![Wollongong real estate agent Bob Onofri has announced his retirement. Wollongong real estate agent Bob Onofri has announced his retirement.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nxytTGiVvgkfKtUJaBBBHD/a60a7879-37e8-407e-bc3d-de89fce09a51.jpg/r0_0_5194_3608_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Having based his business in the same Crown Street location for 55 years, Wollongong real estate agent Bob Onofri is a recognisable, beloved figure for many.
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The news that Mr Onofri is retiring after 60-plus years was met with plenty of well-wishers on the Mercury's Facebook page.
Readers described the 90-year-old as an "absolute legend and true gentleman", "salt of the earth", and "the best dressed gentleman in Wollongong".
On the occasions the Mercury met him at his office, he was always friendly and accommodating - traits that have surely ensured considerable client loyalty over the years.
His daughter Marina Thimios confirmed that her father will be retiring, following some ill health, but was "doing okay".
The Mercury spoke to Mr Onofri on Friday, who said he was humbled and a "little emotional" by the response following his decision to retire.
However, he laughed as he said he wasn't going to miss "chasing people for rent".
"I never did anything wrong to others... I've been doing that for 60 years," he said.
"When the time has come (to retire), everyone must accept this, you can't go forever.
"I'm going to miss my job, the friends, the people every day who say g'day, and the ones I go for lunch with."
![The Crown Street shopfront this week. Picture by Adam McLean The Crown Street shopfront this week. Picture by Adam McLean](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nxytTGiVvgkfKtUJaBBBHD/7c6a7e50-a770-4a34-84c4-99b41bf69445.jpg/r0_0_2048_1536_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Wollongong resident Mr Onofri said his health was "getting better".
"I'm going to enjoy it (retirement) as much as I can," he said. "I like to go to the races, and I like to meet friends more often.
"I'll miss my friends, but I'll catch up, and a lot of them want to take me for lunch."
Mr Onofri said he believed relationships and treating the customer with respect remain crucial aspects of working in real estate.
"A large family come to me, the wife was crying, the husband is there with some money... They tell me the kids have no food," he said.
"I said, 'look, don't worry about (the rest of the rent), pay me what you can get some more money'."
![Bob Onofri pictured last year. Pictures by Anna Warr, Adam McLean Bob Onofri pictured last year. Pictures by Anna Warr, Adam McLean](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nxytTGiVvgkfKtUJaBBBHD/fcca10e8-fbab-4b9f-aaad-e0d6073bc384.jpg/r0_0_1200_675_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Mr Onofri is a fixture of Illawarra real estate.
You can forget about the modern trappings of a mobile phone, computer, website or social media - Mr Onofri has happily operated without any of them.
"I don't know how to use it, I don't need it," he said last year of modern technology.
Initially a boilermaker by trade, Mr Onofri relocated to Australia in 1952 so he could earn money to send back to his family in Italy.
He worked on the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme from 1954 to 1956.
He worked at EPT at Port Kembla for several years, and then started working in real estate in 1961.
He launched his own business, Coastline Realtors, in 1967. The name was changed to Bob Onofri Real Estate in 1974.
In recent times, relatives assisted with the day-to-day online aspect of the business, including processing payments and helping manage leases.
However, it's largely been a one-man operation, maintaining a modest shopfront with photographs and typed descriptions of his latest listings posted in the window.
![He launched his own business, Coastline Realtors, in 1967. The name was changed to Bob Onofri Real Estate in 1974. He launched his own business, Coastline Realtors, in 1967. The name was changed to Bob Onofri Real Estate in 1974.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nxytTGiVvgkfKtUJaBBBHD/88ad9126-a042-40a0-873f-d6846f41a744.jpg/r0_0_3871_5194_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Mr Onofri's wife Ruth died in 2006.
Mrs Thimios said after family urging him to retire, doctor's orders and a couple of stints in hospital, "we knew this time would come and the family are happy he has retired".
"It all happened quite quickly, but he is ready," she said. "We hope he will continue to visit his second home at Centro and the Steelers.
"At this stage he has no plans of leaving his home of 50 years either... Family and good friends are helping him to transition into retirement."
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