A veteran’s perspective~ Sharing based solely on my own experience~
People usually only believe what they want to see~ If you want to enter the real estate brokerage industry, this article will be important to you. If you’re only here to expose flaws, you can leave.
1. In the real estate brokerage industry, there is a guaranteed base salary, and the bonuses are also pretty good. With 10 years of experience, my bonus reached as high as 60% (however, bonuses are not absolutely tied to seniority—if you have the ability, you can reach the cap within one year).
2. Transaction security is taken seriously. In addition to transaction-performance guarantees, the company also purchases “professional liability insurance” to protect clients’ rights and interests. I personally pay great attention to detail, so problems don’t arise, but clients really value this insurance.
3. Every year, the company spends a lot of money on marketing. Recently, they’re even holding a Porsche raffle. If you’re interested, you can come find me.
4. Lots of time off~ I’m not making this up. I used to think salespeople didn’t get holidays, but here the annual leave is almost always 8–9 days every year. I heard this is so colleagues from central and southern Taiwan can go home and properly celebrate the New Year... Every month, besides the regular days off, there are also two family days. Women also get menstrual leave (I don’t). There is also special leave... I think I have 15 days~ I forgot~ I usually use it up by traveling abroad, and basically I’ve never found it insufficient.
4. Colleagues have very good relationships with one another. This is quite important to me. We’re in sales; if our relationships were bad, we’d have to compete for results at work while also scheming against each other and poaching one another’s clients—that would be exhausting.
5. You can make your dreams come true. Everyone’s dreams are different, but at this company, I think most dreams can more or less be realized. I won’t say you can get rich quickly here or achieve financial freedom at 35. But I have genuinely seen many people at the company achieve “the five blessings” (career, wealth, children, a spouse, and longevity).
6. Training resources—training is truly important in this industry. Training for newcomers can shorten the time you spend finding your way. When the market is bad, it can help you get through difficult times; when the market is good, it can help you accurately seize opportunities.
7. Every week, they send organic vegetables to everyone... but I never eat them—I take them to use for public relations.
Finally~ Job seeking = talent seeking. People looking for sales jobs mostly hope to escape a fixed salary and pursue financial freedom. But in return, you definitely need to have some awareness of what you’re getting into. I recently met a junior colleague: when I asked him to canvass the neighborhood, he complained that it was tiring, and all day he only wanted to sit in front of a computer looking for clients... If you have that mindset too, then as someone who’s been through it, I advise you not to come. Of all those people on stage earning over 1 million a month, which one built their results by sitting in an office? Don’t be foolish, okay? Technology is an aid, not a replacement for doing the work yourself.
Also, there are many temptations in this industry. If you want to take an unorthodox route, don’t come—you’ll get yourself arrested and imprisoned, and the company won’t let you join either.
1. Strict—is that a disadvantage? Not to me, but it might be for some people.
2. Busy—it’s genuinely very busy, and the better your performance, the busier you get. It’s easy to gain weight without noticing.
3. You have to keep attending classes—you may find it hard to imagine how many classes we have to take, especially some of the economic analysis courses, which involve so many numbers. There are also regulations: whenever new regulations take effect, we have to catch up. This year’s new hires even have to take ESG classes. They’re already obviously very busy, but the day before yesterday they were also dragged off to clean up a beach, leaving their faces bright red from the sun. Still, I’m actually quite envious of them—it feels like they went on a fantastical adventure. If you’re interested, go take a look for yourself: https://www.dcard.tw/f/realtor/p/253398697
In the end~ If you genuinely like it, everything is good; advantages and disadvantages are two sides of the same coin.
For example, last year’s year-end raffle was for two Teslas: one for a client and one for a salesperson. This year, they’re raffling off only one “Porsche,” but salespeople aren’t eligible. Not only can we not win, salespeople are explicitly forbidden from participating in the raffle... I almost put my old apartment up for sale just for a chance at it ><
Five stars for ESG! Five stars for a real estate agency that plants trees!
People who lack ambition will spend their whole lives complaining about work!
You have to wear a suit throughout the training period, and the dress code is very strict.
1. The response after submitting my résumé was very quick.
2. The explanation during the interview was very detailed.
3. One of the few real estate agencies that provides labor and health insurance.
1. After the interview, you have to wait for training.
2. There is no pay during the training period, but the licensing course is free.
3. The course schedule is very intensive and requires some stamina. However, one day is set aside to visit their development projects in Kansai and have a meal; that day is very relaxed.
Close to an MRT station
The company office is fairly new
They issue silent cards
They may also not be very clear about the direction they want to take
Um... I don't know
It feels no different from multilevel marketing
They kept saying how great Taiwan Realty is
The interview process felt disrespectful
It seems to depend on the person; I was eliminated in the second interview
It feels VERY unpleasant!
The Taoyuan-Hsinchu company’s directly operated branches have a very large age gap, with very few young people. Young people should help the older employees more! Those who can accept taking leave in name but actually working, and who used to have enough capital to play around, should do sales; those who need regular working hours should be secretaries or assistants. Recently, assistants even have the happy task of washing vegetables! 😂 I almost died laughing.
Want to experience ancient traditions? Come join us!
It’s extremely traditional; I completely agree!
How long until you received the interview notification:
3 days
Interview language:
Chinese
Was there a written test:
An intelligence test, plus a bunch of essays, reflections, and self-introduction
Was there a second interview:
Yes
Overall interview duration:
More than 3 hours
How long after the interview until you received a response:
1 day
Were you hired:
Hired
Interview question:
Q. Why did you choose our company?
I want to make money and achieve financial freedom. Since it is a directly operated company, quality is guaranteed.
Interview process
For the first interview, the location you apply to may coordinate with headquarters, or you may go to a branch yourself to fill out the application materials. If successful, you are notified of the intake group and report for the second interview (intelligence test and self-introduction). After passing, you immediately begin training (one week for back-office positions; three weeks for sales positions, including the salesperson certification exam). During this period: 1. No pay; 2. No transportation subsidy; 3. Lunch boxes and a few small snacks are provided; 4. The company subsidizes the salesperson certification exam. None of these matters are explained clearly; you only find out after experiencing them.
Suggestions
If you want to join, prepare some savings first. It is more or less like working for a private company: the company only subsidizes half of the advertising costs, branch miscellaneous expenses are supported by the sales staff, who each pay NT$1,500 per month, 5% of the welfare fund is deducted every month, and expenses such as transcripts are handled just like at a private company—you request them yourself and pay whatever amount is charged. Uniform costs are about NT$6,000 for winter and NT$4,000 for summer; the amount is deducted first and only refunded after one year of employment. The salary is NT$30,000 for high school graduates. For the first nine months after graduating from university, the advertised salary is NT$50,000, but conditions are attached: if you do not meet them within three months, you sign a voluntary salary reduction to NT$21,000.
If a new employee who has not yet become a regular employee closes a deal, they receive a sales bonus from the 5% service fee; after becoming a regular employee, it is 10%. If the service fee reaches higher tiers that month, the bonus percentage increases, up to a maximum of 50%. Therefore, the main focus is usually on waiting for a big deal, but small deals are easier to close, so you need to consider this for yourself.
After joining, all information is announced only through the secretary. It is often difficult to understand what is going on. If the secretary does not help advocate for you, the answers you often get are, “That’s company policy,” “That’s what the supervisor said,” or “You’re paid by the company, so that’s how it is.” The company provides an email account, but you do not receive information sent directly to sales staff; it is only used to communicate with clients and send and receive payroll documents. It is a very traditional company, and information is often outdated or requires asking around. Another thing that is the same as at a private company is that you have to prepare your own computer. If a supervisor wants you to spend additional money on other advertising or platforms yourself, and you show reluctance or point out that the company already deducts quite a lot every month, you may be told, “You’re investing in yourself—are you unwilling to do even that?”
Additional note: You often have to ask about the systems and resources yourself, and things are not taught very clearly. Also, please prepare some savings first to get through the initial period! As the company says, all of the above is an investment in yourself. Personally, I think it is no different from multi-level marketing. However, if you have no other choice, you can treat it as a sales training center with a base salary. After all, it is better than some options, though not as good as others.