A funny thing happens when George Coloney walks around Victoria Park. He gets recognized by people he's never met. You probably know George Coloney’s face because for the past 20 years, his real estate signs have become a mainstay of neighborhoods throughout east Fort Lauderdale, especially Victoria Park. It’s a far cry from the farm in upstate New York where George grew up, and where this lifelong salesman and entrepreneur learned the value of rolling up your sleeves, working hard, and never giving up. This work ethic led him to the U.S. Marine Corps, where he served honorably as an orderly for President Kennedy.

Today, George and his wife, Jennifer, are Victoria Park residents and founders of The Coloney Group, which has set itself apart in the South Florida real estate market. George has six decades in business, building three national and international companies before retiring.

He credits his wife with getting him into the real estate business. She thought George needed a hobby in retirement. Almost 25 years into his “retirement hobby,” George has amassed a team of 60+ agents throughout South Florida. Last year alone, The Coloney Group had $227 Million in volume sales and sold 500 + properties.

The discipline from his years as a marine has lasted 60+ years. George still begins his workdays before the sun comes up, is often the last one to leave the office, and works through the weekends. Still going strong, George says the funny thing is he still feels like he is 40, which is half his age.

“The Coloney Group takes its agents and customers to another level,” George says. “I bring my agents to a doctorate level in real estate. They learn things here you don’t get in real estate school. And, I like taking customers who have only ever thought of real estate as home ownership and helping them understand it as an investment vehicle.”

George says if you spend 15 minutes with him, he’ll change your life. Certainly, he’ll change the way you think about real estate, finance and investment.

George and his family are extremely close. He and his wife Jennifer, a Fort Lauderdale native, have been married for 31 years. Jennifer was a professional ballerina and was brought up in the ballet. “Jennifer wants me to go to every ballet there is in the world,” George says. They are traveling together more now, between 4 or 5 times per year. In mid-February, they had a spectacular trip to London, where they visited the Chanel exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum, watched the Tina Turner musical, and enjoyed the Royal Ballet’s production of Manon, not once, but twice, once from the right side of the theater and once from the left.

The two met when George was speaking at a convention at the Hilton Hotel in New York City. Jennifer happened to be in the audience. “When I looked down and saw her, I actually lost my whole train of thought,” George says, “which has never happened before or since.” Jennifer came up on stage afterward and spoke to him. George told her that he was starting a new company in Manhattan called U.S. Communications and for her to reach out to him if she was interested in learning more.

Jennifer waited a few months, but she eventually joined the company as a founder and was an integral part of their astounding growth.

U.S. Communications ended up owning tens of thousands of payphones nationwide. The company was started with $25,000 and was sold nine years later, setting a record for the sale of such a company.

At the time of the sale in 1993, George and Jennifer married and relocated to South Florida where they settled in Weston. Opportunities continued as George received a call that Canada was deregulating. As a result, he started First Canadian Telecom. When Puerto Rico also deregulated, he founded another company called Telefonos Publicos de PR.

George’s son, Scott Coloney, became involved with the pay phone business in the late 1980’s as an owner of his own business and paid his way through college at the University of Massachusetts. While there, he founded a new travel company, “Orbitz.com”, which he eventually sold. He then joined the family in South Florida where he has been an entrepreneur ever since. He is now a luxury home builder. Scott also started a company called U.S. Supercharge, a high-speed EV charging company for electric cars.

George’s daughter, Lauren, was brought up to be a ballerina like her mother. Lauren went to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. After an injury, she returned home where she joined The Coloney Group. During her decade in the business, Lauren has excelled in sales and has built her own team within the Coloney Group.

Now people refer to George as Lauren’s father.

The youngest son, George Coloney IV, known as G-4, had tremendous success online being an authority on sneakers from the time he was eight years old. Going by “Stickie 213”, you can now view his hundreds of videos on the internet from the past 20 years. The former sneakerhead has a passion for fashion, currently designing a new silk pant that will soon be available via Sync Studios. George also founded and owns a company, U.S. Med Supply, which distributes the “Freestyle Libre” (a patch that people with diabetes can use to control their insulin levels) throughout the United States.

George really enjoys working with people who have the desire to be entrepreneurs as he likes sharing what he has learned to help others succeed.

“The lessons I learned while building my companies had a big effect on how I approach the commercial and residential real estate business, here at the Coloney Group,” George says.

The Coloney Group, a team of agents within The Keyes Company, is unique because of its size (over 60 sales associates); however, the group is like one big family. The strength of the team is the diversity of its agents and their collective experience and expertise. The Coloney Group will always put the interests of their clients first and has the knowledge and resources to achieve the best results for each client.

The Coloney Group’s broker, The Keyes Company, is #1 in Florida in real estate sales and became the exclusive South Florida broker for Forbes International. Forbes has 78% of the world media market for real estate, more than any other brand in the luxury real estate space. It’s a fact that gives George a definite edge in reaching worldwide buyers for higher priced estate homes or properties over $2 Million in value. The Forbes brand means greater value to sellers and more options for buyers. As George says, “It’s a numbers game, and we are reaching the most buyers and sellers we can.”

George’s customers will attest to his negotiating skills and his ability to craft creative solutions to the problems that face today’s homeowners, home buyers, and investors. “In the multifamily space,” George says, “We are known for seller financing at 3% interest.” For residential sellers, he has a program that offers loans for home improvements on listed properties, which means higher profits to sellers. Increasing insurance premiums, rising property taxes, and higher interest rates may seem like stumbling blocks to buying and selling, but to a seasoned businessman like George, nothing is impossible.

What are his other secrets to success for himself and his customers?

Give him 15 minutes. He’d love to tell you all about them!