Yung-Ching Realty: Bringing Speed Dating to Real Estate

“Rented already!” Those looking for a place to live can’t help but feel frustrated when they see the rented sign pasted on the front door of an apartment. Today, one need only open the Yung-­Ching rental app to see with a smart phone which apartments are still available. When the sun is scorching and the thought of going outside elicits a distinct lack of enthusiasm, don’t worry: just open the rental speed-dating app to check out videos of available properties. It’s almost like being there in person. To find a home, you needn’t expose yourself to the weather.... These new services have enabled Yung-­Ching Realty to garner seven service awards in the first half of this year alone!

In the vast housing market, how does one begin a search for a home? Yung-Ching provides comprehensive services that meet the needs of its customers, whether they want to rent, buy, sell or price real estate.

Honors like these don’t come easily. In 2003 Yung-­Ching began to invest heavily in innovation, launching the first real-estate “speed-dating” service, which allowed members of the public to peruse videos of apartments online.

The development was connected to the outbreak of SARS. Due to fears about contagion, Yung-­Ching branches throughout Taiwan were suffering. Only its Tai­pei Da’an branch was able to maintain steady client numbers.

Curious, Yung-­Ching chairman Sun ­Ching-yu came to the branch to figure out why. It turned out that its agents were taking videos of homes so that customers could filter options by looking at the videos. The reduction of contact between buyers and sellers proved very popular.

Praising their initiative, Sun decided to transfer the practice to all Yung-­Ching Realty branches throughout Taiwan, spending NT$18 million to shoot 10,000 properties. It was a true innovation in the industry.

Yung-­Ching became the first real estate company anywhere in the world to use videos. As many as 80% of online listings have videos attached.

“Real estate services advance in stages, with innovations to meet customer needs always triggering the next advance,” says Yung-­Ching president Benson Liao. Traditionally, there has been unequal access to information in the industry, with agents knowing more than buyers and sellers. Once access to information opened to all, customers became very interested in learning about prevalent market prices.

Consequently, in 2007 Yung-­Ching put selling price information on its website even before the ROC government launched its real-estate transaction database. Previously, when there was a wide gap between buyers’ and sellers’ expectations, agents would spend a lot of time mediating. Negotiations became much more efficient with sales price information openly available.

After actively pushing digitalization, Yung-­Ching now offers real-estate matchmaking services to bring appropriate buyers and sellers together. By entering preferred locations, surrounding areas, installed appliances and other customizable criteria, customers are able to look at homes that match what they’re looking for after a wait of just a few seconds. “We have more than the most offerings,” says Liao. “We give customers a better chance of finding a good match.” It’s a set of services that others in the industry haven’t yet been able to copy.

As Liao describes it, real-estate agents are “matchmakers,” bringing two parties that are the best fit together and getting them to see eye to eye. “There’s no best purchase or sale,” he says. “Only the most suitable purchase or sale.”

Now that the era of mobile communications has arrived, integrating the virtual and real worlds has become an important part of Yung-Ching Realty’s service.

In 2010 Yung-­Ching established the House­Fun website, which combines features on local news, interior design, rental services and home living. It targets groups with spending potential.

Unlike typical real-estate websites, HouseFun has all along been an “open platform,” allowing anyone to post there—even competitors. Liao points out that under the traditional model of house purchasing, agent interaction with the buyer and seller would last six months at most, but House­Fun keeps buyers, renters and owners coming back by meeting all their real-estate needs. “It has quietly been building trust in Yung-­Ching,” he says. “As soon as users have a housing-related need, they naturally come in and see us.”

Even if operating costs run to more than NT$100 million per year, the site has helped to bring in more than 70% of the company’s new clients. Adapting to mobile communications trends, Yung-­Ching has also launched a smartphone app that lets landlords post photos of residences as soon as they shoot them. It has greatly simplified the renting process.

“The technology isn’t difficult, and competitors have been quick to copy it,” says Liao. “But the important thing is precisely meeting users’ needs.” In order to provide customers with attentive service, Yung-­Ching has established an internal “innovation committee” chaired by Sun ­Ching-yu. Every Tuesday he meets with the top executives of the nine divisions of the company, including the president and vice presidents, to brainstorm.

Liao explains that to encourage innovation, Yung-­Ching has put on competitions among its workers to make innovative suggestions. Yet it is often hard to bring focus to the thoughts of front-line workers. Currently, most innovations are working their way from the top down. The weekly brainstorming sessions cover topics ranging from the adoption of new technologies to the latest industry trends overseas.

Integrating digital technology and cloud-based platforms, Yung-Ching Realty has turned looking for a home into a simple and easy experience.

Even though its use of technology is constantly evolving, service is at the core of what Yung-­Ching provides. Recently, Yung-­Ching has produced a film about providing caring service that was based on a true story.

At Yung-Ching’s National Taiwan University branch a woman came in and asked a few questions before wandering off. The sales staff thought nothing of it and didn’t follow up. A few days later, an agent ran into her when showing a house and after a long chat got to know the nature of her situation.

It turned out that she had divorced as a young woman and in order to make a living had had to entrust the care of her children to a relative living in Tai­chung’s Feng­yuan. Getting on in years, she now wanted to sell her place in Tai­pei and buy a home in Tai­chung to be near her children. But her home was in poor shape, so she wouldn’t be able to get much for it. And since she had lived apart from her children for such a long time, there were many misunderstandings between them. The circumstances gave her pause, and she couldn’t make up her mind whether or not to sell.

Once the agent knew her story, he used his own days off to accompany her on several trips to Tai­chung. Eventually he helped her find a home there that met her fancy. He was both helping the woman find a buyer and also helping her to buy a new home. He negotiated with the seller in Tai­chung and was able to bring the asking price down. After several meetings, they were finally able to conclude the sale. The agent even visited the woman’s children, helping the family to bridge their differences.

Liao explains that even now that mobile communications have become an entrenched part of the industry, the service provided by bricks-and-mortar stores is still important. Integrating the virtual and real worlds will become an important service focus in the next wave of industry developments.

In recent years Taiwan’s real-estate ecology has been transformed. Instead of 20-somethings, first-time buyers are now typically pushing 40. With low birthrates and an ageing population, the provision of accessible environments for the silver-haired set is growing in importance. Consequently, Yung-­Ching has set up a special department to serve the elderly, and has helped design accessible environments for people aged 0–99. Meanwhile, the company has moved beyond its role as a real-estate agent to provide comprehensive services that meet the needs of its customers—whether they want to rent, buy, sell or price real estate. Yung-­Ching staff have moved from being agents to being consultants.

In just over a decade the number of Yung-­Ching branches has grown from 40 to 1020. To grow to 25 times its former size, the company has relied on innovative technologies and considerate services that help buyers and sellers to speed date successfully.