Welcome to 2022: A Year to Evolve
Every year Oakwyn sets an overarching theme for the year ahead. The theme is designed to be implemented across the brokerage, by our agents, and the wider Oakwyn community.
Just like the years before, we announced our 2022 Theme of the Year at our ceremonial Sales Kickoff Event. This year we again gathered virtually to celebrate our previous year and crystalize our goals for the company in 2022.
Read on for our round-up of the event, our Oakwyn award winners, and what we are looking forward to in 2022.
2022 Sales Kickoff Event
Last year we were forced to move our Sales Kickoff- which has previously been hosted at JW Marriot Parq- to a fully online event. Due to continued COVID restrictions this year, we were unable to gather in person for the second year running.
In true Oakwyn spirit, this did not hinder our ability to get together and celebrate our formidable past year. We are so proud of what we achieved in 2021, our Year of Innovation, and look forward to the year ahead.
Arlene's 2021 Company Recap
“2021 was a rollercoaster of a year and it’s a ride we have not gotten off. Through spring and summer, we experienced the fastest real estate market we’ve ever experienced in Vancouver.” —Arlene Chiang
Every year, Arlene Chiang recounts the previous year of sales and statistics and highlights major areas of growth and notable numbers from the last 12 months. This year Arlene walked the Oakwyn community through a year of exponential growth for the brokerage.
Find her highlights below:
6361 Trades Closed in 2021.
A 56% increase from 2020.
Sales volume grew by 72%.
$7,351,373,909 worth of real estate sold*
*sales volume
“Oakwyn was founded to create positive change. Positive change for the people we work with and to improve the real estate industry,” said Arlene Chiang. All of this growth has landed Oakwyn on The Globe and Mail’s Top Growing Companies List in Canada for the second year in a row.
Oakwyn’s Award Winners
The Sales Kickoff had awards presented by Managing Brokers Joe Lloyd for Sales Achievement, Michelle Adams for Sales Excellence, Eric Grant for Top Producer, and Arlene Chiang for The O Award.
This year we were proud to have multiple O Award winners including, Jenny Wun, Jessica Chen, Matt Pozer, Mike Stewart, Pete Shpak, Steve Saretsky, and Vivian Yu. We are so proud of the diversity in these winners and for the Work Hard Stay Humble philosophy which make these agents industry leaders.
Presented by former Rookie of the Year, Ranj Khakh, this award is given to the highest-earning agent in their first calendar year. Congratulations Niki Snow, Rookie of the Year 2021!
Presented by Steve Forlin, the Breakout Agent is awarded to the agent that generated the largest earnings increase from the previous year. Congratulations Erik Carlson, Breakout Agent 2021!
Presented by Sandy Gibson, the Oakwynite of the Year award is given to the Oakwynite who best embodies company culture and values. Congratulations Jacqueline Adler, Oakwynite of the Year 2021!
A huge congratulations to all the award winners this year!
Niki Snow
Erik Carlson
Jackie Adler
Our Year of Evolution
The theme of the year for 2022 is Evolve, selected for its powers of elevation and growth. Evolving is about continuing to learn and improve as a brokerage, and to continue to level up the work we are doing collectively and as individuals.
“Oakwyn will evolve in 2022 to learn from our mistakes and make things better. We are going to evolve by putting our best efforts into our people, to serve you better. We are going to evolve to be the best brokerage that we can be and instill positive change in the real estate industry”
Arlene Chiang
“As a company, as individuals, we need to evolve and get uncomfortable. Taking a hard look at ourselves, with an honest approach. It’s pushing to grow and to become a new form of yourself.”
Michael Uy
“Oakwyn will evolve in 2022 by staying relevant, pushing boundaries, and really focusing on how we can be better as a company and fulfill what we are set out to do. Which is to create something new and drive and embrace that change that everyone here is looking for”
Morgan Browne
Evolve at Work
In order to continue to evolve, Morgan Browne and Arlene set our agents the following challenges:
“Oakwynites can evolve in their business in 2022 by really expanding themselves. Having the faith to really evolve in their business but also personally and professionally, but also creating something that is new. Evolving is all about being your better self but it’s also about taking some risks and being really honest with yourself on how you can do that.” —Morgan Browne
“I challenge you to be the best version of yourself. Oprah Winfrey said the whole purpose in life is to evolve into the person that you were meant to be and I can’t wait to see what that looks like.” —Arlene Chiang
Episode 102: Introducing the Oakwyn Presale Advantage
An OG Oakwynite, Andrew Wan, joins co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne on this week’s episode and discusses his career in the presale industry. With his wealth of experience in presale transactions and establishing relationships with developers, Andrew will be using his expertise as Oakwyn’s new Director of Business Development! Tune in to learn more about his role and how he can help you get exclusive deals in upcoming developments through the Oakwyn Presale Advantage.
Episode 101: Evolve
This week’s mini-episode is all about 2022’s Theme of the Year! After commemorating the success of our Oakwynites at our awards event, Oakwyn Sales Kick Off, co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne discuss what the Theme of the Year, Evolve, means to them and how you can best practice ‘evolving’ personally & professionally.
Episode 100: THE ONE HUNDRED
Thank you to all our listeners and supporters who’ve been with us on this journey in reaching the 100th episode! To celebrate, co-hosts Michael Uy and Morgan Browne and our Producer, the Podfather, get deep and personal answering thought-provoking questions from the game, Swoon, and reflect on their favorite podcast episodes. Tune in to get to know Michael & Morgan on a whole other level!
Episode 99: Nurturing Leads
Continuing the conversation on connecting with clients, co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne discuss tips on organizing and classifying your client network, methods of communication cadence and adding a personalized touch when you are reaching out to potential or current clients!
Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver: December 2021 Statistics Update
At Oakwyn we’re always wanting to present the facts in an engaging way. Every month, one of our agents will unpick current market statistics from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver to help you understand what’s going on in the real estate market and what you should be looking out for.
December’s statistics report comes straight from Adam Chahl. You can read up on December’s insights below to stay up to date on another big month for the market.
A 2021 Recap
2021 saw 43,999 sales, which is a 42% increase in the number of sales from 2020. Compared to 2015 – which was the previous record year – last year’s sales numbers were 33.4% higher. We saw the most listings and sales in the Vancouver area of all time during 2021.
Adam also looked at the average number of listings last year, and the average number of listings was 11% higher than the 10-year average. Now, with the sales being the highest number of all time and the listings 11% above the average, Adam asks: Do we really have an inventory problem or is the problem on the demand side? Adam suggests we could be seeing less of an inventory problem and more of a demand problem and asks what will our government do to address this.
What to Watch for 2022
There are two things Adam is mainly watching: the first one is when are these interest rate hikes going to happen and what effect is that going to have on the demand side? Secondly, is the “spring market” – which is typically when people think is a good time to sell their home – going to bring more inventory into the fray, or are people still going to sit on the sidelines because the home, the townhouse, the house they want to buy is so much more expensive than it was last year? Only time will tell.
Get in Touch!
Work with your Oakwyn agent, work with your trusted real estate advisor, and come up with a plan that makes sense for you in 2022 if you’re thinking about making a move.
To keep up with the latest market statistics and join the conversation, be sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter, and visit our website.
Episode 98: BC Assessments
What’s a great conversation starter for the listing season of the new year? Co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne discuss the recently released BC Assessments and how to contact clients or potential home-sellers to discuss the value of properties.
Episode 97: Top 3
Tune in to this week’s mini-episode to get co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne’s Top 3 Recommendations for resources to Pursue Growth and Learning to help kick off the new year!
Oakwyn Through the Holidays
And just like that, December rolls around again! December always marks a time in the Oakwyn calendar to reflect, unwind, and celebrate another successful year.
While last year we were unable to physically gather to ring in the end of the year, this year we are fortunate enough to have several events for Oakwynites and the larger community.
Read on for a round-up of our holiday events, and the initiatives we are putting in place to make sure we are sending off our 2021, the Oakwyn way.
North Shore Opening
On December 9th Oakwynites gathered to celebrate the phase one opening of the new office in Edgemont. The event was an opportunity for our North Shore agents to come together and toast this exciting new milestone for the Oakwyn North Shore offerings! The office will be expanding in 2022, doubling in size to allow for our growing team!
Miracle on Oak Street
In true miracle fashion, Oakwyn was able to hold an in-person holiday party this year. Making it the first time some Oakwynites were able to get together and celebrate for many months. We were incredibly grateful and fortunate to be able to get together in this way.
To mark the occasion, and to further Oakwyn’s commitment to giving back to communities who need it most, the event involved a raffle. All prizes were sponsored by Oakwyn Alliances and 100% of proceeds went towards the Red Cross’s BC Floods & Extreme Weather Appeal.
We are honoured to have raised $2,000 for this worthwhile cause. You can see the list of prizes below!
Andre Garrison – International House of Caviar
125g Tin of Certified Organic Northern Divine Caviar
David Asselin – Inspect Canada
2 jumbo sized bottles of Grey Goose
Casey Archibald & Keegan Casidy – Xeva Mortgages
$200 gift certificate to Vida Spa
Tina Saddik & Ayesha Moghal – RBC
Bottle of Cognac
Jonathan Wong of Marine Landing Notary
$150 Nordstrom Gift Card
Sherlock Yam of Win Lui Group
$200 Holt Renfrew gift card
Davis Liu, Minh Nguyen, Lauren Francis, Richard Tseng – Scotiabank
$200 gift card to Miku AND a $100 Nordstrom gift card
Oakwyn Holiday Photoshoot
Oakwyn was thrilled to offer an exclusive photoshoot with a professional photographer for Oakwynites and our extended Oakwyn family to capture the spirit of the season at the Oakwyn holiday set. The 15 minute sessions were open to individuals, teams, families, and furry friends!
You can see some highlights below!
Local Love for the Holidays
To further celebrate the holiday season and encourage the support of local businesses, we’ve compiled a list of holiday happenings and events around Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. There are so many fun activities to enjoy this year, so make sure you check out our handy guide on Instagram to add some local holiday cheer to your itinerary.
Oakwyn’s Year of Innovation
“Innovation doesn’t have to be just technology, it could be just the smallest things you’re changing in your day to day lives to make things better” —Arlene Chiang, Oakwyn President & Co-Founder
Every year Oakwyn defines the year ahead and sets an overarching theme for our brokerage, agents, and wider Oakwyn community. The theme of 2021 was Innovation, selected for its powers of transformation and regeneration. We are immensely proud to see how the Oakwyn community has innovated in 2021, adapting to change and leading the charge into an exciting 2022.
You can watch our Year in Review video below!
Thank you for another great year. We look forward to welcoming 2022 with you. Keep up with all our holiday happenings on social media.
Episode 96: Predictions for 2022
The new year is approaching fast and co-hosts Michael Uy & Morgan Browne are here to give their predictions for the local real estate market! Based on trends in community development and personal investment decisions, tune in to find out what they forecast for 2022!
Episode 95: 2021: Year End Review
As we near the end of 2021, co-hosts Michael Uy and Morgan Browne discuss the success of our Oakwynites and the thriving and resilient Vancouver real estate market over the past year. They also provide helpful tips on how to connect with clients over the holidays.
Episode 94: with Special Guest Jenny Wun
Jenny Wun is back on this week’s episode to announce Oakwyn Realty North West! ‘The Queen of Burnaby’ and a pillar of the Oakwyn community, Jenny will be an incredible leader to ensure success for the new office space. Tune in to hear more about her personal and professional experiences and contact her to learn more about the new office!