000 per transaction), recurring leasing and property management fees, and developer-side project marketing commissions, supplemented by marketing campaign expenditure of $6,500–$8,000 per property.

The technology stack is intentionally non-proprietary: standard industry CRM (REX), Google AdSense remarketing and demographic targeting, the firm's bilingual (English/Chinese) website, and a content/blog channel targeting suburb-specific SEO. As a private, family-owned partnership with no external capital, no funding rounds, and no disclosed revenue, CT Real Estate's differentiation rests on senior leadership experience (over 30 years combined), deep local market knowledge in Melbourne's inner west, and bilingual capability targeting the Chinese-Australian buyer segment — not on technology or platform advantages.

Name

CT Real Estate

Legal name

CT Real Estate

Website

https://ctrealestate.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CT Real Estate is a boutique, family-owned Melbourne real estate agency founded in 2017 offering residential sales, leasing, property management, off-the-plan project marketing, and developer advisory services across the inner west and CBD.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Residential Real Estate Services

NAICS

Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (5312), Residential Property Managers (531311), Other Activities Related to Real Estate (531390)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Operators Of Nonresidential Buildings (6512)

akta.pro primary industry

Traditional Residential Brokerage (Existing Homes) (BPAJAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Investment Property Brokerage (SFR/Small Multifamily) (BPAJAAAE), Real Estate Strategy & Portfolio Consulting (Corporate/Institutional) (BPAJANAB), Real Estate Buyer Representation (FSAEAJAG)

Keywords

• Residential property sales
• Property leasing management
• Off-the-plan sales
• Project marketing services
• Real estate agency

Headquarters

HQ city

Footscray

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Property Sales Commission: CT Real Estate earns commission on residential property sales, typically ranging from 1% to 3% of the final sale price, or a flat fee structure between $4,000 and $10,000 per transaction. This is the primary revenue stream for the agency.
2. Leasing and Property Management: The agency earns fees for tenant placement, lease management, and ongoing property management services including tenant screening, rent collection, and maintenance coordination.
3. Project Marketing (Off-the-Plan Sales): CT Real Estate markets and sells apartments and townhouses in new developments before and during construction, earning commission on pre-sales and project completions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CT Real Estate is a boutique residential real estate agency that provides end-to-end property services including residential sales, leasing and ongoing property management, off-the-plan project marketing for developers, and development feasibility advisory. The firm operates from two office hubs in South Melbourne and Footscray, serving buyers, sellers, investors, landlords, tenants, and developers across Melbourne's inner west and CBD.

Product overview

CT Real Estate is a boutique, family-owned real estate agency offering a comprehensive suite of residential property services. The company operates across two office hubs (South Melbourne and Footscray) and specializes in residential sales, leasing, property management, project marketing, and development advisory services. Their portfolio includes featured development projects such as Cowper Residences (354 apartments + 10 townhomes in Footscray) and 223 Park Street South Melbourne (mixed-use commercial/residential), which demonstrate their end-to-end capability from feasibility through to post-completion support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Residential Property Sales
• Property Leasing & Management
• Off-the-Plan Sales
• Development Feasibility & Project Delivery
• Property Appraisal

Quantifiable outcome

• Cowper Residences sold out successfully and won the Apartments Campaign of the Year (VIC/TAS) at the REA Awards

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Hockingstuart: Victorian-focused residential real estate group with strong Melbourne inner and bayside coverage. Directly comparable service offering (sales, leasing, property management, project marketing) to CT Real Estate.
• Biggin & Scott: Established Melbourne real estate agency with strong CBD, South Melbourne and inner-suburb presence. Comparable to CT Real Estate in residential sales, leasing, project marketing and developer relationships across Melbourne.
• Nelson Alexander: Boutique-to-mid-sized Melbourne inner-west real estate agency covering similar suburbs (Footscray, Flemington, Essendon). Comparable to CT Real Estate as a local residential brokerage serving the same buyer/seller demographics.
• Marshall White: Premium Melbourne residential real estate agency covering inner-east and bayside suburbs with high-end sales, project marketing and property management. Comparable boutique full-service model to CT Real Estate, though skewed toward higher price points.
• Buxton Real Estate: Melbourne-focused residential real estate group with strong bayside and inner-suburb presence, including project marketing capability. Comparable boutique-to-mid-sized operating model and Melbourne-centric footprint.
• Jellis Craig: Melbourne-headquartered residential real estate agency with strong inner-suburb presence and developer project marketing capability. Highly comparable to CT Real Estate in service mix (sales, leasing, project marketing) and Melbourne geographic focus.

Broad incumbents

• McGrath Estate Agents: National Australian residential real estate network with significant Melbourne presence. Comparable core offerings (sales, leasing, project marketing) but at much greater scale and geographic reach than CT Real Estate.
• RE/MAX Australia: Global real estate franchise with substantial Australian agent base, including Melbourne metro coverage. Comparable residential sales and leasing services but at significantly larger scale and broader geographic reach.
• Ray White: Largest real estate franchise network in Australasia, with deep Melbourne suburban and project marketing presence. Comparable in service mix but operates at vastly greater scale than the boutique CT Real Estate model.

Others

• Domain Holdings: Australian residential property portal and adjacent services business. Not a direct competitor but a key ecosystem dependency for CT Real Estate's lead generation and an adjacent business that influences the brokerage value chain.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ct-real-estate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CT Real Estate