Insightful webinar on real estate industry

The Department of Building and Property Management of the Faculty of Accountancy and Management (FAM) organised a webinar titled “Real Estate is More Than Residential” on 28 October 2021 via Microsoft Teams. The webinar was moderated by FAM lecturer Dr Goh Hong Lip.

Present to deliver the talk were UTAR alumni Eva Soo and Ethan Lee. Soo is currently from the Research and Consultancy Department at JLL Property Services (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (JLLPS). Her role is to lead the consultancy team that conducts market studies and prepares advisory reports for governments, investors and developers. Soo is also responsible for handling Malaysia's industrial and logistics database. She assists with the publishing of quarterly research publications too. Meanwhile, Lee is attached to the Capital Markets department at JLL Property Services (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd. He provides real estate brokerage and advisory services to institutional investors, fund managers, developers and space occupiers. Lee has also served various key clients on their investment acquisitions and relocation exercises.

The webinar aimed to share with participants the expectations in the property industry beyond the three traditional career paths of a registered valuer, building manager and real estate agent. In addition, the webinar also provided insights on preparing for job interviews after graduation.

The first speaker, Soo introduced her company by displaying JLLPS’ corporate video and sharing the company’s objective, mission and vision to the participants. She said, “JLL is a company specialising in real estate services. It provides financial and professional services. We have 91,000 employees, more than 300 corporate offices and over 80 operations in the Americas, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa), and Asia Pacific. Besides, we are also ranked #186 on Fortune 500  in year 2021, maintaining top 200 ranking on Fortune 500. JLL also being recognised as one of the World’s Most Ethical Company for 14 consecutive years, from 2008-2021.”

“Our businesses are categorised into four different fields, namely Capital Markets, Office Leasing Advisory, Research and Consultancy, and International Residential. The Capital Markets focuses on the marketing of land, mid-markets, agriculture, supply chain, hotels, offices, retails, logistics and industrials. The Office Leasing Advisory focuses on office and retail leasing, landlord and tenant representation. The Research and Consultancy focuses on Real Estate Intelligence Services (REIS), research, consultancy and business valuation. Meanwhile, the International Residential focuses on international and local residential project sales,” Soo added.

Highlighting the tasks of a research analyst, Soo said, “ Firstly, a research analyst needs to do real estate market analysis to understand the changing market conditions and their implications on development and investment. Secondly, they need to cultivate feasibility studies by identifying the development options and testing the alternatives of development. Thirdly, they need to explore and analyse the financial costs and returns, cashflow considerations and risk factors. Fourthly, they need to conduct development and marketing strategies to choose the best options to achieve their objectives. Next, they need to manage the tender and selection process by providing independent analysis and advice. Then, they need to explore options and prepare business plans to expand the real estate business into new areas. They also need to do portfolio reviews and asset strategies. Last but not least, they need to analyse the current and future needs of the target market, whether they are occupiers, users or investors, to help ensure the returns are optimised.”

The webinar continued with Lee describing a day in the life of a real estate agent in the Capital Markets. He said, “A real estate agent works in the office and involves in a good capital market. They are classified into five categories; the first one is prospecting new business such as getting acquainted with new clients through cold emails or cold calls. The second one is connecting with the existing business, which includes following up and building a good rapport with the existing industry. The third one includes holding client meetings or property viewings by conducting formal presentations for them. The fourth one involves handling administrative tasks such as checking the property lists, the market transactions or preparing marketing materials for the next project.”

“To improve the publicity of JLLPS, especially the marketing materials, we will prepare press advertisements to advertise our services. Apart from publishing all these marketing materials in the newspaper, we will also publish the information on our social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and JLLPS’ main corporate website. The online platform is important for us to reach out to potential investors globally,” he enthused.

Speaking about the preparation for a job interview, Lee advised, “You must first prepare yourself before attending an interview session. You can begin by researching the company’s background. Also, be attentive to the date, time and venue of the interview. Be sure to ask if you are required to bring any supporting documents during the interview session. Dress smart and be punctual; this is something significant in the employer’s hiring checklist. Furthermore, be confident, smile and display good body language during the interview session, and make sure the interview session is casual and comfortable for both of you. You may ask questions about the company, their goals and purpose or anything relevant to learn a few things about the company, as well as to improve your confidence level.”

Dr Goh said, “The webinar indeed provided a new perspective on the potential career path beyond the three traditional career paths associated with the property industry. Meanwhile, the speakers also highlighted a significant topic pertaining to the role of real estate research and consultation in complementing various stakeholders’ decision-making processes. I believe the participants will be able to grasp a new knowledge from this eye-opening session.”

The interactive webinar ended with a Q&A session and a group photography session. The webinar is associated with SDG 4 – Quality Education as it provides inclusive and equitable quality education and promotes lifelong learning opportunities to the participants. It is also associated with SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities as the speakers highlighted the development of IoT and the Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies in site inspections and business decisions to make the cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.