Joint venture to benefit estate agents

PETALING JAYA: OCBC Bank (Ma) Bhd has linked up with the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) to roll out a year-long development programme that will catapult estate agents to new heights of professionalism.

Head of secured lending Thoo Mee Ling said the programme would involve initiatives that would directly benefit agents, and ultimately profit consumers, such as conventions, training programmes and luncheon talks.

Thoo Mee Ling

“As one of the top lenders among foreign banks operating in Malaysia, we recognise that our responsibility to borrowers goes beyond just making loans and financing schemes available to them.

“It also involves playing a part to raise the level of professionalism within the real estate industry in order to create a more conducive environment for property and home buyers to operate,” she said in an interview.

With a membership of about 700, MIEA is the national body representing real estate agents in Malaysia. Although it was set up principally to serve the interests of these agents, it also collaborates closely with other professionals such as valuers, bankers, architects and developers to foster a healthy real estate industry.

The bank's first effort for the year with MIEA would be the upcoming Malaysian Annual Real Estate Convention ’08 (MAREC ’08) scheduled on Jan 11 to 13 at the Sime Darby Convention Centre.

“We are excited about MAREC '08 because it draws together real estate agents, developers, financial institutions, marketing personnel and property investors – all in the spirit of learning from each other and building mutually beneficial relationships.

“In addition, the theme Regionalising the Malaysian market: The reality of getting there does well to set the tone for what is to come during the rest of the year,” Thoo added.

On the other programmes lined up for the year, she said these would ultimately benefit consumers such as home buyers and long-term property investors.

As part of the bank's collaboration with MIEA, Thoo said negotiators could look forward to two-day training programmes every month.

These sessions were aimed at equipping them with the necessary knowledge and practical skills to help them deal confidently and ably with the real questions consumers were asking today, she added.

“To ensure we do not simply skim the surface, we would be restricting participation to just 20 a session to ensure in-depth discussions.

“Apart from the training programmes, OCBC and MIEA will also be holding monthly luncheon talks featuring guest speakers to update estate agents and negotiators on topics that are pertinent to the industry,” Thoo said.

By The Star (by Daljit Dhesi)