Interview with Sam Kam from Interealtor

Relocating abroad is challenging but life is that much easier when you have a real estate agent that has your back.

Hey Sam,

Thank you for joining me in this interview as we delve into what it’s like being a real estate agent in Malaysia.

We were introduced to each other via a mutual friend when looking for our first condo in Penang. Since then you’re our go-to agent whenever we want to move.

I am keen to understand your journey and the challenges of being in Real Estate in Malaysia and how you can help.

So, Sam, let’s jump straight into this with my first question.

It would be great to get a little background information from where you were born to where you live today. What’s your backstory?

I was born in KL and my family moved to Penang when I was a little kid. So I am very much a Penang-nite.

My first occupation was as a sportsman. I did Karate and represented the national team from 16 to 22 years old. While competing for the country, I also completed my Bachelors in Business Management (Part-time study).

My best achievements are Sea Games Gold Medal and Asia Karate Federation Bronze Medalist.

What attracted you and how did you get into real estate?

Believe it or not, my mum insisted I give real estate a go. (I'm not Mummys Boy*).

I started off attending weekly meetings at Reapfield Properties in the year 2011 and slowly I build my love for real estate.

It took me 11 months to close my first rental deal.

You focus on both sales and the rental markets. As a real-estate agent which do you prefer and why?

A lot of realtors prefer doing only sales because rental is a tedious process. There is so much work to follow up on in rental deals.

I believe doing both is the proper way to go. Owners will appreciate the realtors who rent their property and probably forgets the realtors who sold them the unit.

So if you want to be relational instead of transactional with your client, handling rental and sales both are equally important as a full-time realtor.

When we moved to Penang we were surprised by differences in how fees were paid to agents and landlords, could you outline the typical fees involved?

Basically, the law states that our professional fees are paid by whoever hired our services regardless of whether it's a tenant or landlord.

So having two realtors co-broking (working with one another to close a deal) each represents their own respective parties to collect their own professional fees.

However, having said that, Penang and a few other states up north and south Malaysia have a culture where they collect professional fees from both parties from landlord and tenant.

Many expats have reported having frequent issues with Landlords and getting deposits back. To date, we have had no issues with getting our deposits back (thanks to you), but what can tenants do to ensure they get deposits back?

In my 10 years of experience in this industry, I have never come across any landlord taking advantage of Tenants deposit in Penang.

The most I’ve encountered is Landlords deducting off tenants' security deposit MORE than what is fair to reinstate the property back to its original condition.

It is really difficult to manage wear and tear expectations from different parties. Each has its own perspective. Hence the key to avoiding this pitfall is for me to mediate ALL the expectations of wear and tear at the beginning of the lease during the handover.

These days there are videos and clearer pictures as supporting documents to be attached in the inventory which makes our life easier.

I am always amazed at how poor many of the pictures of properties are. Why do most agents make what appears to be little effort with property listings?

It's gradually improving. Trust me, I’ve seen worse those days.

Our phones have those wide-angle capabilities and one of the best features now is that the phone automatically adjusts the lighting of outdoor and indoor all in one picture on the spot.

Those days I have to take one picture that is bright inside to see all the furniture indoors and another picture focusing outside the view which will black out the interior and combine both pictures together to make it perfect.

I have also started videography home tours two years ago when the pandemic hits us. I was watching a lot of videos of other successful realtors from New York, the US, the UK, Australia, and Singapore and I notice that home tour videos are the way to go.

I am still trying to improve myself and you may visit all my home tour videos of Penang on YouTube.

What are some of the tricks that less professional agents use to market properties in Malaysia?

The number one trick commonly used here is the fake listings being posted at all the property portals such as PropertyGuru, I-property, and others.

You see 100 available listings newly posted in this particular development but in actual fact, only 5 listings are genuinely available in the market.

It is a method to fish potential tenants and buyers to other properties and other listings that the realtor wants to sell/rent.

How have you seen the real estate market change in the last 5-years?

The real estate market in Penang has been in a slump for the past 5 years. It is definitely a buyers/tenants market because there is too much property being developed in Penang (Oversupply!) The market is quite balanced at the moment, and things are picking up pretty well.

For example, if your looking for a 4-5 bedder to rent in the North section of Penang, Tg Tokong, Bungah, Gurney, or Batu Ferringhi, the inventory is seriously running low!

What differentiates real estate agents today and what’s make you stand out from the others?

In the six years of competing in Karate competitions at a regional level, I have learned to put in hard work and determination to bring home medals for the country. And today, even with a switch in career, I carry with me these same values and commitment that have helped me excel in the real estate industry.

With over 10 years of experience under my belt as a realtor, I have certainly grown tremendously.

I strive to conduct my business with respect, integrity, and honor. I will not hesitate to do justice to nasty Tenants or Landlords who take advantage of one another.

But truly, what sets me apart is the commitment to my clients, which results in excellent after-sales service. Terima Kasih 😀