The founder of Unity Realty, Dato Cat Chee, traces her journey from debt to entrepreneurship and speaks about her company’s future.

She is one of the first female figures in the real estate industry to earn the honorific title of “Datuk” – she is known for being full of passion and fighting spirit – and she goes by the name of Dato Cat Chee.

Seven years ago, she was heavily loaded with debt and worked as an operator of a clothing store and pet shop. Seeing few other choices, and in order to amortise her credit card debt, she became a real estate agent.

Her hard work and spirit made her stand out among other real estate brokers in the country – and her performance was overwhelming. In the first month, Dato Cat Chee sold more than ten units of a new project and earned the first sizable income in her life.

She put in considerable effort into becoming a leader in the industry, she became an entrepreneur in the property industry. Despite her considerable personal effort, she attributes the organisation’s success and growth to team effort.

“Gratitude is from the heart, manifested in behaviour, and one should always be grateful to parents, family, friends, partners, and teammates. No one who has done anything for you or has taught you anything should be taken for granted. Everyone needs to be grateful for those who give you opportunity, because only those who are grateful will be successful in the future,” says Dato Cat Chee.

Personal Ambitions

While Dato Cat Chee believes that she does not have much personal ambition as a woman – she only hopes that her family remains healthy without having to worry about anything – as a leader, she always reminds herself that even if she cannot meet her objectives with absolute perfection, she should not allow herself to give up on trying.

In a testament to her personal beliefs, she is still actively cultivating her knowledge and experience in the real estate field and is constantly seeking to help those working in the same industry. She maintains that as a leader, she has the responsibility to continue moving forward to build a bigger platform, to enable her team to become stronger in the future.

Facing Challenges

Regarding challenges to the pursuit of personal ambitions, Dato Cat Chee says: “a person will always have an opportunity to succeed if they have dreams – but situations change and sometimes plans do not keep up with those changes.”

Entrepreneurs inevitably encounter challenges that are vastly different for employees – but she has always faced problems with a positive attitude. Dato Cat Chee often remarks, “If we are able to face the challenge, then we will grow up faster.” She believes that this is also a necessary attitude for real estate agents as they must be able to withstand unforeseen setbacks.

About Unity Realty

Unity Realty Sdn. Bhd. was the realisation of a dream that Dato Cat Chee has held for as long as she has been operating in the real estate market. Unity Realty was built on the values of honesty and fairness, and its customers can be sure that its agents will be truthful, trustworthy, and have their best interests at heart. Customer satisfaction is of the highest priority to Unity Realty.

StarProperty's Assistant General Manager Ernest Towle presenting Dato Cat Chee with Unity Realty's Rising Star Agency Trophy at the 2018 StarProperty.my Real Estate Awards at the New World Hotel in Petaling Jaya. IZZRAFIQ ALIAS / The Star. October 10, 2018.

Founded in 2016, Unity Realty specialises in all sectors of the real estate market and assists customers in both the buying and selling of property. Since its beginning, it has seen incredible growth. Its sales rose to a record high of 4,819 units with a combined Gross Development Value (GDV) of RM 2.81 billion in 2017. For the year of 2018, Unity Realty was responsible for transactions amounting to a total of 8,043 units with a combined GDV of RM 4.022 billion.

The most emphasised values for Unity Realty are systematisation and transparency. Whether in the maintenance of internal discipline or in the processing of transactions for clients, Unity Realty’s negotiators are trained to clearly explain every detail and not to trade in vague and misleading statements.

Strengths of Unity Realty

“In Unity Realty, the most important thing is not only the performance of the team, but also the mentality of the whole team. ‘Psychology determines success or failure’. A person who has a good attitude is one who can stand in front of others with a positive mindset,” explains Dato Cat Chee.

“Currently, we have agents from different ages and backgrounds. You could imagine that this is a huge challenge in management – and as a result, the cultivation of leaders is our top priority.

“We have long-term intermediary consultants, all of them possess rich professional real estate and legal knowledge, familiarity with the transaction process, and exemplary service attitudes, and they do their best to provide customers with comprehensive information and professional advice to ensure that customers can make the right choices and decisions.

Dato Cat Chee (centre) and team members of Unity Realty Sdn Bhd during the 2018 Star Property.my Real Estate Awards at the New World Hotel in Petaling Jaya.

“We believe that teams that operate with ‘one team, one heart’ are too few and far between. It is rare when a team has clarity of their purpose, values, strategies, and goals. Without that clarity, team members can feel isolated. Their unique interpretation of what they are supposed to do, and how they’re supposed to do it, will vary widely.”

Personal targets for 2019

“My primary target this year is to achieve RM5 billion in sales. This year, we target to have 150 team leaders. To achieve this, we will continue to cultivate more leaders in teams and train new agents to become future leaders. We will also be looking forward to bringing in more projects and working hard to improve in every area,” says Dato Cat Chee.

“Many people told me that RM5 billion is not an achievable figure. But I would say this is not a dream, it is a reality and a fact that will happen. In Unity Realty, dreams are not marginal. If you dare to think about it, there will be a day of realisation, because there is an entire team which works as a family.

“Every two months, we will be donating to charity and helping others who need help. This year we will still do the same to support the needy. I hope our charitable donations can inspire more people to support the needy by way of donations and doing charity work. I believe our charity work has the potential to change someone’s life and enable a better future for the younger generation.

“Besides, we are starting to expand our business overseas by extending our project to Melbourne, Australia. We will have more projects coming soon to suit different customer needs. I hope that Unity will have more helping hands able to stay with the company and work together to achieve new highs.”

Read about other real estate negotiators, visit Propwall.my on Facebook to stay informed, read more about Dato Cat Chee's insights into the property market in 2019 – or her six habits of highly successful team leaders.