From juggling four jobs as a single mum to $500m in house sales

In her 11 years as a real estate agent, Fiona Li has sold $500 million worth of property and been in the top 1% of Harcourts agents internationally. She now has her own business, Harcourts Property Ventures in Epsom, Auckland, and life today is a far cry from when she was a single mum juggling four jobs.

Q: What did you do before real estate?

I had several jobs but mostly I was a waiter. I came to New Zealand from China when I was 20 and I found the language very hard. I dreamed of getting a job cleaning a shopping mall. I thought, if I can be a cleaner, I will be very happy. I did end up working for my sister, who had a cleaning business, but I also worked in restaurants.

I’d got married and had a son, but my marriage ended after three years and I was a single mum doing four part-time jobs, including at the Jade Dragon restaurant in Sky City and Hees Garden Restaurant in Mt Eden. I was also studying English for a couple of hours a week and looking after my son Ronan.

The owner at Hees said to me, “Have you thought about doing real estate?” I had found I had a talent for dealing with people. I loved talking with them, and I think that’s why she thought I would be good at real estate. I didn’t know anything about it but I thought I would try it.

Q: What was it like starting out in real estate?

So hard. I got fliers and I walked to deliver them. I knew you had to present yourself well in real estate and you couldn’t wear flat shoes, so I delivered 1000 fliers a day wearing high heels.

Li says she has worked to achieve her success, investing a lot of time in upskilling. Photo / Fiona Goodall

I also did door-knocking. I remember asking someone in Mt Roskill if they were interested in selling their house and they said, “I’m not the owner, the owner is in Wellington.” When I talked to my manager, he laughed and said, “It’s a state house, the owner is Housing New Zealand.” I didn’t know. I had a lot to learn.

Q: How did you get your first listing?

I went to the bank to deposit some cash and got talking to the banker. I said, “I’m a real estate agent, do you know anyone looking to sell their house?” They said, “My mum has a place to sell,” and that’s how I got my first listing. If you don’t ask, you don’t get! I sold it really fast, in just one and a half weeks, and things took off from there.

Q: Why do you think you’ve done so well?

I think because I have always invested time in training and upskilling. You have to know about the property market, and you also have to focus on being the best marketer and negotiator. I worked hard to learn how to do that.

Discover more:

- Radio star Matty McLean sells his Auckland home in under a week

- Revealed: The most expensive street in every Auckland suburb

- Property exec selling her multi-million-dollar waterfront spread

I have a lot of motivation and energy, and that is because I love what I do. I say to people, if you want to be a success in your industry, it is not enough to like it, you have to love it. I love talking to people, I love helping them out.

You have to work hard, you have to be consistent, and you have to stick at it. It takes time to become very good. My dad said to me, “In five years you come to know the job, in 10 years you become the King or Queen of the job.” He was right.

Q: Was it daunting, opening your own business?

Yes. I opened it in January with a business partner, after thinking about it for a few years. I did it because I wanted to give my clients more value. Because I own the business, I can be more flexible. I don’t have to get permission from the business owner or manager because I am the business owner. I can make decisions fast, and I think that has been beneficial for my clients.

Some business owners don’t sell property themselves but I do because that is what I am good at. I pay someone to manage the office so I can focus on selling and also helping out the other agents in the office.

That’s the other reason I wanted my own business: to be able to help people coming into the industry. I like to be able to lead by example and pass on my skills. I love seeing them grow and learn fast. I’ve had people starting on five figures, and quickly they go to six. It is very satisfying seeing their success.

Q: What makes a good real estate agent?

Someone who is professional, who understands the market and selling so they can give their clients good advice and help them to get the best result. You also need to be honest so people can trust you. A lot of sellers have not sold a property before, so they are relying on you. It’s their biggest asset and a big responsibility for the agent.

Q: What do you love about the job?

The people I get to meet, and helping them to move on with their lives. Everyone has a story about why they are selling, and you become part of that. I see all areas of life, I see divorce, I see retirement, I see diseases, and death. Last year, I had four clients who were selling because of health – three were elderly, but one was quite young, and you see that life is short and you have to enjoy it while you can.

Li unwinds by walking her friend's dog. "I would love to have my own dog, but it wouldn’t be fair because I wouldn’t have the time to spend with one." Photo / Fiona Goodall

You have to be able to deal with some emotional things, and you have to be able to keep your clients positive and say, “It’s okay, I’m here, we’ll do this.” It makes me very happy when I am able to help them, and I see how happy they are.

I’m not just a real estate agent; sometimes I am a counsellor, I am a builder, I am a consultant. I am a problem solver, and I enjoy that.

Q: Do you have any particularly memorable sales?

There are a lot of memories, especially when a sale changes people’s lives. I did one for an elderly couple in their 90s who were going to a rest home. It wasn’t a big sale, but I remember it because I liked them so much. It took a while to sell, but when it did, they were very happy to be able to go into the home. A week later, the wife died. It made me realise that you should do things sooner, do not put it off.

I have learned a lot from working in real estate. Even if I look back to when I first started out, I kept thinking I needed to be better at English before I tried to do new things. Actually, that was wrong. I just needed to be brave and go and do it and learn as I went along.

Q: What do you do when you’re not working?

I don’t have a lot of spare time, I work seven days a week. I do try to take some time off in the mornings – I am not an early person – and I like to walk the dog. It is not my dog, it is my friend’s dog. We walk together sometimes but if she doesn’t feel like it I walk him. I would love to have my own dog but it wouldn’t be fair because I wouldn’t have the time to spend with one. This way it is a good deal, I get to walk the dog but don’t have to look after him.

I do a bit of reading and golfing – I go to the driving range. And I enjoy having a sauna and cold spa. When you have had a big day at work, it helps you to release all of your stress and to have a good sleep at night.

- Click here to find properties for sale in Auckland