Who enjoys admin?

OK, by show of hands, who knows an estate agent who enjoys administration, finances, systems, personnel matters and compliance? Anybody? It’s well-known that most agents prefer doing listing presentations to get sell-able listings, handling negotiations and other exciting things. But admin, finances, regulation, systems and compliance? No.

Luckily there are those rare people in property who are able to professionally take care of those very important business functions. They are few and far between. In most businesses they have titles like Chief Operating Officer, Finance Manager, Business Administrator, Compliance Manager etc. In Keller Williams we officially call this person the Market Centre Administrator (MCA), but many just refer to her as our MC Angel.

At KW Eden we are lucky to have one of the best MC Angels in the business.

There are angels on earth

Wondering what the fuss is about, Annemarie Terblanche is actually the MCA of two Keller Williams Market Centres, KW Eden in George in the Garden Route,  and KW Scenic based in Hermanus, covering the whole Overberg and Overstrand region.

Before acquiring the Keller Williams sub-licenses in the Garden Route and Overberg together with her husband, Deon, Annemarie spent more than a decade building their independent estate agency group in the Garden Route. After a successful career guiding estate agents to become successful in letting and selling property, Annemarie and Deon and their partners, Okkie and Annetjie Terblanche, decided to go even bigger and joined forces with Keller Williams.

From an inauspicious start from a small little office in Mossel Bay, Annemarie honed her administration, finance, human resources and operations skills as their independent agency grew from one office to multiple offices with a number of busy estate agents.

Everybody is in sales

The property and sales industries are not new to Annemarie as her very first job was as a sales associate for a company in Gauteng that sold devices to households to save electricity. Shen then moved on to sell spa bathtubs for a few months. Talk about gaining sales experience in the trenches!

“My very first experience in the sales environment forced me to prepare presentations, do cold calling and door knocking. It really allowed me develop my skills with people and direct client contact. It was during this time I realised that you can really do anything you put your mind to. I was a shy 18-year old and this was my first job after school. I had no other choice and decided to just go with it, be as prepared as possible and know my product inside out. That way you will never be caught fumbling for the right words when a client asks questions. Preparation is key.”

She continues, “My husband and I were the very first agents of our independent agency. We had to list properties, sit in show houses, handle client communication and run a business. At the same time we were new to the business and the area, and this was all against the backdrop of the implosion of the world economy from 2008. It drilled the importance of doing the basics well into me!”

Background and vision

Annemarie has a diploma in Conveyancing Practice and worked for law firms in Gauteng for a period of two years. She then accepted a position as commercial letting manager where she managed over 500 micro, small and medium retail stores. It was during this time that she met her husband Deon and they decided to quit their jobs and start their own business.

Over the past 11 years, Annemarie has obtained theoretical and practical skills in sales, management, operations, compliance, human resources and financial management and all other aspects of the real estate industry such as sales, letting, investment properties, commercial leases and conveyancing.

Annemarie obtained her real estate licence in 2008 and completed her NQF4 qualification in 2010. Since then she wrote her Professional Designation Examination and is a fully qualified Professional Practitioner in Real Estate.

“In my leadership role in Keller Williams and as my team grows, I will get more involved in the coaching and training of estate agents. With more than a decade of property experience under my belt, I have a lot of knowledge to share and would love to contribute more to the professional development of our associates. In Keller Williams we have a saying, ‘It’s not what you get at KW, it’s what you become'”.

Taking care of agents’ pressing business needs

As MCA of KW Eden, Annemarie makes sure that KW Eden’s associates has access to the tools, systems, marketing material and training they require to run their real estate businesses. She is also ultimately responsible for commission payments to agents, which makes her very popular!

“My team and I see to it that our associates are on-boarded, equipped, compliant, paid and productive. We handle service providers of the Market Centre, the South African Revenue Services, the EAAB and the Financial Intelligence Centre, among others. Sure, you can do it on your own, but at Keller Williams we believe that together we achieve more. If my team and I do our jobs, our associates can do theirs even better and reach much higher goals than if they were on their own or with other smaller agencies.”

She continues, “At Keller Williams we believe in servant leadership. Everybody, from the Operating Principal to the Team Leader to the MCA to the Director of First Impressions to the Associate Leadership Council, we are all there to do more, be more and achieve more for ourselves and each other. It truly is a model that rests on success through others.”

Contact us

If you are interested to discover more about the unique leadership structure of our Market Centre and how it will free you up to focus on what really matters in your business, contact us today for a confidential business consultation.