 All roles lead to the property show happening on the 27th and the 28th of August, 2022. The show will be in Center and Convention Center as well as virtually, so you can join from anywhere you are in the world. Tickets are still available at thepropertyshow.co.za. So tonight we are having a good conversation that you would definitely want to take part in. But before we get into that conversation, remember to engage with us, send us your comments, send us your property-related questions, and you could win 500 grand cash by also sharing that post, and winners of that 500 grand cash will also stand in line to win tickets to the property show. So tonight I'm sitting with somebody who is no stranger to the podcast. I'm sitting with Luanda Kotla Limajik. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you very much for inviting me. You are a transactional broker at Galatier Real Estate, and this is something that you are really passionate about. So before we jump into our conversation, just tell us what exactly does a transactional broker do, and why is it such a passion for you? I guess when you understand the property space and you see a lot of people making mistakes every day, you can't help yourself, but you want to assist them. And also we are a highly regulated industry. So you actually want to always guide them so that they never make the same mistakes. Sure, and how long have you been doing this? And as I asked in terms of passion, you know, it really goes beyond just helping people make these transactions. You're literally giving people a home. So how long have you been doing it, and how has it impacted your life and the life of others? Well, you know, it's certain things that you do. You never realize the part that you're playing until somebody comes to say thank you. And sometimes you are faced, I mean, I'm on the sales and auctions team at Galatier. Sometimes you go see a property so that you can auction it and you find that there's a way that you can actually help the client or the person who is having problems with the bank to meet their payments, you find that there is a way that you can assist them. And you end up because you become very conversational and you end up wanting to help them not to lose the property. So sometimes it's not about the deal, but it's about making sure that you, the company is very well represented. Sure. And you know, you have a very strong financial background. So one would think or assume you work for a bank rather. So why did you choose a corporate agency and how has that changed in terms of your career path? All right, so I spent over 24 years, I'm not trying to give away my age in investment banking. And that was a wonderful experience, understanding the economy of the country, just understanding the vibe of what makes South Africa a great beat in the sense of how the economy works. So a friend of mine, in fact, maybe just to go back a little bit. So 2020, I wanted to start my own little spuzzer shop. And I actually resigned from my job I was looking for an asset management company. And I was a business development manager there. And I thought, oh, you know what? I'm done with banking. I've been doing this for so long. So I need a change. Maybe if I could start my own consultancy. And unfortunately for me, I was finishing my resignation in February, 2020, and over 24th of March, then when they told us the news and there was no way of spending money on something that you don't even know whether, I mean, we didn't even know when the markets were going to open. So eventually I started calling some of my old friends, some of the companies that I knew were struggling with finance or maybe raising capital for their small businesses. But obviously they were very reputable. They had built so much into their businesses, but obviously they needed to grow. So I spent March until November, just marketing myself, my consultancy, and see what would be the low-hanging fruit. And one of my friends called me in 2020, asked me to come and have coffee with him. So I went to do coffee with him. And when I went for coffee, it wasn't a coffee discussion, but he wanted me to come and assist him with his business. And I said, but you know, I don't know anything about selling properties. And he said to me, listen, if you've done lending, if you've closed deals, if you've worked on projects, I mean, I've worked on volumes and volumes of projects and I've been lucky enough to be exposed. So he said to me, listen, this is not a rocket science. So come through, let's discuss it, but I need you to be here full-time. You can park your consultancy for a little bit and I can teach you the ropes. And that's how I started 2020. And you're here two years later and you are now a transactional broker. And for somebody who doesn't really understand, you spoke a little bit about how you are currently in the auctions and sales, right? So just maybe take us through how that looks, what some of the transactions that you encounter look like and what are some of the mistakes that you spot, especially in the property space? You know, for being somebody who has a strong financial background, you know, you know when people are making mistakes, especially when you're coming in with a fresh eye. So what are some of those mistakes that you've spotted compared to other industries, or even just generally in terms of what those mistakes that happen in the property industry? Overpricing. I have, you know, we become very emotionally attached to the property. And sometimes you realize that there's a problem and you need to resolve this problem so that it doesn't, you know, bury you. So you want to sell so that you can pay your bank and move on. But I find that there's so many properties which have gone to auction. I mean, there's properties that I have come across that have been to at least four auctions and they still haven't sold. And I mean, that's the same question that I asked. Like, what happened? Why didn't it sell? So those are very important questions. So I like to do my own comparisons. I mean, Galeti, we have a whole team broken sales and then we've got GCS as well. So the team, it's like an open plan. We use a hot desk. So you can literally just go to anyone and find out. So how do I do this? How does this area perform compared to this other area? So the brokers also have certain areas that they work at. So those numbers are readily available. It's not rocket science. So I will go through the comparison, sit down with the client, make them understand. If they believe that I can sell their property, they will give it to me. And at the rate that we have discussed, otherwise, sometimes we have to cut our losses. It's sad because you want the commission. But you know that you're going to waste so much time holding a property, trying to sell it. And yet it's not saleable. Sure. And what advice would you give to somebody who is a first-time home buyer, you know, they're coming into the market for the first time. And you've maybe dealt with some of these transactions before. What are some of the advice that you could give them? Speak to the bank. You know, speak to your banker. Go to the bank even if you don't have a banker. Visit them. Just find out what you're up against. I mean, right now we've got the internet where you can literally put in what, like you can stress test or do your pre-approval just to see how much you can afford when you want to buy a property. Involve, go to a real estate agency. Try to involve them. Tell them what it is you're looking for. These people are there to help you. They're not there to just take commission. And I know sometimes we try to run away from paying commission. That commission, it's a saving grace for many people. Yeah. No show. You know, when we talk transactional brokerage or brokering, a lot of people think you're just adding another player to this big mess, you know? And I'm trying to just get a property. So why would you say it's important for one to have a transactional broker when they are starting a process of getting a home or even a property? Maybe the person is an investor. And you know, investors want to make sure that they spend less and increase their returns. So what is that advice that you would give them to say, this is the reason why you need a transactional broker for this? So the process, like I said, it's a very regulated, a highly regulated process that you go through. And the reason you need a transactional broker, there is jargons that you come across in these mandates or in the agreement. And you are struggling to even relate what it is that they want from you. I've seen people sign offer to pages as the ones that they buy from P&A. And I wonder, like, OK, if you sign these agreements, you don't even understand what's in the agreement. How well do you think this agreement is going to represent you when somebody has taken off with your money? And it's not like we don't know that people have lost so much money trying to do private sales friend to friend. It doesn't work. So try to use the professionals. We are regulated. We are on the system. You can even do your own homework to find out who Luanda is and what Luanda can help you with. And we act in assisting the buyer and the seller. So the transactional broker sits in between. And when it comes to the types of properties maybe that you engage in, are we talking only residential or commercial? Or is it both? Is it just any property that one has? So at Galei to be focused mainly on commercial. So it will be your office space, a retail, petrol stations, industrial properties, you name it. When we have residential, it's usually like a packaged parcel of residential properties. We try to not represent residential because it's not our space because our strength is more on commercial. Sure. And if somebody is going in for a residential, I understand that Galei just does that, the commercial side. But if I'm going into farming or going into a residential farming, do I still need a transactional broker or is it just really for huge deals? No, you actually do because you still have to go through the agreements. I mean, signing an offer to purchase is not all of it. You still have to go see the conveyance. You've got some documentation. I mean, you have to understand what the property holds. Sometimes you don't even know the type of zoning, what it restricts you from doing. So you don't want to buy a property. And then you find that the ideas that you had for that farm, you cannot actually put them through counsel. And they cannot be approved by counsel because of the state of what that piece of land is sold for. Yeah. And let's talk about property investors. Somebody who's watching us today and is a property investor and wants to pivot their property portfolio, what are some of the advices that you would give them in terms of getting a transactional broker on board in terms of their team and then understanding a little bit more how to grow it? What advice would you give them? So people must never get intimidated by titles. All right? People must learn to speak their mind and speak their peace and understand what it is that they're putting themselves into. If somebody wants to invest in property, I, as a transactional broker, I also need to understand what do you want to do with the property? So there'll be a string of questions that I will ask. And from those questions, I'm able to understand what your needs are and what are you trying to achieve. So my main role is to understand what you're looking for and present you with what it is that you're looking for. Sure. Now, thank you so much for that. Really great insights that we are receiving tonight. And really, really appreciate it. Before we conclude, funny question. If you were to receive $10 million right now with your expertise and with your experience, what would you do with it? Well, I would invest it. In fact, I would invest in, so if $10 million is a friend, it sounds like a large sum of money. But when you start shopping around to realize that it's not necessarily that much. But it's always best to look for an income generating property that can actually help you to pay off your lending from the bank. Because sometimes we just go with eyes closed that I want that property. It's not about I want that property. Check the numbers, understand the numbers, understand how they relate to your rate per square meter, the property, the position. You have to understand all of those things. Food security is another one of my passion as well. Because I have been looking at how some of your big, like your pick and pay, your checkers, and super spark. They're growing every day. And they are, you know, expanding. And now they're partnering with some of the funds to say, OK, this is the type of property that I need. Because we need to have like immediate access when it comes to whatever food storage that they need to use it for. So I find food security for me is very important. So if you have a warehouse, you can never run dry because there's always somebody who's looking for storage to store their dry goods. Sure. Now, thank you so much for that. Any closing words as we round up today's conversation? Yes. So if you want to talk to a broker, I mean, if there's anything that inspired you, I mean, Galiti does a whole lot of, I mean, we have a geo-mapping system. So that system, it helps us to map the entire, you know, South Africa and we can tell you where properties are, where investment properties are, where they can land is. So you don't have to do it by yourself or maybe go on Google. We have the system to do that. I mean, we look after properties like a portfolio, like tenant portfolio. We do leasing. We also do sales on auction, like I have said. And I mean, yes. And the list goes on and on. Well, thank you so much and really, really does show the importance of having a transactional broker because you bring in so much great expertise. I mean, if you ask me what I'm going to do at $10 million, I might just say I'm buying my dream home. But you were talking things that would really, really help somebody who needs and who needs those expertise at the right time. Thank you so much for joining us and have a good one. All right. Thank you. Thank you so much for you, for tuning in until we get to this part of the episode. We really, really appreciate it. And thank you for sending those questions, sending those comments and sharing. The winner of tonight's competition, oh, yesterday's competition, rather, will be announcing the comments section and make sure that you don't miss out on that. Until the next time, we see you. Remember to get your tickets at thepropertieshow.co.za. Thank you so much for joining us and have a good night. This year, we're back. In real life and virtual with content generated in our Metaverse studio. We've designed the exhibition space to replicate the world's most popular property game and added in activities for the whole family, including an indoor park and play area. The game board is divided into four journeys, namely, first time homebuyers Boulevard, Investment Avenue, Sellers Street, and Renters Road. Visit thepropertieshow.co.za for more information and to get your tickets today. The property show 2022, 27th to the 28th of August at the Santon Convention Center. No matter where you are on your property journey, we've gathered the experts.