Several years ago, while watching the sunset over a beach in Virginia during a summer holiday, our property economist Mark Korenik made the snap decision to live abroad. At the time, he was about to embark on the final year of his bachelor’s degree back home in Russia. After reflecting on how much he’d enjoyed his American summer, he realised he eventually wanted to complete his master’s overseas.
The choice was between the US and Australia. When he worked out that the latter offered the right combination of lifestyle and study options, Mark had his heart set on venturing Down Under. Only a year later, he landed in Australia to start his new life, and four years down the track, he’s become an incredibly valued member of our team.
A passion for property
While he was still living in Russia, Mark developed a burning passion for property. He’d moved from his small hometown to Moscow, and after living there for a while, his parents decided to follow him. They asked him to find a good home within their budget and, despite having no experience in scouting properties, Mark chose to take on the challenge.
“I never say no to hard tasks, and that's how my love of property started,” he says. “I did lots of research, went to several inspections and negotiations, and finally found a good place. One year later, the property increased in value by 20 percent and my parents asked me to find another property. After that, I knew I was going to stick to investments and real estate, as I was hugely passionate about it. Then, I decided to get a degree in the field.”
Now – with a Bachelor of Business and IT from the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration in Moscow in addition to a Master of Property Development and Investments from UTS under his belt – Mark is a fully fledged property economist at Milk Chocolate. He’s been in Australia for four years, spending nearly two of those working with us. Since coming on-board, he’s also become a Qualified Property Investment Advisor (QPIA) accredited through the Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA).
Establishing a Game Plan
At Milk Chocolate, Mark oversees financial and strategic planning for clients, monitors our clients’ portfolios, and undertakes appraisals and feasibilities for potential investments. One of his biggest responsibilities is the development of property ‘Game Plans’ for each client based on their investment goals and circumstances. Every Game Plan is highly customised to the unique requirements of the client and combines the expertise of several Milk Chocolate verticals.
Together with the purchasing, construction and data teams, Mark gauges the client’s needs and then models various investment scenarios based on tens or hundreds of different property combinations. Once he’s chosen a selection of the best-performing scenarios, he cross-checks them with the other teams before they are presented to the client. Each quarter, the client’s portfolio is reviewed to ensure everything is behaving as it should.
“I undertake an appraisal based on current market conditions and recent comparable sales and rental appraisals, then I check if the value of the property is higher than we anticipated,” says Mark. “I advise whether we should increase the rent or adjust the strategy and try to bring new purchases or renovations forward to reach the client's goal as soon as possible.”
An opportune path
We’re really excited about the work Mark is doing and can’t wait to see how he evolves his position. Currently, he’s collaborating with our tech team to build a suite of new products that will streamline many of his tasks and enhance the services we offer our clients. He’s also taking part in our very first working group to help establish a new property development arm of the business.
There’s no doubt that Mark’s exceptionally well-suited to his work as a property economist, not only due to his passion for the industry, but because his fascination with economics and problem-solving makes him a great fit for the nature of the role.
“Ever since I was at school, I’ve loved solving problems and working on mathematical challenges,” he says. “I find beauty in numbers and playing with them to solve a real-world problem – that's what my role with Milk Chocolate is all about.
“The property market is such a complicated thing. It involves a lot of economic aspects, but it’s mostly based on human behaviour. That's why it's so unpredictable – something always happens in the world and people will always react to these events, which can change the direction of the market.”
“This is why I like the property market; you get to observe the world, put your theoretical knowledge into practice, and constantly learn new things.”
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