Mr. Marcus Chu has dedicated 25 years of his professional career to ERA Singapore, the largest international real estate agency across 10 countries in the Asia Pacific. He is now the CEO of the real estate agency that has grown to be a household name in Singapore and applies his years of experience, energy and talent to make the company the leading real estate agency in the region.

Amongst the striking evidence of Mr. Chu’s performance was ERA Singapore’s recent win at the Luxury Lifestyle Awards in the category of Best Luxury Real Estate Brokerage in Singapore. Mr. Marcus Chu is kind enough to give us an interview and answer some questions about his leadership within the company and his company’s leadership in the highly competitive real estate market.

Luxury Lifestyle Awards (LLA): Mr. Chu, can you tell us briefly about yourself and your background before you started your career at ERA Singapore?

Marcus Chu: I am always passionate in real estate. I started investing in private condos back in the early 1990’s. In 1992, I bought my first new home Chiltern Park directly from the developer without the help of a property agent. Three years later, I bought a resale condo in Eastern Lagoon II and experienced first-hand how important the service of a real estate salesperson was. That experience led me to embarking on a career in real estate.

LLA: You have been with ERA Singapore for 25 years and have built a truly impressive career. How would you describe your journey in the company and what personal milestones would you highlight?

MC: My career transformation from being a salesperson and team-builder, to getting appointed as the COO and now CEO has taught me invaluable lessons; I am enriched by what I have learnt over the years. I have always strived to go beyond the norm and carve a path that is my own.

As a salesperson in the late 1990s, I was a pioneer of telemarketing in the industry as I used to cold call homeowners and knock on their doors, in search of prospects. I also employed PAs for administrative work so that I have more time to focus on my clients and closing deals. I progressed to become the top manager/team leader, having recruited 2,000 agents under me.

I used to own a training firm and taught individuals, especially real estate salespersons, how to invest in real estate. I noticed a lot of them missed the opportunities to invest during the property cycles and I aspired to teach them how to invest and monetise their vocations.

Now that I have been on the management team for 8 years (COO since 2013 and now CEO), I have picked up different skillsets and learnt, firsthand, how a company is run from policy making, operations, and other day-to-day running of the organization. I continue to derive enjoyment from working with people and appreciating their strengths.

LLA: Please give us a brief introduction to what ERA Singapore is today.

MC: We are in the heart of consumers today and we strive to be better and continue to upkeep the ERA brand and core values which include innovation, unity, integrity, gratitude, and passion. Our vision is for ERA to be Asia Pacific’s leading real estate agency by providing evolutionary solutions and services to trusted advisers and clients.

LLA: What has changed at the company since you were appointed chief executive officer?

MC: Since the appointment, ERA has launched the mobile app version of its RealtyWatch by ERA – an award-winning 24/7 property transaction monitoring platform. Not only can users receive the latest neighbourhood property transactions notifications via this one-stop property super-app, potential home buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords are now able to gain access to some of the coolest tech tools previously reserved for ERA trusted advisers.

In addition to instant estimated valuations of properties and latest mortgage packages, users can also leverage iERA Robo Advisor to generate automated personalised property investment proposals according to their financial capability and needs.

Strategic partnership is another hallmark of my new direction for the company. We have collaborated with leaders in various sectors to enhance our technology capabilities, as well as reputable economists to provide insights for our trusted advisers.

LLA: What goals do you set for yourself as CEO, and what do you do to achieve them?

MC: I hope to provide evolutionary solutions and services to clients while evoking positive changes in the industry. I believe in creating value in the things I do and it is no different this time round.

 LLA: Please tell us about Plush by ERA. What results has its team achieved since its launch?

MC: Plush by ERA is a high-net-worth-individuals network for luxury real estate trusted advisers established in 2019 under the ERA umbrella. It focuses on empowering the real estate professionals in this highly niche segment so that they can become more adept at catering to the increasing demands of their high-net-worth (HNW) clients.

As the only official network in the real estate category, it provides professional advisory on high-end property investments with emphasis on asset planning, wealth management, asset enhancement, trust creation, will writing and estate and succession planning.

LLA: What are your basic principles for working with a team that achieves such great results and revolutionises the entire industry?

MC: ERA has always instilled a strong value culture, where we encourage one another to live up to life’s best values, by becoming the best version of ourselves.

Everyone is given an equal opportunity to grow and be given recognition while we nurture highly trained, professional real estate advisers to clients. These are the reasons why I have returned and stayed so long in ERA

LLA: How would you describe Plush by ERA’s target audience? What qualities should Plush real estate agents have to meet client expectations?

MC: High-net-worth clients who are on the lookout for high-end property investments with emphasis on asset planning, wealth management, asset enhancement, trust creation, will writing and estate and succession planning.

Plush trusted advisers are trained to be a specialist in this property segment and they can interpret the vast research data available to them. They are also capable of tailoring their advice and services accordingly based on clients’ overall needs and circumstances.

LLA: You have a unique opportunity to observe the development of the real estate market in Singapore from the inside. What major changes do you see in it in recent years, and how would you describe the state of the real estate industry in the country today?

MC: Digitalisation has been accelerated due to the pandemic. Due to restrictions in place, we had to adapt and use digital tools to replace the things we normally do such as face-to-face viewing of property, meetings, conferences, training, and counter-services.

Changes in client’s behaviour – Automation and AI help make the process of buying and selling more seamless and efficient for buyers/sellers while increasing work productivity of property agents. This also leads to a change in the salesperson’s role to becoming a professional trusted adviser who provides personalised services along every step of the clients’ real estate journey and that personalisation can’t be done through AI.

LLA: What allows ERA Singapore to maintain its leadership position in the industry for so long?

MC: Since its inception in 1982, ERA Singapore has been setting and redefining industry standards by pioneering and spearheading revolutionary Proptech concepts, technologies and initiatives; allowing us to maintain our leadership position in the industry for all these years.

Besides staying ahead of time with social media and technologies, ERA Singapore is always looking to partner with various firms to create a greater good for the industry.

Upon taking office in July this year as the new CEO, my vision for ERA is to provide evolutionary solutions and services to our teammates and clients. Since then, we have swiftly tied up several game-changing collaborations, such as enhancing our tech tools with Redbrick Mortgage Advisory, Singapore’s largest independent mortgage advisory firm, for their unbiased mortgage reports and EdgeProp, Singapore’s fastest growing property portal, for their estimated valuation tool.

We have also tied up collaborations with EcoProp to advance property search experience on our mobile apps, as well as with Singapore Land Authority to augment geospatial co-innovation in real estate.

More recently, we have embarked on a holistic view of bridging real estate asset progression with wealth planning. We collaborated with the giants in the financial industry: First with CGS-CIMB Securities, the #1 market share brokerage firm in Singapore for the last three years; and then Endowus, Singapore’s fee-only wealth platform and the first digital advisor for all your money – Cash, CPF & SRS.

LLA: This year, Plush by Singapore won the Luxury Lifestyle Awards. What are your emotions about it?

MC: When we launched Plush by ERA, our goal is to ensure that we create a platform to further the professional competency of our trusted advisers serving in this high-net-worth segment.

We never expect that this initiative would amount to any awards. Nevertheless, I am very glad that we have received this recognition. It is a huge honour and I believe everyone at ERA Singapore has helped to contribute to this award with their immense hard work. This award will only motivate us to achieve more success in the future.

LLA: Mr. Chu, what advice do you have for those who want to become effective and successful real estate agents?

MC: Think big and set goals. Always believe in yourself. Create different and innovative ways to achieve those goals; else you are just following whatever everybody is doing. Never sit on things, be proactive and make things happen.