The Trainer With a Passion For Real Estate
With a heavy background in sales, Joseph Pullicino is National Manager at Zanzi Homes. He’s been a pivotal asset for the company, providing professional sales coaching in real estate. He also manages the Head Office team and clearly enjoys passing on his knowledge to young estate specialists.
Question – To what do you owe your success?
Answer – Well, I’ve been in sales all my life. All I’ve ever done is sell. I’ve sold everything, from boats, to cars, and now for the last 23 years, real estate! In my youth, I was based in Australia, which was economically-booming. During those years, I grasped the notion of sales and client satisfaction, which then propelled me to selling property, becoming my passion. That is the true reason behind my success: a property is a valuable asset worth investing in, and thus worth selling more than anything.
Q – Why Zanzi Homes?
A – I was very much aware of Quicklets’ success in rentals and it was thus tempting to pioneer the sales head office alongside Steve Mercieca. He invited me to a Friday morning meeting the company holds weekly, and that sealed the deal. I saw real potential in the company’s attitude and values, but also the specialists’ will to succeed. Attracted to such a young company,
I was eager to start a leading role in the training and development of its sales managers and sales team. I immediately became National Manager for the brand, also training specialists across offices and subsequently I was also appointed lecturer in the Real Estate Agent Professional Award course.
Q – About this course, what can you tell us?
Organised by LEAD Development, it is aimed at estate specialists, tailored for them to gain fundamental knowledge regarding laws and regulations governing real estate in Malta, as well as historic and contemporary insight about the real estate market in Malta and its economic impact. It is accredited by the National Commission for Further and Higher Education in Malta (NCFHE). I am proud and thrilled to be contributing to the academic formation of specialists. There is much to learn about serving clients and looking out for the best properties out there. Property specialists should be equipped with the right set of tools before they go out and seek to sell property.
Q – Back to Zanzi Homes, how have you fared so far?
A - My role has been a busy one since Zanzi Homes is building a younger generation of sales specialists. I find great enjoyment and satisfaction in passing on my experiences and knowledge about real estate. In the last two years, the company has grown exponentially, which has made this journey very exciting and fruitful.
As regards to training, we conduct two weekly meetings. A company meeting involving the whole company, with coaching on sales and self-development and another meeting aimed specifically at sales specialists. I lead the latter, in which I cover the whole aspect of real estate. I teach about local real estate knowledge and train specialists on how to improve their sales techniques, client handling, work ethics.
Q - What makes a real estate specialist professional?
A - Many people think that becoming a real estate specialist is easy. But in actual fact, a lot of training and experience is required. In fact, a true sales specialist takes at least 6-12 months to be fully trained. That is on full time basis and hours might range from ten to twelve hours a day. 10 to 12h a day.
Thorough knowledge of property the market is quintessential to a professional estate specialist. They are required to know the worth of properties in every suburb in Malta, whilst also familiarizing themselves with each type of property found in the country.
In order to excel, one must also identify the legal aspects concerning vendors and purchasers in order to be in line with FIAU regulations. Awareness about current legislature concerning the industry is also important, as one needs to advise clients on possible grants. Basics in architecture is definitely an asset, especially when it comes to ground rents and height limitation rules.
Finally, apart from strong negotiating skills, professional estate specialists need to recognize sound property investment deals and comprehend property management.