Meet our City Bowl agents, Mongezi Mevana and Anne Wirtz, who between them have, in the last 12 months,
sold property with a combined value of more than R100 million. An incredible achievement!
Mongezi Mevana
I come from Umlazi, in KZN, where I spent the first 18 years of my life, the youngest of three boys. I had always been interested in working in sales, but was somewhat reluctant to take the plunge, largely due to the sales environment being commission-based and offering less security. However, when I saw the advert in Engel & Volkers City Bowl, inviting new staff to apply, I decided to take a big leap of faith! Regarding my day-to-day job,
and what it entails… well, the one sure thing is that there isn’t, as such, a ‘day-to-day’ as no two days are the same. Every day brings about a different challenge, a different form of excitement, in helping buyers and sellers to realise their next move. There are certainly challenges, most especially that sometimes clients do struggle to make decisions.
Key to my role is understanding that it can be a charged and emotional process, and often not an easy one, so I listen patiently and work with them. My favourite part of the job? I think it is the people, that is really the biggest learning for me, dealing with so many different characters and personalities. Managing expectations, trying to find them exactly what they want. Sitting down, taking time to understand, really just trying to match buyers with the right property for them and assisting sellers in realising the monetary gain of their investment and maybe finding their next home. Helping them, being patient, all of that brings me immense satisfaction. There are difficult moments, but you have to shake those off by reflecting on all the good moments. And in my ten-year career, I really have had many good moments.
What made me smile recently? Well, I have been working with a client for over two years, being patient, staying in touch, and finally that client signed a mandate with me. That really made me smile, work-wise! Personally, my marriage, 18 months ago, makes me smile every day.
And when did I last receive a compliment from a client? I have been working with a remarkable lady, Esther, who is 97. She congratulated me on the service I have offered her, and she told me that she has referred me to other friends and relatives. What made this particularly special to me is that she herself worked very successfully in this industry for over 20 years. You cannot get a better endorsement than that!
My favourite pastime is to relax with family and friends, and I was recently lucky enough to do so in a tranquil Eastern Cape town, Port Alfred. Happy times. My favourite part of the City Bowl is definitely Oranjezicht, as it sits just below the mountain. One of the things I love to do most is to hike Platteklip Gorge - the nature is stunning, it is a great workout, the views are extraordinary.
Anne Wirtz
I grew up in a little village in Germany, close to Cologne, and studied Economics and Tourism. Working for some years in travel and tourism, I met my lovely husband. We both adore travelling and, having spent time in Cape Town, we fell in love with it and decided to move over permanently in 2008 - with our suitcases and our one-and-a-half year-old son! We bought our first property in Gardens, and over a period of time turned it into a
beautiful guesthouse. Our second son was born, and we moved to Vredehoek, which is where we still reside. Our two sons, now teenagers, are at the German School. After managing our guest house for ten years, I decided it was time for a new challenge. I have always loved property, and in my view the real estate business is not just about property, it is a lot about people - and hospitality and real estate definitely have a great deal in common. In both areas of work, you are interacting with people who are looking for outstanding individual service, and you are trying to sell them a unique product.
What do I see as the main challenges of the job? It is a very competitive market, especially in Cape Town, and you constantly have to work on yourself to be the best agent, offer better service, go the extra mile, so your clients can clearly see the advantage of dealing with you. One also needs a lot of patience, and it is important to stay friendly, even in the most challenging moments! My favourite aspects of the job are varied - apart from the properties themselves, it is genuinely interesting to meet so many different people and finding the right buyer for a given property is so satisfying. Personally, I prefer working in the residential market than in investment because it is such a personal journey. It is such a lovely feeling when you sell a family house and end up with a happy seller and a happy family moving into their dream home - truly, it is priceless, to change the life and the world of your clients.
How do I turn a bad day into a good one? I go into nature, I walk on the beach, I enjoy the beauty our city and its surrounds have to offer. Gradually, all the negativity slowly evaporates, and I can turn that bad day into a good day again. Something that really made me smile recently during a viewing, I accompanied my German buyers into a Camps Bay property. The seller had lived there with his wife for many years and kindly conducted the viewing, which was extensive! My clients subsequently said that it felt so much like a key handover that there was no option but to put in an offer, which they duly did - and it has been accepted!
In my precious spare time, I love meeting friends, having a braai, relaxing with my family. And finally, my favourite part of City Bowl is actually the suburb in which we live, Vredehoek. For me it has a European feel - we can walk out of our home and find cafés and shops, and the mountain is our back yard. And I just love not having to get into my car to do anything!
