Wong Fook Loon @ Allen is the Southern Region recipient of the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) – PropertyGuru Top Online REN 2016.
From East-Coast to Singapore
I was born and bred in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia – at Kuantan, Pahang. I was from quite a traditional Chinese family, and I was the youngest amongst four siblings.
My life continued in Kuantan with my parents until the age of 17. Right after completing my SPM, I knew I had to move out to find a direction on my own.
Hence, I moved to Singapore in the year 1998 in the hopes of finding a good job. My life in Singapore was good. I did many jobs which include working as an IT guy in Harvey Norman, which was formerly known as Electric City.
After that, I ventured into sales-based jobs, while studying a UK Online Course part-time. Later on, I graduated and became a Graphic Designer – a job that I loved, but which I grew bored of as time went by. It was an office based job and I was doing the same thing over and over again.
I started my own family along the way.
Life changing decision
I was in Singapore when I had to make a life-changing decision. I had my own family and a highly paid job in Singapore. However, I was considering a career change.
Right at that time, Iskandar Malaysia came to the spotlight and Singaporeans were going crazy over it. I knew Iskandar Malaysia holds vast potential, especially in terms of real estate and other opportunities. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity, hence, I moved to Johor Bahru with my family to become a Real Estate Negotiator.
It was the year 2014 and I started my career at CBD Properties. It was a totally different environment for me, as my previous job was an office based job and I seldom went out to meet people regarding work.
But as a REN, I was required to meet people constantly which allowed me to increase my network and acquaintances. I loved the job. I had more exposure to the outside world and I befriended many people along the way, who are valuers, lawyers and bankers, to name a few.
A decision I’ll never regret
Learning a new business was not that easy, however, my previous job experience as a sales professional come in handy. I was very focused and clear in my career path. And I know I made the right decision to move and become a negotiator.
Thus, I bought a landed property in Skudai, Johor in the same year. It was a double-storey terrace project, which I purchased for my own stay. So far I have only acquired one property, but I am still looking forward to acquire a few more houses to add on to the list.
As for my career, I was quite shocked when I was selected as the recipient of the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agent (MIEA) – PropertyGuru TOP REN (Southern) 2016. I couldn’t believe it! It’s like my years of hard work has finally paid off.
I’m thankful to the people who stood by me, especially my family, friends, clients and colleagues – who made this possible.
Mangalesri Chandrasekaran, Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email mangales@propertyguru.com.my