I build my real estate career on four important foundations:

1. CALLING: Real estate is more than a job to me; it is a personal mission to help and serve people. There are many fair weather housing agents who join the industry when it is thriving and leave when it is declining. Staying power comes from a sense of calling in what we do. I learn that when I set out to serve people first, business and money will come in naturally. As a result, many of my clients come back to me again and again to buy, sell or rent. They also constantly refer their friends to me. Once I served an expat who worked for a big MNC. Through him and a chain of referrals, I have helped at least 10 of his colleagues over the last 3 years with their housing needs.

2. KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS: As a real estate agent, I constantly keep myself abreast of the latest property market trends in order to offer the best advice to my clients, be it the sale or rental market. For sellers, I will offer advice on the pricing based on my knowledge of the market forces and careful comparative analysis. Apart from using conventional advertising method through classified ads, I also tap the power of internet and various agent co-broking networks for maximum exposure. Very early in my career, I have received my certification in CEHA (Common Exams for Housing Agents) because I believe in giving the best to my clients. Having been in the people-centred line all my career life, I have acquired the skills to handle all kinds of people and situations. Most importantly I have also learned how to negotiate the best deal for my clients.

3. SERVICE: Personally I believe people must come before profit. With this motto, I would go the second mile for my clients. Once, I helped an overseas based client, whom I have never met, to renovate her flat with the intention to rent out. It involved conceptualizing the design, getting the best quotations from various contractors, coordinating the whole work and even shopping for the furnishings. The client was thoroughly satisfied with the finished product. Eventually I secured a tenant who paid above market rental. For the last 4 years, this client (I still yet to meet!) has completely entrusted her property to my care. For landlords, I work with a team of professionals who can take care of every aspect of your property needs prior to the handover, be it cleaning, air-con servicing or repair. For tenants, I will take care of your nitty-gritty needs like e-stamping, utilities application and installation of broadband and cable TV. For buyers, I help with financial planning, making arrangement for bank loans and even taking care of mortgage insurance which is often neglected by most property owners.

4. INTEGRITY: There are many crooked agents who give this industry a bad name. David Sarnoff says, “Competition brings out the best in products but the worst in people.” Undeniably, the temptations are real. Many try to maximize their profits by refusing to co-broke, side-stepping the marketing agents, cheating the uneducated elderly people and resorting to unscrupulous means like cash-back. In the end, the home-seekers and house-owners suffer because they are short-changed and don’t get a fair deal. I believe such short term gains don’t pay. We need to earn our trust through integrity. I had clients who handed me thousands of dollars in cash or transferred a big sum of money to my bank account. This would not be possible without trust. Integrity also means giving honest assessment of the property so that the client can make an objective decision. It may result in short term personal loss but sometimes I gain a long term client in the process. You can cheat some people some of the time, but you can’t cheat all the people all the time. The ancient book contains these words of wisdom: “Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a rich man whose ways are perverse.”

You can trust me with your next property transaction. I look forward to be of service to you.

If you are thinking of joining the real estate industry as a career, you can also join me to be part of my vibrant team at OrangeTee, which is fast becoming the industry leading player.

My motto: “Do to others what you want others to do to you.”