Prudential Highland Properties

“Do you realize what you have here?” It’s a comment visitors frequently make to Antigonish business owner Valerie Chugg. And when your business is real estate, that kind of reaction makes the job a pleasure.

 
Valerie Chugg is the broker/owner of Prudential Highland Properties, an agency in downtown Antigonish that handles commercial, residential, ocean front and farm properties in Northeastern Nova Scotia. Chugg says while local people make up a large part of their walk-in business, they also have clients from around the world — Japan, China, Germany, United States, the United Kingdom and all over Europe.
 
“People tell me all the time they can’t believe how beautiful it is here, and how lucky we are to live here,” she says. She remembers a client from British Columbia in particular who made that comment. “And I’ve lived in BC and I know how beautiful it is there.”
 
Chugg bought this business in 1990 after working more than 20 years on the west coast. “I am from Nova Scotia, and always intended to move back here someday,” she said.
 
Business was strong from the first, says Chugg. Within the first year she had three other agents working with her. Her territory grew, too. At first it was mainly Antigonish, but soon included Guysborough County and parts of Pictou County.
 
Over the past two decades, Chugg and her team have helped more than 1,000 people buy, sell or rent properties here. Her results have been recognized by an industry award every year since she’s been in business.
 
In 2008, three agents at Prudential Highland Properties were recognized for their achievements, including Chugg who earned the prestigious President’s Circle Award, given to only a small percentage of Prudential’s 50,000 agents in North America.
 
“We are successful for a number of reasons,” says Chugg, listing things like keeping up-to-date with technology, offering a good website, and lots of marketing. But one factor stands out. “The key to this place is very good communication,” she says. The agents work as a team, and make it a priority to stay in touch with all the office’s files. The agents also know this part of Nova Scotia well, as all have lived in the area for most of their lives.
 
She says the number of agents in the office is also important. She has always kept the number between four and six. Chugg says it’s a good sized group to be able to communicate easily, and it’s well-suited to their office space.
 
“We have a great location and I wouldn’t want to move,” says Chugg, about their office on the ground floor of the historic Kirk Building (c1883). She says she loves her central location. “I always feel that we are in the middle of all the downtown action.”
 
The town of Antigonish has a population of approximately 4,200 people, with the students of St. Francis Xavier University adding another 4,200 during the school year. It’s a small town, but there is everything you need here, says Chugg.
 
“It’s a vibrant community. There is lots going on here,” says Chugg. “We have big box stores and small family-owned boutiques. We have lots of sports, such as hockey, football, soccer, hiking, golf, and marinas. We have a great regional hospital, university, and lots of community involvement.”
 
Major employers in the area are St. Martha’s Regional Hospital, the Strait Regional School Board, and St. Francis Xavier University (StFX) whose graduates wear the distinctive “X-ring”, one of the most easily identifiable school rings in the world.
 
The university is a big reason why people move here, says Chugg. People come here to teach, or because they have children who might go to StFX. “It’s a big factor for parents who want their children to go to a local university,” says Chugg. The university provides a great venue for sports, she says. You can get involved in football and follow it from high school to university.
 
Valerie Chugg says people often come to Northeastern Nova Scotia as tourists, and then want to buy property here. What’s the draw? Chugg sees a number of things.
 
The surroundings and the lifestyle mainly, she says. “We are close to the ocean. We have clean air, the crime rate is low. People don’t have to battle traffic here like they do in larger centres,” she says.
 
“And the commute is simple. People can live in a rural area if they want a bigger property, and still be only 20 minutes to work or the routineamenities.”
 
“We have a beautiful shoreline, and more and more, people are wanting to live on larger tracts of land,” she says, “maybe grow their own food, have a hobby farm — just have space.”
 
One trend she sees is people from Ontario coming to Nova Scotia to retire. “There’s a huge retirement influx now,” says Chugg. “People are making lifestyle decisions. They are thinking about where they want to be and how they want to live.”
 
“They are getting good value for their dollar here,” says Chugg. “And for the moment, it’s a buyer’s market.”
 
On a personal level, Chugg gives one of her own reasons for loving the area. She says although we have a more laid back lifestyle overall, the stresses of a busy workday are here like anywhere else. She appreciates the ability to leave the office and take a moment to relax.
 
“If I want to take a break, I can jump in the car and go out in any direction and be surrounded by beautiful scenery,” she says. “You have access to relaxation very close by and you don’t have to battle traffic to get there.”
 
“Within 10 minutes I can see the ocean. In the summer, there’s a little restaurant there where you can stop, have lunch, and enjoy the beauty.”
 
Does Valerie Chugg realize how lucky she is to live here? She sure does.

Feature story written by Susan Corning