Big Brother. Little Brother.
A partnership that's always worked.“We live here. In fact, we grew up here. We are property managers ourselves and know the market in Ottawa and the National Capital Region.”
Don Stewart
Big Brother
Don started his career in the technology sector but soon moved into human resources because of his talent for working with people. Matching job seekers with career opportunities was a particular area of interest for Don and, in 2002, he ventured out on his own to launch an IT Recruitment Agency in Ottawa. Within 7 years Don grew this agency into Ottawa’s fastest growing company as recognized by the Ottawa Business Journal (2009).
It was right around this time that Don, along with his brother Shawn, made their first investment in real estate, purchasing a duplex in Kemptville. Soon to follow were properties in Merrickville, North Gower, Manotick, Kars and downtown Ottawa.
Born the oldest son into a large family, Don developed a sense of independence and adventure. This has characterized much of his career and fuelled his entrepreneurial sprit. In 2012, seeing an opportunity in the rural market with landlords such as themselves, Don and Shawn planned to partner in another venture – Stewart Property Management. It was an opportunity that would highlight the brothers’ complementary skill sets.
Don’s ability to lead and manage a business, as well as working with individuals as tenants, combined with Shawn’s operational skills in managing intricate design, manufacturing, and building projects, made for an ideal partnership in the property management space.
Shawn Stewart
Little Brother
Coming from a background of highly technical schooling, with a strong desire to understand how things work, Shawn has built a career on his passion for ensuring “everything runs smoothly”. Early experimentation as a curious child lead to careers in marine engineering, electronic control systems and finally, property management.
Like his older brother, Shawn was driven by a sense of adventure and travel and he did so both personally and professionally. He worked for the Merchant Marines as a Marine Engineer and travelled to many places around North America. Shawn’s work with disaster relief, and later jet propulsion systems, also led him to the Caribbean, Russia, England and Japan.
After many years of travelling, Shawn decided to look for career challenges closer to home and family. This is when Shawn and his brother Don decided to start investing in local income properties.
In 2012 the bothers had amassed over 20 apartments, and having developed their own operational processes to oversee and manage these properties, Shawn and Don decided that the next logical step was to offer this same effective property management to other landlords in the area. Since that time Stewart Property Management has operated as a successful partnership, Shawn and Don being uniquely qualified to complement each other in that space.
“The rural marketplace is different than urban centres, and we specialize in knowing how to handle each.”
