A homeless teenager with a baby on the way, it’s safe to say the future wasn’t looking bright for Tony Habib King.
The dad, from Chorlton, spent years getting in and out of trouble before finding his true calling in property sales.
A rebellious teen, Tony was kicked out of college for poor attendance and had no clear path until he met the love of his life and got married aged 18.
Just a few months after tying the knot, the pair discovered they were expecting their first child and moved into Tony’s family home – but the new dynamic wasn’t working out.
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The teenagers approached Manchester City Council and were placed into a homeless hostel for two months before finding themselves a flat in Cheetham Hill.
In an incredible turn of events, Tony would later climb the ranks in the real estate world and go on to launch his own £1m company – now having offices in Manchester city centre and Dubai.
“Education was never for me,” Tony, who now lives in Prestwich, said. “I wanted to learn from others. People were experience.”
Tony was 16 when he left school and enrolled at college. However, after completing one year of education, he was kicked out due to his poor attendance rate.
At age 18, he fell in love and got married, with his new wife falling pregnant just seven months later.
When they moved into Tony’s home in Chorlton, they quickly realised the new arrangement wasn’t working out, so they decided to find somewhere else to live.
As his partner was pregnant, they could not live on the streets, prompting Manchester City Council to put them up in a hostel.
“The hostel wasn’t too bad,” Tony said. “As long as we were together, we were together, we were alright. We were so loved up at the time; we were constantly as one.”
After two months in the hostel, their families put some money together and found them a flat in Cheetham Hill. After a year of claiming benefits, Tony knew he had to kick-start his life and get a job.
His dad managed to get him a job in the property world – which is where his journey really began. “I approached my dad and said, ‘We need to do something, we’re on the dole not doing anything,’” he said.
“That’s when my dad got me a job in real estate and that’s when it really began. I was working in property management but we were doing other stuff like debt management. I was learning and learning constantly.”
After starting his new job aged 22, Tony built his way up in the company and remained in the role for 10 years.
After a decade, he realised he wanted a new challenge, approaching his friend Zak Jennings who had his own letting company in Manchester city centre.
The dad-of-four was offered a job as a manager and remained there for a year. But Tony wanted more – eventually going on to set up his own business with Zak in April 2022, Gold Ace Real Estates.
“We’ve got estate agents here and in Dubai,” Tony added. “We opened them at the same time. There are building going up there constantly. In one month, we made a profit. We have a six-person team and over there we’ve got 12.”
Tony claims the business, which operates in sales, lettings, managements, investments and off market deals which coincide in property cash buying, is now worth around £1m.
“I’ve got a blacked out Mercedes,” Tony added. “I deserve where I am now. I was destined for it – but that’s only part of it.
“I know how successful I’m going to be and no one is really going to get in my way. The King became the ace.”
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