But his eclectic mix of pastimes and interests paint a picture of a man who’s as far removed as you can get from the stereotypical property spruiker.
Born in Oaklahoma in the US, he immigrated to Australia in 1973 as a two-year-old, with his Australian-born mother and eldest brother. One of four boys in his family, Bayly has lived in Sydney ever since.
His entrepreneurial spirit, energy and motivated desire to better himself is intrinsically linked to his survival and endurance of what he describes as a “whirlpool-style” existence growing as a teenager and young adult due to a violent and abusive family life.
Bayly has a burning desire to represent The Hills community, even if the imposts on his time and weighty responsibilities of elected office impact on his sales-related income.
“In 2012, I ran for local council here in The Hills as an independent,” Bayly says.
“It kind of demonstrated my willingness and ability to be out there and try and make a change to the community I live in.
“I live in Castle Hill, the kids go to school in the area, I go to church in the area and I’m a member of all sorts of organisations in the area and I really wanted to represent the community – and I damn well nearly got in.”
During his campaigning, he even did what you wouldn’t expect a from property salesman, opposing a major development near the Castle Hill Showground, despite the potential to earn commission from it, either through the sale or future re-sale of units.
Bayly says he supports high-rise, mixed-use development close to train stations, provided it’s consistent with the general character of the surrounding area.
“My concern is that the Showgrounds, where the old council chambers used to be, has been zoned for high rise,” he says.
“I don’t think it would be suitable for it. So I – if I was on council – would oppose it and I stood on that platform in the last election.
“I also believe that not all business is good business and that’s why I’m happy to oppose some development.”
Salespeople in so much of what they do, explains Bayly, seem to “take take take”, but they also need to make an effort with giving, as a fundamental part of maintaining genuine and mutually-beneficial relationships.
To that end, Bayly is setting up a charitable initiative, which he simply refers to as ‘Sleeping Bags For The Homeless’ for which he’d be thrilled any contributions via: http://www.gofundme.com/8j5wn4
Bayly has also developed a keen interest in human rights and the plight of Australia’s indigenous communities.
“I started doing an associate degree in law and one of the subjects I did looked at injustices to indigenous people,” he explains.
“So that really put a lot of things in perspective – as well as the situation with asylum seekers.”
And those social justice principles even had him arguing against his own “blue blood” ancestry in the Republican versus Monarchy debate.
In June 2013, in a speech made to Sydney Toastmasters, Bayly described how some spirited debate on the Republic of Australia Facebook page began with him taking a pro-Monarchist stance, underpinned by his family’s aristocratic ancestry.
(You can read the full speech here: http://www.independentaustralia.net/australia/australia-display/time-to-change-how-we-discuss-an-australian-republic,5493)
After conceding his family was one that “treated indigenous people wrongly” he turned to his well-developed sales instincts to suggest better ways the Republican movement could pitch the case for change.
“I asked them to answer three questions: What would becoming a republic do to put Australia in a better position politically? How would becoming a republic help us economically? How would becoming a republic help us socially?” Bayly recounted in his presentation.
“Their answers did not excite me, so I answered the questions for them and in the end convinced myself to change my view on the matter.”
Oh yeah, as a real estate salesman, he also loves to discuss property. With anyone.
Bayly says he’s excited about the potential for two parts of Sydney – the new Badgery’s Creek airport location and its surrounding suburbs and The Hills region.
He said both those areas had in common the fact they would be the beneficiaries of vastly upgraded transport services.
“I definitely think the (Badgery’s Creek) airport is a great thing,” he says.
“There are reports, of course, that property prices will go up and 60,000 new jobs will be created.
“And the exciting thing will be the upgrades to major arterial roads in the west and a new South West Rail Link, that will basically connect with the North West Rail Link being built as a key link for The Hills with the rest of Sydney.”
His advice for property investors is to carefully research before buying any property in the area.
“The government’s allocated a corridor of land for new infrastructure, so if you buy a property within that corridor, you’re going to lose money because the government will take possession of your property through compulsory acquisition,” he says.
Bayly says the North West Rail Link is “coming along in leaps and bounds” and the location of train stations along it had been very strategic.
“One station’s at Castle Hill, there’s another at Norwest (business park) right near the Hillsong Church, which is the biggest church in the country, and that’s also a thriving business hub,” he says.
“People are going to want to be around that and live close to the train station. One of the most frequent requests I get as a real estate agent is for properties close to rail links and people will pay more for that.”
At the moment, there were no train services into The Hills, so the North West Rail Link would substantially ramp up demand for property in the area.
Ok, that’s enough of Bayly talking about real estate, there’s something else he needs to share with us - he’s a budding actor on the theatrical stage, having performed or directed in a total of 11 different productions.
He’s even written and directed a short comedy called ‘The Pub Detective’, which was produced for stage in 2009 and is writing a book called ‘Survivors’ about growing up with domestic violence, child abuse and a dysfunctional family - and surviving.
And he’s been involved in various performing arts organisations, including The Regals Musical Society, Holroyd Musical & Dramatic Society, Cronulla Arts Theatre and Blacktown Community Theatre.
Perhaps providing an opportunity to mix his real estate knowledge business with his performance skills are regular guest spots on The Business Clinic on community station Alive 90.5, which has a broadcast footprint taking in Parramatta, Holroyd and The Hills.
“My role on that is to give updates on what’s happening in the real estate market from a business perspective,” Bayly explains.
“So it’s about how they can use real estate to benefit their business and their net worth. For example, I’ve spoken a bit about buying property through self-managed super funds.
“I can give this advice because I’m a licensed real estate agent and also, because I’ve done it myself with my wife with our own investments.”
Geoff’s blog can be found at: http://geoffbaylyproperty.com/
