ERA donates over S$20,000 to BT BAF

AS one of the early adopters of new technologies in the real estate business, ERA Singapore has reaped many rewards during the pandemic when most people were staying home.

One of its earliest innovations was to allow potential homebuyers to view a property online first, before making the trip to see the property in the flesh. That technology became tremendously useful during the circuit breaker when many on-site home viewings had to be cancelled.

Another technology is its new RealtyWatch app, which allows prospective homeowners to stay connected to their real estate agents and get up-to-date information on recently-transacted properties, among other benefits.

Desmond Tan, Minister of State for Home Affairs and Sustainability and the Environment, noted these achievements in his speech at ERA's Q2'21 Career Advancement Day honouring its top performers. Held at the ERA APAC Centre in Toa Payoh, it was attended virtually by over 8,000 ERA advisers.

Mr Tan said: "Last year must have been very difficult for everyone, not just for the businesses, but also for individuals. The way we live, work and play have been quite seriously disrupted. And just when we thought we were on the road to recovery with our vaccination programmes, safe distancing measures and widespread testing . . . we see how the virus has mutated and the whole situation has developed over just the last couple of days."

At the event, ERA presented a S$20,000 cheque to the Business Times Budding Artists Fund (BT BAF), while simultaneously holding a charity art exhibition to raise even more for the fund. The money will go towards providing free arts lessons for hundreds of socially-disadvantaged children, in the belief that the arts help boost their social, emotional and intellectual development.

Mr Jack Chua, CEO of ERA, says: "We are humbled to be able to partake and provide the underprivileged a platform to shine while bettering the community, a mantra that we hold dear and practise in ERA."

The charity art exhibition showcases 48 paintings by 32 children in the BT BAF programme. It is held at ERA APAC Centre's newly renovated Everyday@ERA, Singapore's largest co-working space for real estate salespersons. The showcase is supported by LivingwithArt Singapore, a company offering customised art products, paintings, wall decals, wallpaper and art clocks for interior decoration.

To purchase a painting by one of the BT BAF children, one can visit the exhibition at ERA APAC Centre, scan the QR code next to each painting, and key in a desired donation amount (above the minimum price).

One can also visit the site www.therice.sg/earth-sea-2021 to make an online purchase of a painting. The money will be donated to BT BAF. So far, seven of the 48 artworks have been sold.