SORRY

/in , , /by

Earlier in the year I stuck my neck out and said that Joburg would show an 8% notional increase in house prices and implied it would be hot property news. Not so, I’m afraid. Sorry. Then, I stuck my neck out [with the IMF as I’ve said in a previous email], and said we’d grow at 1.7%. I was only out by 1, but that’s the 1 in the front. Drat! Another Sorry is due. So before you stop reading and call me a Wuzz, give me a break.

You see, we’re not in technical recession, the first time I heard President Ramaphosa (CR) say that I thought he was taking advantage of the latest weed laws, but then, Roelof Botha, ex-RMB, who I have always considered at the top economist in the country, was reported having the same stance. So maybe, CR has been sticking to Johnny Blue on his Fresnaye property’s stoep. So without boring you with the details, the numbers are skewed by Agriculture in the main, and what remains is some other drought-stricken technicality. All of that said, we should pop out of technical recession fairly soon and recover a tiny growth this year.

Now let’s see why Growth with a capital “G” is on the cards. 

Firstly, the SARB held rates recently and that is good news for our ailing economy. Remember, they walk a tightrope, because the Bond investors love a big differential between the Bond yield and their own country’s interest yields, adjusted for inflation and the Rand volatility. In simple terms, if you don’t raise the rates and the risk of doing business increases for whatever reason, then money flows out of the country. Big risk, but well taken given the current slowdown in our economy. In fact, a complementary decision to my next point.

So, secondly, our President has announced amazing benefits to our economy today. I am so excited even though we know we need far more. On the lighter side, #paybackthemoney would provide more than enough to stimulate our economy; just seeing someone go to jail would really lift our spirits. So again, I have no desire to go through all the details and, if truth be told, I have no idea where we find the money, but a stimulus of R50bn to “stabilize Education and Health Care” is seriously welcome and R400bn to really stimulate the economy is a mind-blow. So much stimulation in one day could be bad for one’s heart; but, thank you, President Cyril and your 10-person Advisory Board, you’re going to announce in the next few days.

We’ll cover a tiny bit of the details, the rest being your homework, but seriously, I cannot tell you how amazing it is to see a President, obviously trained by Pravin Gordhan to read teleprompters, reading a huge economic breakthrough and flawlessly enunciating Four Hundred Billion Rand, that’s R400000000000. So glad the author of 400…Rand…million, billion, ten…he, he, is no more.

We need stimulation. Money flows of private citizens offshore feel to me to be at record highs. People are leaving all around me – kids who comprise our future being snapped up for their artisan, IT and teaching skills. Out there are countries building countries on the back of our young, competent families and I feel like putting my finger down my throat when I think of the loss just when we need the skills the most to rebuild this beautiful, tortured nation, but at least we have a President who sees the issue and has the gravitas and presence to rectify the problem, albeit, over a very long period.

Healthcare needs stabilization. The Minister of Health should have declared a crisis a long time ago, but at least, finally has some money to spend. Heaven knows we need it well spent on priorities that benefit our people. Please don’t steal our hard-earned cash and don’t turn a blind eye to those who would! For education, desks and toilets would be really helpful. Make the former out of recycled plastic and achieve a double whammy. Then, for the latter, build toilets with septic tanks where you can’t easily access a sewerage pipe. For goodness sake, [I heard a guy on CapeTalk saying the sewerage pipe was 4 kms away so they could not give a school a flushing toilet.] Really??!! I used a septic tank in Amanzimtoti for years, because we had no water-borne sewerage and what about every farmer in the country?? Imagine a civil works programme that dug and kitted-out septic tanks at schools using recycled water and then teams of guys keeping them in working order? Now there’s a project worth doing.

So, in the R400bn, is a mega-fund for Infrastructure. Just to put that in perspective, a year or two ago, it was pointed out on 702 that the market capitalization of Mr Price was more than the entire Construction industry. So a company which imports clothes from China and sells them to us is worth more than Basil Read, Grinaker/LTA {Aveng], Group5, Murray and Roberts, and WBHO [the only one making money at the moment] combined. In fact, the shares of Aveng, two massive companies that we grew up with, are currently 4 cents, I am advised. How do we get to this position where the industry would probably battle to revive such is the job-bleed? Well, firstly, you steal from the SOE’s and then you take all the taxpayers’ money and spend it on salaries in government and what do you get? People affording millions of t-shirts, but no repairs of sewerage works and no building and maintenance of roads. It’s called selling your childrens’ future and is great for failed-state ignominy.

So am I depressed? No, very upbeat that we have a President who can recognise the problem and before he jets off to the United Nations and presentations to global business leaders, can announce our best shot at economic revival. His intellect, business acumen and sense of resoluteness is just a breath of fresh air. I’ve said many times before, my faith lies way above him, but if you offered me these packages announced this week and the Zondo Commission in November last year, I would have been amazed at your largesse.

Where does that leave us? As Homeloan Junction we work tirelessly to provide a consistency of service and interface with the banks that surpass expectations. We don’t always succeed we’re sure, but we press on. The wonderful thing about business is that one hand washes the other in a virtuous cycle. As I serve you, you serve me and we serve our customers. Together we do more and everyone wins. From a political perspective, we try our best to encourage each other to lose the “noise” and focus on the good in the system. The initiatives above are good by anybody’s standards and we hope they are implemented and bear fruit – jobs, upgrades, service deliveries and municipalities that work again – for all of our People. We will press on and we and we invite you to join us. We’re not Pollyanna’s, we understand the crime and grime, but we are determined to put in a solid day’s work for a well-earned reward, productive in the knowledge that we know what we are doing and we do it well.

Success to you, our readers, as you take the good, park the bad, and move on to success. We appreciate your support.

Yours in Property.

MAURITIUS 2018 [Part 2]

/in /by

In our previous blog, I began writing on the plane to Mauritius with the 2018 Winners. Over the next 5 days, I spoke to them about what it takes to be a winner, some recent in their success and for others, simply a trail of achievement over years.

We continue with the theme…

“She taught me”. Mentorship is a key to many things in management, leadership and business. The fact that a person is attributed with the success of a winner is noteworthy. How many of us are mentioned in the life successes of other individuals? What meaning for both parties is that in the course of our lifetimes; to see the other grow, to experience the dark days and enjoy laughter and prosperity together? Mentorship is crucial to our personal and business wellbeing’s. When I start out as a newbie, I watch and learn by being shown by example and taught through lecturing and then trial-and-error. Slowly, patiently I progressed to maturity in the business – this is what I call the apprenticeship. Just a slow grind of technical competence long before anyone would trust you with their bonds, both estate agent and customer.

I have a number of mentees in my life as the principle of mentoring has always been fundamental to my management. The fun occurs, when over the years, you are surpassed by your mentee; how cool is that? They take on a life of their own, learn skills different to yours and then progress even to be more successful than you, however, you decide to measure that. Truly, a virtuous cycle of life. I’ve found the challenge is to acknowledge when someone is simply better than you and then to just graciously encourage who they have become. One final note, when you have reached the pinnacle of success in your field, you need to teach others. None the least of which if you have the opportunity, those who have been previously disadvantaged. Remember, the essence of greatness is realising an abundance mentality gives everybody a place in the sun; their slice of a growing pie.

Competitiveness should give way to co-opinion as you grow your skills together in the marketplace. Some of us know these truths, whilst some still cower and “defend their patch” and the other final note is a statement that I really like, “Ek like die mense.” Let me sum up this one – if you like people, people will like you. There is no formula equating the two but it is my experience is that a smile begets a smile and an attitude begets an attitude; positive and negative. Think of it this way, don’t you like people who like you? “Passion for what you do” means that you rub off not up and people excite to you and what you have to offer.

Talking about an offering, “process and consistency” came through as the winners spoke about their technical attributes. One person was even more specific, “become more efficient and productive and respond to market changes faster while providing better service to your agents and clients.” That’s saying it like we all need to hear it. For most of the winners, they spoke about administrative efficiency in that their process had become slick and as quick as possible. What this winner is saying is that when your process is efficient, it needs to answer the question, “Is what I’m doing adding a competitive advantage?”

“Service” and “quality of work” were always mentioned in this regard, but have you looked at your competitors and said understood what it is that makes you special. Remember, one of the reasons I harp on about relationships includes the notion of your stakeholders simply knowing that their transaction is safe on your hands every time. You may need to step up to a higher level, understanding what that is, by becoming even more productive. There is a sense of enlightened self-interest in doing that – you work less when your process is optimal and you need only focus on the exceptions rather than applications that follow the norm. My suggestion is that you take a morning to observe your team and see how deals pass through the process; have a group discussion and see how the team could organise themselves either to handle more volume or, just become slicker at what they do. That way, they buy-in and everybody works a little less and agents and customers will love it. In closing, one winner had this to say, “Keep it simple, listen to the customer and know your product.” That’s sound advice on any day.

Most winners did not just arrive in Mauritius 2018. They determined to get there early enough to be considered. In the Conference, one said, “Next year I want to be in the Top 5” and set about some obvious changes: Visit 2-3 more estate agencies per month, new packaging of their offering and solid you management information to form the basis of well-prepared feedback sessions with their lead providers. Sounds easy, hey? And it worked, the business grew significantly enough to qualify. I guess the next question is, “And this year?” Why not just keep up good habits, systems and reports? At the heart of success are goals that drive you.

SMART goals that add meaning, encourage, employ people, impress agents and make customers repetitive. “Luck!” said one winner, just before she smiled and told me “angels on her path” had helped her over the years. Stories of her Dad and his influence on her life and family who had transformed her computer skills, but underpinning her confidence, and even faith, was the reality that she never gave in to giving up; something continued to drive her success. Goals set the upper limit, encourage success and warn of unacceptable performance. Goals focus the mind and secure intentionality until the rewards of success kick in to spur us on. Set some right now – “I’m going to be there next year” is the attitude of a winner. Like your Mom told you, you’ll never know until you try.

No blog of this nature would be replete, without a mention of the leader of this business. Vincent was referred to many times. “Calm, relaxed, not grilling me…a human element” was the description of this quiet yet determined man by on winner. “Mevrou, jy gaan ‘n kantoor oop maak in…”, a powerful comment for the listener; a sense of positive self-expectance and an opening up of possibility and change in an anticipative, encouraging, exciting way. Vincent has a character that, as I said at the final dinner, knows disappointment, determination, relationships and how to privilege others. That’s why he wins as his companies follow his lead. From sub-Prime to Highest Sales Performance: ooba licensee, an award won even while we were away. In typical style, Vincent hardly mentioned it but it’s an unbelievable achievement especially as we face technical recession head-on. Vincent, we respect you and appreciate you. We consider it a privilege to part of the team and to have been in Mauritius 2018, a privilege-upon-privilege. Keep it up for All of Us!

Two quotes that appeared on bed-drops each night are:

“To accomplish great things we must dream as well as act” by Anatole France, and;
“Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of little things brought together” by Vincent van Gogh.

On that note, think about what you’ve read then decide on your response. You know as well as I do, that reading about winners is much easier than being one, but you can dream and act. You can take little things and bring them together into one big success, even next year and for a lifetime…

Homeloan Junction wishes this upon you. Like the Afrikaans says, “Ons gun dit vir jou”.

Yours in Property

MAURITIUS 2018

/in , , /by

I am on a plane to Mauritius. How privileged am I to be included in a group of Homeloan Junction and Ooba Winners who have shot the lights out in 2017! I did nothing, they did everything to be here.  We have first-timers, people who have never flown internationally before. We have golden oldies, those who have won over and over again and now, have won again. Each has their own story so let’s explore that.

In my management career, I have met winners at the airport.  The most excited are those who have never flown before.  They are nervous to the point of fidgety; will I be safe,  will I return to the one who kissed me tenderly at the airport? Of course, you will say the initiated – just enjoy the flight. Light-hearted, but also caring. And then there are those who are used to winning; the die-hards who have done the hard yards, amazing people who have been consistently successful over years, even decades.  Amazing that!  To do it in one year is good. To do it over and over again takes a different story completely.

So, over the next two blogs, here are their un-named stories and a summary of their critical success factors…

“Success is what you believe in”. Perhaps this is a crux of the matter as I look back on the people I met in Mauritius. They are confident and assertive – there is an air of success about them. They know what they know and find themselves often in the company of winners. You can see it in the way they interact and hear it in their language as they speak to others and together. There is a balance of affinity, distance and a professionalism that is pervasive. They know how to have fun as well; they laugh easily and play appropriately, but they overdo nothing and enjoy the moment. You can just feel, these people believe in success.

“Perseverance and long hours”, says another. Some of this team know what it takes to work 18 hours a day. From early in the morning to late at night, administration with constant calls in between, they set to the task of satisfying customers. You know what it’s like – the young couple have bought their house and they’re starry-eyed as they await bond approval. The estate agent has done the sale and is counting the commission. The developer needs 70% successful sales/bond approvals for the development loan. You have your own office costs and need to build relationships. Little wonder that perseverance and long hours are needed, not just in the short-term but as a daily habit. We all know that over time, this hectic pace dissipates as a general rule, but every now and again, the need for huge effort raises its head. These winners have ceased wondering when it will stop; instead, they lift their game when required, every time.

“Niks, I just go with the flow.” I know this lady well and she is not a Niks kind of person. What has happened here is that decades of service have done two things – cemented relationships, and generated repeat business as a significant part of her income. She did the hard work years ago and has skilled herself through thick and thin to deal deals with the estate agents and the banks. She knows her oats and doesn’t submit what will not be approved; she’s efficient, values her time and that of others. On the other hand, if anyone in that process disagrees, they could cop the lip that comes with 20 years of experience. For the uninitiated, the matter of apprenticeship comes to the fore. You don’t study to do homeloans and your BCom degree means little if it has not taught you some property law, finance, credit, banking, administration management and then overlaid that with huge dollops of inter-personal skills. You don’t get to quip “Niks”, if you haven’t done the “Baie”.

Relationships are built over years. It is often said that a relationship takes years to build and seconds to destroy. I would add that where money is involved, that formula speeds up. Making my money through consistency and quality of work is good for relationships; a kind of “spice on the top” of commercial associations. But one lie, one un-met promise, or, one poorly managed expectation, can turn your relationship into a nightmare. By the way, but for the first malady which can often be terminal, the others can be dealt quite efficiently by what I call “emotional reserves”. These reserves are built over time and can be likened to a petrol tank’s gauge. Trust, care, friendship, efficiency, feedback are all ways to build emotional reserves that fill the tank of a relationship.

A mistake may use up some of the supply, but can be accommodated from the relationship’s reserve. This may sound a little “soft” but all relationships, personal and business, where emotional reserves have been built up can then be used, by saying sorry or committing [and keeping the commitment] to do better next time. Winners manage expectations and then even in the face of bad news, have a positive approach to an outcome. How often have I myself, told a customer they are flying high in terms of their credit request and then managed them through the decline of the bank to a more realistic application. By the way, another thing here is the question of credit terms. A customer’s lack of knowledge of banking can lead to the question, “Will you get me the best rate?” My answer, “No, but I will get you the best credit terms.” What is the good of Prime – 0.5% with a deposit of R100000 if the deposit does not exist or, was destined to be used for TLC of the property? Prime + 1% may be far more acceptable with no deposit under these circumstances. Don’t get caught up-front in pricing as the bottom line of your service; you’re better than that.

“Origination is entrepreneurial and gives you an opportunity.” I guess this goes for any self-employment though it never feels like that when you’re building your business. But as the years go by and your competency and relationships strengthen, origination is a really nice business to be in. It gets you out, gets you in, and gets you going. Office jobs are crucial to service delivery, but marketing gets you face-to-face with the customer and interface with the stakeholders; it gets you out. It gets you in, into suppliers, interesting projects, opportunities for value-adds and serious negotiations. These are the places where long-term, solid relationships can be built and sustained. And, origination gets you going; every day and continuously. Perhaps one of the cutest comments in my interviews with the winners was simply this, “I won’t change my job!” Not for anything; that entrepreneurship and opportunity talking and from behind a broad smile.

On the other hand, it takes a “wild ride” to leave a stable job and come into this crazy world of property and bonds. None of the winners found it easy but they figured that origination, with its value-adding benefit to the customer absolutely free-of-charge, was the way to go. “I wondered how I would survive” was almost common to all the newbies in Mauritius. It takes a strong cocktail of self-belief and courage to walk away from the known into the unknown. Just like any business venture, you will have days of doubt and days of elation, but what our winners know by their success is that “origination is for me.” Just a point on the taking and managing of risk. Consider the risk carefully, consult wise counsel, be fairly sure of your ability to succeed and why. Wait to build the skills and/or contacts if you do not feel ready, but once you jump, then begin to manage the risk.

Start within with positive self-talk and surround yourself with winning combinations of people and processes so that you give yourself an undisputed chance of success. Like the old saying goes, “you can’t fly like an eagle with turkeys like these.” If that’s arrogance talking, get off your high horse, nobody likes a smart-ass, but if you do not have the right people on the bus, get the right people – you can go out and compete in the marketplace every day but you better have a strong, competent team behind you. You cannot fight a frontal and a rear-guard action at the same time. Think about this, it’s absolutely true. Indeed, a critical success factor.

More to follow in our final part to Mauritius 2018…

Yours in Property.