FROM FIREFIGHTER TO ELITE PERFORMER - AGENT ’ S JOURNEY TO REAL ESTATE
( L - R ) Bob Lemalu , Pat Lapalapa , Adam Thompson , Tom Rawson , Xavier Tofilau , and William Vaea
After joining the fire brigade on a dare , Ray White Mangere ’ s William ( Vili ) Vaea was looking for a way to make a little extra money when he joined Ray White Manukau ’ s prospecting team .
While working as a firefighter , times were tough for Mr Vaea , who found he only had $ 50 left at the end of his fortnightly pay once he had paid all his bills .
“ I rang Ray White in Manukau and I asked if there were any top Pacific Islander agents ,” he said .
“ I wanted to know if there was a person I could speak to and if there was no one there , I wanted to be that person .”
Mr Vaea got his real estate licence , and shortly after , started working at Ray White Manukau making prospecting calls on his days off from the fire brigade . His shifts at the fire station were four days on , and four days off , including two night shifts .
“ I used to work in real estate all day until 5pm , and then four nights a week at the fire service - I was working 24 hours ,” he said .
At the end of 2012 , Mr Vaea decided he needed to make a decision between his two jobs , and decided to work in real estate full-time .
About three years ago , Mr Vaea started feeling like he needed a new challenge . After speaking with principal Adam Thomson , Mr Vaea was offered to be in charge of a new office - Ray White Mangere .
Mr Vaea teamed up with fellow Pacific Island agents Bob Lemalu , Pat Lapalapa , and Xavier Tofilau to open the new office .
“ When I first became an Elite agent I was the only Islander .” Mr Vili said .
“ Mangere is predominantly Pacific Islanders and we grew up there , so we knew the area and the values .
“ We had no choice but to be successful for ourselves and our families , and for our community - we had to be good role models .”
The Ray White Mangere office opened in March 2021 , and has now grown to a team of 18 .
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