Broker puts new spin on realty

A radio blares out aging hits in the office of Vince Cosgrave, broker and owner of Veteran Real Estate, who sits among his staff in a large common room.

The music is background noise, same as it is in countless offices around the world, although Cosgrave has a somewhat more romantic view of it.

"The radio is always on in the office -- for energy," Cosgrave said. "Music is energy. I truly believe that."

Music has long been his lifeblood. Before beginning his stint as a promoter of property nearly 20 years ago, Cosgrave promoted artists who would become legends of the rock and country music genres, primarily through record labels MCA and Capitol Records.

Framed photos offer a sampling of his former colleagues. Elton John dresses conservatively in the days before his lavish costumes while chatting with John Lennon. In another, Marty Robbins smiles from here to El Paso while posing with Cosgrave. Members of The Who stay calm long enough to join their label's representative for a publicity shot upon receiving one of their Gold Record awards.

Sifting through Cosgrave's multiple collections takes time. The photos fill several boxes and are a veritable who's who of the '70s music scene: Dobey Gray, Neil Diamond, Bernadette Peters, Brenda Lee, Olivia Newton-John, Conway Twitty, Eric Burdon, Sally Kellerman, Freddy Fender, Marvin Hamlisch, Mel Tillis, Loretta Lynn and George Thoroughgood, among scores of others.

A few pics are tacky or whimsical. In one, Cosgrave and Keith Moon offer a visual aid for The Who drummer's solo album "Moonshot." In another, Tanya Tucker celebrates a hit on her 17th birthday. Cosgrave sprawls before the Original Texas Playboys in yet another.

Cosgrave had a lengthy stint with Capitol Records and a brief one with MCA following a rise through the record business that began with his work as a disc jockey for a couple of jazz-format radio stations in the San Francisco Bay area.

At times, it was a dream job: meet the popular acts of the day and help them sell their albums. On the road, he followed the music, usually behind the scenes from one photo op to the next promotional event.

A few times, Cosgrave even took the limelight himself. He recalls one year he attended the Music City awards on behalf of one his clients, Olivia Newton-John, who was nominated for her hit "I Honestly Love You." Much to his surprise, Cosgrave heard the announcer call his name as accepting the award on behalf of the Australian superstar.

"I went up there nervously. What could I say? I told the audience, `If Olivia were here tonight, she would say I honestly love you,'" he said. "I had to say something cornball."

When the record business began to change, Cosgrave realized it was time for him to leave. The hint came in the form of repeated layoffs.

"In the entertainment business, each time a new president comes in they sweep clean the entire staff. I'd get picked up (by another company) each time," he said.

A sea change at MCA convinced him the record business was no longer his.

"There's a book, called `Hitman,' about the takeover of MCA. I'm dismissed on page 21," he said. "One day, everybody I ever knew was on the street. The business had been taken over."

A friend in Nashville, Tenn., gave him his last job: promoting Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter."

"I found out back then that you and the movie are released on the same day," he said.

The call to real estate came from above. Literally. One day he saw a billboard advertising for real estate agents.

While uncertain at first about a career in real estate, Cosgrave made the profession his by adding his own spin to it, inspired by the client-friendly music industry world he saw disappear, as well as one of his personal heroes.

"I thought back to the beginning of FM radio and to (disc jockey) Tom Donahue and how he changed radio with alternative formats," he said. "I thought, `why can't we do that in this business?'"

After wetting his feet in the business, Cosgrave discovered a firm that fit his philosophy, Veteran Real Estate in California.

With a love of Lake Tahoe, Cosgrave and his wife, Theresa, ventured to Nevada to open a new franchise for the company in Reno. Shortly thereafter, they opened a Las Vegas office and operated both before deciding their fortunes lay in Southern Nevada.

Cosgrave's touch is fairly nuanced. He sits among his staff. The sales board, often located in a back room, is front and center in the main room. The photo gallery, although currently in storage, was once the most eye-catching and entrancing feature in the office. Even his staff has a musical angle: sales agent Tere Shannon is a former touring singer.

Mostly, Cosgrave believes, his company's attitude lies in how he treats clients. Las Vegas, Cosgrave said, is a lot like the record business in that fortunes rise and fall quickly.

"It's good business to have empathy for all your clients," he said. "In this town, someone can be (down on their luck) one day and be successful the next."

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