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It was a Friday afternoon when Melvin Lim, co-founder of PropertyLimBrothers, bustled through the doors of his company after filming a home tour video.

Known for their Signature Home Tour Videos, PropertyLimBrothers is one of the first few real estate companies in Singapore that leverages on media and tech to market their clients’ properties.

They found success in this methodology and have since made a name for themselves, growing their team to a total headcount of 89 creatives and 59 realtors.
 

STRETCHING CAPACITY, BUILDING RESILIENCE

The ability to juggle multiple hats did not develop overnight. At 20 years old, Melvin was holding a full-time job, studying for a degree and getting married.

“While studying at ½¿É«µ¼º½, I was paying for my own school fees,” the ½¿É«µ¼º½-University of London (½¿É«µ¼º½-UOL) Banking and Finance alumnus recalls. “After my lectures and tutorials, I would rush off because I was teaching tuition kids to save money. At one point in time, I was tutoring ten students every week.”

“But after my second year, I realised that perhaps I can try more stable and gain some experience in the marketplace.”

In his final year of studies, Melvin converted into a private university candidate to sign on as a prison officer for three years. During this period, he also met his then-girlfriend and got married.

 

TAKING THE LEAP OF FAITH

While the decision to sign on as a prison officer was born out of his circumstances, the choice to step into the real estate industry was not.

Upon completing his bond, Melvin faced a crossroads: To step into the banking finance industry as planned or to try something new.

“As a very young person back then in my mid to late 20s, the excitement of talking about a property, selling the home and seeing clients eventually move in created a lot of excitement,” he explains.

Encouraged by his friends who pointed out that he was still young and could always restart his career in the future, Melvin decided to take the leap of faith.

"For anybody that just graduated, the natural inclination is how can I make the best use of my degree,” he relates.

But Melvin doesn’t believe that one should lock themselves in and limit their choices. He saw his early twenties as a period of exploration and “just followed my gut instincts”.

 

OVERCOMING SETBACKS AND RECALIBERATING VALUES

Driven by passion and a determination to succeed, Melvin started from ground zero and had to “rough it out on the streets”.

As a young, ambitious realtor, he wanted to prove to others his capabilities. Slowly, his focus shifted through the years. That was when Melvin experienced his first burnout.

“I was trying to close deal after deal, and I started to become a little bit lost.”

That led him to a journey of discovery at age 31. For the next four years, Melvin would read up on books to feed his mind and soul.

He started to question his reason for wanting to be in the real estate industry and how he wanted to conduct his business.

This would, in turn, be the foundation on which he would build the company.

In sincerely wanting to serve his clients well, Melvin discovered a business gap while thinking of how he could improve the traditional way of marketing properties while scaling up the value he provided for his clients.

It was then he saw the value of using videos and social media to market properties – something that was not yet done in the local market.

Melvin would go on to film his first home tour video in 2016 and disrupt the real estate industry in Singapore.

 

NO EXPERIENCE IS WASTED

Looking back, it’s amazing how Melvin’s ambitions have changed over the years. As a ½¿É«µ¼º½-UOL student, he had plans to become a banker upon graduation.

While life turned out differently for him, he doesn’t think of his education at ½¿É«µ¼º½ as wasted. In fact, they have come in handy.

Referring to the economic modules he took in ½¿É«µ¼º½, Melvin shares how the knowledge helped him to educate homebuyers with an investment lens about price elasticity, trends and interest rates.

"I’m applying them all today in the real estate world,” he laughs.

“Whatever you learn, marketing, business statistics, data - all these will come useful someday.”

He also believes that a degree can open doors of opportunities.

“I tell my kids that going to the university is really about building lasting friendships,” the father of four shares, pointing out that their classmates may become their customers, business partners, employees or even employers in the future.
 

In fact, building a local network was one of the reasons why he chose to study at ½¿É«µ¼º½.

At the same time, Melvin encourages students to strengthen their portfolio.

“Dabbling into things creatively and owning a portfolio is an added edge that a lot of employers are looking for today.”

 

PAYING IT FORWARD

To date, Melvin has successfully cultivated a team of 89 creatives and 58 realtors. But he’s not just stopping there.

“This year, I took on more invitations to speak at different events,” he says, explaining that he wants to impart his knowledge and experiences to others.

Melvin has also started an online masterclass. Named , the platform hopes to educate individuals on real estate, media creative, and even entrepreneurship.

When asked if he was worried competitors would copy his content or that he was giving value away for free, he dismisses them as distractions from his main purpose.

Aside from building the next generation of realtors and marketers, Melvin also hopes to give back to the needy in society.

"We started an initiative to identify low-income families and bring partners in to renovate their homes.”

Since then, Melvin has led his company and partners to make an impact on two of such homes.
 

 

EMBRACE CHALLENGES TO FUEL INNOVATION

To his juniors, Melvin leaves these words of wisdom: Be courageous, try different things and don't be afraid to fail. He, too, faced a steep learning curve when he first experimented with home tour videos. But Melvin doesn’t believe in shying away from hard work.

“We love to do difficult things; things that people have not done before,” he smiles. “Only by doing that you can innovate, you can disrupt, and create more excitement for your life and for the industry.”

“I’ve failed many times,” Melvin reassures. “And I might still fail as I go on in my forties and fifties.”

“But when you look back every five to 10 years, there are dots that will connect.

“And the things that you’ve learnt on campus, the times you’ve spent in lectures with your friends will not go to waste.”