I almost DID NOT become an Estate Agent

 

28 years ago I quit my corporate job

.... to become a full-time estate agent

But I wasn't sure which agency to join !!

Back then there were only a handful of firms.

Among the notable ones was Resource Realty

( helmed by the legendary Warrick Singh

a.k.a Warrior Singh ... who is the king of Bangsar,

Damansara Heights & Ampang )

So I went to his office in Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

BUT when I reached the Ground Floor,

I hesitated to go up the staircase.

Questions were circling in my mind

--  What if I cannot perform ?

--  What if I can't close any deal ?

--  What if I am just a lousy estate agent ?

After walking up 5 steps,

FEAR gripped me ... i panicked ...

So i chickened out and went home ...

But that was almost 28 years ago.

Today I had lunch with this Warrior

but i did not tell him about my dark secret

.... of having jittery feet back then ....

IF i had the courage to go up the stairs,

and joined him and be mentored by him,

do you think I will also become a LEGEND

.... just like the legendary Warrick Singh

instead of just being a small-time agent ... 

Ejen anai-anai ....???

The story of the Horseman

 

How much do you need in life ?

A long time ago, 

there was an Emperor who told 

his Warrior that if he could ride on his horse 

and cover as much land area as he likes....

Then the Emperor would give him 

all the area of land that he has covered.

Sure enough, 

the horseman quickly jumped onto his horse 

and rode as fast as possible to cover as much 

land area as he could conquer ....

He kept on riding and riding 

whipping the horse continously

to go as fast & as far ... as possible.

When he was hungry and tired, 

he did not stop because he wanted to cover

as much area as possible....

It came to a point 

when he had covered a very big area 

& he was exhausted and was about to DIE

Then he asked himself..

"Why did i push so hard to cover so much land area

now i'm dying and ALL i ever need is just 

a small area to bury myself ...."

ITs SIMILAR WITH THE JOURNEY OF OUR LIFE !!

We push very hard everyday, 

to make more & more money, 

to gain power, fame & recognition..

TO show off our Rolex, BMW, Merz, Mustang

.... and our Facebook LIkes and Followers

We neglect our health, 

the precious time with our family 

& to appreciate the surrounding beauty 

and the hobbies we all love.

.

One day when we look back, 

we'll realize that we dont really need that much

..... but then we cannot turn back time 

what we have missed....

Again.... how much do you need in life ?

What if you CANNOT advertize ?

 

I have this long "love and hate" relationship 

with Google Ads and Facebook ads.

You see... I love them... but they hate me.

I use them for my Online Biz

( NOT for my real estate biz )

Many years ago its the norm whereby

you could run almost any type of affiliate offer 

without an issues and get cheap, targeted clicks.

Once they started making their billions in profit, 

they decided it was time to get rid of the

Ad Accounts of affiliate marketers (very subtly) 

and focus on advertisers with BIG businesses !!

Facebook Ads is no better and 

getting your ad account banned 

isn't a matter of if... but rather when.

That's why it's more important than ever 

to focus on building your own tribe of fans 

on something YOU CAN CONTROL !!

This could be:

an email list

an SMS list

a direct mail list

You may think it's smart to have a social media channel 

(i.e. Facebook page, YouTube channel, etc.), 

but remember that you're never fully in control.

For instance my various FB FanPages

were almost reaching the 10K followers mark

( which is a criteria for Monetization )

when suddenly FB Mark decided to

LOCK my Fanpages ....

All my hardwork and effort in building 

my Fanpages become ZERO !!

Now imagine what would happen if 

you lost your biggest web traffic source 

when you wake up tomorrow.

That sucks !!

THUS dont ever, 

let someone else control your source of traffic.

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Sell like a Pro

 

Estate agents are basically Salesmen.

Their role is to introduce, negotiate, broker

& facilitate the transaction.

Most of the bigger firms have regular training

on the sales & marketing aspects of estate agency.

But to bring your game to the next level, it is also

important for the agents to enhance their knowledge

by doing their own reading too 

Over the years, I have bought a few dozen books

on this topic.... but sadly, most of my books are still

in their original plastic wrappers ... un-wrapped and

un-read .....

If you are short of funds and can't afford to buy

such books or magazines .... here is a simple trick 

---  go join an Insurance Agency

For they have the best training on salesmanship !!

How do the top insurance agents stay consistently

at the MDRT ... TOT ....and COT ?

The answer ---  they DONT sell insurance plans

Instead they sell you the BENEFITS of those plans !!

If you say you are not interested, they will ask you

which part of their presentation you dont understand.

If you say no money to buy ...they will scare you by

saying " What if you die tomorrow .... how will your

family survive ? " ....and if you say already bought

insurance ... they will say 1 coverage is not enough,

.... , toll naik, petrol naik, cooking oil naik ...

you are under-insured ....

So as an estate agent, what do you sell ?

Sell the property as a PHYSICAL product  OR 

sell the value-proposition as an INTANGIBLE  product ?

For example, every condo in Mont Kiara looks similar.

So if you say what all the other agents are saying ---

3 bedrooms, porcelain tiles, built-in wardrobes, fully

aircon, nice view, etc ---- you are finished !!

But if you say value-added sales pitch like ---  not facing

the afternoon sun, got shuttle bus to school, got creche

for the kids, got locker rooms for storage at basement,

security is by highly-discipline Gurkha guards instead

of Bangla  ---  then you have the chance to be the next

Residential award-winner like Phoebe Tan ....

The Most Prestigious Estate Agency Group

 

Today is the 4th Anniversary

of this group which I created.

Some say 888 AROWANA is undoubtedly the

Most Prestigious Real Estate Agency Group

in the country ....

I couldn't agree more 

for inside this group alone are MANY 

real estate agents who have scored BIG

.... Really, really VERY BIG .....

in the Real Estate Agency biz !!

For this year 2021,

3 members have already won the prestigious

MIEA Million Dollar Awards ....

When i started this group 4 years ago,

it never crossed my mind that it can

survive for so long .

AND i did not imagine that this group

can nurture & produce SUPER AGENTS

continously to TOP the Leaderboards.

Membership has its privileges and

only open to those who have attended

my 2 Days Land Deals Class.

Todate i have about 140 members.

including a Property Dato,  2 lawyers,

2 land investors, Valuers, Estate Agency Principals

HotShot PEAs, and Senior RENs.

In short, its a great platform for the members to

have Continous Learning .... tips, tricks, new info,

latest strategies, how-to, etc .... to upgrade their

game to the NEXT LEVEL.

BUT you can't find this Group in FB. because

its a SECRET Group for members only !!

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The Coffeshop Broker

 

Do you know the Villamas Group ?

Within  20 years they have built many 

high-rise condo projects in the Klang Valley.

Their 1st high-rise condo was in Puchong, 

and aptly named Villamas condo... 

The 3.11 acres site was brokered by me

and the Terms were finalized over lunch

at a Coffee-shop in Puchong

It was just a small deal of about RM5.3m ... 

BUT what was UNIQUE about it was 

the way we structured the payment terms.

To be a successful land agent, 

one must always think CREATIVELY 

and do things OUT-OF-THE-BOX ..... 

to structure a WIN-WIN Deal for both parties

That's the only way to bring your game 

to the next level !!

BY THE WAY 

I am NOT a Coffeeshop Broker

even though this deal was done 

at a Kedai Kopi ....

The tears of an Estate Agent

 

Someone sent me this video just now.

It touched my heart so much that i 

had to view it several times.

It tells the tears & sadness & disappointment

of being a Real Estate Agent that only deal

in selling HOUSES ....

Is this all there is to being an Estate Agent ?

Are there NO other types of properties to

handle and market ?

If its so BORING doing the same old thing,

if its so sad selling the same type of property,

then there are only 2 solutions .

Estate agency is not a bed of roses.

I have been in estate agency for 28 years,

and many times I have thought of 

giving up too ....

My advice is this :

EITHER go do OTHER type of properties

.... or just change career .....

Perhaps then will life be beautiful again ....

Books by Malaysian Estate Agent

 

Further to my post yesterday on my

perennial book buying habit .... 

An agent asked  if I can recommend 

any good books to buy ...

In our local bookshops, 

there are MANY books on property ... 

BUT most of them are geared towards

investing in properties e.g no money down, 

buy low sell high, buy at lelong, multi-sub, 

flipping, die never mind, positive cashflows

BUT hardly any books on Estate Agency

for the local market !!

Over the past 25 years, 

I only found 2 books which are

relevant to an estate agent in Malaysia ---  

THRUST  and COCK & BULL .

If you are a young REN, 

you are encouraged to read these 2 books 

which are written by top Malaysian agents

in the Malaysian context ... 

But I don't think you can buy them 

from the bookshop now ....

Books for Estate Agent

 

Most real estate negotiators have attended

the NCC classes, their inhouse Trainings,

the CDP, CPD, and various seminars.

BUT these alone are not enough !!

To become a more COMPLETE agent,

it is necessary to know more 

and to learn more .

AND one good way to improve the game

is to read up books on Property topics

and Real Estate Agency related subjects.

I am NOT a voracious reader.

But i am an impulsive & compulsive book buyer !!

Therein lies my problem .....

Each time a book cover catches my attention,

I'll read thru the back cover for the summary

and then read  the Table of Contents and 

flip thru the pages inside.

And if just a few chapters meet my needs,

I will then proceed to buy the book.

But when I reached home, 

I will just read thru those few chapters .... 

BUT not the whole book !!

In the past 25 years, 

I have bought almost 1,000 books

---  on Corporate Merger & Acquisition,

Property and Autobiography of Tycoons

---  and left them collecting dust on the 

shelves without finishing reading them.

And many are still lying there ... 

un-read ...un-wrapped 

and still in their original plastic wrapper !!

The Super-Woman agent

 

Her story is so compelling & inspiring 

that I have no choice but to share it 

with all of you folks here ...

I first met her in 22nd May 2014 

when she joined my class.

In fact she was supposed to go overseas, 

but somehow she decided to cancell it 

... here is what she emailed me then  :

========================

Dear Sifu George,

Is my great pleasure to attend your workshop 

which has armed me for certain skill i need 

to change and improved to be more focus 

to select my listing. 

Haha.....now i have to start ATTACK 

the right way with the right skill that I have learnt.

Indeed a long way in the real estate journey 

but truely i enjoyed most of the time. 

Hope to close bigger deal in the near future 

to have more quality time in life especially 

for my family. 

Same time i can go Seremban 

look for you for Teh Tarik....or go Spain...

Thank you Sifu !

It worth while that i used my travel & shopping money 

to attend your workshop. 

Take care and see you on 27/6/14..

Now watching badminton 3 set now. 

Malaysia got chance lei

☆next time will bring you nourishing longevity soup ...

Cheers,

Juliana Teh

0163318080

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SO how did she become a MILLION $$$ Agent ?

My analysis is she has these special traits :

HARDWORK 

Every morning and almost midnite daily

she would post photos of her listings

WILLING TO LEARN

She is always eager to learn

BOTH  from the juniors & seniors

FEARLESS

She is one of the few female agents that

dare to show her lovely photo in the ad banners 

SOCIABLE

Her PR skill is flawless 

& the smile is so contagious.

You can feel that she is genuine .... 

not a put-on ....without any hidden agenda ...

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

7 years ago she looked so ordinary

NOW she is a Super-Woman Agent  !!

** For the record, i DID NOT contribute to her win.

Life cycle of a Real Estate Agent

 

A specialist DELIVERS what he promises you.

He can command a PREMIUM price. 

He gives you peace of mind. 

His clients come to him via REFERRALS ... 

his appointments are full for the next 3 months.

So are you a SPECIALIST ?

Do you specialize .... as an estate agent ???

In today's competitive real estate market, 

it makes sense to focus and specialize ... 

but WHEN to specialize and

HOW to specialize ?

==============================

If you are a fresh negotiator, 

or just a NEWBIE real estate agent.

the first 1 to 3 years of your property

career will be just hit-and-run. 

You will be bumming around

with no direction ....

just like a Headless-Chicken !!

From the 3rd to 5th year, 

you learn from the school-of-hard knocks 

.... and rise up whenever you fall down ..

6th year onwards ...  

THIS is the time for you to start

thinking about how to specialize.

From the 6th to 10th year, 

you will be entering the GROWTH Phase 

of your career .... during this period, 

all the critical components gel together 

---  knowledge, experience, zest,

enthusiasm, networking,  etc ---  

creating a very POWERFUL combination.

If you draw a graph, 

this is the period when you see a very

SHARP SPIKE in your business !!

So after 5 years, 

you have to decide on the direction you 

want to head to ....especially when your are

AT YOUR PRIME during the 8 to 10 years

..... but DO NOT drag on 

your decision to after 10 years as by then, 

you will be entering the MATURING Phase

whereby you will feel TIRED of estate agency .

The physical & mental stamina tapers off

and the " Ooomp " is no longer there ... 

the babies are crying, the kids are wailing, 

the wife is nagging and the parents 

are hospitalizing .... there are just 

too many distractions !!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

SO HOW do you specialize ?

There are 2 ways ... either by LOCATION

or by SECTOR or NICHE.

A location specialist focuses on a certain area 

... for example in Bangi, Cheras, Ampang,

Mont Kiara, Kelana Jaya, Shah Alam, etc

Those that specializes in 

a particular sector are called

NICHE Agents as they only focus on 

certain types of properties only.

e.g. condos, shops, factories, agriculture land.

Only you yourself knows 

your own strength & weakness

and what type of property you wish to focus on.

As for land, you know who to look for ....!!!

Best Estate Agent in Malaysia

Do you know that when you have Stage 4
breast cancer, as well as a baby in your tummy,
even the best oncologist is in a dilemma to
help you ?

This is what happened to Cheryl Lim,

who is one of the best estate agent that

specializes in the sale and rent of condominiums

in the upmarket enclave of Mont Kiara,

Bangsar and Damansara Heights in 

Kuala Lumpur.

In fact, her clients are mainly foreigners

and expatriates who have no qualms 

about giving positive reviews of her

service and competency.

So much so that some senior estate agents

consider her as among the Best Estate Agent

in the country !!

This is the heart-breaking story of a mother
in Malaysia who only found out that she
had Stage 4 breast cancer when she was
about 7 months pregnant.

She consulted the top oncologist in Kuala Lumpur,
as well as the best cancer hospitals in Singapore,
but to no avail.

If she were to start chemotherapy straight away,
the impact and side effects would be too great
for the baby to bear. .... and this would eventually
lead to the death of the unborn.

But if she were not to do anything, and just
wait for another month or so .... then the baby
would still be born alive ..... but the outcome
would be the mother will only have days to live.

There was no respite indeed.

Its just like being the devil and hell.
Either she stays alive or the baby.

For weeks and months, 

she had to endure this mental agony.

She could not work,

she could not think straight,

and her life was topsy-turvy.

Faced with this predicament, she elected to die
so that her baby could live to see the world.

Such a sad ending

to a very promising property agent ....