Property for people
For Christchurch businesswoman and real estate professional Leeann Marriott, giving back has always been about people.
Leeann is a top real estate agent at Harcourts Gold Strowan, which is consistently ranked among the top real estate offices in New Zealand.
Yet beyond the success of her real estate career lies a longstanding commitment to supporting causes close to home.
In 2025, Leeann made a significant contribution to the BrainTree Wellness Centre, donating $20,000 towards the organisation’s work supporting people living with neurological conditions.
For Leeann, the decision was deeply personal.
“My husband encouraged me to support them. His mother has Parkinson’s. My daughter studied through to a PhD level in neurology and anatomy, and I had a father, who is no longer around, who faced brain-related challenges,” she says.
The BrainTree Wellness Centre takes a different approach to neurological conditions. Rather than focusing solely on medical treatment and research aimed at finding future cures, the organisation provides support for people living with conditions such as Parkinson’s, dementia, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological disorders today.
That practical, people-first philosophy resonated with Leeann.
When she was thinking of ways to mark a professional milestone, she looked for a way to help others.
“It was when I was heading into 20 years in real estate. I thought, let’s raise $20,000, so we focused on them and have just carried on supporting them. It’s a great facility.”
“Every time I listed or sold a property, I put a portion of my commission into a fund.”
Prior to her work with BrainTree, Leeann had supported a wide range of initiatives across Christchurch.
Recent contributions have included creating SkinCanNZ, that, since 2012, has helped provide free skin checks and education around sun safety. They did free skin checks in association with the Christchurch Charity Hospital, and to date, they have seen an excess of 1000 people.
Everyday connections are also important to Leeann. Through regular visits to Bellevue Care Centre and Village, she supports residents with animal therapy using her dog, Bobbie.
“We go in there once a month. She’s a canine therapy dog, and she meets the residents who are in care. She gives cuddles. She’s been doing that for three years, and she loves it. It just makes people smile. It doesn’t have to take a lot to give back.”
Leeann has been recognised for her work in real estate with a number of awards, including third top individual agent nationally. But to her, the award that matters are the Inspiration Awards, which she has won three times, including 2026, recognising her community work.
But for those looking to sell or buy with Leeann, she says she is as dedicated to her clients as she is to her community work.
“When you employ me, you get me and my PA. I’m not a team, so often you get more one-on-one time, which I think is really important in this environment. Rather than being handed a listing and then being handed to somebody else, you get me from start to finish.”