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It takes expertise, experience, and energy to navigate the Grosse Pointe real estate market. Connie Dunlap of Sine & Monaghan has all that in spades—and a listing or two that just might be your next home.
As one of the premier real estate brokers in town as well as a long-time resident, Connie Dunlap of Sine & Monaghan Realtors knows a thing or two about homes in Grosse Pointe. “I love meeting people and I love houses—I really do!” she says. “Getting to know the clients and looking at the market—it’s like going shopping with a friend.”
Her favorite part? Finding the right house for the right person.
Throw a love of decorating into the mix and one couldn’t hand-pick a more perfect career choice for Connie, an Associate Broker at the company. And her reputation precedes her: Connie’s not only highly respected for her acumen but for her thorough knowledge of each of the Pointes and of the industry throughout. She has worked at three local firms since the mid-Eighties and is heavily involved in the community—something not a lot of brokers can claim.
Another perk: “Every day is different,” she says. “What I think my day will look like is completely different than what it actually turns out to be—but that’s OK!”
And working in an area with such a diverse housing stock is another plus.
“All the properties are unique in their own way,” Connie acknowledges, citing one house currently on the market, 29 Fisher Road as a great example. The former stables to the Dodge estate, the French country-style home dates from 1931 and is set back from the road on a half-acre in the middle of Grosse Pointe. Transformed into a four-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath private residence, it maintains original details such as rustic fencing at the entry, a fanciful weathervane atop a turret, and a charming carriage house complete with a three-and-a-half-car garage. Another recently sold listing, 825 Bishop, nestled in the heart of Grosse Pointe Park exudes traditional facets like a formal foyer leading to a sweeping staircase, wood-panelled library, and screened-in sun porch.
Connie loves the buying end of the business as well as the negotiation stage. She shows houses throughout the Pointes as well as other towns and cities such as St. Clair Shores, Harrison Township and in neighborhoods like Indian Village in Detroit.
Despite any upticks or downturns in the economy, Grosse Pointe has always held steady as a solid community in which to raise a family and settle down. When Connie started in the rollicking Eighties, the market was tight and offers were often made on the spot. “I wrote sales agreements on the hood of my car,” she says. That was how much someone wanted a house. We didn’t use computers then so things were written out by hand, and people were buying left and right. It was a frenzy.”
Prior to the mid-Eighties, there was also no multi-list—the cooperative database brokerage firms use to share information about property listings. Many of the Grosse Pointe real estate offices were on The Hill in the Farms. When a new listing was released, runners would go back and forth, taking notice of it to agents at other offices. In 1985, the Grosse Pointe Board of Realtors was formed to bring together all the firms in the Pointes.
Connie hails from Defiance, Ohio and attended Ohio State University where she met her husband, J. (Dick) Richard Dunlap. He was in dental school, and she was studying dental hygiene. When her husband took a post in San Diego after graduation to work as a dentist in the Navy, the couple moved west. Connie worked as a dental hygienist until she became pregnant with their first child. When Dr. Dunlap was accepted for his Masters in Orthodontics at the University of Michigan, back to the Midwest they came, living in Ann Arbor for two years before a brief stint in Toledo. An invitation then came for Dr. Dunlap to join a practice in Grosse Pointe, which landed the couple on the shores of Lake St. Clair. They soon had a growing family (three sons would come along in total). Dr. Dunlap opened his own practice in 1981.
As a storied firm in the Pointes, Sine & Monaghan has been a fantastic place for Connie to land. They offer the utmost professionalism and a sophisticated level of service.
“Dean and Mark are really great in every way—and they’re on the cutting edge of so much in terms of technology and resources,” Connie says of the prowess that’s so necessary for sellers to list their homes, and potential buyers to peruse the offerings.
Although quite a few players populate the Grosse Pointe real estate market, Connie says she doesn’t feel in competition with anyone.
“One of the things I admire about Grosse Pointe real estate is that everyone works together,” she observes, adding, “We help each other. That isn’t true in a lot of communities.” She knows too that a house isn’t just a place to live in, it’s an extension of the people who live there. “It may take a while until a client finds the right home but then they’ll be happy.”
And what’s the biggest challenge in finding that home? “It’s very personal,” Connie emphasizes. “Sometimes it’s hard to get people on the same page, and to make sure their expectations are realistic.”
The Grosse Pointe community though, never fails. Connie has not only formed a great business here but a thriving personal life. She has served on the board of the Mother’s Club at Grosse Pointe South High School where her children attended; is a sustaining member of The Junior League of Detroit; has volunteered with Operation Smile, venturing to Bolivia, Thailand, China, Morocco, and India to aid people with medical paperwork before surgery.
Connie was all too happy to stay home and raise her children but as they grew, she was itching to return to college and finish the schooling she had started before her husband’s work life had taken them out of state. She decided to enroll in a program to finish her degree at Wayne State University which was, at the time, offering scholarships for mature and returning women. From 1985 to 1989, Connie was able to go part-time, taking two courses per semester and graduating Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in psychology.
During this time, Connie started following another pursuit: Real estate. She would go to showings on the weekends—“Just for fun,” she says, “to see the homes and the interiors. I couldn’t get enough.” Connie loved the community she and her family had settled into, one with stunning architecture and historic homes at every turn.
In 1986, the couple had purchased their next home and Connie recalls watching the realtor work through each step of the showing and closing. “I thought I could do the same,” she recalls, “and how much fun it would be.” In 1987 while still in school, she got her real estate license and worked at two local firms before moving to Sine & Monaghan in 2021.
Connie is a member of Grosse Pointe Memorial Church where she participates in the handbell choir as well as the Outreach Council that takes mission trips to far-flung places like Cuba and Honduras to build houses in poor communities.
“It takes you out of your element and reminds you what really matters in life,” Connie says. A lover of travel, she feeds that desire closer to home too by visiting friends’ and families’ cottages in Harbor Springs, Charlevoix, and other up north locales.
As if that weren’t enough to keep her busy, Connie volunteers at nearby Henry Ford St. John Hospital with a program that tests the hearing of newborns.
“Screening is done on the babies, with their moms and dads right by their side,” she tells. “It’s very rewarding work, to see this done up close.”
On a cultural note, Connie started taking French classes ten years ago and continues to this day and is a member of the Alliance Francaise of Grosse Pointe. “I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could speak French?!’”
Keeping up relationships on all levels is very important to this busy Grosse Pointer. Connie has built many contacts over the years, especially with clients she now counts as friends and with whom she keeps in regular contact.
“You become very close during this process. It’s all been very rewarding.”