Could a COVID-19 vaccination become a competitive advantage for agents? Tom Panos seems to think so.
On last week’s episode of Real Estate Exposed, Tom Panos and Phil Tarrant were talking about the realities of “lockdown life” and “doing a lot of stuff that is less dollar-productive” and the considerations that must go into business planning for post-lockdown life.
It was at that point that Mr Panos said: “I’ve got to say… I want to get this out of the way because I’ve had a few emails come to me from people saying, ‘Why am I so pro-vaccine?’
“Let me get this off my chest once and for all. I don’t care whether people get vaccinated or not. I don’t care the decisions that people make privately, that’s their business.
“I simply have said on camera — and I stick by it — that people that are in real estate that are unvaccinated might be having vendors saying, ‘We don’t want you coming to our house unless we can have assurances.’”
Mr Panos expressed that unvaccinated agents must know “this is not an opinion. This is a fact that you’re going to have to learn to live with.”
He acknowledged there will be real estate agents that do turn around and say, “You know what? I can live with that.”
But he also indicated that agents who are willing to get the jab will inevitably have an upper hand.
According to the real estate trainer, it’s those agents — those who are heeding the federal government’s call to have 70 per cent of Australians aged 16-plus vaccinated — who “are looking at every possible competitive advantage in the marketplace”.
“They don’t want to create any barriers for them[selves],” he expressed.
Mr Panos’ comments follow those of Raine & Horne chairman Angus Raine last week.
Raine & Horne “supports the push by governments around Australia to lift vaccination rates by encouraging members of the real estate industry to get immunised”.
Mr Raine stated that “any incentives that may encourage real estate professionals to get vaccinated should be considered”.
“As a highly consumer-oriented industry, we always put our clients’ best interests first, and as such, real estate principals could look at ways to incentivise their teams to get immunised,” he expressed.
You can listen to the full episode of Real Estate Exposed, with Tom Panos and Phil Tarrant, here.
Or watch the recording below.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grace Ormsby
Grace is a journalist across Momentum property and investment brands. Grace joined Momentum Media in 2018, bringing with her a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Communication (Journalism) from the University of Newcastle. She’s passionate about delivering easy to digest information and content relevant to her key audiences and stakeholders.
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