99.co’s Property Agent Success Stories: Here for the Long Run with Chris Chen

Ever wondered what it is like being a property agent?

In this series entitled Agent Success Stories, we sit down with agency leaders to find out their side of the story. From their humble beginnings to the challenges they have faced on the road to success, we learn that a career in the real estate industry is one filled with boundless opportunities – if you know where to look.

Real estate wasn’t Chris Chen’s first career choice. Fresh out of a Michigan university with a degree in telecommunications and a minor in economics, Chris found his first job at 21 in Chicago working in the Information Technology (IT) industry. After a few years, Chris decided to head to Singapore to establish a stable career in the IT industry.

Fast forward 17 years and Chris is today the Executive Group Division Director and Master Trainer of ERA Catalyst HexaGroup and helms a 200-strong team. He has received over 15 awards and recognitions just this year alone, including the No 1 Director in Singapore and International markets. In an industry that focuses heavily on client servicing, Chris believes in the importance of honesty and responsibility; both with clients, and his team of agents.

Here’s his journey and how he took his team to the top of the game:

You first started out in the telco industry, how did you end up in real estate?

I’m originally from Malaysia and went to the US to study, graduating with a telecommunications degree and economics minor from a Michigan university. I was 21 years old at that time and was working in Chicago for a while before I decided that I had to find a good location to solidify my career. Singapore came into mind.

The real estate industry was already booming then, but so was the Information Technology (IT) industry. I decided to came to Singapore and worked for telco-related companies for close to three years. But I soon found out I didn’t enjoy working a mundane 9-5 office job. The hours were very long and, in a way, I also realised I didn’t enjoy working for someone. I decided to go ahead to quit my job without having a back up plan.

One day by chance, I bumped into some friends who worked in real estate. At that point of time I wasn’t even aware that a real estate agent job existed! You could say that was the turning point for my career.

When did you make the jump from sales to mentoring?

Right up till I was 31 years old I’d been doing personal sales. However, I was looking for a next career path, and decided to make the switch to recruitment.

When I first started mentoring, I had very little experience and it wasn’t easy. I thought that I could use a single management style across different team members. Of course, I found out the hard way that everyone is motivated by very differently things. That was when I realised my mentoring methods had to be tailored accordingly.

At ERA Catalyst HexaGroup I want our agents to stay successful for a very long time. I look to groom and grow individual performers to have a sustainable and permanent career in real estate. There are some who succeed in the short term but lack a solid foundation- these people don’t necessarily survive in the long run. That’s why today I mainly work on coaching and guiding property agents in their career as well as forming relationships with developers.

How do you work with new or experienced agents?

When a new property agent decides to join, I always try to have a very open and candid chat with them. The main goal of this conversation is to align expectations and prepare them for the challenges to come so they don’t get a huge culture shock when they finally enter.

Right now I’m the Master Trainer for Acceleration, which is a programme dedicated to new agents who have just passed their RES exam. Along with ERA’s 7,000 agents, the three-day training empowers new agents to conduct their own marketing campaigns. To help agents succeed in their marketing, we conduct digital workshops where agents learn how to market themselves- from enhancing portrait photos, to incorporating logos and names into images, and even using more advanced tools like pay-per-click marketing on Google.

I also try as much as possible to guide new agents when it comes to their first few viewings. I’ll generally meet the agent prior to the viewing, and be on standby when needed. After which, we’ll do a post viewing review to evaluate what worked and what didn’t. It’s a form of personal coaching that I practice till today.

Though the topics might defer, I practice this with the more seasoned agents as well. Experienced agents already have something good working for them, so it’s more about helping them to find a breakthrough in their careers. If they’re earning $200,000 a year but want to earn half a million a year, there are actual formulas and ways for us to guide them there.

So what’s different about your team?

At ERA Catalyst HexaGroup we may not be loudest nor the most “rah-rah” team out there but in everything that we do, we do it with sincerity and heart.

One example- we always place our clients interest first. Despite being placed in situations where a prospective buyer might be willing to pay for a property that will deliver an attractive commission, we would analyse the situation with the customer and advise against it if we feel that the property is beyond their means. In an industry driven by sales and commission, this is not very usual practice.

When a customer realises that you put their interests first, they will come to appreciate your service and effort. That’s our strong belief. We’re here not just to make money, but also to help the community make more informed decisions on their property. When your clients trust you they will recommend your service to others. That’s how the referral business works in real estate.

What is your secret to success and what drives you everyday?

I know it sounds cliched, but it’s really passion. I know many people say that passion is something that comes naturally, but I believe it can also be cultivated.

When a newcomer with family commitments joins us, it’s our job to take care of their interests. I feel that responsibility as a mentor. In this business, there are a lot of ups and downs but through all of it, we always support everyone in the team.

As a leader I also train myself to see the good in whatever happens. It’s important to see things from different and positive angles; it’s how you create opportunities out of failure and weather through the tough times. If you’re doing things that you’re not happy doing, you’ve already limiting your success. But if you have passion in the things you’re doing, no matter how busy you are, you will still have the energy to do it – and do it better every day.

Our agents at ERA Catalyst HexaGroup are here for the long-run. We’re looking at not just for one to three years, but 10, 20 or 30 years – even until retirement!