PHOTO: Yelsa Connect
Revolutionizing Real Estate: How One New Zealand Entrepreneur Is Changing the Industry
In 2018, Mike Harvey made a life-changing decision that shocked the New Zealand real estate industry. Despite earning $500,000 a year as a real estate salesperson in Nelson, Harvey walked away from the industry he had worked in for two decades. The catalyst for this dramatic move? A realization that the traditional model of selling property was deeply flawed.
Harvey’s journey toward creating a new real estate platform, Yelsa Connect, began during a personal crisis. His infant daughter was seriously ill and receiving treatment in Christchurch while he was juggling his successful real estate career. The toll of balancing work and family life reached a tipping point during a weekend back in Nelson, where he encountered the inefficiencies in the real estate market that would inspire his next big venture.
A Real Estate Revelation
Harvey recalls the moment that changed everything. He was on George Street in Nelson, standing in front of three properties he had listed for sale. He saw that $10,000 had been spent on marketing the homes — from signage to newspaper ads and online listings. Despite all the spending, only 11 buyers visited the properties, and they had already seen all three homes. All three houses sold, but Harvey saw the waste in the system.
“That was the moment I realized how much money was being wasted on marketing, and yet, most of the buyers were already familiar with the properties,” Harvey says. This realization became the seed for a new, more efficient way to connect buyers and sellers.
Enter Yelsa Connect: A New Way to Sell Property
Inspired by his observations, Harvey founded Yelsa Connect, a platform designed to streamline the real estate process. Yelsa Connect allows property owners to browse a list of qualified buyers and connect directly with them, eliminating the need for costly and often ineffective marketing tactics.
“I left a half-million-dollar income to build this because I saw that direct connections are the future of real estate,” Harvey explains. “Every vendor isn’t looking for open homes, signboards, or expensive advertisements — they just want to find a buyer.”
The platform works by matching sellers with buyers who are specifically interested in their type of property. Once a match is made, sellers can choose a real estate agent from a directory of listed professionals, who will then handle the transaction in the traditional way — completing appraisals, providing advice, and closing the deal.
Yelsa Connect is designed to save both time and money. Rather than paying for advertising that may not reach the right buyers, vendors can bypass the inefficiencies of traditional marketing and go straight to a pool of qualified potential buyers.
A Win-Win for Buyers, Sellers, and Agents
Yelsa Connect is a platform that benefits all parties involved. For buyers, the platform ensures they don’t miss out on potential properties that fit their preferences. Instead of scrolling through countless listings, buyers receive tailored suggestions based on their specific needs. Sellers, on the other hand, get access to an exclusive list of buyers actively looking for properties.
For real estate agents, Yelsa Connect provides a unique opportunity to be listed on the platform for a monthly fee of $99. When a sale is made, a success fee of $1,000 is distributed: $750 goes to the mortgage broker who referred the buyer, $100 goes to the Heart Foundation, and the remaining $159 goes to Yelsa.
Harvey’s commitment to transparency and community involvement is evident in the platform’s unique approach, which supports not only buyers and sellers but also contributes to a good cause.
Boosting Success with Squirrel Mortgages
The Yelsa Connect platform received a major boost when Squirrel Mortgages, one of New Zealand’s leading mortgage brokerages, took an interest in the business. Squirrel began offering its preapproved borrowers the option to be listed on Yelsa Connect, helping to provide a steady stream of qualified buyers.
Currently, around 100 preapproved buyers are registered on the platform, and Harvey is optimistic about its future. “It’s starting to feel like it’s really gaining momentum,” he says. “When Squirrel’s founder John Bolton put his first buyers on last week, my wife cried with relief. After five years of working on this, it felt like we were finally seeing the results.”
The Future of Real Estate in New Zealand
Harvey believes that Yelsa Connect represents the future of real estate, not just in New Zealand but globally. The traditional real estate model, reliant on expensive advertising and open homes, is becoming increasingly outdated. Direct connections between buyers and sellers are the future, and platforms like Yelsa Connect are paving the way for a more efficient, cost-effective, and transparent property market.
“We’re seeing real estate agents in Auckland running matches with buyers before they even advertise a property,” Harvey says. “This is the future of real estate — and it’s happening right now.”
For New Zealand homeowners and real estate agents looking for a more streamlined, effective way to buy and sell property, Yelsa Connect is an exciting new option that promises to revolutionize the market.
SOURCE: RNZ