Our History

Since 1865, six generations of the Forsyth family have lived and worked in Willoughby, making a significant contribution to the growth and development of the community.  Three Forsyths have been Mayor of Willoughby, as well as holding numerous other Council offices, and every generation has worked with local charities, hospitals, business and community groups to help improve the lives and lifestyles of Wiloughby residents.

When English-born tanner James Forsyth bought 278 acres of land in around 1869 for three pounds an acre, the “Municipality of North Willoughby” was an isolated bushland community of farms, orchards, market gardens and tanneries with a population of just 553 people.  Today, the soughtafter leafy residential suburbs of Willoughby, Willoughby North and Willoughby East are home to around 13,500 people and the Willoughby City Council LGA has a total population of around 82,000.

The Forsyth family’s history is intertwined with the growth of the suburb and written in its streets.  More than a dozen roads are named after Forsyth family members or their residences, including Forsyth Street, Ann Street, Robert Street, Rosewall Street, Lyle Street (now part of Eastern Valley Way) and Tyneside Avenue.  The site of the first Forsyth family business the “Rosewall Tannery” is marked by a Willoughby Council Civic Heritage Commemorative Plaque on the corner of Ann and Stan Streets.

Many of Willoughby’s historic houses have links to the Forsyth family.  The imposing sandstone mansions “Rosewall” and “Tyneside” in High Street were built in 1883-84 as family residences by brothers Thomas Todd Forsyth and Robert Forsyth. Both are still standing and are recorded in the register of the National Trust.  Other residences such as the classic 1904 Federation bungalow “Kamaina” on Penshurst Street and 1933 “Sythmor” on Clanwilliam Street are still owned by the Forsyth family.

From the start, the Forsyth family embraced the Willoughby community and worked to improve the suburb’s facilities and the lives of local residents.  Three generations of Forsyths were Mayor of Willoughby and held other Council office between 1875 and 1927.  During this time, they oversaw extraordinary change, including the first electric trams on Penshurst St (1898), the opening of the railway from St Leonards to Hornsby (1890), the first electric street lights (1921) and the first sealed roads & footpaths (1920s).

The Forsyths have always been early adopters of innovation.  In 1898, RT Forsyth was one of the first auctioneers in Willoughby and had one of the first telephones with the number Chatswood 145.  In 1912 Robert Forsyth bought a 1908 Rover with registration number NSW 443, which was one of the first cars in the district. In the 1920s, his daughter Joan was one of the first women in the area with a driver’s licence and used to drive the company’s clients home.

The real estate company has consistently served existing and new residents as Willoughby developed from remote bush settlement to prosperous suburb on the fringe of Sydney’s second CBD. Forsyth Real Estate has been involved in many of the significant property sales from the original 1880s Victorian mansions and cottages to the vibrant mixture of heritage homes, Californian semis, Art Deco apartments, 1950s home units and contemporary apartment complexes that make up Willoughby today.

In the 1922 Wilson’s Street Directory, Willoughby was promoted with the slogan “As a suburban resort, a better place would be hard to find”, and home owners flocked to the area in their thousands. RT Forsyth marketed and auctioned many of the early subdivisions, including the 1924 “Wireless Subdivision” named after the pioneer radio station transmitter and land in Northbridge on behalf of the Greater Sydney Development Company, whose director was Canberra’s architect Walter Burley Griffin.

After the war, Forsyth Real Estate moved into commercial and industrial property sales, including the sale to Willoughby Council of the site of the Willoughby Civic Centre and the sale of several Chatswood properties to Grace Brothers for their first Sydney store - one of the first landmarks in the commercial development of Chatswood.

However, it was not just in property but also in recreation that the Forsyths changed the face of Willoughby.  In 1888, James Forsyth and Thomas Todd Forsyth, both enthusiastic bowlers, were foundation members of the St Leonards Bowling Club. Thomas Todd was instrumental in founding Chatswood Bowling Club in 1900 and was one of its first vice presidents and a lifetime member.  Robert Todd Forsyth was a member of Chatswood Bowling Club for some 35 years.

Over the past 120 years, Forsyth Real Estate has survived through wars, depressions, recessions, booms and busts. With a finger firmly on the pulse of the local marketplace and an eye to national and international trends, the company has continually evolved to offer the best possible service to its clients within an ever-changing marketplace.

Since the early 1900s, Forsyths have been leaders in the real estate profession.  RT Forsyth was an early member and President of the Real Estate Auctioneers & Agents Association (Real Estate Institute of NSW). In 1950s, James Forsyth was President of the North Shore Real Estate Agents’ Association and a Fellow of the Commonwealth Institute of Valuers. In the 1990s, Michael Forsyth was a Board Member of the Real Estate Employers Federation and Founding Governor of the REIA’s Industry Superannuation Fund.

In the early 1960s Forsyth Real Estate was influential in the development in Australia of the innovative American marketing system the Estate Agents Cooperative (EAC Multi-List).  In the 1980s, the company recognized the marketing benefits and became an early member of the First National network of independent real estate agents, helping to build the brand in Australia. To reflect changing market trends, the company rebranded as an independent boutique company Forsyth Real Estate.

Forsyth’s real estate offices also developed over the decades to reflect the changing needs of the business and its customers.  In 1912, the original timber building was replaced with a turreted brick building with a tram-waiting alcove for the comfort of clients and local residents.  In the early 1950s, the premises were remodelled and extended in 1962.  The current building, built in 1978, has been updated to create a welcoming environment with leading edge technological capacity to meet the needs of the electronic age.