Limavady man Conor McKay brokers biggest ever sale of villa in Dubai
by UTV Correspondent Gareth Wilkinson
Conor McKay left Limavady five years ago, aged 19 with just a few hundred pounds.
Now he’s just sold the most expensive villa ever bought in Dubai.
The 25-year-old almost doubled the previous record by persuading one of the planet's richest people to splash out $76million on the luxury pad.
Speaking to UTV from Dubai Conor said: “Just to be the driving figure behind them purchasing a property of this size and magnitude is honestly such an experience.”
Conor has come a long way from the terraced house Limavady where he grew up with his mum and his brother.
Business was always blood.
Conor's entrepreneurial skills first emerged at St Mary’s High School in Limavady.
He got in trouble selling sweets and fizzy drinks to fellow pupils at break times.
Conor said: “I was always interested in making a few bucks here and there. I just get a buzz off doing sales. I like negotiating. It’s just what I like doing.”
Conor's first job was selling cars at a dealership near Limavady.
But reality TV shows featuring property sellers in glamorous locations inspired him to broaden his horizons.
Conor persuaded a company in Dubai to give him a chance and flew to the Middle East with little more than the price of his flight and a bagful of ambition.
Conor first lived in a windowless maids room until the sales started rolling in.
Now he’s the hottest property in the Dubai real estate industry.
A broker to billionaires, Conor regularly clinches deals for luxury properties worth millions of dollars.
He now owns his own villa complete with a swimming pool.
At first his family in Limavady thought he was crazy, but now Conor says his Mum tells him how proud she is of his achievements every other day.
Conor’s Instagram account is filled with pictures of a glamorous lifestyle in the City of Gold.
But he insists it’s not all glitz and glamour and that his job involves a lot of hard work and stress.
Conor says the record for selling Dubai’s most expensive villa won’t last for long.
He’s determined to smash it again.