Belair Property is one year old

David Aquilina

Belair Property in St Julian’s is celebrating its first anniversary.

An accountant and an auditor by profession, David Aquilina, the man behind Belair Property, previously worked as an auditor with a leading audit and accountancy firm before joining the family business.

His involvement in the property sector was a natural progression and he invested in his first project at the age of 23 with a small conversion of an old character house. Eventually, the interest and passion in property took over and he left accounting and auditing to take over the family’s property developing company.

Over the years, he became involved in a number of property construction projects, including villas and apartment blocks, and even speculated in property trading for a short while.

However, his main goal has always been to own and manage a real estate agency. Together with Sixth Form and University friend Ian Casolani, he rebranded Belair Property and the two went on to implement new structures as well as invest in the overall set-up of the business.

Mr Casolani had already been working in his family’s business, having practically reinvented the company’s property sales and letting business. The two friends’ paths crossed several times and, having always discussed the possibility of joining forces in future, it was only natural to join forces and work together to expand the already existing Belair real estate agency business.

“Today, one year on, we have two established offices working together as one team,” Mr Aquilina said. Although, the good old days of property trading are long gone, he believes owning a property is one of the best investments in life.

“There is something inexplicably comforting in being able to see and feel your investment. No other investment gives you this satisfaction and control,” Mr Aquilina added.

“People often get into property for the wrong reasons, and when this happens, that’s when they can get it wrong. One needs to understand what to expect when investing in property. Questions to ask are: Why do I want to invest in property?, What return do I expect?, and Will I need to sell in the short term?

“If you are thinking of investing in property, you need to find an agent you can trust, someone you feel comfortable with, and, more importantly, you need to clearly explain your requirements, expectations and finances.”