Biography
Early Years:
It all started back in 1972, in a grade 7 classroom, in the small town of Thamesville, Ontario. It was here that Ross got his first lesson in real estate. Ross' teacher, Mr. Tom Butler, somehow got on the topic of home mortgages and leverage. At that time, home mortgages were commonly privately sourced in this small town and often at interest rates 1 to 3% below what even Canadian Savings Bonds were then paying at the time. Mr. Butler made a statement that Ross has carried with him to this day. "I don't care what everyone else is doing. Why would I be foolish enough to pay off my mortgage, when I can earn 3% higher interest, Guaranteed?"
In his formative years that followed, Ross learned all aspects of the construction industry, from hand digging footings of future multi-million dollar Muskoka cottages to trucking top soil to 100's of newly built Burlington subdivision homes. Ross trimmed doors, routed wiring and even laid interlocking stone, while also studying a diversified class load at university that included Urban Geography and Economics. This ground work laid the foundation for a career in real estate sales and provided Ross with a unique opportunity to develop an understanding of the real estate market that few others had the privilege to learn from.
A Career focused on Real Estate:
Ross N. Kay, the 3rd generation in his family to own a real estate consulting practice, started his realty career in an office he shared with his father, Allan, on Guelph Line in Burlington Ontario. He worked with his father, mother and wife for eight years, where they became the #1 Sales Team in the World for RE/MAX. Ross has often heard saying, “My father was my mentor and I learned a tremendous amount about every aspect of the real estate market from him.” Likewise, Allan R. Kay often stated that “teams, computers, advertising, statistical review, even our sales volume, they were the results of my son, Ross….his ability to analyze and identify trends may be rooted in the generational knowledge he was given but how he takes grass roots understandings and then accurately tells me which homes on which streets will be listed in the next month, I can't answer ”. Ross then entered the very different world of fatherhood and the retirement for 3 team members leaving him to continue to build the Kay brand in a more focused manner.
In the GTA, the Kay brand is synonymous with segment leading technological breakthroughs and resulting real estate consulting programs. Among them are a continually added to series of early adopter implementations from Canada's first real estate implementation of database management software, all the way to recent Seller Copy-Right Protection Programs and dozens of others over the past 20 years. Everywhere a Kay branded program is used, it is met with tremendous success.
The Kay family through court challenges enshrined independent contractor status for real estate sales people in Ontario, forced the formation of Commission Trust accounts nationwide, held broker owners legally liable from theft of commissions and assisted in protecting consumer rights by working to bring Buyer Agency into Canada. One of great disappointments of the Kay legacy in organized real estate was their failure to prevent Dual Agency at a Brokerage level from being included in revisions to provincial real estate trading legislation.
Through it all the Kay family had a 100% compliance factor with provincial trading legislation never once harming a consumer for personal gain while accumulating over 300 industry awards in the process.
Today:
Ross is currently Canada's only authority on Real Estate Transactional Data (RETD) and through this expertise and the relationships he has built with 100's of licensed to trade practitioners, is the only person in Canada to have reviewed and analyzed millions of real estate trades from 1980 onward. His understanding of the power held within RETD, combined with a personal involvement of over 3000 real estate transactions opened opportunities for insight that are unique in North America today.
Ross is an avid volunteer Coach and his passion is evident in the programs he has developed and 1000's of children he has touched.
Ross has appeared on television and has been interviewed by leading real estate publications. His programs have won international acclaim and awards, proving his worth to his clients. His experience in the fields of Corporate Governance, Copyright and Trademark Law have been used to the benefit of the individual and both for profit and not-for-profit corporations.
Ross Kay is the very definition of the Canadian success story. He has continually set new standards of excellence while expanding his interests nationally and internationally. Ross is personally involved in community and charity work believing “being part of a community is more than just owning a home”. He is the archetypal businessman—a deal maker without peer and an ardent mentor to others in his community.
Personal:
Ross is supported by his wife, their children, family and friends who have remained committed to ensuring Ross stays grounded on what is the most important thing in life. Ross is a devoted community volunteer, representing a variety of youth sports and has assisted dozens of young adults in reaching their goals at the post-secondary level.
Ross is a proponent of Deliberate Practice and is one of Canada's leaders in the implementation of LTAD compliant programs, which is his hobby of choice.
Every program offered by Ross is done with the memory of his son Grant as the inspiration in how people should be treated by others.
It all started back in 1972, in a grade 7 classroom, in the small town of Thamesville, Ontario. It was here that Ross got his first lesson in real estate. Ross' teacher, Mr. Tom Butler, somehow got on the topic of home mortgages and leverage. At that time, home mortgages were commonly privately sourced in this small town and often at interest rates 1 to 3% below what even Canadian Savings Bonds were then paying at the time. Mr. Butler made a statement that Ross has carried with him to this day. "I don't care what everyone else is doing. Why would I be foolish enough to pay off my mortgage, when I can earn 3% higher interest, Guaranteed?"
In his formative years that followed, Ross learned all aspects of the construction industry, from hand digging footings of future multi-million dollar Muskoka cottages to trucking top soil to 100's of newly built Burlington subdivision homes. Ross trimmed doors, routed wiring and even laid interlocking stone, while also studying a diversified class load at university that included Urban Geography and Economics. This ground work laid the foundation for a career in real estate sales and provided Ross with a unique opportunity to develop an understanding of the real estate market that few others had the privilege to learn from.
A Career focused on Real Estate:
Ross N. Kay, the 3rd generation in his family to own a real estate consulting practice, started his realty career in an office he shared with his father, Allan, on Guelph Line in Burlington Ontario. He worked with his father, mother and wife for eight years, where they became the #1 Sales Team in the World for RE/MAX. Ross has often heard saying, “My father was my mentor and I learned a tremendous amount about every aspect of the real estate market from him.” Likewise, Allan R. Kay often stated that “teams, computers, advertising, statistical review, even our sales volume, they were the results of my son, Ross….his ability to analyze and identify trends may be rooted in the generational knowledge he was given but how he takes grass roots understandings and then accurately tells me which homes on which streets will be listed in the next month, I can't answer ”. Ross then entered the very different world of fatherhood and the retirement for 3 team members leaving him to continue to build the Kay brand in a more focused manner.
In the GTA, the Kay brand is synonymous with segment leading technological breakthroughs and resulting real estate consulting programs. Among them are a continually added to series of early adopter implementations from Canada's first real estate implementation of database management software, all the way to recent Seller Copy-Right Protection Programs and dozens of others over the past 20 years. Everywhere a Kay branded program is used, it is met with tremendous success.
The Kay family through court challenges enshrined independent contractor status for real estate sales people in Ontario, forced the formation of Commission Trust accounts nationwide, held broker owners legally liable from theft of commissions and assisted in protecting consumer rights by working to bring Buyer Agency into Canada. One of great disappointments of the Kay legacy in organized real estate was their failure to prevent Dual Agency at a Brokerage level from being included in revisions to provincial real estate trading legislation.
Through it all the Kay family had a 100% compliance factor with provincial trading legislation never once harming a consumer for personal gain while accumulating over 300 industry awards in the process.
Today:
Ross is currently Canada's only authority on Real Estate Transactional Data (RETD) and through this expertise and the relationships he has built with 100's of licensed to trade practitioners, is the only person in Canada to have reviewed and analyzed millions of real estate trades from 1980 onward. His understanding of the power held within RETD, combined with a personal involvement of over 3000 real estate transactions opened opportunities for insight that are unique in North America today.
Ross is an avid volunteer Coach and his passion is evident in the programs he has developed and 1000's of children he has touched.
Ross has appeared on television and has been interviewed by leading real estate publications. His programs have won international acclaim and awards, proving his worth to his clients. His experience in the fields of Corporate Governance, Copyright and Trademark Law have been used to the benefit of the individual and both for profit and not-for-profit corporations.
Ross Kay is the very definition of the Canadian success story. He has continually set new standards of excellence while expanding his interests nationally and internationally. Ross is personally involved in community and charity work believing “being part of a community is more than just owning a home”. He is the archetypal businessman—a deal maker without peer and an ardent mentor to others in his community.
Personal:
Ross is supported by his wife, their children, family and friends who have remained committed to ensuring Ross stays grounded on what is the most important thing in life. Ross is a devoted community volunteer, representing a variety of youth sports and has assisted dozens of young adults in reaching their goals at the post-secondary level.
Ross is a proponent of Deliberate Practice and is one of Canada's leaders in the implementation of LTAD compliant programs, which is his hobby of choice.
Every program offered by Ross is done with the memory of his son Grant as the inspiration in how people should be treated by others.
Personal Business Awards and Achievements
Over 70 International Awards won
Achievements
-Over $9 Billion in Client Personal Net Worth Growth (updated December 2018)
- 25 year, 99.9% career success ratio on sold to closed properties (only one in over 3000)
- Canadian or North American 1st for real estate Implementation of over 15 different technologies
- Canada's first Audit of National Real Estate Transactional Data
- Credited for the Identification and Definition of the Realty Cycle, Trading Cycle and it's Stages
- Author and Creator of the only Leading Indices, accurately predicting turns in the Real Estate Market for over 20 years
