Yahoo Finance I Quadrant: Pioneering financial transformation in Singapore's real estate scene
I Quadrant’s Benny, Germaine, Shawn and Ivan have revolutionised the way individuals approach real estate investing (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge Singapore)
When asked to tell their origin story, the founding members of I Quadrant said that it was very much a “rags to riches” tale. A tale worth telling though, as the company is set to make a mark in the iconic local movie franchise by Jack Neo, Money No Enough III.
To the clients and community they serve, this silver-screen cameo might come as no surprise. The cinematic collaboration is yet another feather in their cap, underscoring their impact on the local real estate scene and their commitment to reaching a broader audience.
I Quadrant has been a trailblazer in the work they do; transcending traditional boundaries of what we know of real estate, with a unique blend of education, collaboration and strategic investment.
“My husband, Shawn Lee and I started just owning an HDB flat — like most Singaporean married couples,” explained Germaine Chow. They met seasoned investor Ivan Cai through a business mindset programme in Kuala Lumpur and through him, unearthed some wisdom regarding property investment.
“Within a short period of four months after applying what we had then learned about real estate investing, we already managed to buy multiple properties. I was very excited and kept thinking more people should have this knowledge right? Why aren’t we taught in school when it’s one of the most impactful life-changing decisions of our lives?”
Nothing Fancy: I Quadrant’s secret restaurant and wine bar hidden at its office (Picture: I Quadrant)
The quartet of visionaries that make up I Quadrant — Germaine, Shawn, Ivan and Benny Ong — has not only revolutionised the way individuals approach real estate but are themselves cool, inspirational figures. Their office, a shophouse owned by Ivan’s family, is a blend of co-working space and hipster café.
It also hides a secret restaurant cum natural wine bar named “Nothing Fancy”, a place where they can break bread and perhaps trade insights on market updates with members of their community.
An unconventional approach to fostering financial literacy
Germaine highlights I Quadrant’s commitment to helping families with real estate knowledge that has a lasting impact on their finances, lifestyle, retirement and even legacy for their next generation.
Breaking away from the one-faceted way many perceive the real estate industry, I Quadrant advocates for comprehensive knowledge and unbiased opinions, offering a more holistic perspective for investors based on their own research and experiences navigating the path towards financial freedom from owning multiple properties.
“We each came together with our skills and strengths to strategise and market a programme to teach people how to do the same thing (in real estate) that we did,” shares Benny, whose background was in private education, doing seminars and classes.
With Ivan’s experience running his family business in hydraulic hardware and his own diverse investments, coupled with Shawn and Germaine’s digital marketing background, I Quadrant — the education company where families take their financial literacy up a notch — was born in 2018.
While I Quadrant started with live educational sessions, they had to pivot quickly when Covid hit in 2020 (Picture: I Quadrant)
Navigating the Covid era: Reaching the time-strapped professionals
In response to the changing dynamics of education and preferences, I Quadrant adopts a hybrid approach to ongoing classes. While they started out holding live sessions to large audiences of 150 people and more, they had to pivot quickly when Covid happened in 2020.
“We shifted all our classes online within about a week,” said Shawn, referring to the Circuit Breaker period when most businesses went into lockdown mode. This was when their digital savviness came in handy.
The Covid era presented both challenges and opportunities for I Quadrant. Recognising that many professionals struggled to find time for their traditional three-day programs, I Quadrant adapted swiftly. This shift allowed them to reach a new demographic of high-skilled yet time-strapped professionals, such as specialist doctors and surgeons, who now had the bandwidth to consider long-term investments and retirement planning.
Benny reveals: “Having a relationship with market profile allowed us to help them think about buying assets that are slightly more passive, which require less monitoring, unlike the stock market.”
I Quadrant offers not only monthly Zoom sessions but also bi-annual in-person seminars, accommodating to a diverse audience and learning preferences. (Picture: I Quadrant)
Commitment to a growing community
To this point, I Quadrant's community has evolved beyond its initial scope. In addition to catering to property enthusiasts, the community now includes professionals, civil servants, teachers, lawyers and PMETs (professionals, managers, executives and technicians).
“This profile of people are the ones who are after the steadiest growth (of investments); the ones who believe in having income-generating assets,” adds Germaine.
This diverse community enriches I Quadrant with varied perspectives and experiences, fostering an environment where individuals from different sectors come together to learn and invest.
The monthly Zoom sessions they now hold, help to provide a convenient online platform for market insights and updates while in-person seminars which they organize bi-annually offer a unique opportunity for face-to-face interaction. This hybrid blend of methods ensures that I Quadrant caters to a diverse audience, accommodating various learning preferences.
I Quadrant's commitment to education is amplified by its dedication to research and regular updates. With a focus on monthly market insights and analysis, the quartet ensures that their community is well-informed and equipped to make sound investment decisions. This emphasis on ongoing education sets I Quadrant apart as more than just a transaction-focused entity; it is a community invested in the continual growth of its members, which currently number about 4,000 people.
Crestbrick invites community to join bulk negotiations, with agents actively investing in multiple properties, leading by example. (Picture: I Quadrant)
Strength in numbers: offering bulk access to single investors
While they started out dabbling in property investing and taught their programme while keeping their day jobs, Germaine eventually acquired her real estate agent license.
“We used to each acquire our properties individually,” explained Germaine, referring to herself and the team of four. “This can get very tedious and we would miss out on better deals and bulk discounts that come from negotiating multiple sales.”
Crestbrick was established one year after I Quadrant with many community members asking for better deals. The standout achievement of a $53 million industrial building with 74 units was one of Crestbrick & I Quadrant’s collaboration. Negotiating as a bulk for this strata-titled building, they secured a deal that was 10% cheaper than the adjacent structure. This feat highlights the strength in numbers philosophy that I Quadrant embraces, showcasing the power of collaboration in achieving favourable outcomes..
As a boutique agency, Crestbrick is now able to offer the community, opportunities to come in on their bulk negotiations. A unique factor they present is that each of their agents is actively investing in real estate as well, walking the talk of owning multiple properties.
The team organises overseas trips as a means to learn about properties beyond Singapore. (Picture: I Quadrant)
“We’re not only active in negotiating local commercial properties but also residential ones as well as properties in the UK and other foreign countries as well,” states Shawn. “By utilising our connections with developers and having strength in numbers, we’re able to give our community, volume discounts that they would not otherwise gain access to as individuals.”
Picking winning investments that maximise gains and having such a diverse network come hand in hand to continue serving their growing pool of members. Their community functions much like a club, where members interact actively. The team even organises trips to the UK to walk the ground and view properties there.
“It’s a bit like an overseas learning retreat,” admits Shawn. Such excursions are a throwback to the formation of the awesome foursome — who sought their own personal acquisition of knowledge in business and investing by traveling beyond shores to learn and level up.
As a transformative force in financial literacy and strategic real estate investment, I Quadrant and Crestbrick is rewriting the rules of the agent/client relationship. From their educational initiatives, and community building to lifestyle-oriented activities, they will definitely leave a mark in shaping the future of property investment in Singapore and beyond.
(Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge SIngapore)
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