By: Sarah Jane Palma and Marjorie Sta. Ana
Hey! Have you met the “we-have-just-named” superwoman in PUP; the very approachable and down-to-earth professor of Psychology? Well, she is just around the campus sharing her professionalism and personality to the university people.
And who would have thought that this professor is also a big time land broker, huh?
What’s the story behind Maria Corazon Cabigao - Constantino? Yes, no less than her.
A superwoman for her family and students – that is what best describes Ma’am Cora, a Cum Laude when she graduated Industrial Psychology in PUP. Having the passion to teach and share her knowledge to other people, she’s been teaching in PUP since 1983 and to help sustain the needs of her five kids she has been also licensed as a real estate agent or what others call it a Real Estate Broker of Robinson Land since 2001.
Everybody has their own destiny that is planned by God. To be a single mom is not a burden, God have reasons why He gives this kind of responsibility to anybody, and one is to test your faith in Him. But being a single mom is not easy. That’s why she has to come up with two different works and other part time jobs such as e-loading and selling barbeque with her children every Sunday. Teaching in PUP is not enough to sustain the needs of her five kids and to send them in different schools. As she said, “Kahit nahihirapan ako, okay lang, kasi para naman sa family,” - it is really the love for her kids that made her stood still. Having three kids who already finished their degrees in college, two nurses and one who finished Management major in Marketing is not the end of her responsibilities. It’s not yet the end of paying stuffs -- for right now, her nurses still need assistance from her for the examination and trainings. Her youngest is in fourth year high school and the only boy, who’s the eldest wants to take culinary arts.
Selling different kinds of house and lots, condominium units, and raw land is what a real estate broker is doing with the help of his/her agents. Ma’am Cora, a real estate broker acts as the supervisor of her five division managers and twenty agents. She uses different kinds of strategy to reach her goals, some are from the companies like giving flyers, putting up booths when there are special events and gathering and her own like informing her students to ask their parents to invest on her and to be one of her agent. She has a great advantage of being a professor working in a big school with big population on the other side. She can have potential buyers in the form of the family of her students, colleagues, higher officials and her boss as well.
She is inclined to Robinson Land in selling condo units, subdivision and raw lands. To reach a higher number of potential buyers she uses social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter but by the help of her kids and other students. Her family and students have been supportive and helpful to her all the time. In a real estate business you can’t avoid fake and annoying buyers that will measure your patience. For her, “Customer is always right, kahit nagmumura sila, lagi lang akong kalmado.” In that, she handles every situation calmly. She doesn’t forget to explain the rules and regulation to her buyers to make them fully understand and be more aware of their policies.
A quota of 10 million per month is truly a “Wow!” But with a hardworking broker together with her agent and division managers, they are able to reach the required sales per month. But there is always a fluctuating month when they don’t have buyers that results for the deduction of their incentives, bonuses and worst, they will be terminated if they have three consecutive months with zero sales. A 1.5 percent of every successful transaction of her agent is given to her; 1.75 percent for the division managers; and 3.75 percent for the agent who did work to have the buyer. To reward them if they reach their quota, they are awarded with trophies, gift checks, grocery items and special trips to other countries.
The best part of working as a real estate broker for her is meeting different people with different status in life in this country like politicians, landowners, agents and big bosses of different companies. She gains friends because of work, friends that will help her all the way to the top. She was once assigned to Ilocos Region and she needed to do ocular inspection to it from Tarlac to Pagudpod and as a result she experienced travelling around for free.
It is like morning all the time in the real estate. Whether it is day or night, it’s always a “Good Morning!”, because every hour of the day serves as an opening hour for business.
A professor or a broker? A broker! She loves it more! She finds it more enjoying than just killing the whole day in office or having continuous education in classes.
Not just in business, when you put extra effort and good performance, you will immediately reap the fruits of your hard work. And that’s why Ma’am Cora is always at her best! Be ready for the competition if you aim to be a successful real estate agent, like her!
And that doesn’t end there! This woman, successful enough but still dreams to have a business resort and if God permits, she wants it to be built before she retires. It is her perspective to always think positive in any aspect of your life, personal or work. Just do your best and He will do the rest.
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