gbello@houlihanlawrence.com

For Gino Bello, if his heart isn’t in it, he just can’t do it. That’s why it was a relatively easy decision to leave his accounting job at KPMG to pursue a career as a realtor. “From the time I was pretty young, I knew two things: I loved real estate and I wanted my own business.” So, at the age of 25, Gino began making his way in an industry where 92% of his colleagues don’t succeed. “That’s what drove me. I refused to fail.” And, it didn’t take long for him to realize he’d truly discovered his passion, and a deep commitment to his craft. “Two weeks after I got my realtor’s license, I changed my license plate to ‘Top Realtor.’ Sure, I got laughed at, but my goal was to be the best at what I do.” Fast forward 15 years, and Gino is among the top real estate agents in Westchester County. Behind him is a wildly successful team-based business he built from scratch with Gerry Magnarelli, his childhood best friend from the Bronx. He boasts about 800 homes sold over the last 15 years, and knows the ins and outs of buying and selling in Westchester like the back of his hand. Calling him “straightforward” and a “pleasure to work with,” clients return to Gino again and again, relying on his expertise, his patience, and above all, his integrity. “I have no trouble sleeping at night because no matter what, the client comes first, not the commission.” Married to his college sweetheart, whom he met at Fordham University, this ambitious boy from the Bronx feels right at home in White Plains where he’s raising three kids. “Every time I make a decision, I ask myself, what would my family think?” In this emotionally-charged business of complex but rewarding life-changing decisions, “there will always be rainstorms,” he says, “but doing the right thing is what matters to me.” And, for this accountant turned top realtor, “I just don’t want to do anything else.”