PHOTO: Auckland, NZ. FILE
FEATURED ON STUFF – Wishing Shane all the best with his new venture…
January is considered the down time in the real estate industry, with many agents across the country still in holiday mode. But in Mt Wellington’s Lunn Avenue, Shane Prasad is buzzing as he gets ready to roll out New Zealand’s first dual branded Harcourts office encompassing both Harcourts Landed and Mortgage Express.
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“The property market has changed and people’s expectations are on the rise,” he says. “It’s the kind of market that requires higher levels of expertise. Keeping that in view, this is not just an office but a real estate hub that is geared towards meeting people’s requirements across the entire spectrum of property services.”
Energetic and engaging, Shane offers us a tour of Harcourts Landed located next to New World Stonefields. As we walk in, tradesmen are flitting in and out, putting the finishing touches to the stunning workspace designed to appear like an airport lounge. Exuding the sophistication of glass and steel, the uniqueness of copper accents and the luxury of marble, it comes with a large open-plan kitchen with a wine fridge, a built in suit refresher (Samsung AirDresser), and also a soundproof booth.
“I wanted to create a space where both agents, mortgage brokers and clients can meet and interact in a relaxed, no-pressure environment,” Shane notes.
Early start and struggles
Harcourts Landed is the crowning glory of a successful career, but Shane’s success didn’t happen overnight. He has worked his way up the ladder.
“I grew up in Sydney where I was raised by parents who worked hard all their lives. I saw them struggle and wanted to create a life for myself.”
When Shane was 15 years old, there was a defining moment that influenced his outlook towards life. His uncle and aunt presented him a book titled ‘From Broke to Multi-Millionaire in Just 7 Years’ by Peter Spann.
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“It left a deep impression on me and influenced my outlook towards life. It taught me how to get things done. Today, everyone knows me as the person who ‘Gets Shit Done’.”
The book also sparked a strong desire in him to become a real estate agent. So in 2005, after finishing high school in Sydney, Shane got a job as an automobile mechanic in order to save up money to start his own business. His first pay cheque, after working a 50-hour week, was $320. “I was only 18, really enjoyed my job and was proud of my first earnings. But the celebrations were tempered by the realisation that an apprentice’s job would never finance my real estate ambitions. Three months later I quit my job. I must thank my parents who pushed me to look for something else.”
Making money
What better place to learn about making money than in the banking and finance industry? Starting off as a forex teller at ANZ Australia, Shane joined Commonwealth Bank of Australia where he became the youngest 2IC (customer service) at the age of 20. He then left the bank and took an admin role at an investment form, after which he opened his own mortgage broking business.
Shane worked as a mortgage broker in a real estate office and it was the principal there who advised him that if he wanted to enter the real estate business, he should first get a foot in the door by becoming a property manager. So in January 2012, he signed up and did it for 10 months. But his goal was always to get into sales.
“I just worked and worked. And in October finally notched up my first sale – in Penshurst, south Sydney. I remember standing outside the house with a SOLD sign, feeling on top of the world. I did that outside every property I sold, and I believe I was the one who started this trend in Australia.”
A year later, Shane sold his first million dollar property – a beautiful home with river views in Connells Point. in 2013 a million dollar property was a big thing in Sydney and Shane had just achieved that landmark.
“I then got my real estate licence in Sydney, and decided to leave on a high.” So he resigned, went to Fiji to attend his cousin’s wedding and just relax and plan his next move.
Laying the foundation
Within weeks, Ascend Property Group was born. It was a boutique agency in Sutherland Shire, New South Wales.
“They say, there are two types of people in this world – those who live in Sutherland Shire and those who want to. We were one of the first Indian families in that area and I’m proud that is where I grew up. We were never far from the beach and loved it.”
It was November 2013 and sales were hard to come by so the focus was property management. “It was a full blown rollercoaster. But gradually we started getting listings and sales picked up. I was 26 years old and went through a steep learning curve in business, PR and customer service. I began to focus on how to grow the business. What’s the best thing to do – pick up the phone and call people.”
At the best of times, cold calling is tough. “But this was downright difficult. I was a new brand in an established area where people held tightly to their turfs. Moreover, I was an Indian guy trying to make this work in a predominantly white neighbourhood. To be sure, there were some light moments. Since I have an Aussie accent, potential clients were expecting to meet a blond guy with blue eyes. And they got me!” he laughs.
“However, what mattered was that my clients respected me. If you can prove that you can get things done, your skin colour doesn’t matter. I just put my head down and worked my bum off.”
Networking matters
To give his business a boost Shane went to BNI, the world’s largest business networking and referral organisation.
“I attended a few meetings in order to get some referrals. However, I wasn’t satisfied with the outcomes so I set up my own networking group with my friends, all of whom were in business. They were electricians, plumbers, builders, mortgage brokers, financial planners, digital marketers and so on. The best part was we didn’t accept – or expect – any referral fees. Plus, when we gave someone a lead, we knew it wouldn’t blow up in our faces as each member of our group was reliable and trusted. It was our very own networking group and we named it the Owners Club. We usually held a dinner at Crinitis Restaurant in Darling Harbour and once a year we had our Christmas meal together.”
Things were ticking along nicely and business was steady.
However, nothing grows to the sky. By 2015 the Sydney property market was on fire. “It was going gangbusters, making it difficult for many people to buy homes. This required me to change course and come up with a new revenue stream.”
Around that time his brother Chris bought a brand new four-bedroom home in southeast Queensland for $365,000. “I thought, hang on, I have all these clients in my property management portfolio, and they can’t buy property in New South Wales because of the high prices and the stamp duty. So I talked to the landlords in my portfolio and told them about this opportunity in Queensland, and we could help them in this process.”
Shane was now selling investment property to landlords, and via digital marketing to other clients in New South Wales. His punchline was: ‘Brand new homes for $370,000, four bedrooms, two bathrooms, double garage.’
“That was it – simple and straight. It captured a lot of attention and generated a huge amount of business. From what I know, there was no one doing this because there was no one – other than us – educating the public about this low-hanging opportunity. This is an important lesson for buyers – even in a tough market there are opportunities, you just have to search in a different location.”
Entering the NZ market
Opportunities can come from unexpected quarters. In 2015, Shane’s uncle and aunt alerted him to a new Reserve Bank of New Zealand rule that investors required a 40% equity – or a 40% deposit – to buy investment property. But since not everyone had that much cash lying around, Shane found a solution – ANZ Bank Australia offered a 20% deposit for New Zealanders to buy property in southeast Queensland. The criteria was for NZ citizens and permanent residents who had a full time job.
“Sitting in Sydney we did this through Facebook geotargeting, aimed at users in Auckland. Again, we were probably one of the first to be using social media to sell property in Auckland. It wasn’t easy but we got some leverage in the market, helping people buy investment homes in Australia. We were now going in a direction that was beginning to create wealth and retirement nest eggs for homeowners.”
His work required a lot of travelling between Sydney and Auckland. During one such visit in 2017, he and his partner did a tour of the South Island.
“I fell in love with New Zealand and started exploring the possibility of moving here.”
After returning to Sydney, Shane started looking for opportunities in New Zealand while simultaneously looking for a buyer for Ascend Property Group. The first lead he got was the Regional Manager’s position at Harcourts NZ. This is where Shane’s network and his standing in the real estate community helped. He knew Mahan Shishineh who was then the GM for Harcourts NSW. Shishineh knew Chris Kennedy who was CEO for Harcourts NZ. Kennedy is now Managing Director of Harcourts Gold.
“Chris hired me from New Zealand and is now one of my mentors.”
Shane then tapped one of his close friends to buy his business, and once that was done, he moved to Auckland in July 2017 to take up his full time job at Harcourts.
“I absolutely loved that role and was able to create a good network here, especially with our business partners like Spark, Stuff and RealEstate.co.nz. I also hosted the corporate awards and learned how to be a public speaker, skills I didn’t have prior to this role.”
Three years later, he moved to Harcourts Milestone as Head of Strategic Growth. The role was to look at the business from a top level perspective and add efficiency measures, to train the sales consultants so they each had an individual business plan, and look at the franchise’s overall business plan.
Shane pays tribute to Josh Phegan, another mentor, for the skills needed in this and his other roles. Shane says he would not be where he is without Phegan who is regarded as one of Australasia’s leading real estate coaches.
History repeated itself when Shane resigned from the company in August 2021 and left for an extended six-month break. He then flew to Sydney to attend his brother’s wedding, and was lucky to get one of the last MIQ slots. “It was like winning the lottery. Perhaps the stars were in perfect alignment and the powers above were also in my favour.”
In New Zealand he was starting from scratch all over again. “I did a few gigs for Harcourts, such as helping set up the Grey Lynn office, but the big opportunity came in May 2022 when he was informed of a suitable Harcourts territory.”
With the territory secured, the next move was to find a good location so he could be directly at the community’s doorstep.
“One night I was looking at a real estate portal and saw this site, and emailed the agent. After comparing it with three other sites, I decided this was the one. The agent later told me it was the quickest commercial deal he had ever done.”
Harcourts Landed was born in June 2022, with the sense of having landed at Lunn Avenue.
“My vision was to create an airport lounge inside a real estate office, with the work area totally separate from the lounge and reception. People – whether real estate agents, brokers or buyers – expect a premium experience, and we are giving it to them. If you are looking to jump on the property ladder we can help; if you are an agent looking to land into an office that is future proof and exciting we’d love to chat with you. Everything we do is focussed on improving the experiences of everyone involved every time a property changes hands.”
Shane’s defining piece of advice to people is to ignore the negativity the media is churning out.
“First up, there are plenty of affordable homes in the market, you just have to look, or find an office or agent who can help you do that. Secondly, be positive about what you are going to purchase, knowing that it is a stepping stone for a future purchase, or your ideal family home for the next couple of decades. And traditionally property will always increase in value.”
Shane adds that he plans on using the office as a hub for first home buyers where they can pop in to meet the team and get on the property ladder. This includes providing information nights, with the first one coming up on March 16, 2023.
Harcourts Landed is also offering opportunities to real estate agents with the ambition to take their career and income to the next level. More importantly, salespersons will receive mentoring and training from Shane in all aspects of real estate – including residential and investment property.
“If you are hungry for success and are keen to achieve your fullest potential, just give me a call,” he says.
Harcourts Landed is at Unit 3/86 Lunn Avenue, Mount Wellington. Phone 09 527 0022.
For more information visit https://harcourts.net/nz/office/lunn-ave.
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