6 minute read
EGLENT BICI: OUR CLIENT’S BIGGEST INTEREST IS IN THE TOURISTIC AREAS OF ALBANIA
“I believe that in the next 5 years, Tirana will be alongside other European capital cities for what it will provide for businesses and citizens who live here,” says Eglent Bici, CEO and Co-founder of Mei Realty (www. Mei. Al), real estate investor/ sales and motivation trainer in an exclusive interview with TRAILBLAZING MAGAZINE.
Bici says that there is a very enticing market in Albania, with opportunities to invest in the new resorts that are being built.
“I believe that the return on investment for investors will be really good. The quality of the touristic villages, the administration, the quality of the materials used are to EU standards in most of them and that is something that I am really proud to see happening in my country,” he says.
Bici also reveals that there is another group of buyers “who want to invest in Tirana, our capital city, where there are some fantastic development projects being built. Commercial and residential projects designed by some of the best architectural firms in Europe.”
Photo credit: www.Mei.AL View from Green Coast Resort
Full interview below:
IT IS SUCH A GREAT HELP TO KNOW THAT MEI REALTY ACTS AS A “ONE STOP SHOP” FOR ALL SERVICES RELATED TO REAL ESTATE. HOW IS MEI REALTY DOING?
I strongly believe that it is a service that we must provide for our customers and we as a company don’t consider ourselves as being in the Real Estate and Property business but as being in People’s business. Buying a house or an apartment is the biggest investment and purchase that more than 90% of people will ever do, so we are here to assist them in making the right choices. I write investment because that is how I feel about buying a property. I consider it as making an investment and we train our staff to be very aware of that. Offering the “One Stop Shop” service to our customers for their Real Estate investments is a must and a necessity because most people don’t know what should be done and how much it costs, so it is our duty to inform them to the best of our knowledge. We assist them every step of the way from finding the property to getting their property deed, furnishing their property, to installing a Smart Home system into their homes if needed. This is what we call a “One Stop Shop”.
IF WE FOCUS SPECIFICALLY ON PROPERTIES, WHAT IS ACTUALLY LURING PROPERTY BUYERS RIGHT NOW TO YOUR AGENCY?
The clients are very different and their requests and needs are diverse but what has got the biggest interest at www.mei.al, especially from clients coming from abroad, are apartments, villas and investments in the touristic areas, particularly at our beautiful seaside. There is a very enticing market, with opportunities to invest in the new resorts that are being built. I believe that the return on investment for investors will be really good. The quality of the touristic villages, the administration, the quality of the materials used are to EU standards in most of them and that is something that I am really proud to see happening in my country. There is another group of buyers who want to invest in Tirana, our capital city, where there are some fantastic development projects being built. Commercial and residential projects designed by some of the best architectural firms in Europe. They are not cheap but their build quality is really impressive. This will impact the whole economy, not only of Tirana but of Albania as well because they create the infrastructure for some big firms to think about having their offices in Tirana too. As we speak for example, most of the big names in the Hotel Industry have already come to Tirana or are in negotiations with some of these new projects to come to Tirana. I believe that in the next 5 years, Tirana will be alongside other European capital cities for what it will provide for businesses and citizens who live here.
ARE YOU GENERALLY SEEING HIGH DEMAND FOR PRICE REDUCTION BECAUSE OF COVID-19?
There have been issues in our
market because of Covid-19 but there have not been many problems from it. We have not seen any price reduction because of the pandemic in our market and in general there haven’t been any issues regarding the demand except for the March and April time when we were in total lockdown. That will mean there will probably be a higher demand when the market goes in full steam. There
are always properties that go for sale at a lower price than market value but they don’t stay on the market for long if they are ever on it. Most of these transactions are done before going to the market but this has always happened and will always happen.
WHAT ARE SOME PROPERTIES OR PROJECTS THAT YOU WOULD SUGGEST TO OUR READERS?
There are lots of new projects happening in Tirana and our seaside and I am including only a few options but if there is interest, we can assist anyone with making the right investment. Tirana, our seaside areas starting from Shengjin, Gjiri i Lalzit, Plazhi i Gjeneralit, Dhermi, Vlora, Saranda, Ksamil etc are excellent investment opportunities.
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A TOP PROPERTY EXPERT AND ESPECIALLY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF TONY ROBBINS’ MOTIVATIONAL LESSONS?
Real Estate is one of my passions and there is a lot to learn and grow there. As I wrote at the beginning, I believe that I am in People’s business so learning from Tony Robbins\ https://www.tonyrobbins. com/ or other top trainers from all the around the world is one of my never-ending objectives. Tony has been a great influencer in my life and I have learned a lot from his lessons and continue to learn from him. The best thing that I have got from Tony is that life happens for us and not to us. It is everyone’s duty to continue learning every single day of our lives and to add value to everything that we do in our life. Saying that, the biggest influencer in my entire life in Albania is Vasil Naci; founder and CEO of Agna Group who is my mentor and who adds value, not only to the employees of Agna but to all the Albanian citizens who take part in his events: Road to Success. Going back to Tony, I have been blessed to be exposed to such a mindset and I try to challenge myself everyday to be the best version of myself. Tony Robbins, his trainings, his books and his podcasts, have helped me tremendously.
WHAT MAKES MEI REALTY DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHERS IN THE ALBANIAN MARKET? WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR 2021? ANY EXPANSION?
Mei Realty, not only through our page www.mei.al but through other publications that we regularly do, focus on our existing clients as best we can and as well as trying to attract new clients. Mei is committed to providing the best, most reliable and secure service that Albanian clients and foreign investors can find. The training of our staff in our industry is an integral part of Mei structures with a focus on increasing expertise in the field of real estate and professionalism in the services offered by our dedicated agents. Another differentiating element of Mei in the Albanian market is the continuous innovation that Mei always brings to the market. Two new products will be introduced during 2021. These products such as Buy-Sell and development projects are designed to help customers and investors to get the best service they can get out of any investment they are wanting to make. We consider the purchase of a property as an investment and we like to make our clients believe that they are making an investment too.
