Special Feature

Over 1,000 properties sold: Joyce Lau reveals her secrets to success

By Joyce Lau

/ Brought to you by OrangeTee & Tie |

May 13, 2022 9:30 AM SGT

Lau has nearly 20 years of experience in the industry (Photo: Albert Chua/The Edge Singapore)

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Joyce Lau, senior associate group director at OrangeTee & Tie, is a successful real estate agent with nearly 20 years of experience in the industry. Having worked with numerous agents and industry professionals over the years, Lau is well-respected among her peers. A key reason for this is her groundedness and willingness to learn from others in the course of her work. She has held the title of “Millionaire agent” at OrangeTee & Tie since 2020, but despite being a successful real estate agent today, her success did not come easy.

In 2003, Lau was a flight attendant when the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak hit our shores and many other countries were affected.

With many flights grounded, Lau was put on no-pay leave, among many other cabin crew members in the industry. It was at that time that a friend of hers who worked in real estate introduced her to the industry. Although she had no real estate experience, Lau decided to give it a shot. Amazingly, despite being new to the industry, it took only one week before she sold her first property — a very rare achievement for a newcomer.

Having brokered over 1,000 transactions, Lau has a stellar track record across multiple segments (Photo: Albert Chua/The Edge Singapore)

Her client-facing skills as a cabin crew bolstered her ability to interact and win the trust of potential clients. Furthermore, Lau already had an innate appreciation for houses and a strong desire to succeed. As she became more immersed in the business, it became clear that property is her calling.

Thriving under pressure and go-getter attitude

Launching her property career from the ground up was by no means an easy task. But Lau is not one to shy away from unfamiliar or difficult situations. Resilient-natured and proactive, she painstakingly built up her list of contacts and prospective clients, as well as acquired indepth knowledge about the market. “I thrive under pressure because it pushes me to work harder,” she says. “For me, it’s about staying consistent and focusing on the job.”

Her go-getter attitude has resulted in a fair share of memorable experiences. In her early days as an agent, Lau recalls going door-knocking at residential estates. One time, she had a harrowing experience of being bitten by a dog while speaking to a homeowner. Despite this frightening experience, she persevered and kept going — a testament to her courage and hardworking attitude.

Lau has continuously grown her portfolio of listings and clients. Now, nearly 20 years later, she has transacted over 1,000 properties across multiple segments including residential, industrial and commercial. Every year, she transacts an average of 40 to 50 properties.

Lau has achieved numerous accolades at OrangeTee & Tie, including the Overall Champion Top Achiever Award for the past two years (Photo: Courtesy of Joyce Lau)

She is well-versed in both the sales and rental markets across these different segments, as she has closed deals across property types, from HDB and condominium units to landed properties and Good Class Bungalows (GCBs). She oversees transactions in different estates in Singapore, and knows the market well.

In the last decade, she has earned a reputation for herself as the go-to agent for landed properties, especially in Districts 10, 11, 15 and 21, having brokered numerous transactions in Bukit Timah, Upper Bukit Timah, Holland, Newton and Clementi.

As a testament to her skills, Lau has achieved numerous accolades at OrangeTee & Tie. For the past two years, she has defended her title as Overall Champion Top Achiever Award in the agency, and the Top Private Residential salesperson. In 2021, she was also conferred the Diamond award at the SG Real Estate Agents Excellence Awards – the highest award tier available.

Client-first approach

Putting her clients’ needs first is Lau’s modus operandi. This is a value that was seeded due to her background in hospitality. “Customer satisfaction is my motto when it comes to work,” she affirms.

Lau: Customer satisfaction is my motto when it comes to work (Photo: Albert Chua/The Edge Singapore)

Lau has no qualms going the extra mile for a client, even amid challenging circumstances. One such instance was when she helped a client sell their terraced home in Bukit Timah. The client, who at the time was still undecided on whether or not to sell, set Lau with the task of helping them find a new home before closing the deal.

Lau recalls: “They wanted a detached house in Bukit Timah within a specific budget, and I had to find the home they wanted within five days.” While other agents may have baulked at the challenge, Lau got to work. She sought out leads and went door-knocking in the seller’s preferred areas to see if homeowners would be interested in selling their property.

Her tenacious determination paid off when she found a pair of homeowners who were contemplating right-sizing to a smaller home following their retirement. She also managed to reach a great deal for both parties, which led to a successful sale transaction. For Lau, it was an extremely gratifying experience that she will never forget.

Ultimately, Lau takes great pride in doing her utmost for her clients, taking very seriously the responsibility that comes with the trust that they place in her. “It’s important for me to be accountable to the client and do everything I can to help them achieve their goal,” she says.

Trusted service

Lau’s customer-centric attitude has garnered her a large and steady stream of clientele over her near two decades in the business. A significant portion of her clients are repeat customers, many of whom Lau has a longstanding working relationship with, dating back to the early days of her career.

Lau’s tenacious spirit and customer-centric attitude has garnered her long-lasting success in the industry (Photo: Courtesy of Joyce Lau)

One such client was a lady whom Lau had met 15 years ago to inquire about a property she was marketing at the time. While she did not purchase that property, the two kept in touch and eventually, Lau was engaged to help her rent out an investment property. The pair continued to work together over the years through various transactions, up to the latest one last year when Lau helped her acquire a GCB located near the Botanic Gardens.

Staying ahead of the curve

What pulled Lau to join OrangeTee & Tie was the company’s forward-looking approach to digital technologies. Coupled with her desire to learn more about proptech, the agency was an obvious choice. It was here that she learned how to employ artificial intelligence and tech as a way to better market properties.

She describes the agency as a tech pioneer with world-class solutions, and with the world digitalising at a rapid pace, she quickly realised the need to learn and adopt digital solutions to stay competitive. With powerful apps like the AAG InstantPro and the OrangeTee AgentApp at her fingertips, Lau is able to quickly pull data, listings and information on interest rates to better advise her clients swiftly.

“I was also assigned a manager who’s a very tech-savvy person who gave me the confidence to quickly pick up the skills I needed in technology. I was able to get ahead and get started in adopting online marketing and other digital tools to better serve my clients,” says Lau.

Part of Lau’s success has been her ability to stay ahead of the curve, supported by OrangeTee & Tie’s forward-looking approach to digital technologies (Photo: Courtesy of Joyce Lau)

Now armed with technology, she is able to go further to market properties. For instance, a bungalow in Holland that had been listed was on the market for a prolonged period of time despite the owners engaging two different agents. When Lau came on board, she opted for an end-to-end marketing approach using digital platforms. She virtually staged the home, prepared renderings of artists’ impressions, and filmed a video presentation of the property. Soon after, she was able to secure a buyer. “My goal is to be the go-to property adviser whom my clients can trust to help them make the best decisions in this dynamic real estate market,” says Lau, and she remains committed to helping her clients as best as she can.

The way Lau sees it, clients return to her because they know she can get things done, and her years of experience have also placed her in a unique position to offer valuable feedback and insight when it comes to making real estate decisions.