Binty Bringans is poring over papers. Pages and pages of spreadsheets. Laid out before her, they contain the hopes and dreams and circumstances of young people desperately hoping they’ll catch someone’s eye.
They come from around the country: Gisborne, Gore, Northland, Porirua, the West Coast, Waikato, Auckland. They attend both high-and-low-decile schools – as well as those in the middle. There’s the odd adult applicant, too. But they all have something in common. “These kids just need a break,” says Bringans.
She is a founding trustee and pivotal member of the Keystone New Zealand Property Education Trust, a registered charity dedicated to increasing diversity in the property industry.
The story behind its origins is both tragic and inspirational. Bringans’ late husband, Graeme, was a high-profile property developer in the 1980s. The son of Salvation Army officers, his education ended when he left Timaru High School at 16.
Bringans, however, went on to forge a highly successful careeer. After beginning as a carpark attendant with the Arthur Williams property group, he went on to become general manager, before resigning at the age of 30 and setting up his own property development company.
“That was a monumental change in our
