IEA Western Cape elects Anne Porter and Sanjeev Booyjoonauth



ANNE PORTER, newly appointed chairwoman of the Institute of Estate Agents in the Western Cape, says her main aim will be to continue to strive for excellence in the profession through training and to empower people through learning to have the confidence to excel. "I have always believed that knowledge is the key to success. The institute has played an important part in my development as an agent and in the development of the company. It was the only body which offered any form of training and was the first body to offer a qualification in real estate," Porter said. "I was fortunate enough to do one of the first exam courses offered and have continuously upgraded my knowledge and that of my agents through the education training opportunities available through the institute. "I have been involved with the institute for most of my property career and have served on both area committees and on the regional and national boards." Porter, director of Anne Porter Properties, says she became involved in the property industry by chance. "In 1973 I was looking for a part-time job and had found nothing that interested me. Having a degree and a secretarial qualification seemed to intimidate most potential employers, so I decided to answer an ad for estate agents and see what was involved. Little did I realise that my part-time job would require a seven-day-a-week 24-hour-a-day commitment! "I was very fortunate and sold my first house in the first week and discovered this job gave me the ability to utilise my skills and initiative that no other job could possibly offer. Every day was exciting and a challenge. "Property became a passion and the thrill of matching clients to property and negotiating a successful sale has never diminished," Porter said. "After 10 years as an agent, I felt that the time was right to open my own agency and in 1983 established Anne Porter Properties as a company specialising in the southern suburbs. The company is today one of the largest in the southern suburbs with four specialist divisions - residential sales, residential letting, commercial sales and letting and a separate company specialising in the sale of farms. The new vice-chairman of the institute in the Western Cape, Sanjeev Boyjoonauth, says his aim and vision is to promote and grow the institute as "hugely as possible" in terms of membership by offering the non-members reason enough to be a member of the institute. "Since my involvement with IEASA from July 2000 my passion has been to help promote the institute and helping my colleagues in the field to get on board." Twenty-seven-year-old Boyjoonauth, who hails from Mauritius, arrived in Cape Town in July 1994 and taught French for three months until he got into real estate in December 1994. He worked as a property consultant with Rabi & Rabi Properties and became the top salesperson for the company for 1995 and 1996. "In 1997, I decided to make a move and registered as a principal estate agent and traded under the name Oasis Homes Property Consultants." The first office of Oasis Homes was opened in 1998. In February 2000 he opened the Wynberg branch and in March 2001 the Kuils River branch. "My aim is to franchise Oasis Homes Property Consultants by the end of 2003," said Boyjoonauth. Article: The Weekend Argus: Property supplement - 13 October 2002 GRAHAM NORRIS - Property Editor