Rock Realty Limited on Wednesday, April 12 held its maiden Real Estate Masterclass at the Civic Center, Lagos. The event titled “Selling the Mortgage Option” was curated for real estate marketers, and industry experts were on ground to impact the audience with valuable knowledge and skills to improve their selling process.
Esteemed keynote speakers at this highly informative event included Dr. Ibukun Adebayo, MD/CEO of Rock Realty Limited; Dr. Ambassador Funke Kehinde, CEO of Brilliant Concepts; Paul Foh, CEO of Katalyst Consulting; Oghenereke Edheka, Investment Manager at Rock Realty Limited; and Olateru-Olagbegi Olanipekun, Team Lead at Imperial Mortgage Bank.
The event was opened by Dr. Ambassador Funke Kehinde with a compelling presentation titled “Improving Visibility and the Art of Closing Deals as a Real Estate Marketer”. During her presentation, she emphasized to the attendees the crucial aspects of consistency, passion, and commitment in the real estate marketing business. Dr. Kehinde stressed the significance of building trust with clients to maintain good relationships and not jeopardize them for quick financial gain. She also highlighted the importance of retaining existing clients, as referrals from satisfied clients constitute a significant percentage of her sales. She urged participants to prioritize attendance, irrespective of other competing demands, emphasizing that financial obligations are ever-present. Additionally, Dr. Kehinde advised participants to collaborate with and seek assistance from senior colleagues whenever necessary.
Next, Dr. Ibukun Adebayo delivered a presentation titled “Understanding Mortgages and How to Use Them to Capture Sales.” In her talk, Dr. Adebayo provided a comprehensive explanation of the concept of mortgages and highlighted the key differences between mortgage loans and regular loans. She effectively dispelled the notion that mortgages are exploitative and instead emphasized the many benefits that can be gained from utilizing them. Furthermore, she discussed the various factors that affect mortgage rates in both developed economies and emerging markets. Dr. Adebayo went into great detail about the interplay between real estate capital appreciation, rental income/savings, mortgage rates, and rental rates, and how these factors can be utilized to unlock value for individuals who may not have had the means to own their own homes.
During the event, Dr. Ibukun emphasized that real estate marketers are experts in business and provide a valuable service to their clients, rather than mere “hustlers.” She presented the blue and red ocean strategies, highlighting how unlocking mortgage opportunities represents a blue ocean strategy. Moreover, she engaged the participants in an interactive session to assess their understanding of mortgages and how they can leverage them to boost sales. Using a 10-year mortgage plan on a N30 million home as an example, Dr. Ibukun demonstrated that commercial mortgages in Nigeria are not too costly. She concluded her presentation by sharing a proven template that marketers can use to optimize the mortgage option.
During the event, Paul Foh led a session on “Leveraging Digitalization to Enhance Real Estate Sales”. He highlighted various techniques that real estate marketers can use to amplify sales by incorporating technology. Foh emphasized the importance of visual content and the power of creativity to attract potential buyers. He stressed the need for consistency in creating brand awareness across all social media platforms, including WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Foh also underscored the significance of leveraging YouTube and provided statistics on its broad reach to potential buyers. He explained how consistency in online posting can lead to a compounding effect over time.
Moreover, Foh advised marketers to prioritize selling value over price to potential clients. According to him, “mentioning the price without explaining the value leads to lost sales,” as marketers are the ones who understand all the unique features of a property, such as its location, amenities, and proximity to business districts. Therefore, revealing the price first without providing valuable information to the client is counterproductive. He also shared his template response for marketers to use when customers ask for prices immediately.
Mr. Oghenereke, the Investment Manager of Rock Realty Limited, took to the stage to present the company’s current and upcoming projects. He discussed plans for opening an office in Lagos and available job opportunities for marketers. Mr. Oghenereke also announced a 7% marketing commission on sales of Bold Living Two Apartments, which is one of the projects currently under construction by Rock Realty Limited at Alpha Beach Road Lekki, Lagos.
Later in the day, Mr. Olateru-Olagbegi Olanipekun from Imperial Mortgage Bank gave a presentation titled “Selling the Mortgage Option.” He provided an overview of the mortgage process, from application to disbursement, including all necessary documentation. Mr. Olateru also highlighted the differences between commercial mortgages and NHF mortgages.
Ichechi Okonkwo, CEO Victoria Crest; She encouraged participants to gain knowledge as you cannot give what you do not have. She further stressed that marketers should not see a client buying a piece of realestate through them as being done a favor as they are offering real value to the clients. She added that female marketers should not be seen as using their bodies to sell real estate and that they should never compromise their bodies. She also spoke about working towards making more women developers in the industry.
Damilare Baker, CEO Damilare Baker; he spoke during the interactive session, and gave feedback to marketers on how they should invest in giving value to clients. He mentioned how a lot of marketers lack the tools they can use in giving clients value for the fees that they charge. He also spoke about his support and loyalty to marketers who bring clients that purchased RealEstate from Damilare Baker
The event concluded with a panel session, featuring Dr. Ibukun, Ambassador Funke, Mr. Olateru as a panelist, and Miss Ehi Eluma as the anchor. The panelists shared insights on their biggest challenges and how they overcame them. Additionally, the panelists addressed questions about diaspora mortgages posed by attendees.
