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Independent agent returns to franchise

By Lyall Russell
17 February 2020 | 10 minute read
Lorraine Young reb

After more than a decade navigating real estate as an independent agency, Lorraine Young has rejoined the franchise she left.

Ms Lorraine Young owned and operated LJ Hooker Kellyville for 11 years up until 2007, then she decided to transition to an independent agency.

As technology became more of a central focus for real estate agents, she decided it was time to return to the brand she left.

“When you are a sole trader, you don’t have access to the latest technology, unless you have someone on your team who is into that stuff,” she told REB. “You tend to miss out.”

With more than 30 years’ experience in the industry, she has noticed how technology has changed the way real estate is done, which is why she rejoined LJ Hooker.

She instantly noticed the benefit of the support, with the brand’s senior network development manager, Jerome Smith, spending a week at the franchise to create a smooth transition.

The office also has a growing property portfolio, which is up against fierce competition as more people decide to manage property independently.

“One of the big problems with business is in the older days people would use agents to sell their products. Now they don’t; a lot of developers are doing their own property management as well,” she said.

“These days, developers think they can do it themselves.”

But when they have a problem, that is when the brand helps as people turn to the well-known franchise for help.

Ms Young said most of the time, people who try to manage their properties are not familiar with the Tenancy Act and new laws property managers need to be familiar with.

“We are going to the REI roadshow because you need to know what changes are happening.”

Ms Young acknowledges her strength shines when it comes time to selling property and managing a business, but she is not the best at recruiting salespeople, which is when the support at LJ Hooker comes in handy.

“Jerome has been recruiting salespeople for me,” she said. “Hookers has been able to help me find great candidates.”

She knows she is not able to be an expert in every part of running a real estate business, which is why she turned back to LJ Hooker for that support.

“You can’t be great at everything,” Ms Young said.

Independent agent returns to franchise
Lorraine Young reb
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