THE INNER CIRCLE
Podcast
00:00:00:00 - 00:00:45:20 Lauren
I take risks all the time. I am a heavy listing agent, and my niche is the luxury market. And I'm never afraid. With a unique property to push the envelope, whether it's in pricing or marketing or the way that we strategize on how we're going to stage it. I'm all for taking risks, so long as there's a plan B, and so long as I'm transparent upfront with the client, like, hey, we're going to try this this way, but this is the plan B if in 2 or 3 weeks this isn't going any, you know, this strategy is not working. So I think so long as you're taking a risk and you're transparent about the potential results and you have a plan B ready to go, if that first risky plan A is coming to fruition, I think you're in great shape00:00:45:20 - 00:01:25:04 Intro Bumpber
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agent in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro, or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up, how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities, and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best? Let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the inner circle.00:01:25:04 - 00:01:46:23 Mel
Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast. This is a podcast where we dive deep into the stories of the most successful real estate agents in the country. So if you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, you're in the right spot. And today, we are honored to have Lauren Rogers in Williamsburg, Virginia. So Lauren, welcome. Thank you for joining us here on The Inner Circle.00:01:47:02 - 00:01:49:10 Lauren
Hi. Thanks so much for having me. Happy to be here.00:01:49:13 - 00:01:59:12 Mel
So let us know. Kind of like how you got started. What's your background and what led you into, you know, into a career in real estate?00:01:59:14 - 00:02:36:13 Lauren
Yes. So my background, fresh out of high school, I got into property management. I was leasing apartments. In the Hampton Roads Williamsburg area, and quickly fell in love with helping these renters. Looking at property and apartment rentals and, higher end, you know, new construction rental homes. And so I got my real estate license in 2013,and, from there, you know, I kept doing property management for a couple of years and assisting some of the top producers at my firm, and then it started selling full time in 2016.
00:02:36:13 - 00:02:50:20 Mel
00:02:50:20 - 00:03:48:21 Lauren
Oh, yeah. So I actually at one point went to school for massage therapy, which is totally different than real estate. But I love just like going to the spa. I felt like it was such like a mind, soul body things. So fresh out of high school, I started there and then I worked in like a variety of different salons and spas and quickly realized like it wasn't for me. I just didn't love it. I've always been kind of a workaholic. I love working and I wasn't loving that. So I started in leasing. We had like a new construction project in a nice area where I live. And I was able to help, you know, get all of this. And I think we had like 300 units leased up over the first two years that I was leasing. And I really enjoyed it. It was fun. It was, something different, but I knew I needed something more. So naturally, I started studying for my real estate license while I was in leasing. From there on out, it's all been real estate. Yeah.00:03:55:00 - 00:04:05:03 Mel
Yes. Yeah.00:04:05:05 - 00:04:27:14 Lauren
Yeah. So it's interesting. My first firm, in Williamsburg, my first three years at that firm, even though I was a licensee, they had some really strict parameters to be a full time sales agent there. It was just, I was a part of this really incredible, like, market leading team. So I really had to prove myself. And I was the youngest by like 25 years at the time.00:04:27:16 - 00:04:31:04 Lauren
So I feel like my age was actually an attraction.00:04:31:04 - 00:04:35:18 Lauren
Just naturally, I had to really prove myself. They looked at me like, she's young. She doesn't know, you know?00:04:35:18 - 00:04:52:20 Lauren
So my first three years, I was doing property management, long term rentals and, assisting five of the firm's top producers and shadowing. I mean, I did everything for them from, like, running to get their Starbucks to showing, you know, multimillion dollar properties, real estate.00:04:52:21 - 00:05:12:03 Lauren
So it was something different every day. I loved it, but I knew, like I was learning from these five agents what I liked and what I didn't like, and kind of coming up with my own ideas as to what I would do when I was given the opportunity. And after three years of really working hard, I, finally was given the opportunity to sell with this firm and prove myself.00:05:12:03 - 00:05:32:04 Lauren
And in my first year I was so excited. I sold seven homes my first year, and all seven of them were prior renters or landlords that I had gone to. I had a relationship with them, being their property manager, and I was able to get all seven of them, you know, to convert to buyer or seller.00:05:32:04 - 00:05:49:21 Lauren
So that was kind of my gig. For the first three years, I really worked my rental database, and the second year I sold 16 homes. And then the third year it was 37. So it's like I just started kind of climbing really fast because word was getting out there of how hard I was working for my clients and on behalf of my clients.00:05:49:21 - 00:06:05:05 Lauren
So I'm really grateful to property management because I feel like it really got me started and my persistence just kind of kept it going.00:06:05:06 - 00:06:11:22 Lauren
Exactly.00:06:22:07 - 00:06:43:03 Lauren
Yeah. I think it really was my first closing it. I just, I love what I do every day, like, I'm so passionate about it. And just knowing that I am assisting my clients on the biggest financial transaction of their life. And it is such an emotional. I mean, buying and selling a home is very stressful. There's so much that goes into it.00:06:43:03 - 00:06:58:19 Unknown
There's so many emotions that go into it, and I know I specialize in kind of helping them holding their hand through that process and taking off a lot off of their plate. So I was immediately hooked. Like from my first closing, I was like, oh man, like, I am going to go so far with this because I love it.00:06:58:19 - 00:07:23:13 Unknown
And your clients can sense when you're genuine and when you're passionate and when you truly are, like, honest, and you're there for them and you're not in it for the wrong reasons. So my word of mouth business has really been everything. I've never paid for a single lead. I have tons of referrals from clients every day. I'm getting referrals from clients, and I think it just it really comes down to.00:07:24:21 - 00:07:42:10 Unknown
Human. Exactly.00:07:42:12 - 00:08:09:14 Unknown
Who? I've had some really fun ones. I recently sold the first and only barn to Medium in Williamsburg. So if you're familiar with the Williamsburg area where, like, Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, it's. We have a lot of, like, historic, beautiful brick colonial homes and our county has never had a barn too many, styled home, which is like that farmhouse, you know, barn looking house.00:08:09:18 - 00:08:26:19 Unknown
So I was working with an investor client, and, I got to really be a part of the whole project almost from the ground up. And it was just so interesting because our area has never had anything like it. We created this new market through this barn to medium sale, but it got a lot of activity and it went really well.00:08:26:19 - 00:08:45:21 Unknown
So that was fun. And then I've had a lot of other, project properties that have just been special in their own way, whether it's, you know, a client's last home or their first home or their selling to go be with their family at an a last chapter of their life, you know, they're all special, just in different ways.00:08:45:21 - 00:09:01:14 Unknown
And you never know.00:09:01:16 - 00:09:07:01 Unknown
Yes.00:09:17:16 - 00:09:23:13 Unknown
Oh, yes. I think we've all had those closings where you're like, oh, my gosh, that was a hard one.00:09:23:13 - 00:09:47:20 Unknown
So I recently had a closing and it was a divorce situation, and it was really hard because I knew them personally and just navigating, you know, the emotions. And I was very transparent from the first meeting that every conversation we will all three be a part of, every text message will be in a thread with the three of us, every email, everything.00:09:47:20 - 00:10:02:07 Unknown
You know, it was really important to me that they looked at me as a professional and not just a friend, because it's easy to kind of vent to a friend. But when it comes to real estate, you know, I am a professional and I'm going to help you get across the finish line, but we've got to all be on the same page.00:10:02:07 - 00:10:28:15 Unknown
So that one was a little challenging, because there were times when I had to remind one of the two parties, of my role in this. And, as much as we are kind of therapists, in a way, it just got a little crazy. And then we had some issues with the move out. The seller, one of the sellers of this divorce, wasn't completely out, and I showed up like immediately with a crew, and we were just, like, throwing stuff out.00:10:28:15 - 00:10:50:01 Unknown
I mean, what was left was kind of trash, but there was it was a race to the finish line. So we got it done. I'll do whatever it takes to get it done. But when it was all said and done, I was really relieved.00:10:50:03 - 00:11:00:09 Unknown
Yes, it does.00:11:00:10 - 00:11:03:23 Unknown
Yes.00:11:04:01 - 00:11:08:23 Unknown
Yes.00:11:09:03 - 00:11:29:01 Unknown
I take risks all the time. I am a heavy listing agent, and my niche is the luxury market. And I'm never afraid. With a unique property to push the envelope, whether it's in pricing or marketing or the way that we strategize on how we're going to stage it.00:11:29:01 - 00:11:43:18 Unknown
I'm all for taking risks, so long as there's a plan B, and so long as I'm transparent upfront with the client, like, hey, we're going to try this this way, but this is the plan B if in 2 or 3 weeks this isn't going any, you know, this strategy is not working.00:11:43:20 - 00:11:55:19 Unknown
So I think so long as you're taking a risk and you're transparent about the potential results and you have a plan B ready to go, if that first risky plan A is coming to fruition, I think you're in great shape00:11:55:19 - 00:12:05:15 Unknown
there. But yeah, I definitely would consider myself a bit of a risk taker when it comes to properties.00:12:05:17 - 00:12:19:12 Unknown
Yes, so long as there's a strategy, I'm not afraid to try anything.00:12:19:14 - 00:12:46:14 Unknown
Now. Yeah. So my first three years, I was a heavy buyer's agent, as I think so many realtors naturally are. When you get into this business, it's just so much harder. You know, to get listings until you kind of have had a good amount of buyers and transactions and experience. So my first three years, I was predominantly, if not almost all, buyer representation, and a vast majority of those were my renters that I knew through my property management, years.00:12:46:16 - 00:13:04:13 Unknown
And then I feel like for me, it really started to turn when I really started to focus on what the top listing agents at my firm were doing and how they were doing it, and creating my own kind of style, watching what I liked and learning what I liked from them, but creating my own ideas of my own style.00:13:04:13 - 00:13:27:13 Unknown
So my fourth, fifth and sixth year, my listing representation is shot up high. I can attribute that to my first listing. I gave it and I still give every listing 100%, but I treated my first listing like my newborn child, because it was my chance to showcase and it was my chance to really start my portfolio of what I do for my sellers.00:13:27:13 - 00:13:52:12 Unknown
No matter if the property is the $20,000 vacant land, or if it's a $4 million home on the water. So I feel like I really honed in on my pre listing services and my listing consultation. And from there, my business just really started to grow for seller representation. And that's predominantly what I do now. I have a handful of buyers, but a vast majority of my business is seller representation.00:14:12:02 - 00:14:35:07 Unknown
Well, it's I am very, very, committed and consistent person, naturally. But I have an incredible assistant who keeps me on track. I am a huge component for work hard. Play hard. You know, like I do. Really well when I have a trip coming up and I know what's coming up, it keeps me focus and on track. But in the in the slower season, I think it's more important than ever to time lock, which I do every day.00:14:35:07 - 00:14:53:10 Unknown
I spend at least an hour at the office doing the tedious things like the follow up, you know, the CMA stuff, anything that we need to do, database related or the mailers, just the things that you need to do that none of us really enjoy. So I focus on that. And then I'm also really consistent about the office.00:14:53:10 - 00:15:11:19 Unknown
I know most Realtors prefer not to work in the office, but I do. I work in the office. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. I'm never in the office. On Wednesdays I take the day home with my one year old. But Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays I'm always here at nine and I always leave by four, no matter if I have a full day or not.00:15:11:19 - 00:15:23:11 Unknown
I'm here and I'm ready to go. Most of the days I get here by nine and by 12 I've got three clients, so it's like, I just feel like it works. I'm a captured audience. I'm ready to work, you know?00:15:23:11 - 00:15:38:06 Unknown
But the days where it's slower, like yesterday, I really time block and try to focus on being as productive as possible while I'm in the office.00:15:38:08 - 00:15:52:10 Unknown
Exactly. Yeah.00:15:59:02 - 00:16:06:08 Unknown
Yeah.00:16:06:08 - 00:16:26:17 Unknown
Yeah. So client satisfaction is number one to me, and I think that that's why I have had such a successful business. Because of the word of mouth referrals. My clients feel like they're my only client. Even when I've had as many as 20 listings at one time. And the way that I do it is a I'm super organized and b I'm always a step ahead of them in communication.00:16:26:23 - 00:16:51:14 Unknown
So, for example, I know that every Friday all of my active sellers, future, past or present that I'm currently working with are getting an update from me via email before noon, telling them what I've done for that week prior. Like, here's the ads and the analytics from this, that, and the third. And this is what we're going to look into next week, when the property is actively listed, obviously you're you're chatting with them all the time.00:16:51:14 - 00:17:15:13 Unknown
Feedback's really important. I am someone who hates having things on my to do list, so I get everything done as it comes in, and that really saves me so much stress. I see agents running around my office all the time and they're like, I'm so busy, I'm so stressed out, and I really feel like a lot of that we do to ourselves, because if you can just respond and take care of things as they come, you're never going to feel like you're overwhelmed because everything is kind of just going as it should.00:17:15:13 - 00:17:40:07 Unknown
Now, there's going to be those days where the appraiser showed up late, the inspection came and it's bad. The contractor, you know, there's going to be chaos days, but if you can just kind of stay ahead of the things that you need to do and do them consistently. I feel like it's made a huge difference in my business, and I wouldn't be able to sell close to 30 million a year in volume if I wasn't staying consistent and organized, each week, and really like making those touches to each client so everybody knows what's happening.00:17:40:07 - 00:17:48:19 Unknown
And there's an open line of transparency.00:17:48:21 - 00:18:05:07 Unknown
Yeah. Yes. And I set expectations too. I think expectations are really important when I get a new client, whether it's a buyer or seller. I ask them at the first consultation what is your preferred method of contact? Like do you want a weekly email? Do you want a week, daily text? Do you want a phone call? Do you want a zoom meeting?00:18:05:07 - 00:18:17:23 Unknown
Like what's important to you? And most of the time they're like, oh, you know, x, y, z. And I'm like, great. Then we're going to go ahead and every Wednesday at ten you're going to hear from me, does that work for you? And they're like, yes. So that new property address or buyer is in my calendar every Wednesday at ten, we're reaching out.00:18:18:04 - 00:18:34:19 Unknown
And you always have something, to talk about with with an active client or upcoming client, you can always find some content or value to bring. And sometimes it's just a, hey, how are you doing now? You know, I'm so excited to get to in a new house this year. I was thinking about you and wanted to see how things were going.00:18:34:19 - 00:18:38:18 Unknown
So.00:18:38:19 - 00:18:45:04 Unknown
Yes.00:18:45:06 - 00:18:51:02 Unknown
Now, if it's in there, we're good.00:18:51:04 - 00:19:12:04 Unknown
Yes. That's me. It's like my real estate Bible.00:19:12:06 - 00:19:13:01 Unknown
Yes.00:19:13:01 - 00:19:33:06 Unknown
Yeah, that. It was really important to me. So I have two daughters, and my firstborn was born in 2020, the week of the stay at home order. And a week after she was born, I was unexpectedly changing brokerages. And I was at a brokerage, the only brokerage I'd ever been at. I was there for eight years.00:19:33:06 - 00:19:41:16 Unknown
I had no intention of ever leaving. I was happy there, but they started restructuring everything due to the pandemic, and it resulted in our entire firm leaving.00:19:41:16 - 00:19:51:13 Unknown
And I was really, like, torn because I was just starting maternity leave as a first time mom. The week of Covid, it was scary time. So it was not not my brightest month, but,00:19:51:13 - 00:19:56:08 Unknown
I knew exactly where I wanted to go, which is a local boutique firm in my town in Williamsburg,00:19:56:08 - 00:19:57:04 Unknown
where number one,00:19:57:04 - 00:19:59:22 Unknown
have been number one in our area for a long time.00:20:00:00 - 00:20:22:20 Unknown
And I have always admired my broker because she's local. She runs this incredible firm and everybody here so happy. And they just have incredible marketing. So I was excited about the change, but it was very scary. So when I came over, to Lismore, I didn't get a maternity leave because of the change and my business and getting the word out to everyone in the pandemic.00:20:22:20 - 00:20:44:13 Unknown
And then the market went crazy. So I went back to work when my first born was five days old. I don't think I realized how quickly kids grow and I do this time, so I, I really like I mean, I was working 40 50 hours a week, from 2020 until really 2022 because the market was so crazy.00:20:44:13 - 00:21:03:00 Unknown
And it was just it was really hard because I didn't get any time really with my brand new baby as a brand new mom. So when I got pregnant with my second, daughter, I was like, I'm not doing that again. You know, obviously I have a great bond with my four and a half year old now, but I was like, I can actually have a maternity leave this time.00:21:03:00 - 00:21:26:03 Unknown
Like, my business is stable. I'm not in the middle of a pandemic or changing firms. I'm very, very much supported at my firm now. So I decided at that point I was like, I'm taking 14 week maternity leave and I truly took it. I gave every single one of my listings to my coworker. I had my baby on May 31st, so we all know that was like the worst time that I could have had a maternity leave.00:21:26:05 - 00:21:43:19 Unknown
But my coworker, who I fully trust did an incredible job. She took over everything and I helped remotely. Like I did some marketing and stuff just because I can't sit still for long. But at that point during maternity leave, I really enjoyed those 12 weeks with both of my daughters, and I thought, you know, I can scale this.00:21:43:19 - 00:22:00:06 Unknown
This is a part of being an entrepreneur. And this is one of the benefits of being in real estate. I've always worked 40 hours a week. I don't have to. So I'm going to take Wednesdays and make that my family day. I'll work remotely at home with the baby and sometimes with the toddler. Depends on what we have going on that week.00:22:00:06 - 00:22:16:19 Unknown
But, I've taken every Wednesday, you know, off I say off. But in real estate, do we ever really have a day fully off? But I have really stuck with it most of the time. Every now and then I have to, you know, you have to kind of do what you have to do with the parameters and the timelines that we have.00:22:16:19 - 00:22:32:04 Unknown
But it's been really important to me, and I'm really glad that I was able to scale my business that way to where I can focus on family when I'm with the family and on work when I'm at work. I think that's important.00:22:32:06 - 00:23:02:14 Unknown
Yes, now. And I learned that the hard way. And I also really with my second daughter, I decided I wasn't going to work weekends as much. I hardly ever work weekends. Now it's our family time, you know, me and my husband and the girls will do fun stuff or go fun places. Of course, I'm not saying I don't work weekends ever, or that's impossible, but I have the right support now to where if it's just one house that needs to be shown, I have a coworker who's trusted who can do it, and my clients are totally okay with it.00:23:02:14 - 00:23:21:20 Unknown
They understand, that we all have commitments sometimes, so I am proud of myself that I have scaled the family work aspect of this career. I think I finally have gotten that a little bit more stable, because it was a little out of control in 2020.00:23:21:22 - 00:23:30:04 Unknown
Yes, it's important.00:23:30:04 - 00:23:32:10 Unknown
that happened and Covid and all that.00:23:32:12 - 00:23:39:09 Unknown
Are there any other big changes you've seen in the real estate industry, you know, during your career, or would that be kind of like, you know, the big one?00:23:39:09 - 00:23:59:00 Unknown
Yeah. I would say when I was first starting out, it was a heavy buyer's market. It was no big deal to see a property sit on the market for six months, sometimes even 12 months. And there were hundreds and hundreds of properties on the market. Buyers could ask for all their closing costs to be covered and a big concession on the price, and sometimes even get new carpet.00:23:59:00 - 00:24:18:13 Unknown
You know, it was just really you could really get whatever you wanted, as a buyer. And I feel like that has changed a lot. It's a lot more aggressive. And the seller side is way, way, stronger when it comes to negotiations, at least in my market and has been since the pandemic. Inventory has shifted so much since I first started.00:24:18:13 - 00:24:30:04 Unknown
Like, I remember going in the MLS and there being 250 homes for sale in my area, and now sometimes, depending on the neighborhood, there could be like 5 or 10. So it is so much more competitive,00:24:30:04 - 00:24:37:15 Unknown
which comes with, you know, its own challenges of just making sure that you're available and you're available quickly because you have a buyer looking for something specific.00:24:37:20 - 00:24:48:15 Unknown
There's probably 5 or 6 buyers looking for that. And if you don't jump quickly, you do not want to be the thing in between them and their dream home. So that can be a little challenging sometimes just to make sure you are00:24:48:15 - 00:24:55:23 Unknown
on it. You know exactly when something comes available and you are quickly getting your client in there and setting expectations on what it's going to take to get it.00:25:16:23 - 00:25:20:12 Unknown
Right.00:25:29:16 - 00:25:40:10 Unknown
Right. Technology has. It's come a long way. Like every day. I remember I started doing video, marketing for my listings, and I was one of the first agents in our area to do that, and,00:25:40:10 - 00:25:48:22 Unknown
now, there it's everywhere. You know, there's not an agent in our market that's not using video marketing. But I remember when my photographer thought I was crazy because I was like, we need to do a video on Instagram.00:25:48:22 - 00:26:05:07 Unknown
And he's like, what? No one's doing video on Instagram? And I'm like, they're going to be, so yeah, technology has really changed a lot. I'd say buyer versus seller, market. It's definitely it's definitely a heavy seller's market still in our area with the inventory shortage and,00:26:05:07 - 00:26:06:09 Unknown
really just00:26:06:09 - 00:26:12:11 Unknown
competition, I think for listings, because the inventory is so low, sellers are interviewing, you know, more than one agent.00:26:12:11 - 00:26:21:16 Unknown
So you really need to stand apart from the crowd and be prepared and come in with a lot of knowledge.00:26:21:18 - 00:26:34:21 Unknown
Yeah.00:26:34:23 - 00:26:37:03 Unknown
Yeah.00:26:37:03 - 00:26:49:10 Unknown
Exactly. So I have always felt like being in Williamsburg. We are a little behind the times. I mean, we are Colonial Williamsburg. And we have definitely an older demographic of realtors here,00:26:49:10 - 00:26:53:12 Unknown
quite an older demographic of realtors here who are still pen to paper.00:26:53:12 - 00:26:59:08 Unknown
You know, some of them still even fax offers. And that's just something that,00:26:59:08 - 00:27:01:19 Unknown
is a technology difference in,00:27:01:19 - 00:27:02:08 Unknown
our area.00:27:02:13 - 00:27:24:05 Unknown
So I, as being part of the 30 under 30 network with the National Association of Realtors, I follow a lot of my colleagues who have gotten this honor. I was given it in 2020, and they're in really huge markets all over the United States. And so I feel like it was a mixture of just knowing and seeing other agents that were top producers in other areas doing these videos.00:27:24:07 - 00:27:34:09 Unknown
And then it was just me. Any time I get a listing, I'm going to look at like, how can I promote this the best way? And it's not all just still picture. So I think some of it was just kind of00:27:34:09 - 00:27:41:16 Unknown
knowing that to really expand this into different audiences, there's got to be video, but it really was before like reels were a huge thing.00:27:41:16 - 00:28:04:08 Unknown
It was more like YouTube video. You know, like it wasn't even it didn't even look good, like when I look back on it. But I remember my photographer saying, like, he was creating this new photography package for me. And then, other agents started doing it too. So I'm really, like, happy to see that now we are doing more creative things for our listings, because I think it's important you can't just post some pictures, sit back and wait for your home to sell.00:28:04:08 - 00:28:16:17 Unknown
You need to proactively get it in front of people and show them the story of the house and just kind of really try to get it out there, as much as possible.00:28:16:19 - 00:28:31:11 Unknown
Yes, yes.00:28:31:13 - 00:28:42:14 Unknown
Yeah.00:28:42:16 - 00:29:07:04 Unknown
Well, I'm really big on feedback, so when I work with the client, I ask them face to face, like, how was your experience working with me? And people love to talk. I'm a big listener. You have to be. And they will tell you everything that they want and everything that they need if you just listen. But I have found that asking for constructive criticism is so important, because you can't be better if you can't accept the things that where you're lacking.00:29:07:06 - 00:29:21:06 Unknown
So I really feel like a huge part of it was just asking. And one of my first luxury clients, I remember I was so excited because I had my first million dollar listing, and at the end of it, I looked at him and I was like, listen, you were my first luxury client. And he looked me and he's like, no way.00:29:21:06 - 00:29:39:17 Unknown
And I was like, you were. And he's like, Lauren, I have bought and sold at least 40 homes in my life. Like, you really knew what you were doing. And I was like, well, I think I, I appreciate that, but I think some of it I'm kind of faking it till I make it over here. But I looked at him and I said, what did I do or not do that I should have done better because you are the exact type of client that I want to attract.00:29:39:21 - 00:30:00:12 Unknown
And he smiled at me and he was like, well, you've already got all of my referrals. And he said, but when you came to my house the first time and before we had even taken a step into the foyer, or you spit out, oh, didn't so-and-so build this in 19? Whatever year you pointed out the luxury, oven that we had, which is a very specific brand, that you immediately knew what it was.00:30:00:12 - 00:30:16:15 Unknown
He was like your attention to detail is so evident. And when you're selling a luxury real estate, you need to have attention to detail. So he said, from start to finish, that was really important to him. So I honed in on that and moving forward. I was always like huge on the details and the clients. It means so much to them.00:30:16:15 - 00:30:33:23 Unknown
Hyper focusing on those details, because if they show you something that they renovated, ask questions like, why did you do that? Oh, you picked a career, a marble. Do you remember, like where you purchased this and why you picked this one? They're going to tell you this whole beautiful story about how excited they were to update their island and all the birthday parties that they had there.00:30:34:02 - 00:30:49:04 Unknown
It just makes the whole relationship so much more special. So I think having a high attention to detail is really a big part of that.00:30:49:06 - 00:30:54:03 Unknown
Yes, yes. It's like add that to the feature list.00:31:00:20 - 00:31:23:19 Unknown
not necessarily. I obviously feel like social media is, bigger than ever right now. So, like, lots of video, lots of marketing in that way. But I don't know of any, like, specific trends in my direct market that I see.00:31:23:21 - 00:31:41:21 Unknown
Yes, yes, it is such a great group. We went to New York City in September, and it's just so cool to hear, like, how other top producers are doing what they do and we really do collaborate and learn from each other. And I think it's good to always shake things up a little and try something different.00:31:41:23 - 00:31:52:11 Unknown
Yes.00:31:55:08 - 00:32:16:06 Unknown
I really wish someone would have told me. You've got to be consistent. You have to be persistent and you need to be patient. Nobody comes into this business and just starts selling houses left and right. You have to make a name for yourself. And sometimes that means doing things you don't want to do. You know, like maybe you do have to work open houses00:32:16:06 - 00:32:17:03 Unknown
every Saturday.00:32:17:05 - 00:32:45:05 Unknown
I did whatever it took to get the experience I needed to get me to where I am today and lean on your brokerage. It's really important that you have support from your brokerage. I didn't at my former brokerage, but I truly do now. And you need that education and mentorship more than you know. Because when you go to your first listing appointment and they're asking you how many homes you've sold and you know it's three and you're in a home that you definitely feel is a little out of your league.00:32:45:05 - 00:33:05:14 Unknown
As a newer agent, you need to be able to look at them with confidence and say, my team at X, Y Realty has represented over 500, you know, clients just in your neighborhood in the past. However long you know, you really have to have that to back you. But I think that's huge. I also highly recommend shadowing a top producer.00:33:05:14 - 00:33:25:23 Unknown
And just like really understanding that real estate people think all the time. It's like so flexible. But if you're selling a lot of real estate, it is not a work. When I want to vacation, when I want to just glamor job like HTV and other like things have made it look, it is hard work and sometimes it is stressful.00:33:25:23 - 00:33:31:12 Unknown
I mean, you're negotiating multimillion dollar deals a day and you've got these very00:33:31:12 - 00:33:49:17 Unknown
particular clients with different personalities with high emotions that you're representing. So you need to be in control of your emotions. You need to be a facilitator for them. And a lot of that just comes with knowledge and education, which takes time. So stay patient.00:33:49:19 - 00:34:09:16 Unknown
Yes, yes, yes. Sorry. That was a lot. We got a lot for new agents.00:34:09:18 - 00:34:35:22 Unknown
Yeah, no I do I feel like new agents really need to know the paperwork. Like the back of their hand. When I first started, I read everything every contract in our area, every addendum in our area. And I made, like, little summarize bullet points on everything that I kind of studied. Because you need to know that stuff. Like, and you really need to know it well, because when that time comes and you have a contract signing, you want to be able to say, well, it's upside down in front of you.00:34:35:22 - 00:34:59:02 Unknown
You know, paragraph four B is referencing the termite and moisture inspection, which is going to happen and just spit out all the facts they're going to. So recognize that you know, your stuff. So I think new agents really should know the paperwork more. I have had so many new agents bring offers on my listings and it's missing initials or there's misspelled things, or they've checked the wrong box or left the wrong disclosure out.00:34:59:04 - 00:35:15:19 Unknown
And it's just such an easy thing to study and know that I think there's no excuse not to. And our clients deserve it like we are their profession. All we need to make sure we know the contracts and that we're doing them correctly.00:35:18:20 - 00:35:31:09 Unknown
Yes.00:35:31:11 - 00:35:37:16 Unknown
Wow.00:36:22:19 - 00:36:51:00 Unknown
So I think I'm really fortunate because my brokerage does so much education. We have roundtables. We have, speakers that come in. We have social media trainings. Like, our firm just offers so much, that a lot of what I do is really here, but I'm sure this day and age, with the internet, it is so easy to just hop on, ChatGPT, YouTube, TikTok, wherever you are, and just write in whatever it is you're struggling with and get ideas from someone else.00:36:51:00 - 00:37:08:09 Unknown
But I am a huge company, component for going to a top producer and just saying, like, I admire what you're doing. Can I help you or shatter you were like, how can how can I learn from you? I have had people at my firm come to me and say that, and I was more than happy to have them right around.00:37:08:09 - 00:37:24:18 Unknown
It was fun to have somebody there with me. And when we left a listing and got in the car, we could laugh about it like, oh, those floors were crazy, you know, it gets a little lonely out here. Yeah. And some days I go to as many as, like, 7 or 8 homes. Just in one day, and you're by yourself and you've got all these thoughts in your head, and it's fun to have someone with you.00:37:24:18 - 00:37:58:17 Unknown
So, I am like, huge on sharing the knowledge that I have. Even, like, if it means, doing a roundtable at my firm, I did one recently, just kind of giving my knowledge because I think we can all learn from each other. There's way more than enough business to go around, but we as an industry have to stick together, learn from each other, and partnering with a top producer as a newer agent, I think would give you so much knowledge just from learning and experiencing and shadowing what that person.00:37:58:19 - 00:38:25:01 Unknown
I think so, yeah, because you're going to learn so much. Our business is so reactive, like you can only be, but so proactive in this business until you're just in something and you learn as you go through it. So I think, maybe shadowing with someone is a huge plus to that since it is such a reactive business.00:38:25:03 - 00:38:42:03 Unknown
Yes. And they know the solutions like you have to be solution oriented, but some of that really just comes with experience. And the more homes you close and the more issues that pop up, the more that you kind of know the conflict resolution moving forward and you already your mind's already on like, oh, okay, this is what we're going to do to get through this.00:38:42:03 - 00:38:55:11 Unknown
So I think shadowing is huge. I did quite a bit of it before I started selling, and it helped me a lot, and some of it was like things that I would watch other agents do that was their style that I was like, oh, that won't be my style. Like, you have to find your own, you know? And it worked for them.00:38:55:11 - 00:39:08:12 Unknown
But I'm like, that's not me. You know, I, I think I'm going to try this or I like that they did that, but how can I put my spin on it to make it more authentic to who I am? You just learn a lot from doing.00:39:10:12 - 00:39:14:09 Unknown
It is.00:39:29:23 - 00:39:33:20 Unknown
Yeah. So once you're a client, you're a client forever. And,00:39:33:20 - 00:39:38:23 Unknown
things that I think a lot of us do, like every year, a home anniversary gift.00:39:38:23 - 00:39:50:04 Unknown
And it's different every year depending on the year, but it's automatic. Every year I do a comparative market analysis for all of my clients that I've sold a house to. Just a full report just showing like, this is where you're at today.00:39:50:04 - 00:39:59:05 Unknown
I'm always here for you. I'm constantly touching base with my clients, in my sphere in multiple ways, whether it's pop bys or client appreciation events,00:39:59:05 - 00:40:05:16 Unknown
or just checking in if someone pops into my head and I happen to be on their street, I'll just shoot them a tax and say, hey, I was just thinking about you. How are you?00:40:05:18 - 00:40:09:04 Unknown
And it usually opens up a whole conversation. But,00:40:09:07 - 00:40:21:04 Unknown
I think it's important just to keep in touch with your clients always. And if you are thinking of them or something makes you think of them, just tell them it goes so far. I love handwritten notes. I love getting them. I love writing them. So I do at least one a day.00:40:21:10 - 00:40:25:11 Unknown
And, it's not always a client. Sometimes it's a vendor, sometimes00:40:25:11 - 00:40:29:06 Unknown
you know, a neighbor that I just happened to meet when I was over there hanging up the for sale sign. But,00:40:29:06 - 00:40:34:21 Unknown
people love to get them, and it's something so simple, it makes me filled with gratitude as I write it.00:40:34:21 - 00:40:42:03 Unknown
I know I made their day, and it's such an easy way to do it, so I've had a lot of really good success with that, with my sphere and clients.00:40:42:05 - 00:40:45:08 Unknown
Yeah. Other than that, just being consistent, you know, never, ever00:40:45:18 - 00:40:53:02 Unknown
close on a property and then just kind of go away, like you need to be like you are their realtor.00:40:53:02 - 00:41:03:18 Unknown
You need to be there for them and check in with them. Like, it's so easy to put on your calendar the day of closing that in ten days from their closing, you're going to check in whether you stop by or whether you call them and say, how's your move going?00:41:03:18 - 00:41:24:08 Unknown
I'm thinking of you. You know, you've got to just you have to stay in touch with them. And I think that's one thing that our industry, we get so busy with our current or our new clients that it's easy to forget about our past clients. We're all guilty of it. But, little touches, quick little touches go a long way.00:41:24:10 - 00:41:33:05 Unknown
Yeah, yeah. In this day and age, it's so easy to send a quick email or a text. But you took the time out of your day to write. I think that's really special and easy.00:41:40:19 - 00:41:54:06 Unknown
Yeah, I.00:41:54:06 - 00:42:17:09 Unknown
Yeah. So back to being authentic. I think it's so important. Like be who you are. And let your followers and your clients see a little bit of you. We are human. But I think we also need to be professionals. Like, there's a fine line. I try to do about 80% just professional business stuff, and maybe 20% will be a picture of my kids or us at the beach or, you know, something more personal because we are human and they want to know who you are.00:42:17:10 - 00:42:30:21 Unknown
They're working with you because they like you and they trust you and they they know you. They can't like you, trust you, know you. If all your posting is just listed, just sold. And how's how's how's how's how's volume, volume, volume. Who is the person behind the social media account? So I think00:42:30:21 - 00:42:33:10 Unknown
being authentic and just showing them a little bit of yourself,00:42:33:10 - 00:42:36:14 Unknown
while keeping it professional is important.00:42:36:14 - 00:42:54:06 Unknown
I also, I have a lot of offerings that I, when I go to a listing appointment. For example, I do what's called the no Surprise program. So we have a lot of older homes in our marketplace, and I will have a home inspection up front, which I pay for with the most commonly used home inspector.00:42:54:09 - 00:42:57:22 Unknown
The benefit to my seller is we get to control the narrative of this information.00:42:57:22 - 00:43:17:07 Unknown
So the chance of a fall through. I hardly ever have contracts not go to closing because we do this upfront. It's a blueprint. Then we get that inspection. I have my contractors going, get quotes, and we decide together. Do we want to make repairs? Do we want to share the report upfront with receipts instead, which a lot of times you have to share the inspection no matter what.00:43:17:09 - 00:43:35:00 Unknown
But you can also share receipts if there's big stuff, but if it's little stuff, it just goes a step further for the buyer. And it causes this level of trust. Like, wow, this house not only looks good, but they went ahead and had the inspection. I just saved $600. A lot of times they'll wave a new one and use mine or they'll have their own, but we're not biting our nails through it because we just had one.00:43:35:00 - 00:43:35:23 Unknown
So,00:43:35:23 - 00:43:52:01 Unknown
I do stuff like that. I try to really be proactive and what I offer my sellers and buyers, and I'm always trying to get a step ahead of a surprise because they always come in real estate. It is very rare you have a closing that it's like, oh, that was easy. I don't think I've ever said that.00:43:52:01 - 00:44:08:01 Unknown
But it makes your life so much easier when you can do all this on the front end. And I've had clients save tens of thousands of dollars because we did find a huge issue at our pre listing home inspection. And then we were able to fix it and put that money right back into the price because we hadn't listed it yet.00:44:08:07 - 00:44:31:14 Unknown
So I think that it's just a good strategy. I try to always strategize as to how we can be proactive and level up the listing from start to finish.00:44:31:16 - 00:45:00:05 Unknown
Oh yeah. Yeah. So I had one about a year ago, and it was a client who's also a friend, and the inspection was really not good. It was an older home, fully renovated. I expected there to be some things. We have crawlspace issues here. Like moisture and crawl spaces and moisture damage. Wood. It's just common. We're in a humid area near a lot of water, but this one was pretty bad, like structural bad.00:45:00:05 - 00:45:13:09 Unknown
So I went to them and I was like, look, these are things that a lot of buyers would walk on. And we now know about it. And as my clients know upfront, anything that we do inspection wise,00:45:13:09 - 00:45:19:11 Unknown
we will and we have to share and we need to make sure that they fully understand that, but they're going to find it out anyway.00:45:19:11 - 00:45:23:19 Unknown
So we're not doing anybody any justice by waiting and biting our nails.00:45:23:19 - 00:45:38:08 Unknown
The benefit of knowing that we had a structural issue is I was able to get three different structural engineers out. One of them came in at, like, something crazy. I think it was $65,000. The second one was like 22, maybe 25, and the third was like around 10 or 15.00:45:38:08 - 00:45:41:15 Unknown
So we obviously went with the lowest of the three.00:45:41:18 - 00:46:01:19 Unknown
But we were able to like do it, rectify it, share the warranty information up front. It did make the sale a little harder, but our first buyer didn't pull out like I think they would have.00:46:01:21 - 00:46:06:08 Unknown
Exactly. Yeah. Yeah.00:46:18:13 - 00:46:23:08 Unknown
Yeah. Yeah.00:46:23:10 - 00:46:39:23 Unknown
I had another client who was meticulous. He was the original owner of his home, and he swore. I don't need a pre listing inspection. I don't need it. And I said, you probably don't need it, but I'm offering it. It's free. I think it will help us. And it will help me sell your home because it's a clean bill of health.00:46:39:23 - 00:46:55:09 Unknown
If you really think there's nothing on it, well, come to find out, his roof, which really wasn't that old, was completely defective. And he had an active roof leak into the attic, so he was so grateful. He's like, I'm so glad that you told me to do this.00:46:55:09 - 00:46:56:21 Unknown
we had to put on a new roof.00:46:56:22 - 00:47:19:07 Unknown
It was about like at least $25,000. This was a one level ranch. And, since we put a new roof on, I was able to adjust the listing price to reflect that and put in all the marketing, like brand new roof. So he saved. I don't think we were able to get the full cost of the replacement, but we got really close to it and had we not done that, he would have been in the hole that entire amount.00:47:19:07 - 00:47:45:05 Unknown
So I have had a lot of success with it. I also do on my luxury listings where there's no comparable or I'm struggling to find a comparable, and maybe the luxury sellers number is a little bit more aggressive than mine. I'll do a pre listing appraisal with a third party appraiser and see how they come out. Like how do they do it in conjunction with you know obviously my market analysis sometimes those go good, sometimes they don't.00:47:45:07 - 00:47:51:05 Unknown
If they don't then at least I can prepare the client like, hey, realistically, this is where the bank is going to lend.00:47:51:05 - 00:48:11:09 Unknown
And it is lower than we were thinking. We can still try your number, but we do need to be prepared that if it is a mortgage, this could be an issue later. And they're usually like, okay, I'm so glad we know that, the expectation is set because we've had another, you know, professional come in and give their opinion.00:48:11:11 - 00:48:27:09 Unknown
No. And I've always been I'm always happy to try. If there is a difference between me and a client and I'm like, well, that's a bit aggressive. But what if we try your number for two weeks and then if that's not going good, we try mine and they're like, okay, you know, you win, I win. We're going to lose a little momentum.00:48:27:09 - 00:48:35:22 Unknown
But we'll we'll get it to my price if we need to.00:48:36:00 - 00:48:54:08 Unknown
Yes. It's a partnership, you know, like no one's in control. We're in this together. They're coming to us for help. We're here to assist and guide them. But at the end of the day, it's their home. And, it's a it's a very important partnership that we all need to be on the same page on.00:48:54:09 - 00:49:07:03 Unknown
Never. No, no, no, we've always got to have options. Right.00:49:07:05 - 00:49:08:07 Unknown
Yeah.00:49:08:07 - 00:49:11:16 Unknown
planning on, you know, staying on this trajectory where things going?00:49:12:04 - 00:49:29:00 Unknown
Yeah. You know, I'm really, really happy. Like, with the way my career is going, I've had a lot of, mentors, colleagues, realtors, friends. Tell me, like, you really should have a team, or you should start thinking about growing a team and everything I know about teams right now, it just doesn't seem like it's something that I'm interested in.00:49:29:00 - 00:49:35:16 Unknown
I love having an assistant. I'm, fully at a manageable volume. I don't see my volume changing00:49:35:16 - 00:49:39:15 Unknown
unless it's maybe going up a little, but I'm so happy where I am and content.00:49:39:15 - 00:49:45:14 Unknown
I feel like I just want to keep on this route, you know, keep specializing in listings.00:49:45:14 - 00:49:59:09 Unknown
I have started in the past two years, referring some buyers when I know, because you have to, to be fair to everyone, you can't just take every client when you get to the point where you have as many clients coming across your desk every day like I do.00:49:59:09 - 00:50:16:21 Unknown
I did start referring out to more buyers so I could truly give the business that I've promised to my sellers, and that has really helped me to balance. But I'm really happy with where I am. I think I'm just going to keep, you know, writing right where I am. It gives me enough time to be with my family, gives me time to really be a great realtor and a great mom.00:50:17:03 - 00:50:22:18 Unknown
So I don't think I need a level up or anything. I just need to stay here, stay focused, and,00:50:23:02 - 00:50:29:06 Unknown
keep doing what I can.00:50:29:08 - 00:50:43:07 Unknown
Yes.00:50:43:09 - 00:51:05:08 Unknown
Yeah. I mean, I think we all can dream or look at, like, what the future looks like for our real estate careers. And, I really have made a name for myself in Williamsburg, so I do think I will always have the support of my incredible clients and family and friends, which is such a blessing. And if one day my kids, you know, want to be in real estate or whatever, push that because it's career, you've got to like it.00:51:05:08 - 00:51:21:19 Unknown
You've got to love it. You got to like, really be interested in it. But of course, if one day my daughter's, show interest, I would love to see them take over the business and keep it kind of in the family, it'd be great. Yeah.00:51:21:19 - 00:51:29:06 Unknown
interesting, unusual, you know, some property that you've, that you've worked with that really stands out. You know, I00:51:33:01 - 00:51:37:21 Unknown
Oh, gosh.00:51:37:21 - 00:52:00:17 Unknown
I once had a house that was built in the 70s, and the owner was, quite elder. And her, her family lived all the way in Germany, and, we were helping get her to assisted living, but the house was just really not in good shape. And she had a really hard time getting rid of stuff. And it was borderline, you know, a a hoarder.00:52:00:17 - 00:52:20:13 Unknown
Like, truly, there was this stuff. I was overwhelmed and I left that listing thinking, I don't know if I can take this client on, like, I just don't know how I'm going to help her or where to begin. Right. It was overwhelming, and I was just thinking about all my other clients and all that I already had going, but I left and I was like, you know, this lady really has no one.00:52:20:13 - 00:52:40:22 Unknown
And I, I know that I will take care of her. So it was a journey. I mean, start to finish. We had an estate company come in and clean it out. The carpets were all green and very stained. There was wallpaper everywhere. It was a small little like brick ranch styled home. The landscaping was horrible. The filters hadn't been changed in years.00:52:41:02 - 00:53:00:12 Unknown
It just truly had sat and sat and sat. So we did it. It was a long process, but when it came time to listed, I just leaned in to the fact that this house you're bringing your contractor to. And I even had some contractors come in and do some little schematics of what it could be and share that with buyers up front.00:53:00:12 - 00:53:22:13 Unknown
You know, it's it's a diamond in the rough. So that that was one that comes to mind, that was, you know, a project and definitely different. I don't think I've ever had anything haunted or anything like that yet, but, you never know. I am in Colonial Williamsburg.00:53:22:15 - 00:53:35:11 Unknown
Right. That was a scary one. But at the end of the day, we got it done.00:53:35:13 - 00:53:42:00 Unknown
Yeah.00:53:42:02 - 00:54:11:09 Unknown
Yeah. I have I truly think I would be in the renovation realm or interior design or staging or maybe even a general contractor, because I love houses and the start to finish and the gratification that I feel, when helping a client through the process, like, maybe staging their home for sale or picking design finishes if they ask for my opinion.00:54:11:11 - 00:54:22:04 Unknown
I definitely think I'd be in the real estate world. It would just be different, whether it be renovating or, staging or interior design.00:54:22:06 - 00:54:48:07 Unknown
Yeah. Yeah. So it's just a series of, classes that you take that kind of level you up in a way that you have a better understanding of staging. Because it's such a subjective thing. You know, when you say, like, you should, we should do this or that. I think it's good to have some knowledge as to what is like the right way to stage minimizing is one of my expertise areas, for sure.00:54:48:07 - 00:55:05:13 Unknown
And this business has made me a certified minimalist because I go in homes that have so much stuff and it's overwhelming to the eye. So it just kind of takes you a level up getting accreditation for staging. And that's something that I do for every single client. I usually can work with what they already have in the home.00:55:05:15 - 00:55:22:11 Unknown
We're just minimizing and I'll bring in a few little things to go with it. But every now and then, if it's totally empty, we'll do a full stage. I just outsource that because my expertise is real estate and not, you know, a whole furniture placement. But it goes a long way and the sellers are always really happy when they see the pictures.00:55:22:15 - 00:55:43:10 Unknown
They're like, oh, I get it now. At first they're kind of like, I don't want to move that or oh, this looks so sparse in here. But then they see the pictures and they're like, okay, I see why you did it. This is beautiful. Like it really does look bigger or brighter or more neutral or whatever the case may be.00:55:43:12 - 00:55:54:08 Unknown
Yes.00:55:54:10 - 00:56:02:23 Unknown
Yeah.00:56:03:01 - 00:56:21:01 Unknown
Yeah. That's what my clients say all the time. They're like, well, now that you did all of that, we're kind of thinking we should have stayed. I'm like, oh no, that's so funny. Yeah.00:56:21:03 - 00:56:42:05 Unknown
Yeah. We're just so accustomed to our homes. And that's what I tell my clients. Have to be very careful. People love their stuff and you don't want to offend them because this is how they have it decorated for a reason. This is the stuff that they love. But, I tell them, I'm like, you know, we have grown an eye to our home and we need to really have a fresh outlook so that the buyer can envision their stuff in this space.00:56:42:05 - 00:56:57:21 Unknown
So lessons definitely best. But, just having that accreditation, I think, kind of leveled up my knowledge as to what I should be doing and how I can best decorate for my clients if they need that extra touch.00:57:49:06 - 00:58:13:01 Unknown
Well, I'm a preacher's kid. My dad was a minister here locally to me, and I have three sisters, so I come from a big family. Lots of kids now, as we're all kind of, growing and raising our children, my sisters, we have a very much entrepreneurial spirit. And my family, to my two older sisters, both are entrepreneurs as well.00:58:13:02 - 00:58:34:14 Unknown
One of them owns a cleaning business where she's, like, hyper focused right now on Airbnb and Vrbo turns and is staying really busy with that and her team. And then my other sister owns a successful hair salon in Williamsburg, where I live. So we just have that entrepreneurial spirit. Actually, none of us, the four of us went to college, but, we're all doing really well in our chosen career paths.00:58:34:14 - 00:59:00:15 Unknown
So I think that that's interesting. And yeah, my husband and I, you know, we're both from this area. We love it here. We love the water. We love going to the beach and the mountains, and we live in such a great area that you can get to everything very, very easily. So, when I'm not selling real estate, I'm definitely with them, with my kids and my husband, and we love to just kind of travel, go to the beach, or do a little weekend trip to the mountains and, go to concerts or just anything.00:59:00:17 - 00:59:12:10 Unknown
We're busy bodies, so we stay busy. We're always on the go.00:59:12:12 - 00:59:28:00 Unknown
Yes. Yeah.00:59:28:02 - 00:59:33:11 Unknown
Yes. I love,01:00:01:10 - 01:00:37:10 Unknown
Oh my gosh. I would definitely be somewhere tropical on the water. I just don't know exactly where I would have to really think. I mean there's so many stunning areas. It would definitely be tropical and private. Beach front boating. Love boating. And just peaceful. So it could be anywhere really? Yes. I need to work on where?01:00:37:12 - 01:00:46:23 Unknown
Yes.01:00:47:01 - 01:01:05:09 Unknown
Yeah, yeah.01:01:05:11 - 01:01:26:04 Unknown
Oh, my gosh. I had one not that long ago. So, I was going to this area of townhomes in Williamsburg that are all identical. And I sold one of them and the client, who I sold it to, I had another buyer that wanted to be in this section. And so I asked my client, my seller client.01:01:26:06 - 01:01:44:10 Unknown
I said, do you know of anybody else that might be selling? I've got a buyer who's, like, dying to be in this section. It's, in walking distance to Colonial Williamsburg, which is pretty rare for townhome. It's a great location and they're all the same, same floor plan, look, the same outside, whatever. And she's like, actually, yeah, so-and-so over there, like, here's this number.01:01:44:14 - 01:02:01:11 Unknown
So I reach out to him and he's like, yeah, come and take a look. And we'll see if it works for your buyer. So I go over there the next day to meet with this Kevin guy, and, there's a guy standing out by his front door and he's waving to me and in my head, I'm like, I could have sworn she pointed that way, but maybe I had it wrong.01:02:01:11 - 01:02:18:23 Unknown
Like, this guy clearly is here to meet me. So I walk up to the door and I'm like, hi, I'm Lauren Rogers, and I put my hand out and he, like, shakes my hand and he's like, hi. And he's like, come on in. And I'm like, okay. So we start looking and I'm like, something is off. But I couldn't like, put my finger on what?01:02:19:01 - 01:02:36:01 Unknown
And he's like talking. And then he's like, you know, we get all the way he's showing me around the house and I'm like, oh, we haven't met my client. We definitely love this. This is beautiful. So we go to step outside and I'm like, I'm so glad Vicky connected us. You know, I told her about my client in California that wants to be here, and he's like, Vicky.01:02:36:01 - 01:02:56:06 Unknown
And he's like, Who's Vicky? And I was like, are you selling this home? And he's like, no, I'm not actually. But I've been praying for a while that someone would show someone who would show up at my house. I've been really lonely, and I thought maybe you were the answer to my prayers. And I'm like, I turned so red and I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm so sorry.01:02:56:06 - 01:03:12:12 Unknown
Like, I'm at the wrong house. And he's like, well, don't leave. You don't have to go. And like, comes with me out to my car and I'm just like, how in the world he really made it seem like I was meeting with him. Like it might have fence. It's he's waving me down, you know? So he's, like, walking me out to his car and he's like, well, can I have your business card?01:03:12:12 - 01:03:27:15 Unknown
And I was like, yeah, but, you know, I, I am happily married. You know, this on the third, he's like, okay, well, I'd love to hang out sometime. Like I told you, I'm really lonely. And I was like, oh, like, I so appreciate it. And it was just bizarre. So then I go over to the house that I'm supposed to be at and I'm like, mortified.01:03:27:15 - 01:03:41:20 Unknown
I'm like, I hope he didn't just see this whole thing. Like, this section is pretty small. And I'm like, so I just went over there and was like, I am so sorry. Like, I'm never late. That is one thing about me that drives me crazy. Like, I think it's just it's disrespectful and it's just something I don't do.01:03:41:20 - 01:03:56:20 Unknown
Of course, there's going to be times where emergencies pop up, but I just it's not me. I will never be late. I'm always five minutes early. So of course now I am late because this guy is giving me his whole home tour. And so I just like profusely apologize. Like, I'm so sorry I'm late, but thank you so much for having me over.01:03:56:22 - 01:04:13:03 Unknown
And it all went fine from there, but it was just really awkward. And then I kept having to come and go. I ended up selling that one off market, and so I kept seeing my new friend, and he would wave every single time and I would wave back. But in my head I was like, oh my God, I just power would power walk because it was just such a crazy.01:04:13:05 - 01:04:28:02 Unknown
I've never accidentally shown a house like that. Like it was just crazy. So. It was. Yeah, it was interesting.01:04:28:04 - 01:04:35:00 Unknown
Yeah. Yeah.01:04:35:02 - 01:04:50:23 Unknown
Yeah. Yes. I've also had situations. Yeah. I've also had situations where I go to show a house and the sellers there, and the agent didn't tell me they were going to be there. And I'm always like, you know, you always ring the doorbell. But I'm always like, oh my goodness. Did you know about my appointment? And they're like, oh yeah, we're here to show you around.01:04:50:23 - 01:05:02:08 Unknown
I'm like, okay. And so they kind of follow you and your client around and that can just be so awkward. So I've had a few of those to.01:05:02:10 - 01:05:12:12 Unknown
Exactly.01:05:20:07 - 01:05:40:21 Unknown
Probably Instagram. And then on my bio, there's a link tree that takes you to all of my other sites. And my Instagram handle is just Lauren Rogers underscore realtor. And, obviously I'm on Facebook too, under Lauren Rogers Williamsburg Real Estate, but I think Instagram is probably the easiest.01:05:40:23 - 01:06:05:13 Unknown
Yes, I put it all in one place. That's really nice. Not.01:06:05:15 - 01:06:16:23 Unknown
Yeah. No.01:06:17:01 - 01:06:39:12 Unknown
Thank you. Awesome.01:06:39:14 - 01:06:41:12 Unknown
Thank you.
From Leasing to Luxury Sakes: Lauren Rogers’ Real Estate Journey
In this episode, Ginny Parks reveals the secrets behind her real estate success, from starting as a receptionist to becoming an industry leader. She discusses the importance of mentorship, the power of open houses, and the value of genuine client relationships. Ginny also shares how she balances career and family life, invests in personal growth, and stays resilient through market challenges. Tune in to gain practical insights and inspiration for your own real estate journey.
00:00 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
I mean, at the end of the day, I sit there and I just have to tell myself there are still people who need to buy and there are still people who need to sell, and it might as well be with me. So what am I going to do to go out there and be in front of them and obtain that business? And I think, no matter what level of success that you've made, it's like you have to still go back to the basics and be willing to do those things, which are the open houses, calling your clients, staying in touch with them. I really think that high touch is important and whether that's just me texting, calling or doing a little pop-by gift and dropping things off on 4th of July or Thanksgiving or whatever the case, it's helpful. It reminds people you're still there, but it also lets them know that you care and you're thinking of them.00:46 - Intro (Ad)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle us together.01:28 - Mel Allen (Host)
Here is your peek into the Inner Circle. Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast. This is a podcast where we dive deep into the stories of the most successful real estate agents in the country. If you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, you're in the right spot, and today we're honored to have Ginny Parks in Davis, california, literally from Yolo County. So true, yolo, the only one. Sorry, let's do it. So, ginny, let's give a little bit of an introduction about yourself, and you know who are you and what was your journey into real estate.01:59 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Definitely so. I am in kind of like a small little bubble in my Yolo County. I was born and raised here and I am heavily rooted here and it's been very good to me. So I was born and raised in Woodland, which is like 10 minutes up the road it's a sister community of Davis where I graduated high school and then I went to UC Davis and earned a degree in economics. While I went to college I knew I always wanted to be a realtor right, it's like you don't need a college degree to do that. But I had a full academic scholarship to UC Davis and so I kind of ran with it and I got that done and just put that in my back pocket and off we went. So I'm a third generation real estate professional.02:46
My grandfather was president of First American Title for years and years. He was the smartest businessman I've ever known and heavily influenced me in so many ways. But he was involved in like commercial investments and things like that. And then my mother was an escrow officer for many, many years in Davis. So for me it was like I looked at them and I just like couldn't imagine myself sitting behind a desk from eight to five, nine to five. Whatever it may be, I just you know my personality, my attention span it was like no, no, no. So I figured I was definitely more suited for the sales side.03:24
So after graduating from UC Davis, I went to the big fish in town at the time, which was Coldwell Banker, and one of my mother-in-law's best friends was a top agent there. And I just asked like hey, do you have any assistant work? And at the time she didn't. So instantly I was like, oh gosh, you know that sucks. But then she reached out to say, hey, I heard there's like a one day a week receptionist position at the front desk, right. And so for me it was like, okay, coming from UC Davis, they preach to you like you're going to make 80 K a year, like you're gonna be totally fine, like go out and be somebody. I'm like, oh, one day a re-perceptionist, awesome. But I knew it was important. I was willing to get my foot in the door. I was like let me get in there and we'll see where this goes. And so pretty quickly one of the top producing agents noticed my work ethic and did ask me to come on and work with her.04:22
So while I was getting and finishing my license, I was assisting her and then that relationship evolved into a mentor-mentee relationship, which I heavily, heavily advocate. Like if you want to make it in this career, find someone who you trust or who you feel has a similar style or whatever the case may be. But a mentorship is so important. Like my gosh. We're just thrown into this world of contracts, millions of dollars, thousands of dollars, all kinds of things. There's like so many variables that you really need someone to really show you the ropes and kind of help guide you through it so fast forward. We worked so well together. She's older than myself and it turned into a business partnership. So she's now, like I want to say, 99% retired. It's like you never really go away, but she's still around and we work so well together.05:15
This is my 13th year. We have been together the whole time. So it was really like a natural progression for me and it was a very fortunate one because it has been a very successful path. I obtained two, 30 under 30 titles, I was featured in realtor magazine and I've accumulated a lot of really great recognition. But I really, really like have to attribute so much of that to my mentor and business partner. So that was really kind of my path into it and now here we are and I'm really steering the ship and running it and it's been good to me. Like I said, I just I love my community.05:53 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, I mean, you know, to, to, to be in the area that you grew up. So many people, you know, want to move away and leave and but, yeah, finding that happiness, finding that success, you know that's a great combination and definitely the mentor-mentee relationship can be so incredibly valuable. Leading us now. What was your first deal like? You know, how did that happen? You?06:19 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
know, was that kind of more like on the assistant or did you do your first one? That's a great question. No, it was more so me, While I had such a great path, having the mentor who also did help give me leads and stuff like that, I mean I had to do it on my own. It was getting to the nitty gritty. Do open houses. I was doing like four a weekend, two on Saturday, two on Sunday, putting my sign out there. I mean, I remember one agent looking at me going like oh my God, Jenny, I see your signs everywhere Like you must be so busy.06:45 - Mel Allen (Host)
And I'm like, yes, yes, I am no nothing going on, I'm a 23 year old, like I haven't even bought my own home yet.06:53 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
I'm like the total poser here. Fake it till you, make it.06:56 - Mel Allen (Host)
Right.06:59 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
But I met someone organically at an open house and, to be totally honest, it took me eight months to close my, to get in my first deal, like again, it was so hard because you kind of see everybody and what they're doing. You're like I want that, why am I not? Why is?07:14 - Mel Allen (Host)
that. Why is it not happening yet?07:15 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, and it's like one of those things in this business. I think it kind of weeds people out. I think there's like a romanticism around being in real estate, like what we think it's going to be, especially with TV and social media and all that stuff. And then when it comes down to it, it's like you know, if you've made it this is 24 seven business does not fall in your lap. You have to go out there and get it and it's it's hard, it's just simply hard.07:40
And I remember coming home and like crying to my husband a few nights like did I do the right thing? Did I do the right thing? Like I don't know, like this is going to pan out. And so eight months later, like thank the Lord it did. But it was like a little condo in Davis with a young professor at UC Davis and, I kid you not, we ran into so many damn obstacles. Like the loan didn't get approved, the inspections were awful and it was probably the longest escrow I've ever had. But like, thank goodness, that listing agent like hung in there with us and we finally closed it and we made it and it was awesome, you know.08:17
And then you're like this young 20 year old getting this commission check. You're like this is amazing, like let's keep going.08:21 - Mel Allen (Host)
It made it all worth it yeah.08:25 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Then it was like off to the races from there.08:26 - Mel Allen (Host)
But I mean it sounds like it was a great learning experience. I mean, you know, even though obviously probably a rough one, having all of those things happen, all of those things, as you said, go wrong. You know a lot of people. I think it probably takes them a couple of deals for some of those things to happen.08:39 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Well, let's get the difficult out of the way first and learned from it. So it was a good learning lesson. For sure you had a you had a great mentor.08:46 - Mel Allen (Host)
Uh, you had this, uh, first sale, that everything went wrong. What other kind of things that kind of happened that fell into place that made this realize. You know, this is it. Uh, you know I'm gonna, other than the paycheck, obviously, you know, or maybe it was just the paycheck, really no, not at all.09:01 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
yeah, no, I certainly you know on that, it's like you can't be attached to the dollar Like it's the wrong. It's the wrong thing to attach yourself to in this business. Like you will realize, it very quickly goes wrong. It's not going to work out. This business is about relationships and building those relationships and helping people get to the finish line and doing that together. But you know, I feel like again it was just keeping my head down and working and seeing that all that hard work was starting to pay off very quickly was solidifying that like I made that right choice. I am doing this. I did this Like I am not going to quit after my first or second year, like so many do. I'm going to stick with this. This is my career and I think that was kind of what was the most validating thing right, just starting to obtain that trust of clients and closing deals ultimately right.09:54 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, now you probably have a lot of stories like this where you know you've you've closed those deals, you've worked with those clients, you've built those relationships. 13 years, definitely a decent amount of time. Is there one that kind of stands out as being really, you know, a rewarding one, and you know whether it was a challenge, whether it was just such a positive thing, you know? Tell us about that.10:16 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
There's been so many transactions over the years, but one that just immediately pops into my mind was something that recently happened last year One of my husband's employees, a first time home buyer, looking to buy a house, and a young man like 22 years old with his girlfriend, and just you just kind of look at this kid and you're like you're such a hard worker and you've done, you've been so good to us and it's like you just want to help, right, like I just want this to work for you, but like like how can we make that happen in this market? I mean, last year was a challenging market. At least, like the first six months were good in the sense that it was still multiple offers, competitive and first time home buyers were having a heck of a time yeah in that challenging period where it was like, okay, let's write a few offers.11:01
We weren weren't getting them accepted.11:02
I can only, you know, we can only do so much, like you can just do your best.11:07
But we found him a house in adjacent little ag town community and we start to go through the inspections and again it's all going wrong and it needs a new roof.11:18
It's leaking, the solar was installed wrong and the roof is like $13,000. And you know, but I just, I just like felt like I have to give back, like I have to help and it's going to come back to me, it's going to be fine. And so it was like you know what, take it off the table, let that cover the roof. And he was like so moved by that and so thrilled and happy and we closed it and he got his new roof and he's living in his home and like he's a very like reserved, quiet young guy but like he wrote hand, wrote a letter like thank you me and telling and kind of sharing how he felt, and I was like, oh my God, I didn't even know he was like you know, I would have never known all that's going on behind here, but I think that was just really rewarding being able to help them in in that.12:07
And now they have their first home and they're totally adulting. And I was going to say, you know, they're doing it.12:14 - Mel Allen (Host)
Wow, that's, you know, that's great and you know the fact that this is as you said. You know somebody who works for your husband, you know and you know. So there was a different kind of relationship there, I think you know, to begin with, and a lot of people have. But, wow, you know, good for you for seeing it through and making sure that they, you know, could get in that place despite you know all of those challenges and have you ever had any times, you know, when you have challenges like that, maybe it didn't work out, you know, and kind of what. You know how did you work your way through that and I promise we'll get to a better place, you know.12:47 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
This is a very real part of the business. I mean, there's so many variables and moving parts in a transaction, like no single deal is ever the same right. And let's be real, one of the main aspects of my job is a problem solver, like at the end of the day. So it's like how we're going to solve this problem, but they don't always work out, you know, whether that be from the inspections, the loan not getting approved, I mean like life circumstances.13:15
I think the best way to deal with it is, if that happens, is just know that you've been a very good advisor the whole way. You've built a solid relationship so that we are continuing to work together and then moving forward. You know you just have to let them know we're going to find you another home. It's going to be okay and, as cheesy as it sounds, it's like typically usually do happen for a reason and at least on the buyer side, more often than not, it's like if they weren't able to get that first house, for whatever reason, the next one, they're more happy that it worked out that way, right, yeah, and yeah, and I think a lot of people find that you know the first one that you love.13:54 - Mel Allen (Host)
Maybe it's not always the right one, you know.13:57 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Absolutely you kind of. You know you have to have a little faith. It's like you got to be comfortable being uncomfortable and and the home buying process is is not, you know, a straight line. It's not easy, it's, it's not a comfortable thing often. So you know, you just got to have a little grit and get through it and if it doesn't work out the first time, it'll be totally fine.14:17 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, but you know, one of the wonderful things about getting into those uncomfortable spaces is that's where you're, that's where you're learning, that's where you're growing, that's where you're finding new things, right. So you know, getting uncomfortable, yeah, it's kind of scary. So getting uncomfortable, yeah, it's kind of scary. But at the same time you know, from some of those risks you know that it feels like you're taking that's. You know that's where a lot of growth has. Has there ever been a time when you you know I mean obviously making sure that that person can put a roof on the house and waiving your commission that a lot of people would perceive that as a risk? Is there another time that you've taken kind of a risk and and how did that, you know, work out?14:52 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
for you. Well, that's a good question. Like, let me think I feel like there's I don't know, there's just always things that come up, it's just never so easy. It's like you always have to like have some sort of middle ground and give and bend on things. I'm probably and again I feel like I'm bad, I feel like we're talking about the money of it all and like I swear that's not you know, what the focus is, but it's like helping people is probably the main thing I've done If I, if I have to.15:22
It's just like give the credits, help work through things like money doesn't come easy for everybody and if that's a way that I can help in a transaction to make it work, you know I don't advocate for it, but at the end of the day I think you really need to kind of sit down and sit and look at the whole picture as a whole in the situation and see if it's really truly worth it. And a lot of times I think that it is, and it's not always, but like I don't know, like I wish I could think of a more specific example other than that.15:52 - Mel Allen (Host)
No, I mean, I mean you gave a pretty darn good one earlier, so I think that definitely puts it out there. But I mean the fact that you're looking at these things and seeing I mean it sounds like you're just kind of weighing the risks and weighing the client and is this one that you want to see through? Is this a journey kind of you want to go on with them and I think everybody has to do that at some point with the house or with the partner that you're walking with? And obviously sounds like you've made some really good decisions and walked with some people through that journey. What is it different about you? I mean, I think we're learning a little bit about that. That does set you apart from others who might be in real estate in your area or just other people that you've met.16:27 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, I think, if anything, the most prevalent feedback that I get is honesty, transparency. You can always count on me to give you very true advice. I tell everyone at the end of the day, like, listen, I am your advisor, but this is your ship and you are steering it and you don't always have to take my advice. But, like, I ask that you hear me out and we talk through things and so I won't sugarcoat it, but I will be very honest and I think people appreciate that, you know, coupled with being just genuine. I am going to be myself and love it or hate it, you know, but people, usually it works out just fine, right, we find that we all want to work together.17:08 - Mel Allen (Host)
You're leading with honesty, right Giving those options there. You're leading with honesty, right Giving those options and that's honestly. That's, I think, the best people that I've worked with you know in the past, when you know thinking of selling or buying any homes. The ones who weren't upfront with me or I felt like they were holding things back.17:22
I'd be like I don't think this is the right, the right person for me and I think that we all kind of have that kind of feeling. And so you know, you know it's, it's good to have that. What you lead with right being being transparent, not holding those things, not hiding those things, right, because then you can't feel, you know somebody's not going to feel like that, because they're like, well, you know, it's jenny play, I'm gonna, I know she's gonna tell it to me straight, even if it's not always the best news like I'm gonna, I'm gonna find out and I'm gonna know and I'll be able to make a good choice because I'm at least informed and I think that that's the best policy there. Not that my you know word is uh, is gospel or means you know more than any anybody else's, but I think you know, based on my own experience, boy, you can always tell when somebody is holding something back and it's an uncomfortable thing to make bit about.18:11
You know some of the challenges that you had last year when things do kind of slow down. What does that, what does that do? How do you? How do you change your pace for yourself and what do you do to to keep you know positive and keep that, you know, keep things moving along when you have a small period.18:27 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Well, I think, ultimately, you have to be confident, right, and say you know, this is just maybe a period of time, it's, it's going to work out. I am in this for the long run. I mean, at the end of the day, I sit there and I just have to tell myself there are still people who need to buy and there are still people who need to sell, and it might as well be with me. So what am I going to do to go out there and be in front of them and obtain that business? And I think, no matter what level of success that you've made, it's like you have to still go back to the basics and be willing to do those things which, which are the open houses, calling your clients, staying in touch with them.19:09
I really think that high touch is important, and whether that's just me texting, calling or doing a little pop by gift and dropping things off on 4th of July or Thanksgiving or whatever the case, it's helpful. It reminds people you're still there, but it also lets them know that you care and you're thinking of them. And so I also feel like, just again, like these open houses are very, very important, like I know they're not fun, like setting out the signs, sitting there for two to three hours and in this changing market of buyer contracts and forms and all that kind of thing, it can feel a little intimidating, but it's the best way to meet the buying population and have you be present in front of them. And along with that, I feel like if you could be recognized over like three different platforms, it legitimizes you, right. So, like if that's just being out hustling on the street doing the open houses and then you're working social media, you've invested your time in your website, knowing that you're worth it, right, like, make the investment in yourself.20:11
It allows people to feel like, hey, like, make the investment in yourself. It allows people to feel like, hey, I could totally work with her, I've seen her around, I've seen her about. Like it just legitimizes face, right, and I think I think there's a lot of power. And even when you do close a deal or going back to clients if things are slow, and building up a testimonial page, like on Google and Zillow and all those things, I feel like that's highly valuable. I mean, everything's at the consumer's fingertips. They are Googling, they are researching, they are checking those kinds of things out and it's just to say hey, you know, like the best way you can thank me is to maybe take a moment and write a quick review of our time together, and most people are totally up to do it, and I think that's so valuable, so valuable.21:03 - Mel Allen (Host)
So just doing all those little things, right and being able to go back to the basics and is important, yeah, no, and I think you're absolutely right that, yeah, people are going to do their research, they're going to do those searches, they're going to look for you. And if you're not saying the same things and you're not, you know, if it's not reflecting who you are and they're like, well, this person seems very different than the person I met. You know you're not doing that job well, so, and yeah, doing those things that maybe it's like, well, you know, maybe it's had anybody kind of you know, look like they were asking you know strange things of you and you know, maybe pushing on some of your values, your principles. How do you work around those to make sure that people have that good experience?21:44 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
with you. I think that it's important to hold true to yourself and what's important to you and how you operate. I think in this business, there are going to people who push back. At the end of the day, these are human beings we are dealing with and, like everyone, brings their own context to the table and life experience, and that shapes how they respond to certain things, and real estate can be a highly emotional, reactive thing, and so knowing where your boundaries are, it's important. And then I think being able to just simply walk away if you have to holds so much strength.22:19
And so I mean, there's been multiple times where I feel like there's just so much pushback.22:26
I'm not feeling like they're trusting what I'm saying, and so you have to just have that hard conversation and say, hey, like I am noticing A, b and C, and if you feel like I am not aligning with your interests and I don't have your best interests at heart, you are welcome to go find another agent that maybe you think does.22:44
If you feel like I am not the best fit for you, do you feel like you're ready to find someone else? And, to be fair, most of the time they'll be like oh no, no, no, absolutely not. And it kind of helps redirect the situation and get you off on track where they know like, hey, I respect you, but like I'm not going to sit here and work with someone who doesn't want to work with me, like we should not be working against one another. This is a business partnership with the same goal in mind. We need to collaborate and get to the finish line and usually it will get you back on track. But being able to have that conversation, know your value and set that boundary there's a lot of power in that and I think at the end of the day, that individual will usually walk away with more respect for you.23:25 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, I definitely agree. I mean, you know, after all, it is a relationship and if it's not working for both people, right then you got to call that out. So you know at least you're resetting, kind of, where you know the relationship goes from here, whether it's staying together or agreeing that maybe we don't make the best match.23:42 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
That's okay, right. Like if I'm not your cup of tea, like you know, find somebody else that is, and that's okay.23:51 - Mel Allen (Host)
That's okay, and it's probably better if it's really not working that well.23:55 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
You don't want to work with me. I probably don't want to work with you either.23:58 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, you know, I'm glad you said that because, yeah, I mean, a lot of people, I think, are afraid to say that. But yeah, that's the reality is, if it's not working for one of you, there's probably that friction is being felt by the other person. They may not just be calling it out, and so it's good to make sure, if there is some that at least you're talking about it, then you're not talking around it.24:17 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Right.24:18 - Mel Allen (Host)
Now. We talked about the slowdowns now, so let's talk about when it's really busy. You know what is it that you do, jenny? To make sure that you're taking care of yourself, right? You know you've got these personal life, you've got the professional life and you've got to balance the two. How do you do that? What are some of the techniques that you use?24:38 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Oh my gosh, Is that not just the best question ever?24:40
And probably the aspects of this career that I could work the most on is having maybe more of a work life personal life balance, of a work life personal life balance.24:56
I feel like to be fair, though. I have found that when I have tried to prioritize like my family, my career and my health, all of those, like at one time I am the most happiest and like I thrive in almost a time of like there's so much to do. Let's make that to-do list and check those boxes off and get through it. Like if I'm sitting still and twiddling my thumbs, I'm probably not getting a lot done, even if there's other aspects of my life that could be totally paid more attention to it. If that makes sense, I'm more productive in that environment, but I feel like just being able to multitask as silly as that sounds is very important, and so for me. I have two kids. I have a two and a three year old, and so it's definitely changed a lot of the way that I do the business, and so I'm not the best at delegating, but I try to ask for help when I need it.25:47
Right, and so getting through the day, keeping a consistent checklist of the things that need to get done within the business and having all those thoughts shot down so you can go back to them, has been highly helpful for me and I love my kids. They were both home with me until they were 18 months old. I had a kid on my hip showing properties, selling houses, doing all of that, and I just kind of made it work right, and now and now they are in childcare and that's obviously helped immensely. Right, so that they're cared for during the day. But having a team that is there to support you, like my husband, has been very helpful. He recognizes, like, the nature of the business, like there are going to be weekends where I'm working and I try to do my best to at least give one day on the weekend where I don't have any appointments or work. So I'll shift everything to try to be on a Saturday or Sunday, and it doesn't always work out that way when things are really, really busy. But having the team there to help me pick up the slack in the personal life has been great.26:45
But I think at the end of the day too, like while my kids are so young. Showing them that hard work pays off and work ethic is very important. That's one of my values and it means a lot to me, like I don't want my kids to ever feel like entitled to something like you know. I want them to see that you know there is like a lot of self-worth in being able to go out there and put your feet on the street and work really, really hard. So I think setting that example for them it feels important to me. So I guess, to like full circle back to your question, it's like I could probably work on that personal life, work-life balance. I'm not great at taking vacations I don't do all of that because my career is very important to me but there will be a time where there has to be a little bit more give and I think being able to delegate I should probably bring someone else on to like a team member or something like that just to kind of help out will be that will prove helpful.27:38 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, it's interesting, you know, when I talk to people about that and I ask that question, you know, and people do talk about team members. You know, anybody who's brought somebody on has always said that it actually increased business, right. And so you know it's. It's one of those things where, oh man, it feels so daunting, right. But having that ability to delegate those things that either you don't enjoy or you're not great at, or just very time consuming for you, that might not be for somebody else who can specialize in that, I think it'd be interesting to see what happened to your career, you know, if you, if you were able to do that and you know, bring that person on the team. But yeah it's, you know it changes the dynamic, right.28:16 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
So it's like letting go of control too right. I mean, a lot of us in this business are very type A and I like to be hands-on, and so that would be a change for me and one that I think I'll have to face in the near future. But I think you're right. It's like those leads that come in that are almost like distracting, like you can't focus on it. You have someone to take those on. It's an opportunity for more growth and more business. I think finding someone that aligns with your values and you work well with is probably the hardest part, like I think it sounds- that's the biggest challenge.28:47
But you know it's hard to find someone that I think you can work well with. So if you do, it's like hold onto them and like run with it.28:54 - Mel Allen (Host)
So yeah, yeah, you got to trust, you got to put a lot of trust in somebody else. Now, how do you you know, obviously you're making a lot of time for answering those phone calls, making those calls, going to those open houses Is that kind of what allows you to see, kind of what's coming whenever there's a shift or there's a trend that you're seeing in real estate, how do you get the pulse? I guess?29:15 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, very much. So you know I've been very, very fortunate in my career. I've always stayed busy and consistently selling, you know, like 25, 30 homes a year. Last year was heavily listing side, representing a lot of sellers and, I think, just noticing the activity of like, okay, what are the showings like, how many people are coming through the property, what is the feedback like? So when you start to experience day on market count increase a little bit and then all of a sudden you're talking about, okay, we need to have a price reduction to, you know, reentice those people to come back or gain more interest, it's like, okay, we have definitely shifted.30:00
I mean we've been, I think, very, very spoiled in the past few years, myself included. It was just trying to keep your head above water. I mean, real estate was moving and a listing was gold. It was like you put it on the market and the thing's going to sell and you just have to kind of keep going, going, going. But now we're noticing that it has shifted and so I think just hands-on experience with listing these properties and seeing how they are playing out has definitely helped keep me in tune with these things and with those listings again broken record.
30:27It's like I'm the one at these open houses. I'm going to be there, I'm going to at least do the majority of them and then also seek help. But I'm getting the buyer's feedback and you're able to have those discussions with those people like okay, where are you in the market, how are you looking around, what do you think of this home in particular? And if people are starting to feel like things are overpriced and they're becoming more picky and choosy which is okay, but that's also indicative of a different market If that buyer is not willing to kind of take a 10 item checklist and say, okay, if I get seven out of 10 score, and now they're like I want nine out of 10. Well, they're not as motivated as they were.31:09 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, so you've already seen some changes. Are there other changes that you think that are coming, you know, to either you know your local market or across the country?31:17 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
You know I can't. I just have to remain cautiously optimistic. I feel like there's probably hope on the horizon. I know interest rates are constantly in flux and while the Fed is continuing to reduce the base rate, it does not have a direct correlation to our interest rate. Reduce the base rate. It does not have a direct correlation to our interest rate, right, but I think that the state of the economy will hopefully be improving soon. Obviously, we're in a new presidential period. You know, politics aside, changes will be implemented. Let's hope that all of those are for the positive Right. And so I think we're just in a period and we are in January, in the beginning of this time where it's like I think the next few months are going to be very telling of what the second half of the year, and even next year, is going to be like. I mean, none of us have a crystal ball, so I don't know for certain, but I really heavily believe like the next few weeks and months are going to be very telling of of what's to come.32:13 - Mel Allen (Host)
Like what we know yet.32:14 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, yeah.32:15 - Mel Allen (Host)
Well, it's definitely true that it takes some time and, yeah, there's always a transition around any political changes. Does that update a law or make the Fed want to change the interest rate? Who knows, and we'll see. It'll be good to see what happens. At least we'll have answers at that time. Thinking about back to you know, kind of when you got started, and you've already kind of mentioned you know that you were so lucky to have that mentor, mentee kind of role, is there another piece of advice that you would say you know that you kind of wish you had had when you started, or that you've learned that you think people really should know if they're thinking about getting into the real estate market?32:55 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
You know that's a really good question. I think, again, it's just important to know your worth, be self-aware, check in with yourself and say, okay, how is this going for me? Is there any sort of change that maybe I need to make? But I also feel like it's important to have kind of everything in life aligned and to focus on that and you're only going to be better for it. Like again, I found that my most successful years have been when I am prioritizing my business. You know, I'm going to the gym and I'm working out and I and I physically feel good and I'm spending time with my family when it allows it.33:30
I think just being able to prioritize everything, I think we're like we're, we're preached, like you know, you prioritize one thing, like there's always going to be an aspect that's going to take a back burner and and like I guess that's kind of true Like you can have it all but you can't have everything. But like, why not? Why not strive for that? But also you have to just know when to check in with yourself like, okay, am I doing too much? Am I about to burn out? Like what do I need to maybe take care of myself? So, being in tune and even if that's, you know, seeking therapy or gym or whatever it is, have that outlet. I think that's really important.34:06
But also just sticking with it and knowing that this market, you know you got to ride the waves, you got to ride the lows and just keep your head down and work very, very hard.34:15
You're only going to get out of it when you put into it and it's not just going to come to you. So if you have to be willing to work on the weekends, you have to be willing to talk on the phone after hours, and if you're not, then like maybe it's just not for you, but you're only going to get out of it when you put into it. So, yeah, I think if you're looking for a nine to five monday through friday, you know, then you need a nine to five monday through friday. Like you have to know what you're signing up for and and yes, you know you, we get to, I guess, that to some degree make our own schedule. But you know and that's one of the things that everyone talks about too in real estate like you can make your own schedule. You're self-employed, but but like, not when you are busy, it's go, go, go, and you have to know that this is what I wanted. This is okay, and you have to prioritize your clients, too, at some point.35:02 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, it's more like you can dictate when you're having your open houses and when you're making phone calls and when you're. There is definitely control within that. But yeah, I mean, you have to do all of the things right and it's making sure that you, you know, overall have some kind of balance to that work. And you know, I think work-life balance is easy to say but the lines blur, you know, sometimes.35:23 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Totally do and I think you know, like I heard Jeff Bezos say this the other day, I think he called it like work-life harmony, not balance.35:30
And he was saying. I have found that when I am productive at work, things are going well because I am putting in the effort and the energy into it. I am the most happy in my personal life and with my family, I'm not as stressed out, I'm not carrying all that angst and energy over into it. And that really struck me because I agree, I think I really liked that phrase of like harmony and that's why I say, like you know, know, I get it that maybe I'm trying to prioritize both and I can't have it be the scales equal here and maybe there's going to be some of the give.36:00 - Mel Allen (Host)
But if I'm focusing my energy in all the right places, I do feel like it carries over into all the other aspects of your life, right and so well, somebody said to me one time you want something done, you tell them you ask a busy person, right, because they're not going to waste time, they're just going to find the solution. Get that done, move on next Right.36:18 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Absolutely Truth.36:20 - Mel Allen (Host)
And I think that works. Do you see people make a lot of mistakes that you think could easily be avoided, or are there a lot of mistakes that you think you made when you were starting that could have been easily avoided?36:31 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, I think it was knowing where to spend my time. It have been easily avoided. Yeah, I think it was knowing where to spend my time. It goes back to you know a practice, what you preach. I was saying be willing to have that tough conversation of if I'm not not the right fit for you, I, you are allowed to go find someone else and I will walk away.36:47
And I think in real estate it's like god if you have the business like, don't let it go, there's no guarantee that there's going to be something else on the horizon, or I don't have another escrow, I don't know what to do.36:56
And in the beginning it was like I ran myself ragged, trying to make sure that every lead came to fruition, or working with people who I don't think really respected me or my time. And now that I've matured in my business and as an individual, it's like I can very easily recognize those type of people and say, yeah, probably not, like this is not going to work well, or again immediately assert that boundary in a nice way, right, like in a stern but nice way and having that conversation, so that way they again respect you more and you're not being run ragged for and feeling really undervalued and underappreciated. I think that if anything, that was probably the biggest mistake I made was just allowing people to dictate how I felt about myself and my time, because I wasn't willing to be more assertive, in a kind and respectful way, of course.37:48 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I mean it leaves you feeling a little run over in those kinds of situations. Absolutely. Do you have any, any resources that you, that you like or that you go back to? You know, whether it's apps, books, websites that you think are helpful, you know, in your business, in your career?38:06 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
No. So nothing like in particular, like I wish I could say you know, go to this website, do this or that, but like what I can say, one of the biggest changes I made last year in my business was investing in myself a little bit more. And so I had just given birth, I had my kids, and it was like, okay, I need to feel a little more motivated again and I need to feel more like myself. So I invested in myself with the rebranding, I had new headshots, I rebuilt my website. I had, of course, then all the other items that come with that the business cards, the open house signs, all those kinds of things redone.38:40
And what I did, too, was I've always had this love-hate with social media and, as you saw earlier, I'm not the most tech-savvy individual.38:50
Again, I know my weaknesses. So I hired a social media girl to help me and I decided that, like it's okay, I'm kind of naturally a private person, but it was like, get over it, like just put yourself out there. You don't have to share more than you're not willing to. And so I hired her and then I implemented like an email after every closing where I definitely asked for reviews and if they don't give it to me the first time. I will follow up and then I usually kind of let it go. I don't want to harass someone, but I've noticed that doing the social media and then having the, the reviews that that count increase it gains traction, it allows for more visibility. I think, like you know, I may sound again, I don't know what I'm talking about half the time, but like the algorithm or whatever, whatever it is like that and it increases your you know your search engine optimization when people do try to Google real estate agent in your local area.39:50
And I have found that I have gotten more quality online leads that I ever have in my career.39:57
I think, at the end of the day, my sphere and my community knew how busy I was, but they didn't really see all that. I did so, like highlighting that on the social media, like every closing, every listing, doing fun little things, it really made me at more, more of the forefront of their mind in a pretty saturated market. A lot of people are in real estate and it has heavily, heavily helped. You know, I went from selling 30 homes to 40 last year, and so is that? Is that the secret sauce? Is that exactly what did it? I don't know, but I can say that I I have noticed a difference from that and so I feel like just doing those small things and then again investing in yourself and like maybe doing some rebranding if it's time, or if you haven't really done that, and you're starting out and you're like but the money, like I promise you it will pay off. I think it's important for those looking for an agent to feel like you're professional and you take this very seriously too, yeah.40:52 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, well, I think you you walked right through another question I had about scaling your business and it's good. I mean, yeah, that investment in yourself. And again, people are going to do the research, they're going to look right and if they're going to, you might as well give them something to find and it doesn't hurt that, like you're saying, you know, make those algorithms work for you and the best way to do it is to be repetitive. You know to be consistently repetitive in a good way and to get that engagement Right. So you know, if you have friends of yours in the community and they're liking and they're looking, you know, and checking out your posts, that just makes the algorithm, you know, want to feed it to more. It's one of the few things that I've learned about it myself is that you know it's a snowball. It is a snowball effect.41:32 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Well, even if they're not looking to buy or sell there that's the conversation comes up they're like, oh my gosh, like Jenny Parks hey, she's a great realtor, like she does so much. You got to look her up and because I've been doing the social media and stuff like that again it's just being at the forefront of their mind in such a saturated market it really helps.41:49 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, well, that's good advice for sure for people to make sure that they have that presence. They make that investment, like you said, in yourself and in your business. Do you find that those emails that you're sending and other ways that you're touching clients is that part of what helps you to maintain and build those strong relationships with clients, and what's your technique in doing that?42:14 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Absolutely, I think. So I think the key thing is to be genuine and sincere in it, so like not have it be like a robotic email of like hey, thinking about you checking in, If anything, I think it's more so. Like I was driving out in the community and like I went by your house the other day, Like it made me think of you, Like how are you? And and also, you know again, with the social media thing, like if you see what your clients are doing and you see things they're doing with their kids, it just allows for a natural conversation to start. So you can at least just check in, Right, and I'm not I'm. When I do check in, I'm not saying like do you know anyone who's looking to buy or sell? Like no, I just want to check in, see how you're doing, maintain that relationship, because they're more apt to refer me to someone else because of that relationship, not because I'm salesy and asking for business, Right.43:05
And another thing that I tried to pick up more on this last year was doing those gifts and dropping those by um, I've been able to like hire help in doing that, so I'll put little gift baskets together, and so like for the 4th of July it was like you know, little sparklers and the fun little poppers and some lemonade mix and a little American flag and just like dropping those on their door.43:27
And Thanksgiving I handed out like 75 pies and dropped them off at the door with a little note of gratitude. But, like, I think doing nice gestures and nice things for your clients makes them feel differently about it, as opposed to just being like hi, checking in, thinking of you, just some, again something, just robotics. I say, keep it, keep it sincere and genuine and and do something that you would want done for yourself, Right, Like wouldn't you want someone to give you a nice little gift and say you know, here you go, have a great holiday, or something like that. I just feel like it's way more genuine and it's probably attached more to the right kind of outcome, right. In that sense it's just maintaining that relationship is more important than simply saying give me business.44:12 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, and I, you know I say that like there's a lot of different ways of doing it. I mean there's one guy who I rented from years ago, who's a realtor I mean we're talking years and years ago and he sends postcards about every three to four months that look like they're from that period of time that you know. You know that I that I sold, you know, my last house with, and you know, at the beginning of every year they give me a little magnetic calendar and every fall they send, you know, a couple of tulip bulbs or something, and and I think that you know it's, it's a, it's a sense of timing and a sense of you know, like making sure that the you know things are, you know, like you're you said with your pies at Thanksgiving, right, like you can't be more timely than that, you know.44:56 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
And.44:57 - Mel Allen (Host)
I think it's a very thoughtful kind of gift and it really kind of gives that personal touch. I think that's wonderful and you obviously just went through the exercise of doing this. I mean, how did you determine, kind of like, what your brand was going to be? You know, a lot of people don't understand what a brand is, but I mean, you know, for all intents and purposes, it's how people interpret you, right Like how people see you. So how did you make those choices of how you wanted people to see you?45:23 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Oh, that's a really good question. I mean, I obviously hired a professional to kind of help guide me through all of this. When it came down to even like creating the logo and what I wanted and and you know, I think it was. For me, it was like I just want to be clean and simple and have it be easily interpreted. Like I, I didn't want the key, I don't want a house, you know. So it was like that kind of thing. I knew what I didn't want, but I think again, it was just more so.45:50
How am I feeling in this present time of my career? And you know, what is important to me and what is influencing me, and a lot of that was my children. Again, like I said I just, I'd given birth back to back and they were. They were babies. So it was like I'm a mother now and I'm choosing to bring that to the forefront. I, you know, I've been an athlete my whole life. I a lot of that was at the forefront of doing my athletic endeavors, and now it's like I'm a mother and so there was this softness that came with it and I think it was just how I was feeling at the time.46:23
So like the color schemes and all of that, even in my website and everything is probably pretty reflective of that.46:30
But again, I know my strengths and technology and all that kind of graphic design is not one of them. So I did hire a professional to kind of help guide me through it and I was honest with them, like, give me options. I want to be involved with this as much as I can and I think that again, it was just that investment and it paid off. So you know, everything changes in your life and in time, and what Headshot was really cool 10 years ago is not going to be the same. I wanted it to be more natural and organic. You know, the last time I was like arms folded back, you know the normal one and this time it was like no, like I just want to be leaning against the couch and sitting there in my tennis shoes and my blazer and like that is me. I want to be more authentic, not what I think people need to see me as Right, like I thought they needed to see me with a nice watch and jewelry and like my arms folded and I'm so damn serious, you know Right.47:24 - Intro (Ad)
Yeah.47:24 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
But it's like, no, like, just I want them to see me as me now and I want it to be more relaxed and and I think I think I did a good job with it.47:33 - Mel Allen (Host)
So Well, and I think I did a good job with it. Well, I think a lot of people are scared of authenticity, right? They think you know what I'm getting in this career, I need to be this image that they've built in their mind and they try to be that, and then you try to undo that. Once you actually find what really works, you're going to attract the same type of people.47:51 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
right and like, again, it's like law of abundance. Like don't have a mind of people, right and like, again it's like law of abundance. Like don't be, don't have a mind. Like of scarcity, like there is plenty of business to go around. And I have to recognize I'm not everyone's cup of tea, but like that's okay.
48:03I I, I am a lot of people's right, and so it's like be yourself, you're going to attract that, and then, at the end of the day, it's going to make your life a whole lot easier because you're working with people again who you want to work with and want to work with you.48:15 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, I think that that is an incredibly valuable you know statement. You know, being working with people who want to work with you right Like that's, that's just a wonderful thing, rather than trying to fake and put on this, you know there's no falsehood.48:28 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, absolutely. The expectation is not the intention.48:35 - Mel Allen (Host)
You know like, okay, I got to go to work. You know, and that's exhausting at the end of the day, that's true. Have you had any moments that really stand out, that you're really proud of? You know where you made, you know an accomplishment, even if it was only for yourself, you know, not necessarily. You know monetary wise, or maybe for the client. You know that you went above and beyond in a really distinct way.48:56 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Well, I've been really fortunate to have reached some milestones and successes in my career that I look back on and like I was like so nervous and then I was so happy that I obtained it, like when I was with Coldwell Banker and that's where I started and I had earned a 30 under 30 title with Coldwell Banker in 2015. And I was still pretty new and green at the time and then they brought me to Chicago to their Gen Blue thing and I've got recognized and it was like was so validating and I remember that time in my life like this is so amazing, like it felt so good. And then in 2018, I was selected as part of the National Association of Realtors 30 under 30. And so that was a really fun, fun time and a very, very cool thing and I got to be in the magazine and and then even locally just obtaining certain accolades and things like that.49:54
Again, I find in this time of my life like what shaped me most is my children now and it's really changed kind of the way I view the world and so I'm trying to give back more to the community and involve myself a little bit more because of them and you know, it's a different platform that I never had before. And so they're two and three. They're at a preschool. Like I started a PTA, you know I like, do we need it? Probably not, but whatever doing it and hoping that school thrive.50:25
It's a newer school, um, and I want to give that support and and I recently donated $10,000 to upgrade their playground structure and yeah, and at and brought in my contractors. I had my guys do it, um helped facilitate it because I didn't want those little kids roasting out there on that playground, you know. But so it's a little self serving, you know, making sure my children were having a good laugh.50:51 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, the last you know past your kids in there.50:53 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
So but it feels, but it felt really good to give back right and to help that school, um, because I I feel like when you do want to give back and want to involve yourself, and it's like you do what's important for you, like it means more to you right, and like in my, in this time of my life, like that that's what's most important. And I found that it just felt really good to be able to do that and reach a place in my career where I'm actually able to give that amount and invest my time and give back, like that.51:24 - Mel Allen (Host)
So yeah, that was fantastic to be able to do that, to reach that point, you know, to be able to give back and you know, and to not be that person who's struggling and waiting for eight months to get a paycheck, you know, and to not be that person who's struggling and waiting for eight months to get a paycheck.51:36 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
You know full circle Right. And so I mean, you know, that's just one of the times again that, like I just it felt very fulfilling. So you know, not necessarily career related, but it kind of is right, it allowed me the opportunity to do that. So it's like you know, the hard work pays off and now I'm able to give back to others and my children and help them grow and thrive in this community as well, Like it's helped kind of shape it in a way, and you know you're leaving, you're leaving your mark.52:02 - Mel Allen (Host)
You know, leading up to I'll ask you a question more on leaving your mark in a moment. But you know, where do you see like the next, you know the kind of like the next building block, the next step. You know, uh, where are you in five years?52:14 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
But you know kind of like what's that plan, what's next? Yeah, I think, going back to earlier when we kind of touched on this, it's like I probably should find, uh, someone to come work with me. I feel like for me again, I want to remain hands-on, like quality over quantity. I don't if I wanted to have four or five people on the team and like disperse the leads and then make money off all of them like great, that's a really sound business model and it works well for others and like I respect that model.52:45
But it's not me.52:47
Like I just want to have maybe one person that we work well together and we can kind of help build more of the business and it can also help me thrive a little bit more in allowing myself to delegate and take on other tasks and grow my personal business as well.53:05
So I feel like that's probably the next step soon and I would love I wouldn't even mind if it were a mentor-mentee relationship, Like it does not have to be an established person. I would kind of actually probably enjoy giving back a little bit more and helping shape someone's future, like mine was. I think that that would be really rewarding, and so I would like to have that soon-ish, if anything, and then maybe again if it evolved into more like a partnership, then all the better and I would be grateful for that opportunity. So you know, I don't want to say I'm not ambitious, because I obviously am and I'm driven, but like, I just want to maintain giving the really, really great customer service and high quality performance that I've done for my clients. I think that's most important for me, even in the next five to 10 years.53:57 - Mel Allen (Host)
So, looking kind of beyond that, is there some kind of a legacy that you want to build? I mean, do you want your kids to? You know, come in and take on as a next generation.54:04 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
So I tell them all the time. I'm like, do you want to help mommy sell houses? Like do you want to come? I'm like, yeah, mommy, sounds fun If anything, anything. Like I said when they were like little babies on my hips and in a baby carrier on my front and I'm showing houses, it was like super great selling. So it's like, please buy this home from my mommy you know, like that kind of thing yeah, it was fun.54:23
But if my children expressed an interest in in the business I, I would of course um love to kind of show them the ropes and see if they are, you know, apt for it. My, you know, I think my legacy is, you know, this is not real estate, but my husband owns a water well drilling company and we're really heavily rooted in our Yolo County because of that and I think that's a lot of our legacy and helping him continue to run that business as well. And I would love it if my son, you know, stepped in there and I was able to help kind of foster that career path for him.55:04 - Mel Allen (Host)
But Well, it's good that you're both. You know you're both doing, you know this work in your community. You're both there, right, you're both helping people solve. You know some serious issues and, and you know, gotta love that about you. Let me ask you something, and um, that is uh, if you weren't in real estate, what do you think you'd be doing?55:23 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Oh my gosh, that's that I don't even know the answer to, since I was a baby and I've known as a human being in this career and and, um, and obviously as a businesswoman. I think, knowing me and my and my personality type, it's like I, I, I would probably be doing something else that was again self-employed and running another type of business. I am where I'm meant to be like.55:51
I know that in my bones and my soul like this is where I'm meant to be, like I know that in my bones and my soul like this is where I'm meant to be. Not all of it is always fun and easy, but like I genuinely, genuinely enjoy it. I love this business. I think, if anything, I would probably be more over working with my husband to help run that company and running the office and doing all that type of stuff. But again, I might go a little crazy being stuck at that desk.56:14 - Mel Allen (Host)
So, I might kill know, I don't know, Like you know people who are married aren't always meant to be working together, so I I always like to end, you know, with this kind of like a couple of fun questions. So first, what is there something that people don't know about you that they should know?56:32 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Gosh, I don't know if it's necessarily that they should know, but I was a bodybuilder for many years and I quit before having children, but I was pretty successful in the local scene and I got to travel to like Singapore and represent the United States and I won and it was all kinds of stuff and so that was a really big part of my life for a very long time and also very defining of like who I was, you know. But that's a fun fact that not a lot of people know. At least you know now.57:04 - Mel Allen (Host)
So a lot of boiled chicken and broccoli during parts of the year, oh my gosh, don't even get me started.57:09 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Yeah, have you ever had tilapia Like grossly?57:12 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, before I got uh my life insurance. Years ago I worked with uh a person, uh, and she was a bodybuilder and so, um, I followed her diet. You know to, to get a gallon of water to reset, yeah, so, um, I still have the water bottle she gave me, actually somewhere around here. Oh, it's right here.57:36
Oh yeah, there it is the best water bottle I ever had was given to me by my workout buddy and yeah, so she was like you. For the next week, you're only eating these things, and boiled chicken and broccoli was one of them. So, thanks, Lisa, If you could. Another fun question, If you could. You know there was no price limit. You know location doesn't, doesn't matter, no limitations at all. If you could buy and live in any property in the world, where would it be and why?58:21 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Hmm, I think probably somewhere that's maybe a little more like ag country scene, like I grew up in in Woodland again, which is very ag centric. We're surrounded by farmland, like that's kind of like my safe place, I guess, like that's what feels best to me. So I think with you know, like that's what feels best to me. So I think with you know recent TV, you know like Montana and all those places are romanticized, but like somewhere in a valley there with some beautiful mountains and building a custom home and I think having it being a little bit more quiet in the pace like actually seems great to me. I would not mind that at all, not right now, but maybe in the future.58:57 - Mel Allen (Host)
Yeah, well, that's great. Well, thank you very much for for joining us and doing this. If people want to find out more about you is is your personal website or any social media. Where should people go to find out more about you?59:11 - Ginny Parks (Guest)
Sure, thank you for asking. So Ginny Parks is how you can search me on Instagram. That is my handle and it's G-I-N-N-Y, and then my website is ginnyparkscom. So we're keeping it pretty consistent and easy, but that would be the best place, definitely.59:28 - Mel Allen (Host)
Well, we'll definitely, when we share this, we'll make sure to tag that and make sure that people can find you easily. So that, basically, ginny, thank you for joining us. That's going to conclude this episode of the Inner Circle Podcast, and I hope that everybody listening has found some enlightening information from you and have some great takeaways from Ginny on how to take your real estate career to the next level. Again, thanks everybody for tuning in. You can find us on Spotify, itunes, youtube and Instagram at America's Inner Circle. So thanks again, ginny Parks, and we're going to see everybody again next time, thank you, thanks, ginny.
Balancing Career, Family, and Growth: Ginny Parks' Real Estate Journey
In this episode, Ginny Parks reveals the secrets behind her real estate success, from starting as a receptionist to becoming an industry leader. She discusses the importance of mentorship, the power of open houses, and the value of genuine client relationships. Ginny also shares how she balances career and family life, invests in personal growth, and stays resilient through market challenges. Tune in to gain practical insights and inspiration for your own real estate journey.
00:00 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Everybody always waits to go with the herd Guys, you want to buy when the market is pessimistic and you want to sell when the market is optimistic. And if you follow that, as long as you can cover your costs through your tenants and rent, you're golden.00:14 - Intro/Outro (Ad)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.00:53 - Mel (Host)
Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast, and this is a podcast where we're taking a deep dive into the stories from some of the most successful real estate agents in the country. If you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, well, you're in the right spot, and today we are honored to be joined by Brandon Greenplate, from Hilton Head Island I think it is in South Carolina right? Yes, sir, mel, thanks for having me. Good to be here. Well, thanks very much for joining us.01:19
You have been doing this for several years now, I think since 2019, I saw you have sold over $200 million of real estate, so you're in the 1% of the market performer, where you are right. Yes, sir, yes sir, it's been quite a journey. You've got several five-star online reviews over 50 of them. You have earned the distinction of the best of Zillow. I mean, you are creating some wonderful value for your clients in the area where you are, and people may have already heard some of your advice. So I'm seeing now it says that you've got AOLcom, yahoo Finance, abc News Affiliates and you're also a National Association of Re realtors 30 under 30 lists. So how does that feel to have all of that behind your name, following you along.02:09 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
It feels good, but it doesn't happen overnight. It's a momentum thing and you got to take your wins and multiply them.02:15 - Mel (Host)
Well, how did you kind of start your journey into real estate? What made you realize this is the thing that I want to do, this is where I want to be working, this is where I want to be making all of those accolades, getting those behind me? Yeah for sure.02:31 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I'm down in Hilton Head Island, south Carolina. We're a resort market, the second biggest island on the East Coast, about a billion dollars a year from tourism. Prior to that, I was in Clemson University studying entrepreneurship and business management. I always knew that I never wanted to work for anybody else. I really just wanted to work for myself. I had an internship with a broker here on the island who really got my foot in the door with real estate while I was still in school at Clemson. I had the opportunity to go to different places but ultimately decided, hey, I'm going to come back to the island and I'm going to give it 110. So it was an internship that was put the door. I knew I never wanted to really, you know, kind of be in that corporate structure and I wanted to kind of create my own legacy and I was hungry to do so. So when I had the opportunity after graduating from clemson, come back here and give it 110, it was uh, it was good timing and it was also a good workout that combined with it.03:28 - Mel (Host)
So that first deal that you had must have also kind of helped add to this and been part of that success. What was that first deal like for you? Yeah, it doesn't happen overnight.03:39 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Anybody that's listening to this. It's all about patience, it's all about chopping wood and carrying water, doing the right things, and it's a momentum game, like I mentioned earlier, that first deal I mean it was probably six months in it was something that the market I'm in down here has a lot of, let's just say, people that have been in the business for a very long time. So it was figuring things out how I wanted to position myself, how I wanted to brand myself, what value I wanted to add to the marketplace. And, through my internship, the rental management company had a excuse me, the brokerage had a rental management company, and so I really started to understand investment, rentals and rental properties. So, with that being said, the first deal was a short-term rental investor and I really kind of just ran with that. So the first one felt good and, you know, I think I sold I don't know a million or two in my first 12 months, first year, and then, following that, it just started to really tumble into a bigger snowball.04:37 - Mel (Host)
Nice, well, that's a great snowball that you have, and I can understand why you saw the value in being in this as a career. That internship seemed to be something that was really pivotal, though being, you know, landing that. Would you say that that was. If you hadn't landed that, this might not be the career you know.04:54 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, there's a good chance. I mean I was looking at commercial real estate, bigger cities. I think the unique part about what I do is the location that I'm at and that is, you know, we are a very highly sought after resort destination and it allowed me to break into a market of people that were not primary residents, Right? So I don't want people that live here that know 10, 15 agents from going to church for the last 30 years. I want the guy in Boston with a million bucks to put down and has a bunch of C Speed friends that he can share my contact information with.05:30 - Mel (Host)
Right. So yeah, that's definitely different from what a lot of people, I would say, in areas are looking for. But again, that sets you apart. As you said, that adds to your brand of what you're doing and, differently than other people are not just in your area but in real estate in general. What would you say has been one of the things that's kind of been the most rewarding deal or project that you've worked on so far in your career? Is there anything that stands out there?05:57 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I mean it's very rewarding to look back and see the accolades and know that I think a lot of people measure where they are today to where they want to go and I think it's important to measure where you started to where you are today and really kind of enjoying that. So I'm very involved in investment properties. I've got a portfolio of about 14 million and that is my expertise short-term rentals, luxury investment properties so in that realm I would say the most rewarding thing is maybe in 2022, I had a relationship with the housing manager for Sea Pines, who's the biggest resort kind of housing and just overall resort on the island and they said the housing manager said 40 to 50 beds by spring of 2025 for our employees. So I said that's a pretty interesting opportunity. My family at the time was looking to do a commercial project. We wound up buying a bank building and converting it into 48 beds for workforce housing, which is the biggest issue on our island and a lot of these resort areas. If somebody's listening, that's in a resort area.06:59
You know that housing for employees is an issue, and we cut the ribbon this year. We did it as a family. It was so rewarding to see how far from a vision standpoint it came in doing it with the family and cutting that ribbon and the mayor was there and a bunch of new stuff, so that was probably the most rewarding Nice.07:21 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I mean that's got to make you feel good that it is a challenge. Every resort town, right, you know, like how far out can the people that you're, that you have working there, that you need to be there, you know can actually live and you know if they can live right around the corner. You know obviously that works out really well for everybody.07:38 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
So yeah, it was a win for the town, it was a win for us, it was win for the resort. You know, I'm all about mutually beneficial outcomes and everybody winning, and that's what real estate should be, guys. So you know, at the end of the day it's about everybody walking home and feeling good about the deal.07:55 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah. If somebody is walking away feeling bad like that, that's got to leave a you know definitely a bad taste in your mouth. Have you had any kind of like? You know, one of those ones that was particularly challenging or felt like there was a bit of a failure, even though maybe it worked out? You know that you can share that has also happened for you.08:13 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Oh yeah, I don't think you're in the business if you don't run across those things.08:16
The longer you're in the business, the more you can smell out those kind of people and stay away from them, because sometimes the conviction is not worth it. Yeah, I mean, I've had a few shares of overly crazy sellers that are just move the pictures, do this and it's almost like gives you a feeling of angst. So I've gotten a lot better at avoiding those people. I kind of work in the mindset of my clients don't win, I don't win. So I don't push people on investment properties and short-term rentals if I wouldn't buy it myself and it kind of comes from a place. Of reputation is important, but also I don't want to leave bad taste in people's mouth and I'm not going to push them on something if I think it's not in their best interest. So I really try to avoid those.09:01 - Mel (Host)
I think the longer you're in the business, the more deals you do first and foremost, the thicker your skin is going to be and the better you get at avoiding those types of consumers, because they're just not worth. Your know had the deal that you were looking for along the way and I think that that's good. It's good to you know, adhere to that and kind of develop that you know approach of being able to, like you said, to sniff out those people that ultimately you don't really want to work with.09:36 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
There's no money worth it. I mean your happiness and your mindset. I mean there's a bunch of other people and deals out there.09:42 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, now would you say that that housing unit that you did with you know your family for, for building that? Was that a big risk for you? Or is there something else that you know is a big risk that you've taken in in real estate and kind of how did that, how did that work out?09:57 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I mean that building was a risk. We kind of negotiated the terms of the lease while we were in our due diligence so I mean we knew what we were getting into as far as a risk. I mean, I just think the risk that people you know need to look at out there is what is the opportunity cost of not betting on yourself and going and getting a nine to five right and you got to take the risk to go out there and say I'm going to be a little uncomfortable for three, six months and give this 110% because it's not going to happen overnight, especially in this market. And the other side of that if you never try, you'll never know. I mean it's crazy.10:33
I was not a good student in college, graduated with my highest cumulative GPA of a 2.4. And you know, real estate's beautiful because I'm helping people and I mean, yeah, we're doing it for the money. And you know it's crazy to say I mean I make more money than doctors and people that graduated with a 4.0. You know, if I never would have bet it on myself, who knows where I would be. So I think the risk, to answer your question, is people that want to get into real estate and don't want to, you know put the cards on the table and go all in on it, because if you do that, amazing things can happen.11:08 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, I mean, you know, it seems that you really are enjoying the process too and you know, gosh, that feels really nice to be able to, you know, look forward to actually going to work and having that feeling. And I think that you know, obviously this is working for you and you've and you've got a, you've got a niche that you're, that you're in, that is different. You know a very unique approach. What would you say it is about your unique approach that sets you apart from you know others. You know in the industry, in your area in general.11:35 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I mean so again. Resort Island, hilton Head. Everybody says they're an investment-friendly realtor. I don't know how many realtors have a $14 million portfolio. So I have put my money where my mouth is and I know what to look for, what the best way to handle the management of these properties are, what the best value add is to get the most rentals out of it, because I'm doing it and you know so.11:56
I think it's important for somebody that is listening to this to find that niche and I like to call it your hands right. It's that uniqueness that only you can bring to the marketplace and that sets you apart from every other agent in there. You know, real estate's so broad. There's real estate and luxury. There's real estate and land, there's real estate and rentals.12:16
I'm real estate and investment and narrowing that down, becoming an expert in that field, it almost turns you into a magnet, because then people whatever let's say you're moving to a new city, not a Hilton Head, let's say a Dallas somebody that is buying probably wants to buy from somebody that is in the same shoes that they were in. So they want to find an agent that specializes in relocation, that didn't live there before and now they're moving there and they can kind of say I walked in these shoes, mr Buyer, this is what I did, this is how I looked at it, and it gives perspective. So the fact that I have investment properties on the island, it gives me another level of credibility or perspective that adds value to my clients at the end of the day.12:57 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I can't disagree with the thing that you're saying there. That's definitely a great way to describe it and give people that kind of you know advice of what to look for when you are looking for you know that person to partner with when you're getting into this and how you can help those people. But again, you know, the niches seem to be where everything really is absolutely at in you know in real estate that you can't do everything for everybody and you really, really, really can't in real estate that you can't do everything for everybody and you really, really, really can't in real estate, it seems.13:28 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
The riches are in the niches.13:29 - Mel (Host)
yes, you got it. So how do you have I mean, obviously everybody experiences them at different times and in different ways slow market periods? Do you have any of those turndowns and how do you maintain consistency, stay motivated and stay in? You maintain consistency, stay motivated and stay in it.13:46 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, you got to stand on your why Everybody should have a reason that they're going into the office or making these calls. Besides money, I think first and foremost through the ups and downs that will help you get through the downs and it'll help you enjoy the ups as well. Everybody has challenges. Our market specifically down here, you know it's kind of seasonal, but it's also a resort market where it's a semi-year round and it does have to do with the overall economy, the optimism versus pessimism, and I would say, more than anything, I mean this time of year. You know, actually funny enough.14:23
You think about a beach town. You think summertime would be a good time to buy, or busy. It's actually slow because what's everybody doing? And so they're on vacation. They're not thinking about a beach house when they're at the beach house. So it's funny enough, like July is one of our slowest months. And then you know December, Christmas time, but it's, you know, through the ups and downs, sometimes it's busy or sometimes it's not, and it's it's standing on your bigger why and really pushing through those hard times and enjoying the good ones.14:48 - Mel (Host)
Well, and sometimes those downturns that gives you the chance to have your vacation.14:53 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
So and something people that are listening that you know everybody always waits to go with the herd Guys. You want to buy when the market is pessimistic and you want to sell when the market is optimistic. And if you follow that, as long as you can cover your costs through your tenants and rent, you're golden.15:12 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think that that is absolutely something that people should be writing down. So how do you balance the demands you know? I mean you have to have a personal life right. You've got all these professional demands on you. What do you do in your daily life to make sure that you're balancing that and taking care of yourself? Yeah, that's a great point.15:30 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
That's been the biggest challenge for myself is I push a big wake. I put a lot on my plate.15:35
I want to conquer the world I want to do it all right now and the reality of it, you just can't do that right. I think you know, first and foremost, people. It's hard to get away from your phone in real estate. But I'm a big believer that there should be one day a week where you're not actively prospecting, practicing real estate, whether it's Sunday, whether it's Monday, whether it's Saturday, and really trying to set boundaries for yourself. Like, yes, if there's a big client that wants to buy a two million dollar house, I'm going to reply at 930 at night in a text message. But if I get the average text message of hey, you know what's the HOA fee at 930? I'm not going to answer it. And I think it's important for agents to set boundaries. Right, you know, set your boundaries on the front end, but then also I kind of like to call it your book eggs and that's your morning routine and your night routine.16:24
And if you wake, up every day and you do your exact same morning routine and you feel good about it and that doesn't change. And then at the end of the day, regardless of what happened in the day, you have your set nightly routine it kind of you know, everything else goes to the watches and I think setting boundaries, having routines, is really important, because it is a job that can just totally drain you and it's something that's a challenge for myself.16:47 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think, I think everybody struggles with that at some point or another. So, yeah, I think the. I think routines are honestly like a lot of people think that is a you know a bit of a bad word, but I think routines are very valuable and give you time to look at those parts of your business Sometimes that maybe if you were just sitting there returning phone calls, you wouldn't be looking at and and that's not going to help you or your clients long term. No, have you ever had, uh, your principles, you know your values, kind of challenged and and and how, uh how, do you find you get around that?17:19 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
that's a good question um, I mean, yeah, there's always people that want to push the line a little bit. I think it's important to define your values on the front end. You know, sometimes people say stuff and you think that, oh, that's not totally right, but you know what do you stand for and you need to find that with yourself on the front end. But yeah, I mean, I've had people that you know do some things where, if nobody saw it, nobody would probably know. But it's not the right thing.17:47
Guys, real estate is a game of karma. It is what you put in good will come out good, what you put in bad will come out bad, and it's one of those things. You just got to know that going into it. And yeah, I mean nothing specific, but you do have people every once in a while that try to take the easy route or want something different, and you got to know. I think the important thing with this is you got to know your value and you got to something different. You gotta know.18:12
I think the important thing with this is you gotta know your value and you gotta know what you stand for. And like, for example, somebody trying to discount commission, right, all right, and then it's what's called compensation, now right, but at the end of the day I would say if it's a great client, if it's something, that's fine, it's selling, okay right. But if it's somebody that you know your value and you know what you're going to bring to the table and still trying to take advantage, like that's something for me. So I'm not a discount broker and I stand by that. So I'd say that's probably the biggest thing. And it's funny like I've had people where I don't take the listing because they want a percent off of the compensation and it doesn't sell, and they call me back in six months and they pay me a full percentage and I sell the property. I've had them twice. You know property, it's happened twice.18:55 - Mel (Host)
So it would have been a waste of my time to go in there unrealistically with them and whatever. Again, going in with good intentions will come out with good intentions Well, and again I think that's such a good reminder of the value that you do bring to the table is if you have clients who are doing that, just reminding yourself that, yep, I'm on the right path, I'm doing the right thing, staying strong to those beliefs, that, yep, I'm on the right path, I'm doing the right thing, staying strong to those beliefs. And I think the I think the challenging thing for a lot of people is which values do I broadcast and which, you know, do I just kind of make sure I?19:21 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
know myself. Yeah, and I think that's from you know, everybody knows the internals and externals right. What's important for the external world to know what's? Most important is what you know in terms of.19:30 - Mel (Host)
Yep, and then just staying true to that, yeah, 100%. What are some of the biggest challenges you've seen come across in the real estate industry since you've been doing this?19:40 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I mean again, I've only been in it about six years, so I'm a little naive. I would say more than anything is buyer optimism and pessimism, where you know, we know when these rates go back down, price points are going to go up and it's almost like you got to pop people on the head and you know you got to get away. You got to pull yourself out of the people crowd, you got to get away from the herd, because people that wait to buy with the herd they're going to pay more for it. And I think you know really trying to like we understand the markets as agents, brokers, and sometimes you get individuals that don't see it and it's frustrating. But you can't, you know, open a gate that is unopenable and you know it's got to come from within. So I think articulating what's actually happening in the market and what people are thinking is happening is a challenge for agents across the country.20:32
And I think something else is inventory, and what happens with the inventory is you have a lot of people that are house locked, feeling like they can't move because they're sitting on a two and a half or three or three and a half percent rate and that's keeping inventory off the market. So again, when those rates come down somewhere stomachable to five percent-ish, those people are going to say, okay, I've got half a million in equity. I want to upgrade. It's worth it now because it's a 5%, not a 7%. So when these rates again get down, those people will be listing their properties, so buyers jumping in that have been waiting for the rates to come down. It's going to be a bloodbath and prices are going to go up. And articulating that to people when they don't see it every single day I'd call it a frustrating challenge, but it's something that everybody has to deal with across the country.21:19 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, sometimes the best time is now. I mean, you know that means you've got the money in your pocket and you can actually start making your plan happen. Right and I think that's a good thing is to have a plan and then make that plan happen. And to do that you've got to make decisions, you've got to, you've got to see those, but you kind of walked into. My next question is kind of like how do you stay ahead of some of those trends? Because you know a lot of people see this coming. A lot of people see that there is a change, there is, you know, a shift that's going to be happening in the marketplace. How do you, you know, where do you kind of get that information to make sure that you are seeing that coming?21:55 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I think it's. You got to get where the clock's going and you got to look at historical data. Markets go in cycles and I think the biggest thing is is staying in the loop with current events too. I know the current events. You haven't heard that word. I haven't heard it in a long time, but it's true, right, because if you really understood what's the economics behind what's going on, they stopped building houses in 2008 and 2009. We're four or five million homes short in the United States. So everybody thinking that this is a 2008 and the market's going to fall out is totally incorrect.22:32
We are, you know, if anything, we're on this rocket where prices are just going to keep going up and obviously the interest rates are going to help some stuff, but I mean it's. We're in a market right now where I think it's the law and there's an opportunity, because across the nation not so much my resort little town but more of the metropolitan areas we don't have enough houses. The population's a little longer, you've got people entering the housing force younger and there's just not enough to go around. It's simple economic supply and demand. So I think I study that stuff, I stay on top of it. I want to be an expert for my client. I think agents that want to truly serve your client. You need to know what's going on in real estate.23:17 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, and you mentioned current events. I mean, we know that there are, you know there's this elderly population holding onto homes that have multiple bedrooms because you know again, that's their, that's their nest egg, that's their, you know again, that's their, that's their nest egg, that's their retirement fund, and and we're going to have so many of those getting on the market and you're right that, yeah, the people are just going to be trying to gobble those up so quickly. So you know, my, my suggestion is, if you have a neighbor who's elderly and you want a home, go talk to him.23:45 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Buy real estate now.23:47 - Mel (Host)
Don't count that for anything, but you know, uh, that's what I would be doing. I mean, it's kind of how I ended up in the house that I'm in is that I just talked to people I knew in the area that I wanted to be in and, and you know, got this house before it actually hit the market. So, um, you know, which is great for me, but you know, a lot of people don't. They don't have those conversations with over it and you know, and a lawyer to make sure that you know, everything was on the up and up, but but you know it was. It was because I wanted to make it happen, I wanted it right and I wanted to make sure that I was here and stayed here for a while until I could sell it to some younger person with a family?24:22 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Is your net worth?24:23 - Mel (Host)
It really is. It really is, yeah, a lot of times it is absolutely who you know, and I think that that's a great piece of advice for people who are coming up into the real estate market career. What's some other advice that you kind of wish that you maybe had been given when you were kind of getting started in this?24:42 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, you know, you're talking more for newer agents.24:46 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I mean so. I mean you just said your network is your net worth and I think that you know that's a fantastic piece of advice that you know a lot of people don't understand that. You know, sometimes going to these uh, you know, these, these groups and and meeting these people and these networking events, I have found that I've never regretted going to any of those. I've always met at least one person and what you know, one of those who ends up being valuable later, um, and one of those who ends up being valuable later, and one of those was actually my real estate lawyer Right right.25:16 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I think another good one is learning how to get comfortable being uncomfortable, because if you're comfortable, nothing good's going to happen. You've got to get outside of that comfort zone. It's funny, like six years ago when I got in real estate I was scared to call the listing agent right, and you know you think about it now it's like holy 180.25:37
But what happened over time is when I became a bigger fish in the smaller pond, what did I do? I found a new pond. I became a small fish again. I was uncomfortable. Same thing, and I think you know people like they want to go in and they want to do like whatever they feel good doing.25:52
Well, sometimes you've got to be uncomfortable. You've got to pick up the phone and call that million dollar expired listing and yes, it's uncomfortable, but that's where the good stuff happens. You've got to go meet those people at these events because you're going to grow and you don't know who you're going to meet and what doors are going to go open or open. Some people don't know who you're going to meet and what doors are going to go and some people don't like that stuff. And I think if you go into real estate thinking you're going to be comfortable, you're not going to be successful. You need to go into real estate saying I'm going to be uncomfortable, I'm going to be in situations, but I'm going to grow from it financially personally. Right, and that is something that you know is is very important I also say you know, guys, if you don't have, a database, drop what you're doing and build your crm or your database because that's your business.26:36
And it's crazy to me the amount of agents, even that have been in the business for a long time that don't have a database. And you know. It's all about staying in front of people. So when you have a database, you know who to call, when to call there's drip messages going out. You're staying in front of clients. It's your business. You don't have a database.26:55 - Mel (Host)
I don't care if it's a spreadsheet to start out, you need something, because if you don't have that, in my opinion, you don't have a real estate business. Yeah Well, you got to have it and then you got to work it. So those are definitely two parts of it, and I think you're absolutely right about getting out of your comfort zone, because it's very comfortable to be in the room that you're in with that one door, but that door isn't going to lead anywhere else if you don't open it, walk through it and then check some of the other doors that are on the other side, and that's how you know again, I wouldn't have met, like me, you know, my real estate attorney who's helped me and been so valuable, saved me so much money, you know, because he pays attention and which is why I hired him.27:35
You know, and you know those are the kind of people that you meet out there when you are, like you said, you know, getting out of the comfort zone and and and finding out what's in the world, and those doors often lead to pretty amazing places that you you never saw coming. So, as you probably found out with, you know, just your internship right Giving you the taste of this Correct. So obviously that's a big mistake that some people are making, not kind of developing that list, maybe not working that list. What are some other common mistakes that you see people who are getting into this career making?28:07 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, I think something else that is maybe even more important than the database is something I like to call your premium time, and this can relate to any business whatsoever, and you think about it every single day we only have two or three hours where we are at our best right.28:25
Some people it's afternoon, some people it's early in the morning, some people it's mid morning. You need to design your day around whatever is the most important thing for your business. So let's talk about real estate, and that's talking to buyers and sellers, prospecting, picking up the phone. It's called revenue generating activities and that's the stuff that pays you a thousand dollars plus an hour where you need to design your day around your premium time and you need to block every other distraction out besides your revenue generating activity, which is talking to buyers and sellers, in the time period where you are at your best.29:01
And you need to religiously do that and if you do that you will be successful right it's like you know, maybe you're a stockbroker and it's you know. I need to look at the trades and the numbers at this time because I'm at my best.29:10
So if you're trying to make your calls in the afternoon and it's the time where you're just a little bit sleepy, right, where you're not blocking off and protecting that time that you are going to make your calls. Guys, you're never going to be successful in real estate. I mean, unless you're talking to buyers and sellers. And my rule is three hours a day, four days a week. So if I do Monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, I don't have to do Friday, but if I miss a day, I have to do Friday. Build your day around the premium time and make sure you're doing your revenue generating activities, which is picking up the damn phone and talking to buyers and sellers, in that time window, and that, just that piece alone, you will be successful.29:48 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I couldn't agree with you more. As a person who's been, you know, kind of entrepreneurial myself and done that, you know I have lists that are broken into what time of day am I doing that thing, what do I need to do, and something I'm just going to throw this in there because it's been so helpful to me. I have a little bit of ADHD, so maybe it's just me but things that I need to do less of, right, you know like, is this something that I can put on somebody else? Is this something that even helps my business at all? Why am I putting my time and attention on that and focus myself on those things that are actually making me money?30:21 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yes, and when you're starting you need to do some of those. So it's rev gen versus non-rev gen active. You have to, but at some some point you create a transfer list of everything that does not pay you Like. For me, if I'm not on the phone with buyers, sellers, if I'm not at a listing appointment, if I'm not showing a million dollar plus properties, I'm not working with my team. Like that kind of stuff is really the only thing I should do. At the point where I'm at and before I was doing a lot, I've got support staff where I came up with their entire description of their job by saying things that do not pay me enough or are not worth my time to do, because my time is best served doing something else. So, yeah, great point.31:00 - Mel (Host)
And I think you're saying also something that a lot of people I hear out there in the world saying in real estate that when they have kind of gotten past that threshold, past those first few years, that having that team is invaluable, having those people who can maybe answer those simple questions or maybe send those invoices or do some of those tasks that are taking you away from those things that you're best at.31:28 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
We're not on the clock. We need to produce. We don't have time when you're trying and I think for people listening, it's very hard to get over 40 transactions in your home by yourself, like that is, and that's a lot of transactions. I mean I did it at 20 transactions and when I got to 20, I brought somebody on and I mean we went to like 50 in the next six months or 12 months. So super important. But you do have to learn to prioritize prior to actually being at the point to do that?31:56 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, would you say that you know that kind of that, that list of you know? Focusing on that priority time is one of the ways that you build those strong relationships and you maintain those with your clients.32:07 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Has to be 100 percent. I mean, I'm religious about it to the point where I'm trying to add some other things into my business and it's almost hard for me to not prospect because, I mean, at the end of the day, guys, we're in states relationships.32:19
You know people are going to work with people that they like and when I didn't have that many leads or people or spirit, I mean I would just call me. How are you doing? You know, if there's any way I can provide value to you with the real estate market, you know, and it's staying in front of people to get to the point where you know you've got 2000 people in your database and you can't just call everybody, you know, and then that's you take one out to masses. But again, yeah, I mean I still I keep a top 100 list of my past lives and I talk to them every other month and you got to stay in front of people.32:49
You gotta religiously, because I'm telling you, if I wouldn't be in this position if I did not religiously protect my prospecting hours and almost you know, do it like my life depended on yeah, well, I mean, you know, financially it does you know and I think something else when you calculate you, you know I've calculated how much money I make when I'm on the phone, right, and when I'm prospecting buyers and sellers, compared to following up with an email or running to the post office. I mean, that's $20 an hour. Essentially, it's nothing right.33:25 - Intro/Outro (Ad)
But, when. I'm on the phone, it's like $1,500 an hour.33:28 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Are you kidding me? And when you really look at it and you tell yourself in that way, if I'm doing this activity, that's how much money I'm going to make, there's no reason not to. So it's almost shift your perspective a little bit.33:40 - Mel (Host)
And what are?33:40 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
you really getting paid to do? How much time are you really doing? What do you get paid to do, versus stuff that you're just at the office doing? You're not making any use of your time.
33:50 - Mel (Host)Yeah, no, I completely understand that and I support that, because a friend of mine actually literally has a business running to the post office, running to the town clerk's offices and doing these other tasks for real estate agents, so they literally can stay on the phone.34:07 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I love that.34:25 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I love that. When I started doing sales dialing for dollars, you know right, because if you weren't on the phone you weren't making money and and that's a that's a big reality is that you're only going to make. You know, you're only going to make money when you're in front of people or you're talking to them on the phone.34:39 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
And I think to add to that too, like, good things happen to you that would not happen to you if you didn't do that in the business sense, like, for example, I sold a year and a half in a $4.2 million house. The only reason and that like exploded a lot of my business. The only reason that happened is because I committed probably 270 of the last days of being on the phone and I reaped the reward. That was the right place, the right time, at my desk right here, and things won't fall into your lap if you're not doing the required stuff, but things will fall into your lap that you aren't expecting when you are doing the right activities, and I think that's important though well, you know and and you can be the best at what you do.35:24 - Mel (Host)
but if nobody knows that you do it right, nobody else is going to come, nobody's going to your door is going to be quiet. So you, you've definitely built yourself a brand. I mean, we've talked about that a little bit. You know here, what do you think are some of the keys to building that strong personal brand in real estate, and not specific, just to you know, what are you inspired?35:45 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
about, like, what part of real estate? Like, do you like that Some people hate investment properties? Right, don't get in niche down into investing, you know some. I think, first and foremost, what do you want to do and what do you like to do in the world of real estate? And then, two is, what will your market reciprocate? Right, if there was no short-term rentals on Hilton Head, I probably wouldn't have niched down into short-term rentals, right, you know? So I think it's market dependent and personal dependent and so, like, if maybe somebody else, maybe you can kind of see there's a gap in the marketplace. Well, I live in a rural area. Nobody's really a ranch real estate niche, right, you know, I like that. Right, I grew up on, you know, and it's kind of combining those two things together. What will the market reward from it's missing right now? The value needs to be there. And then, what do you like to do? And for me down here there was nobody that was like the short term rental guy.36:51
And I saw that as an opportunity. I like building wealth through real estate. I think so it's. You got to enjoy it and there's got to be an opportunity. Um, and then once you do decide, here's a big tip kind of how I broke into a market that's extremely competitive is, once you have your uniqueness, your niche guys, it's super important to put it on an IDX website landing page and brand yourself as the expert and put all of your secret sauce on there. At first I thought everybody was going to take it Like. You can go to my findhiltonatrealestatecom and I gave all of my short-term rental secrets and I drive traffic there with Google ads and it is crazy. I mean I probably stole $80 million of real estate from that website because the messaging is right, the brand is right.37:41
It's super specific. It adds a lot of value and people will either go on the website and, you know, start to get some of the value and, you know, create an account. Most of them they reach out to me because they see how much of an expert I am in that space. There's nobody else. It's what they're looking for. So I think, after you kind of identify what your uniqueness, niche, brand and is, you've got to put it online. I pay you the wall right now because, like what happened with COVID, Online consumption went through the roof.38:19 - Mel (Host)
Poor people are making big decisions. They're online and you want to catch them before they get to zero is the key, and Realtorcom and stuff like that. Yeah Well, I mean, I think you're you know, putting together a website like that shows the value, right, that you provide, because loads of people have great ideas, right, loads of people can see, you know and they can connect these dots, uh, but loads of people are not willing to do the work, to do that, and and showing people that you do and you are and you know, and and sharing a little bit of that secret sauce, uh, shows people that you really do know what you're talking about, and I think that it's you know. Again, that's part of your brand, right, that that information is what sets you apart from from a lot of the other people.38:50 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
And then what happens with these buyers and their mindset is like I can't work with anybody else but Brandon.38:55 - Mel (Host)
I've never even met him.38:56 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
You know I need to because he's the only one that's given. I had somebody that bought a $3.2 million house this year. They signed up on my website. I called them. They didn't answer. She left me a voicemail.39:05 - Mel (Host)
Next, thing I know three months later contact on this house.39:08 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
She just called me and it's like she felt like she knew me because I've videos. You know all that spend the time on the website. It's not going to happen overnight. Same thing with the database. You've got to put your expertise on a website in this flat world that we live in right now.39:22 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, no, I couldn't, I couldn't agree more. You gotta, you gotta put that stuff out there. And it is scary, it is, you know. You do worry like is somebody gonna get, you know gonna take that, but uh, the reality is again, people are gonna take the time to take what you put out there and do it.39:36 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
All that and even if they did, it came from you and you're the one that knows it. So when the clients call them asking for their insight, they don't know, because they stole it right they don't know it.39:44 - Mel (Host)
You're right. Yeah, they don't actually have the answers.39:46 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Obviously there's some stuff that you don't want to, but there's, I'd say 95% of it, 90% of it, put on the website because it's going to show you're the expert.39:54 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I completely agree with that. Now, are there any times that you've had kind of some of these things you're trying to do with relationships with clients and maybe things didn't go as planned. How did you kind of work yourself out of those situations or anything that sticks in your mind?40:11 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, oh yeah, there's things that don't you know you've got to give yourself grace, I would say, and you've got to understand that real estate is an environment, that there are a lot of things out of your control. You can only control so much and you know you can't get super.40:28 - Intro/Outro (Ad)
You can get you know a little deflated, but don't let all the air out, because it was out of your control.40:33 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
It was something that you made the mistake from. Learn from it and don't let it happen again. But yeah, I mean things happen. I mean this is a business that people with the thicker skin are going to win. So get used to, you know, getting kicked every once in a while and get used to getting back up, because it doesn't matter how many times you fall down, it doesn't matter how many times you get back up.40:54 - Mel (Host)
Yep, that was some great advice that I learned early on in my life you got to get back up. I think I already know what you're going to say to this one, but maybe it's something else that you haven't talked about us yet. But you seem really proud about that housing that you did in your community. Is that, or is there another moment that is your proudest moment, you know, in this business?41:16 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I mean that was one of them. I mean it's, you know, I think I like doing that with the family. Having the vision and then seeing it come to a reality with my family was really special, you know, and it's interesting because, like I, never, never, I didn't grow up down here on Hilton Head, so I walk in a lot of shoes of my clients.41:39
So it's very rewarding for me to kind of watch them go through that transition, whether it's a primary or a second home, and opening the world of this beautiful island and all of the investment possibilities, lifestyle possibilities. But I'll be honest probably my proudest achievement is the National Association of Realtors 30 under 30. That was a very exclusive group. It's something where every single year the 30 under 30s come back and welcome the new class and it's a mastermind. It's a referral network. It's a lot of fun and it's a mastermind. It's a referral network. It's a lot of fun and it's lifelong friendships and it's like that's something that's opened a lot of doors for me and also you know, nobody can ever take that away from me.42:23
So I'd probably say I've had some good times, I've had a lot of bad times too, but if I had to say the best, it was probably most proud of being honored as a 30 under 30.42:33 - Mel (Host)
Nice. Well, that's great, you know, and congratulations. I mean, that is definitely an award that's not just given to anybody, so you got to work for. You got to work really hard for that.42:45 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
And I'm sure it's well done.42:46 - Mel (Host)
You know, once you get around people like that we grow, yeah, yeah, Just kind of it rubs off. I've got to imagine what do you see happening. You know you've only been in this career. You said you know since 2019, what do you see happening? You know, kind of as as you double, that you know, as you go to the next five to 10 years of your career.43:05 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Yeah, that's something I'm always thinking about. The next step Sometimes I'm too far ahead. I want to continue to build my investment portfolio. I want to build. So I've got a small team right now, I've got a full-time executive assistant, transaction coordinator, and I've actually got my brother that is a partner, an agent, with me in some facets of the business. So we want to grow a little bit more of a tight knit local team Few agents, more support staff. We want to continue to build our national sales organization.43:37
But I think the biggest thing that really kind of fires me up is creating multiple verticals within the realm of real estate. I'm very much an entrepreneurial. A good example of that could be okay, we've got a real estate brokerage, we've got a construction company and we've got a holding company. And let's say you know, call me up to sell your house. I come over and say I'm selling 3%. You know, perfect.44:00
But let's say it needs new countertops, new carpet. I say, hey, we can get it done for you in two weeks and we're going to be able to say it cost a hundred grand. We'll be able to get at least 250 to 300 more out there. If you want to do it right, send them in here and then let's say no, I don't want to do that. I say okay, well, it might not sell, I'll hold the company to buy it from you Easy cash, probably be able to send the construction company in and then relist it. So I think, create more verticals internally. It's just like I see it down here at Second Home Market there's nobody wants to do any work.44:35
You know there's a high value for good work and maybe it's not construction, but I just think you know it's the parallel of businesses. I see that in our future.44:45 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that's great.44:56 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I mean, do you see that as kind of being like?44:57
the legacy that you're going to build and that you're going to leave behind, to continue on. You know, once you decide that you've had your fill, maybe I mean, I see myself always selling real estate. Yeah, I do look at myself, though, as a businessman first and a broker second, um, so, with that being said, I'm always looking for new ventures. I'm always looking for, mostly faced around, focused around, real estate, and it could be syndications. It could be bigger developments, but I do enjoy the day-to-day sales. I just, you know, 20 years, 30 years from now, I don't want to be at a point where I have to come in and pound the phone for three or four hours every day. It can be. Maybe I'm feeling like I want to today, and so a little more options when it comes to that.45:37 - Mel (Host)
Well, and I can say that every successful real estate person that I know doesn't feel like it's a lot of work, right, like they feel, like they really enjoy it. They really you know they're helping connect people, you know, to what they need. You know they're helping people with their investment strategies, they're helping people in just in general, and that a lot of that brings them. You know that that feeling of this isn't work. You know like this is, this is like you know, it's almost like you're a you're, you're providing a service to the community in a way, and the benefit is that you also get to, you know, make a really nice income while you're, while you're doing it, whatever fills your cup up, right, whatever makes you happy and you know while you're doing it, whatever fills your cup up right, whatever makes you happy.46:11 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
And if I didn't enjoy real estate, regardless of the money, I wouldn't be doing it, and that's the mindset of anything you go into. You should do what you like, you should do what you enjoy, and what happens is when you enjoy it, you become pretty good at it, and when you become pretty good at it. You become more successful.46:33 - Mel (Host)
And it becomes a more lucrative career You're talking about the snowball again right yeah, momentum is funny.46:35 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
It's like you're always going in a direction Are you going uphill or are? You going forward or backwards?46:45 - Mel (Host)
You really got to say I'm forcing it to go in the right direction. Yeah, there's few times I find that people are just sliding sideways right. Very rarely, Very rarely, Very rarely have you had some kind of properties, you know, some kind of dealings that you've been involved with that were pretty, you know, unusual. There was something really interesting about it that stick out in your memory that you can share, obviously.47:06 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I've had a few that are like. I've got people that do renovations that are nasty. Like you know, a lot of these older homes down here. They're taken care of because the dirt's expensive. But every once in a while like we saw one where I had a client go in and gut it I sold him the investment and then I resold it for him. He did very well on it, but it was so disgusting that my assistant who's not afraid of it? She went going to the house we're talking cobwebs, mold, you know, floors falling out and surprisingly the guy didn't tear the house down. So you know that that's probably the nastiest one, um, but I would say I recently did a renovation on a property that was not fun.47:47
It was the sixth oldest house on the island, in 1958. I will never do a 1958 renovation again and I would say the most unfortunate thing is when I was building the pool, I saw this stuff coming out of the ground. It was like fabric or something. I was like I don't know what that is, it's probably nothing. Well, we get a first big rainstorm the day after I take the picture for Airbnb and the first floor flooded and it turns out it was the drainage system that I ripped out of the ground.48:16
So I will never again forego drainage in my life, and it cost me a lot of money to put it back in after I had a perfectly fine one. Just attention to detail, right. So be careful when you're renovating or whatever you're doing. Never overlook drainage. Yeah, Good lesson to learn.48:38 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, drainage is definitely an important thing. So you mentioned if you didn't, if you didn't enjoy this, that you wouldn't be doing this. Even you know, with the money, what would you do? What would you know? If real estate wasn't the thing for you, what would? What would you be doing? What would? If real estate wasn't the thing for you, what would you be doing?48:53 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I think I would buy unsexy businesses and make them more successful in reselling. I like the world of business and I think there's some opportunity right now when you talk about the aging housing market. I think there's an opportunity for some aging business owners, people that maybe haven't got the businesses tech friendly or as integrated in today's world, and it could be as simple as laundromat. It could be as simple as flower shop, where it's stuff that you put the right systems in place and then it becomes more profitable.49:28
So I think I'm a businessman at the end of the day, so something in the realm of that, something I I do not see myself in a 95, I do not see myself with a boss to report to, so again, I'm adding value and I'm creating, you know, something that I'm proud of.49:41 - Mel (Host)
That's what it's all about, but at the benefit of real estate is it can help me on the process. Yeah, oh, I think that's great. I mean, I definitely see businesses and you hear it every day, you know where. Well, this is the way we've always done it, you know, and but is it the best way? And sometimes they just can't see.49:55 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Maybe a little tweak can get that even a way up, and then you're easy to know who knows. But maybe one day, not right now, too much.50:05 - Mel (Host)
Once you finish building all those verticals, you know you'll be like hey, I'm just going to take on some pet projects, a little little side hustle. What's a what's a fun fact about you that that people uh, you know, listening to this, don't know, maybe they should.50:20 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I played competitive golf since I was five years old, which is just crazy to even think about. Um, I didn't have a choice in it. I enjoyed it. I'm a good golfer now, but I played college my freshman year before, actually, I transferred to Clemson and I didn't touch a golf club for about five years. After that I was just like done, and all my buddies have the golf pitch right now, but they don't have it. I'm like, eh, but I learned a little my whole course. So, yeah, I played college golf and I played competitive golf from five to 19.50:54 - Mel (Host)
Oh wow, I mean.50:55 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
You seem to be in a place where there's plenty of golf opportunities. I like nine holes.50:59 - Mel (Host)
That's all I need. There you go.51:02 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I think it gets a little bit long personally, for me Too much time away from revenue generating activities.51:07 - Mel (Host)
There you go. I like being at the driving range and at the putting green. I'm like all the other stuff in between, whatever exactly now, this is just one of those kind of fun questions as we kind of wrap up the interview like to look at and ask people you know, if you could, if you could be anywhere, buy any property, live in any location around the world, no limitations on this right? You know, all of a sudden, magically you get that genie and they can grant your wish. Where would you live and why that's?51:35 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
a great question. Just one house, not two places, not a summer or winter. I'll tell you.51:40
There's a place on Hillhead called Grom's Point that in April April is like the most amazing month here it's like not too hot, not too cold Days are still on Grom Point the end of Brahms Point you have the sunset and a private beach on one side and on the other side you have a up to 180 foot boat slip on about three acres and it's about $29 property. So I mean part of the year there and then let's call it the colder months. And then you know I'm a big fan of the Caribbean. I really like St John, the BDIs, so probably St John in the colder months. But you know, I think that's a special place down there. It's not too far away and I don't need to go to California with what's going on.52:27 - Mel (Host)
You know, I think right back and forth. I tell you you're bringing back some memories for me. I went to St John one year and as I was leaving there was a boat for sale for three thousand dollars in the bay sailboat and I said you know what? I have that money in cashier's checks on me right now and I don't need to go home. I could just stay here and tourists need people to drive them around and have fun, and I was that close.52:58 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
You might not regret it.52:59 - Mel (Host)
That place is magical man, yeah, it's a magical place, so that is definitely a good pick for those colder months. And I will tell you, I actually went down there for Christmas through New Year's one year when I was down there and, oh my gosh, it was the best Christmas and New Year's ever.53:16 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
Can't beat it you know, you think it's going to be cold.53:17 - Mel (Host)
It was perfect, oh, it was perfect. You know every day was perfect and you know they were like. They were like oh, it's going to be. You're in the rainy season, which meant that for about 20 minutes there was a light sprinkle every day. I can live with that and I could. I totally could, like you didn't need to go anywhere. You know, by the time you got to where you're going, it was sunny and warm and you're dried, so Worse, yeah.53:41 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
That's where I'd be. I'm glad we're on the same page for that.53:43 - Mel (Host)
All right, All right, I fully support your idea A hundred percent behind going going there. So the other place I've never seen, but maybe I should, maybe I should go check that out. What is, uh, if you can share one, do you have, you know, a crazy slash, funny you know thing that happened to you when you were, uh, you know, kind of involved in the property, maybe checking it out, maybe, you know, doing a walkthrough with a client? Is there anything that kind of stands out that, uh, that was a unique situation that you got yourself in.54:10 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
I think it was like my second deal. I put an offer on the wrong address that was actually listed to a different property and that was, thankfully. You know. People on the other side were like what's going on here? But to think I did that and now I'm sitting here today, I've come a long way. So you make mistakes, guys, don't worry, it's not too late.54:32 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, you got to learn and you got to own up to them, right?54:34 - Intro/Outro (Ad)
That's the uh that's the reality of all this.54:38 - Mel (Host)
Um, you got a bunch of places that you're on. I see you're on, uh uh, linkedin, instagram, facebook. You have a YouTube channel. You get your personal website. Um, where is it that people, uh, if they want to learn more about you, they want to, you know, check out your site. They want to check out your YouTube. Where you know? Where do you recommend people start from? What's the number one place? People?54:58 - Brandon Greenplate (Guest)
should go. If you want to connect with me on a personal level because I think life's all about having fun and, you know, doing something that you love when you're not having fun follow me on Instagram Brandon B-R-A-N-D-O-N dot. Greenplate G-R-E-N-P-L-A-T-E. And then if you want to learn more about what I'm doing in real estate, I'd probably say our Greenplate at Greenplate group is our Instagram for our real estate firm, and YouTube Greenplate group as well. We've got a lot of good content coming out there. And then connect with me on LinkedIn as well. I do a lot on LinkedIn. Those are probably my biggest places, and you'll see my website. If you want to look at how I set up my website, it's findhiltonheadrealestatecom. You're welcome to steal whatever you need from it as far as layout and just because you know they're not going to be the expert in that.55:53 - Mel (Host)
They're going to be the world in the notes section. So, um, definitely been a great learning experience. Great to learn about, uh, uh, Hilton head, South Carolina, from you, and and um, that you know the real estate that, uh, you're doing in that part of the world. So that's going to wrap this up. Uh, Brandon Greenplate, thank you very much for joining us here on this episode of the Inner Circle Podcast and I hope that everybody listening took some great takeaways. I felt like you gave us some really enlightening advice on how to take your real estate career to the next level. So, again, thanks for tuning in. Find us on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Instagram at America's Inner Circle. Again, thank you very much, Brandon Greenplate, and we'll see everybody again next time. Thanks, pal.
From Strategy to Success in Real Estate: Insights from Brandon Greenplate on Entrepreneurship, Vision, and Growth
In this episode of America’s Inner Circle, host Mel Allen sits down with Brandon Greenplate, a top real estate agent from Hilton Head Island, shares his journey from Clemson University to closing over $200 million in sales. He highlights the power of strategic branding, patience, and targeting non-primary residents in resort markets. The discussion covers balancing real estate demands with personal well-being, managing a $14 million property portfolio, and navigating market fluctuations. Brandon emphasizes the importance of networking, embracing discomfort, and prioritizing revenue-generating activities. He also shares his vision for building a strong team and investing in unconventional businesses like laundromats. This episode offers valuable insights and inspiration for real estate professionals and entrepreneurs alike.
00:00 - Libby (Guest)
When I was young, my biggest dream was to buy a house. I don't know why that's all I wanted. I had four kids, four little kids well, two when I started and I just wanted to buy a house. The American dream.00:14 - Mel (Host)
Right.00:15 - Libby (Guest)
And so I worked so hard on that and worked so hard on it, and no matter what I did, every deal seemed to fall through for one reason or another. Matter what I did, every deal seemed to fall through for one reason or another. And so it finally came to the point where I could buy the house across the street from where I was living. So that's why I lost all those other properties.00:34 - Mel (Host)
Right, it wasn't the right one.00:36 - Libby (Guest)
I didn't realize when you're going through it. You don't know. So you know. That taught me so much to help me through this. Because you, because you'll go and you'll show houses and then the buyers don't get them and I always say don't worry, there's one out there that's meant for you.00:52 - Bumper (Ad)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.01:31 - Mel (Host)
Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast, and this is a podcast where we dive deep into the stories of some of the most successful real estate agents in the country, so if you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, you are in the right spot. Today, we're honored to have Libby Sosinski, from the Pittsburgh area, joining City Health. Hello, thanks for joining us.01:52 - Libby (Guest)
You're welcome. Thanks for asking me.01:54 - Mel (Host)
And, as you said, just as you jumped on, you're like I am busy, so just a little bit, and I think that that's really a good thing and it actually is a great lead into something about you. I mean, I checked out your website and, wow, you have a lot of accolades that you have received. I was just on your Instagram page a moment ago. You've got a couple of recent ones there. I was seeing that you have been named on the Wall Street Journal top agent ranking for gosh since 2008,. You made it onto that list.02:28 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, for quite a while.02:30 - Mel (Host)
And you've hit some pretty high spots on that list and also the Keller Williams Worldwide Ranking by Closed Units, where you have been all over the fourth, third, second and first place for that Wow you did your research.02:47 - Libby (Guest)
You know more about it than I do.02:48 - Mel (Host)
The team knows what's going on.02:51 - Libby (Guest)
That's great.02:53 - Mel (Host)
And you've been doing this, like you said, for 20 years, pittsburgh, pa. You started out a little town near Erie, which is a lovely spot that's around the Erie area, and that you love animals. So, like you know, let's just, let's just start there. I mean how you seem to kind of have a soft spot, as many of us do, and is it rescuing animals, Is it, you know, kind of finding them new homes, a little bit of everything, a little bit of everything.03:26 - Libby (Guest)
I specialize in foreclosures. I sell foreclosed properties. Regrettably, sometimes people leave their animals behind. I always take care of that. I've also been showing properties and picked up an animal several times and that's kind of how I ended up where I am now. I have six dogs and four cats and almost all the dogs are handicapped, so they're special needs, and I got two blind, one crippled, one diabetic, one has something called copper storage disease and then I always say one's just that, but that was my fault.
04:07 - Mel (Host)Well, and it sounds like in a lot of these cases, they found you right.04:12 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, that's exactly it and it's doling out medicine and you know, like I can't really leave because I've got shots every 12 hours for one of them, so kind of ruined my mojo, so I just work all the time.04:25 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, so you're just like I can't go for 12 hours but I can go for two, so exactly.04:30 - Libby (Guest)
Exactly so. Yeah, so right now it's. It's a bit of a handful because they're all getting older and, you know, more and more handicapped. I told the vets the other day I'm afraid they're going to turn me in for munchausen by proxy because I'm constantly in there with an animal. They probably think it's me.04:49 - Mel (Host)
I'm sure they don't at all, Libby, and well, I mean, that's understandable, yeah, because you are a person in real estate-owned properties, so REO properties. That's probably a little bit different from how a lot of other people get into this, but that seems to be an area where you just found a real niche for yourself there.05:07 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, that's my niche.05:14 - Mel (Host)
So is that how you got started in this? Did you kind of just fall into that, or what was the thing that kind of pulled you into real estate?05:18 - Libby (Guest)
Well, when I got my license, I obviously thought that I had to get the two-piece suits and, you know, the high heels and get ready for my Vanna White hands to show everybody what was going on. And then I became an assistant for an agent who was doing REO and he was maybe for about six or seven months I was working with him and then he got out of the business and so I was kind of standing there not knowing what to do, and some of the asset management companies assigned me some of the properties that he let go of. So that's what got me started. I started with Chase Home Finance. They were my first client and really cut my teeth on that one. They're one of the harder clients in the business, so taught me a lot and then just kept going from there. And you know, the asset managers talk and you get ranked on the websites that you work on, so if they see that you're doing good work, it will get you the business. So, like I said, 20 years of this.06:25 - Mel (Host)
You literally were in the right place at the right time, I mean.06:28 - Libby (Guest)
I think I would say that yeah, I mean, I did not go into this saying I'm going to sell REO.06:34 - Mel (Host)
Right.06:35 - Libby (Guest)
But to me I love this end of the business Absolutely. It's less emotional than a regular retail listing or a regular retail sale because it's a business transaction. When you're working for a bank they're not crying because they're saying goodbye to their family home and for me I prefer that. It helps me because I would be crying with them. So I don't think I would have made it in this business if I did strictly retail because it would have been too much for my emotions. So I love doing the REO, the business side of it, and helping the banks get rid of their properties and getting them back onto the tax rolls.07:14 - Mel (Host)
Right, so you're turning a liability into an asset for somebody, and that's yeah, and it's fun.07:20 - Libby (Guest)
It's very meaningful to me, and once I see them go back on the market, oh my gosh, I just I'm so proud. That was mine, that was mine. So, yeah, I'm very attached to these properties. They're my babies. When I get them in inventory, I give them all I have.07:35 - Mel (Host)
Well, there you go. That sounds really great and obviously that worked out well for you. You said your first foray into this was was with Chase. Do you remember kind of like that first deal? Was there anything that kind of like stood out in that that really made you realize, hey, this is what I want to be doing.07:50 - Libby (Guest)
Well, when you get an assignment from the bank, you have 24 hours to do occupancy and that's it. There's no give or take on that. You have 24 hours to get out to that property to see if somebody's living there or not, to get out to that property to see if somebody's living there or not. So when I received some of those reassignments from my boss, I went to the first one and it was completely vacant and had been for a very, very long time. So that impressed them because you know the other agent didn't call them vacant and they were. So several of them that I had gotten in the initial they were vacant.08:27
So I was able to get started, you know right away right away and this was back when we do our reports and overnight them to to the bank. So, like now, I either complete them on a website or email that report or whatever, but this you had to print out all the pictures had to be color pictures and do your report and stick it in a FedEx package and overnight it.08:52 - Mel (Host)
Those were the days, huh.08:55 - Libby (Guest)
I don't miss that at all.08:57 - Mel (Host)
No, gosh. No, I helped put reports together for a company and, yeah, we had to overnight them. That was the only way to get them. They even when the fax machine came, they didn't trust the faxes.09:08 - Libby (Guest)
They were like no, we, we we didn't want black and white pictures. That was the thing. You weren't allowed to use black and white. They had to be color.09:15 - Mel (Host)
They were like yep, everything has to be printed, and uh and then you have to back up on a I think we that was the most up to date that company ever got. But so let's see you. I mean, you said that this is really something that you feel great about and that really is rewarding to you, Kind of like, how is that, you know? How is that, you know kind of reward come about. What's? What's that feeling of kind of like getting these places taken care of? What is it more than just like yep, I've checked that box.09:43 - Libby (Guest)
Well, that's probably where the emotional part of real estate comes in. So, instead of having somebody crying because you know they're selling the family home, I'm proud because I know that these properties, that some of them have even needed knocked down.10:00 - Mel (Host)
Right.10:00 - Libby (Guest)
That you know they were able to bring them back to life. And now a family can come, because a lot of them are investor purchases, right that you know they were able to bring them back to life and now a family can come because a lot of them are investor purchases, right? So then a family can come. When I was young, my biggest dream was to buy a house. I don't know why, that's all I wanted. I had four kids, four little kids well, two when I started, and I just wanted to buy a house the American dream. And so I worked so hard on that and worked so hard on it, and no matter what I did, every deal seemed to fall through for one reason or another, and so it finally came to the point where I could buy the house across the street from where I was living. So that's why I lost all those other properties.10:45 - Mel (Host)
Right, it wasn't the right one.10:46 - Libby (Guest)
But I didn't realize when you're going through it you don't know. So you know. That taught me so much to help me through this, because you know you'll go and you'll show houses and then the buyers don't get them and I always say don't worry, there's one out there that's meant for you. And you don't know it now, but when you get it you'll know it and I I have seen that story play over time and time again.11:10 - Mel (Host)
I couldn't agree with you more. I'm I love the house that I'm in. It's like I was meant to be here and I'm so glad that I that I found it. You know, and it took a took a couple of other houses to to get to it yeah, stepping stones to keep you busy when you're so focused on that.11:25
One thing you know yes, exactly Well, and you live in the community you're in. That's got to be really rewarding to see these places that may be vacant or may be run down or may be a teardown, and then you see a family when you drive by to your next property.11:38 - Libby (Guest)
Yep, and, like I said, it's a good starter homes for people that didn't have the opportunity. Some of them fall into specialized loan programs. So yeah, it's nice to get them back up and running with the townships and the neighbors always appreciate it Always.11:57 - Mel (Host)
I know, yeah, I would, and have you know I flipped a house in an area and I love the fact that I gave it, you know, to somebody else who was in a better position. But I saw that happen with my neighbor's houses on the same street and you know, some people tried to say it was gentrification and almost as if it was a bad thing. But it was like, you know, that somebody lived there for 30, 40 years and the next generation was doing some positive things with with those houses. So I think you know that's it.12:23
Purification isn't always a dirty word.12:26 - Libby (Guest)
No, not at all. I don't think so myself. Foreclosure isn't a dirty word.12:31 - Bumper (Ad)
No, it's not.12:32 - Libby (Guest)
Although everybody will tell you it is, but for me it's a positive thing because it keeps me in business. Right, yeah, I mean it's a terrible thing and a good thing all at the same time.12:46 - Mel (Host)
And it can really help some people, I think, get into houses that they never thought would be on their list of houses that they could even look at. And so there are definitely obviously there's negatives. Nobody wants it on their own credit, but being able to get into a house because it is a foreclosure, because it is real estate owned, can really be a wonderful thing. But I would suspect that there's also some challenges here and there that come about in getting these. Are there any particular ones that stand out, or kind of a pattern that stands out of challenges?13:12 - Libby (Guest)
I call myself a professional extension getter. That's what I do for a living Because these properties go through foreclosure and then the bank doesn't want them sitting around. So once you're done with initial services, sales, clean, trash out all that stuff they'll put the house on the market and multiple offers everybody's bidding. And then you sit there because the share speed's not a public record yet, right, and you sit there and you sit there and you sit there. I have one right now. Yet, and you sit there and you sit there and you sit there. I have one right now. I think we just did our 11th extension, or 1130 day extension. So, and that is a pattern, definitely a pattern. So I always say, when someone's buying an REO property, the most patient one wins.14:00
Oh yeah, it's the truth, I've seen people walk because they've lost their patience and somebody else swoop in and get the property you know and they think terminating the deal is going to make us. Oh no, let's fix it right now, but it doesn't Right, there's nothing we can do. So if you don't want to wait, we'll get somebody who does.14:20 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I thought about going in on one myself, a foreclosed property that was a few miles from here, and I was like I don't feel like waiting, it is.14:29 - Libby (Guest)
There's waiting, and very rarely do I close an REO property within 30 days Very rarely.14:37 - Mel (Host)Oh wow, that's good to know. That's really good to know for a lot of people out there. I would say that it is Because if you're trying to find a place to move quickly, I wouldn't suggest a foreclosure. Ah, there you go, let's definitely write that down.
14:53 - Libby (Guest)
Remember that one. It's super important information. You know, and then the agents are going my buyer is going to be homeless, they have nowhere to live. Why would you put them under contract with a property that is going to need extension upon extension? You know, and again, that's a pattern. All you have to do is ask one of the agents from your office did you close any foreclosures on time? No. So it is definitely a pattern and something that you see over and over again.15:21 - Mel (Host)
Well, other than you know the obvious patience, is there anything else that kind of you need to? You know to be in this line of work to set you apart from others who are in, you know, the REO market.15:33 - Libby (Guest)
Well, you have to have a decent sized bank account because you have to pay the bills for the banks, Right? So if a trash out is done and it was a $5,000 trash out I have to pay the contractor for doing that work. Then I have to pay somebody to submit my invoicing because I hate it, I don't want to do it, and then you know, I wait 30 to 60 days to get it back. And if I have, which I do. I believe I have about 75 properties in pre-list right now. Yeah, I have to take care of all those properties. I have to make sure they're maintained. I have to make sure that. So with REO, there's a bit of property preservation involved with it as well.16:18 - Mel (Host)
Yeah.16:18 - Libby (Guest)
So it's extra work than maybe a regular listing.16:22 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, it sounds like you're floating a lot of money out there waiting, you know all of it.16:28 - Libby (Guest)
Like you know, if somebody calls and says the house was broken into, I got to fly over there, there's nobody else to go except for me. So you know, whereas if I have a regular listing, I'm like, oh, your house got broken too. They go look at it. You know so. So it does take a lot more of you. I mean I have people to help me, so, um, so you know, it's not like I'm running to all the houses all the time because I couldn't keep up with it, but um, but yeah, there's. There's a lot more that comes out of you as an agent emotionally, physically, monetarily that you know you have to be ready for. And you know I people say I've been trying to get into REO. I got my first listing and then they call me and go, why do I have to pay all these bills?17:13 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, what did I get myself? Into.17:17 - Libby (Guest)
You really need to do it in bulk because it has to start a pattern. You know, and, like I said, this is 20 years for me, so I've been doing this a really long time. My biggest year, I think, I sold 306 properties, that year 308, something like that. Last year I sold 251. So and that's about normal for me. Yeah. Anywhere between two and 300.17:41 - Mel (Host)
That's a that those are really good numbers. I can. I can understand Again, don't forget.17:46 - Libby (Guest)
Mine's different. There's different. It's not as emotional, it's more business. It's more let's buy this property, let's not cry about it, let's do this. And so it doesn't take as much from me inside. It's easier to deal with a business transaction.18:02 - Mel (Host)
Right, yeah, it's just as you're saying. It's a business transaction, not an emotional one. Um is, is it that, and the fact that you have a great team that you've built up over all of these years, what keeps? You motivated and keep you going.18:13 - Libby (Guest)
Absolutely, absolutely. I have great people with me. I have my field guy, ronnie, and he runs around and does like occupancies and stuff for me. And I say this in my professional and personal life Everybody needs a Ronnie because he's been that. It's not even funny, it's the truth. He's been super helpful. My daughter is my side by side assistant. She works by my side, and then I have a remote assistant, penny, who is absolutely phenomenal. She's so organized.18:53 - Mel (Host)
And, yeah, the people that I have with me are high quality people and so it definitely helps. Yeah, hold on to them, you know, tie them down with kids. Oh, you're not. My son has been with me 15 years.18:57 - Libby (Guest)
I gave birth to one of them and Penny's been with me, I believe, 13 years at this point. So, yeah, we all work together as a team.19:05 - Mel (Host)
That's great. Now, do you have slowdowns, like other real estate agents do? Do you find that the market really flip-flops like that?19:14 - Libby (Guest)
Oh, absolutely Absolutely the December. Every year there's a foreclosure moratorium, so I'm always slower from December to the end of January, and then after that it'll pick up again, but that's every year. Every year it's slow and I'm getting to the point. I used to worry about them, now I look forward to them. I cannot wait until it's going to get a little sluggish so I can breathe for a couple minutes.19:40 - Mel (Host)
You're like vacations around the corner. I can make it.19:45 - Libby (Guest)
I took Christmas to New Year's off and I didn't even go anywhere. I just stayed home and didn't deal with real estate. I turned myself off for a little while and when I came back I was refreshed.19:55 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, no, sometimes staying at home is the best vacation it was great.19:59 - Libby (Guest)
It was great, I loved it. I loved every minute of it.20:02 - Mel (Host)
I don't. I mean, if you love where you're at, that's why, why go anywhere else?20:06 - Libby (Guest)
Exactly, exactly.20:12 - Mel (Host)
Now you probably don't run into this, I would suspect as well with with banks. You know as much as you maybe would if you were doing direct to. You know homeowners, but do you run into a lot of issues? You know things where you're you, you know you, your values, your principles are being kind of like pushed in one area or somebody's asking you to kind of look over something. But I would think that these being, as you say, it's a checklist, it's a business transaction, that that doesn't even happen. I would think.20:38 - Libby (Guest)
I don't allow for that to happen. Of course they do. I have an investor that used to say don't present those other offers. Sorry, buddy, I'm not losing my license for you.20:48
So, to me it's so important to keep my reputation good, to make sure agents want to work with me. That's part of the success too, because most of the REO agents are rude and nasty and I've experienced it myself. If I have a client that wants to see an REO property, sometimes they don't even call me back. So you know it's and that's across the board. I mean there are good REO agents and then there are bad REO agents, but I've also watched it flip over, flip over, flip over for many years. So there's a few that are still in the business, but a lot of them couldn't handle that, because you have to do the right thing we are. Our reputations are so important in this business. I don't wanna be looked at as a used car salesman, so I want people to know that if they contact me for any reason, that I'm gonna do the best I can for them, and that's exactly what I do. I try to be as fair as possible.21:56 - Mel (Host)
So if I have a client that asks me to do something that isn't right, they're not my client anymore. That sounds like yeah, there's your principles right there. So yeah, exactly. And.22:03 - Libby (Guest)
I don't hesitate to not do it. I've let several clients go and what I found? That when I've let a client go that maybe wasn't living up to my expectations, I pick up a new client who is 100 times better than the last client.22:30 - Mel (Host)
So it's just like relationships you have to open yourself up for the good stuff and then they'll come. Don't tolerate the bad stuff from anybody. Oh, I like that attitude, I absolutely love that attitude and I wish more people were were absolutely liking you know, pulling that positive energy toward themselves and and and you know what it can happen. Obviously in these, these are not all impersonal and and it's uh. Thank you for reminding me of that.22:48
You're welcome, you know so we just covered a lot of territory. I mean, you know, um the the demands that are put on you, making sure that you're just staying on track, making sure that you're tracking that positive energy and and and firing people who are not, uh, you know, or who are asking you to do things that aren't professional, and I think that that's all really great advice for somebody who's thinking about getting into this line of work. Our reputations are the most important part.23:14
Yeah, and I think that's true across the real estate board from everybody that I've talked to, since, you know, I was out there looking for my first starter home years ago, out there looking for my you know, first starter home years ago. And since that time, obviously you know, for both of us, we've seen things a lot change in the real estate. What do you think is one of the biggest changes?23:34 - Libby (Guest)
that's happened recently for real estate. Well, I am in Pittsburgh, western Pennsylvania, and when I started 20 years ago we have had a steady market. I mean, of course it ebbs and flows, but we've had a steady market for many, many, many years. I mean I started in 2004 and 20 years before that our market stayed pretty level and then COVID hit. And I have never in my career and I think 20 years is a decent amount of time Sure, seeing the market do what happened here in Pittsburgh. Because we are I tell everybody this we're our own unique market, we have our own multi-list, so that kind of gives us our own little energy field. Yeah.24:21
You know, and the way things work in the business. So, yeah, I forget what I was talking about.24:28 - Mel (Host)
Well, the biggest changes that happened Well, yeah, I mean, COVID definitely made so many things the market skyrocketed.24:34 - Libby (Guest)
That's what I was saying, and it's crazy because we've never seen increases like what we saw, you know, just three, four years ago. It was nuts, it was absolutely nuts. So but it was good and bad, because if you were a buyer's agent, I don't know how some of them didn't cut themselves because I I had a buyer which I don't work with many buyers, but I'll make exceptions. You know, I lost I believe it was six houses for them. I was in tears. I was in tears.25:07
They were trying to get married, he was going to be deployed overseas, and so they needed a house so they could wrap everything up and be ready to go Right. And we would see a house, we would fall in love with the house, we would bid on the house and we would lose the house with the house. We would bid on the house and we would lose the house, and it happened over and over. So I was happy to be a listing agent, but not happy to be a buyer's agent. It was tough, it was really tough, and other areas of the country experience this all the time.25:36 - Mel (Host)
Oh yeah.25:37 - Libby (Guest)
This was the first time that Pittsburgh had experienced it.25:40 - Mel (Host)
Oh, wow, yeah, that's definitely. That's a tough situation to be in. You know where you're seeing that, but also a reminder that the the area that you were working in really was the right fit if you didn't know nothing else. Yeah, yeah.25:55 - Libby (Guest)
You got that. Definitely.25:56 - Mel (Host)
Definitely. Do you see any other? You know trends or changes in the market and how do you kind of, how do you see those coming? You know, is there anything that lets you know, kind of like there's a shift here?26:07 - Libby (Guest)
I believe and I'm not I'm, I'm just me, I'm little old me, but I do believe that we're going to see an increase in the foreclosures. I think we're going to have a repeat of 2008. Am I right? I don't know, but what I do know is there's a backlog, there's a huge backlog, and they've tried to slowly put it out there. They held it up for the election. That was important. They always do that when there's an election, they hold back. So, yeah, I think it's going to get busy For us foreclosure agents. I do. I believe that I believe we'll see 2008 again. Actually, I think it might be worse.26:50 - Mel (Host)
Oh dear.26:51 - Libby (Guest)
That's my opinion. I haven't done any research, I just go by the wind. Yeah. People saying things, asset managers telling me things, and it's all showing me that kind of wind. Wow.27:02 - Mel (Host)
But yeah, I think what I've told every one of my investors is get liquid.27:17 - Libby (Guest)
It's time to get liquid, because when these start coming through, they're going to get some stellar deals again, and then they'll be set to go for the next time. It skyrockets up, because that's what real estate does yeah, it goes down, it comes up, it goes down, it comes up. Real estate does yeah, it goes down, it comes up, it goes down, it comes up. So it'll be, you know, good for them if they grab those cheap properties again. Yeah, that we're gonna see, regretfully.27:49 - Mel (Host)
And then they'll be set to go when we have another skyrocket. Yeah, I mean, you know real estate always kind of is on that. You know upwards arc, but boy those dips sometimes are really hard to get caught in.28:01 - Libby (Guest)
Well, you know what? We had not only a dip, but a skyrocket. I mean properties that I had sold for four or 5,000 during this past you know, when we were high up there we're selling for 129, 139. So nice investment. I have one investor that she's not even from Pittsburgh, but she came to Pittsburgh. She didn't spend more than $5,000 on any house that she bought. Tons of houses she bought and you could get properties for those great prices. They were rentals for her, nothing that she sat on. She did a bare basics rental, sectionated it, so she didn't even have to worry about the rent coming in. And then, when it skyrocketed, she told and she made millions of dollars, millions of dollars.28:45 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, you know if, if you can afford it again. You know it's a, it's always a great investment. You know real estate. You know if you can wait it out, right? Yeah, I always tell them.28:55 - Libby (Guest)
it's a 10-year plan. When you buy a lower-end property, it's a 10-year plan. So you might as well plan on renting it for 10 years, until it gets to the point where you can sell it. But it's a 10 because when you pay under $10,000 for a house, it's going to stay down there for a little while, yeah. So how are you going to make it work for you? You're going to rent it. Yeah, so it'll make money and then boom, sell it in 10 years.29:20 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that was my plan with a house that I flipped. Unfortunately, this house came up and so that 10-year turned into a five-year, but it was for a good reason.29:29 - Libby (Guest)
I hope you did well. I hope you did well, I did.29:31 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, the other house gained value and it was the right time, and I think I would have regretted hanging onto it.29:39 - Libby (Guest)
You have to be negotiable with your plans.29:42 - Mel (Host)
Absolutely absolutely.29:43 - Libby (Guest)
Because you just don't know what's going to happen.29:44 - Mel (Host)
Well, that's a great piece of advice, obviously for people who are getting into this field, because it does have ups and downs, there are things. Is there any kind of other advice that you think somebody specifically you know in your market or in your field you know of real estate owned a piece of advice that you wish somebody had given you when you were starting out in this?30:01 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, I do have a piece of advice. I find that the most successful agents specialize in something, whether it be investor properties, whether it be foreclosure listings, whether it be leases. Some of them have one client that just buys whatever they can, and so they just keep selling them properties over and over.30:27
But one thing I've always noticed is, whenever I meet a super successful agent, they have a specialty, whether it's high-end properties or low-end properties. Yeah, so you can make your specialty your own thing. I specialize in this area of the city and that's a specialty, and at least you can claim that as your own. But you better darn well be a specialist when you do it. But you can make it. You can make a specialty whatever. Whatever you think that you get the best, the most right, if you know it and you're good at it, focus on it and make it. Make it your specialty and you'll be successful. And they have to be positive too yeah, well it also.31:08 - Mel (Host)
It doesn't hurt if you like that specialty too, right?31:10 - Libby (Guest)
yeah, well, you know what I find, that you will become a specialist when you like it, because you enjoy it and so. But, like I said, it doesn't even have to be REO specialist or leasing specialist. It could be this area of the city specialist, this street specialist, it doesn't matter. Just find the part of this career that works for you and focus on it.31:37 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, and really I mean talking about this street. You know there there are some areas where, yeah, one street or one neighborhood or one, you know area in a region of a city can be its own mini market and and you're absolutely right about that what are, what are some mistakes that you see that people are making, you know, kind of, when they do real estate?32:19 - Libby (Guest)
And they come at you as hard as they can. They yell at you when it doesn't go right, even though there's nothing you can do about it. They get nasty, they file complaints, they pull their brokers in, they do this, that and the other thing I never see them again. I never see those agents again. You can't argue or fight with your coworkers because even though we're from different companies, we're working together for the same goal. Yeah, so I think that if they misuse the power that they have handling this huge deal for their clients, that it will put them into failure pretty quickly.33:03 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, they're just going to shake themselves right out of this. It sounds like.33:06 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, that's exactly it, because the next time you see them, you're going to call your seller and you're going to say I had a deal with this agent three weeks ago and she was ridiculous, she pushed. You know you need to know this that this agent is a problem agent. And you know, I don't know if she's going to be able to handle keeping this property under agreement for extended amount of time. And then they go okay, well then, let's look at this offer. So, and that's what happens, because you have to let your client know. This is part of my business.33:39
Right, right I have to let my client know who's going to be dramatic and who's not. I have another motto no drama deals. I've been saying that for years? Who has time? Yeah, who has time, let's just sell them and move on. We don't want drama, there's no need for it, good time for that?33:55 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, and people will talk right. And so if that talk is all negative, you know again you're probably you're just going to get yourself right out of this area. But if you're good at it and the talk is good, then I think that people will follow.34:09 - Libby (Guest)
Right, that's exactly it. I want people to look at my houses and go oh great, libby's a listing agent. I want to work with her on this. I think that's important. I really do, and I'm glad to hear that they want to work with me. Does everybody like me? No, some agents absolutely hate me, but you know, then they can avoid my properties. But honestly, I want to be as fair and as good to work with as I could possibly be. I give it my all.34:35 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, libby, I bet just from me chatting with you in this amount of time, that a lot of people, when they have a conversation with you and they're working with you on the deal, they absolutely know what to expect from you, and I think that that's a wonderful thing, and I think that that's a really wonderful thing that people know that and that you obviously that people know that and and that you know you obviously be doing this for 20 years. You know that that reputation precedes you as well.34:58 - Libby (Guest)
So yeah, this is that. Like I said, I didn't intend to get into this end of the business, but I love it. I absolutely love it. I haven't started hating it yet. I'm waiting for that. I know everybody gets burnout on REO, but I'm nowhere near burnout yet. I love it. I mean, if you took this away from me, I would fall into a serious depression. Oh wow, so it keeps me alive. It's so much fun.35:23 - Mel (Host)
Well, good, I mean that's yeah. I mean, you know it sounds like you're enjoying what you're doing, so it doesn't feel so much like work.35:28 - Libby (Guest)
Some of that I never work a day in my life. Yeah, there day in my life you do what you love. You don't work a day in your life and you have people who are handling those aspects that you don't love. So focus on the ones you do, and I love working with them.35:44 - Mel (Host)
So you know it's. It's relatively positive for me most of the time. Yeah, do you have any resources, like you know, for people who are looking into this? Are there some things that you know you look into, or are you just kind of taking the things that come in and have you learned to filter those out? But are there apps, websites, books that would help.36:00 - Libby (Guest)
You act like I have time to read. You're funny.36:06 - Mel (Host)
No apps no websites, no books. You're just constantly moving, so there you go.36:10 - Libby (Guest)
Just moving, yeah, just moving. I'm sorry, I wish I could read. I do enjoy it, but if I'm not selling real estate, or I say slinging real estate, I'm taking care of a handicapped dog.36:21 - Mel (Host)
So there you go yeah.36:24 - Libby (Guest)
So my time's kind of constrained.36:27 - Mel (Host)
Understandably. Yeah, and you know, good for you, Like it's good to have something to do.36:36 - Libby (Guest)
That's for sure. Yeah, exactly, I would go crazy if I didn't have something to do, and I feel like real estate is so worthwhile. It's starting off with my own experience of trying to buy a house when my kids were small, and without even knowing that this is where I would end up. But I think that really helped me realize how important it is, how important doing real estate is buying, selling all of it it's it's just. Without it, life is kind of boring. When people find out you're a realtor, they want to talk real estate.37:07 - Mel (Host)
Yes, they do. I mean, you know, people love having a roof over their heads and the things they love around them in it.37:12 - Libby (Guest)
So I know that's good stuff. Good stuff the roof over the head. Sometimes I'm selling a house that doesn't have one of those.37:20 - Mel (Host)
Yep, and I had to fix a roof on a house before I could even buy it because my bank said, nope, we're not looking.37:27 - Libby (Guest)
Come on, man Just give me the house.37:30 - Mel (Host)
That was, that was fun, and by fun I mean nail biting, making sure that we actually made that deal.37:37 - Libby (Guest)
Those are the best ones. Those are the best ones. After you close those man, you're like. I earned my money today. It's good stuff I love it when you really have to pull everything together at the end. Yeah. That's. I mean not that I want it to happen all the time, but when one of those comes up and you know that the deal closed because of you, those are the best.37:56 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I learned that there's two kinds of sweat equity. There's a swing and the hammer and then there's just like the putting up the money and just pleading.38:02 - Bumper (Ad)
The real sweat, the real sweat.38:07 - Mel (Host)
So you've already talked a little bit about this. You know working with your clients, being honest, being upfront. You know firing the ones who are asking things that aren't appropriate. What are some other ways that you, you know, can recommend to build and maintain those strong relationships, and what you do with your clients?38:24 - Libby (Guest)
Talk to every buyer, talk to every seller. If somebody comes to you and says I want to sell this house for a thousand dollars, sell it because grandma has a $3 million house and now you've been recommended by the low end listing and so they're going to have you sell it. Every property has its own personality and every property comes with relationships. Yeah.38:49
And that's what's important. So again, reputation, relationships, all of it. You don't even have to advertise and they will come to you. So and the agents that say, oh, this listing isn't enough money for me, what they don't realize in the backend is they may have given up hundreds of thousands of dollars of commission by not listing that low end property.39:14 - Mel (Host)
Right, right, right yeah, because there may be deals behind those deals that you're not aware of. Yeah.39:20 - Libby (Guest)
Exactly, exactly so. Every property is an opportunity, no matter what, whether it's $100,000 or $100 million. I mean, of course we all want the $100 million properties, but it doesn't work that way. You see me 251 deals this year of trying to get that $100 million property that I never got.39:43 - Mel (Host)
You know, I'm sure you picked up a lot of business along the way and made it worthwhile. So there you go.39:47 - Libby (Guest)
And I find that when I pick up clients like this, they end up being really good people. They end up being friends this.39:56 - Mel (Host)
they end up being really good people. Now they end up being friends. You know and I hear that, I hear that from real estate agents a lot that you know the people that they work with again and again it's because they do, they have that friendship with them, and I think that that is part of one of the things that a lot of people don't realize is that, just like any job where you're working with people on a day-to-day basis, you know and you're coming around again that those relationships are going to last in your case, 20 years, you know, or?40:20 - Libby (Guest)
more.40:21 - Mel (Host)
Yes.40:21 - Libby (Guest)
I've made some really good friends and sold their entire family's properties whether it be by listing them or being their buyer's agent Just from one little low-end deal that I've done for them and still talk to them and keep in touch with them. They give me updates. I know what's going on. I get cards in the mail. It always touches my heart when I get a Christmas card from a buyer. I just love it. I love it.40:47 - Mel (Host)
Well, I think you just walked literally through two of the questions that I had for you about. You know, basically, building those strong relationships, maintaining them, the key to a strong brand and all of that is those relationships. It's, it's, you know, the communication and finding people and, again, you know, treating people like they may be in your life for for a long time.41:06 - Libby (Guest)
I treat everyone like that, everybody.41:09 - Mel (Host)
And I think that normally they are I mean.41:12 - Libby (Guest)
There's the occasional ones that I go, okay, no more of this.41:15 - Mel (Host)
But normally they are I mean, there's the occasional ones that I go, okay, no more of this. But normally they are yeah, well and good, that's great. Um are there. I mean you you talked about this, you touched upon this before with somebody who, um, you know, these people who come in with a lot of bluster and fluster and, and you know, maybe make the the deal um not comfortable, how do you, how do you manage your way out of those times? You know when those things are, those people are coming. It's not going to plan. You know they. They're doing all of these things.41:43 - Libby (Guest)
Um, you know how, when they know more than me, I tell them they're going to close the property on their own there you go.41:49
And then I don't answer them because I don't have time for that. So you know, when they get attitude-y if that's the word, it's one right now you know I'll tolerate it to a certain point, but when I realize there's nothing I can do that's going to make this stop, they're going to close that property on their own and if it doesn't close, I'm not going to do anything to salvage it because it's not worth it. I'm not going to do anything to salvage it because it's not worth it. It's not worth it To me. That is a lawsuit waiting to happen, right. So you know, my job is to keep my sellers safe. You don't need somebody who can't even handle being under agreement to close on a property and then decide that they're going to sue you. So I consider that a very important part of my job.42:36 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, you got to look for the red flags and yeah exactly.42:39 - Libby (Guest)
So you know, if an agent gets difficult, I know that we're going to tread softly on that deal.42:47 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, no, that's good advice again as well. You're. You're giving a lot of it out here.42:53 - Libby (Guest)
Maybe I shouldn't Watch me go out of business tomorrow.43:01 - Mel (Host)
No, I doubt that that's going to happen. I mean, speaking of, what do you think the next five to 10 years of your career is going to come to? I think I saw somewhere that you envision or you hope to build your own, because I know right now you're with a group, so are you looking to make that shift to be I?43:18 - Libby (Guest)
decided no. No I decided that was too much responsibility for me. I don't want to be responsible. When an agent makes a stupid mistake, yeah, I make enough of my own, I don't need. And then of course you know they deny it. And then there's lawsuits and I decided that I'm okay paying somebody else to do that for me and I run her ragged. I always call her and say you're my broker, fix it. She's like okay, honey.43:49 - Mel (Host)
It's always nice to know that there are people behind you, helping prop you up.43:52 - Libby (Guest)
That's exactly it. So I decided I mean, I, I'm working my deals anyways, I don't have time to train other people. This is, you know, my business. So, no, I'm I. I've thought of it, I thought of opening my own company, but no, I'm happy. I'm happy where I am. Why make it any different?44:11 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, why? Why risk happiness, you know?44:13 - Libby (Guest)
Yes, I don't like change. I don't like change at all, so I'm good.44:17 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, unless you're forced to, that sounds like a wonderful, a wonderful you got it.44:21 - Libby (Guest)
You got that's exactly it. You have to force me to change. I'm still getting over this computer stuff.44:28 - Mel (Host)
Well, you know, they're constantly changing, that's for sure. And what is what has been like your proudest moment, like what's something you? You look back on your real estate career and you're like man that really stands out that I worked hard for that, or that one really, you know, made a difference I have so many of those special deals.44:48 - Libby (Guest)
Um, recently I had a deal actually five deals under contract with the same seller and the seller was threatening to kill me. And that's the honest to God's truth. There was some issues there and the title company was having the most success with him and if I would talk to him he would start screaming and yelling and you know I don't even know what he said. It was accusing me of things that were not real, you know like aliens and stuff.45:24
So I backed up and I stayed in touch with the title company the one woman that could talk to her and said I'm telling you you're in charge because I can't, I can't. He gets upset. When I talk to him he freaks out. So, working closely with her, but she did most of the work, we were able to get that closed and I was shocked because I did not think it was going to close, but it did.45:53
And I was so happy because the buyer on that was so nice. That's a nice guy and if he didn't get it, if we didn't close, I was going to do whatever I could to figure out how to get him those properties that he wanted so badly. But it worked out. It worked out and we closed. And I give just as much credit to the title agency because they could talk to him and he would. He'd start and then she had this way of talking him down.46:20
So I can't take credit for that deal, but I can still take credit going. Oh, that was a good one, because I didn't think it was going to close.46:27 - Mel (Host)
You worked your way through it. Yeah, I don't think that I've ever heard anybody say that. You know. Thank goodness for the title.46:33 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, exactly, but no, it made all the difference and I had other properties on the market that this guy owned and I expired everything, everything. I took it all off the market when he started threatening me. It was actually scary. I bought a gun after this all happened because I thought what if this person comes to my house? So so I have a gun. Now I'm learning how to shoot it. I'm not very good at it, but you know, if I have to be, I will be.47:01
Yeah, yeah, but yeah it was still really good to get it closed. It was really good because I didn't think it was going to happen.47:08 - Mel (Host)
Well, that's unfortunate that you went through that and, uh, obviously that's not going to be your legacy, but, um, uh, you know, maybe you got a new team made on this.47:18 - Libby (Guest)
uh, this person's title company, I would be happy to work with them and, funny enough, my son goes to church with her. So they were talking. One day she started telling my son about this story and and christian goes that's really my mom just had the same story. And she goes who's your mom? And he said Libby. She goes oh my God.47:40 - Mel (Host)
It was your mom.47:40 - Libby (Guest)
That was kind of funny too. Small world.47:43 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, oh, it is, it definitely is, and I wouldn't want to paint it, but it's definitely pretty small.47:49 - Libby (Guest)
Yes, very, very small.47:52 - Mel (Host)
What is a legacy that you want to leave, you know kind of in your area in the real estate world?47:58 - Libby (Guest)
I wonder if I'm even going to leave one. I mean, you know, even though I'm here and I'm here, you can't miss me. I'm here when I'm gone. Is anybody going to be saying, oh wow, I wish Libby had this listing, but she's not here anymore. So the legacy will be for the houses that I sold during my time period and I will mean something to those people, and some of them may not even know that. Yeah.48:27
But I had to help with the stepping stone to get them into their dream homes. So that's my legacy. They may not remember me, they may not know who I was, but I did do something to help them out.48:40 - Mel (Host)
You know what honestly that's. That's a beautiful way of looking at it, that you know you're helping people's dreams come true, whether or not they realize you're there or not.48:47 - Libby (Guest)
That's the most important thing to me.48:50 - Mel (Host)
Basically Santa Claus.48:52 - Libby (Guest)
Okay, no big belly though.48:55 - Mel (Host)
Modern, you know, twist on it a real estate, santa Claus. Okay, no big belly, though, just a modern, you know. Twist on it A real estate, santa Claus.48:59 - Libby (Guest)
Exactly, exactly.49:01 - Mel (Host)
So I mean gosh, I think that one tops the unusual story list and I'm trying to think what else we could talk about.49:08 - Libby (Guest)
But I think the you want to hear about some of my weird assignments.49:12 - Mel (Host)
Yes, absolutely.49:14 - Libby (Guest)
So it's funny. I was talking about this house yesterday In 2015,. I was given a bank property, a foreclosure, Went and did the occupancy and the house was vacant. We rekeyed, we went in. The entire second floor was full of Ziploc containers with human feces in them. There were over 2,000 to 3,000 containers of poop.49:46 - Mel (Host)
Oh my gosh.49:47 - Libby (Guest)
I said that quietly so you could. Yeah, yeah.49:50 - Mel (Host)
No, thank you for saying that quietly.49:52 - Libby (Guest)
If you think about it. Let's use the. If you're spending that much on Ziploc containers, why don't you just pay your sewer bill?50:01 - Mel (Host)
I can't imagine the logic on that one.50:05 - Libby (Guest)
It was the most confusing thing that we ever saw. I still, to this day, don't understand why that happened. It was weird and, believe it or not, it was a winter assignment, so it didn't smell, which is shocking. I think had we gone there in the summer it would have been a totally different story, so I was grateful that was winter.50:22 - Mel (Host)
You would have known, before you got to the second floor, what was going on.50:25 - Libby (Guest)
I would have known from the outside.50:26 - Mel (Host)
I've had that happen.50:28 - Libby (Guest)
I had a gentleman pass away one time in one of my houses and I couldn't even enter the property. It was very hard, very hard to do. So yeah, there's. They're crazy stories. They're crazy stories they're crazy stories.50:40 - Mel (Host)
Poop bag story is the better one. Uh, um, have you ever thought about, uh, what you would do if, if it wasn't real estate that you were doing? What would you? Um, you know, would you be rescuing, uh, you know, animals? Would you be?50:57 - Libby (Guest)
I actually when I retire, if I retire, I haven't decided somebody convinces you to yeah yeah, if somebody gets.51:04
I I mean, heck, I've known people, agents that were 90 years old. I wouldn't mind doing that, but if I were to retire, uh, there is something that's close to my heart. Um, there are women that are in abusive relationships, and many of them are stuck there because they love their animals and they won't leave their animals there. And I hear it all the time that, well, I can't leave because I've got two dogs, and so I would like to foster these dogs for these abused women so they can get out of their abusive relationship. And again, I think that's something that would make a huge difference in someone's life.51:48 - Mel (Host)
Oh, gosh, yeah, and.51:50 - Libby (Guest)
I could even do that while I'm selling real estate, but not now. I'm too busy now. But down the road I am going to do that.51:56 - Mel (Host)
Good, good for you. I mean honestly like, uh, every town should have a Libby.52:04 - Libby (Guest)
No, everyone needs a Ronnie. Oh, there you go.52:07 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, you know, maybe if the Ronnie's nearby the Libby pops up. So there you go. Um, what's an interesting or fun fact about you that a lot of people don't realize? That, uh, that you'd like to share with us?52:19 - Libby (Guest)
Well, normally I say I have six handicapped dogs, but you already beat me to the punch on that so that's it I sell real estate and I have handicapped dogs.52:31 - Mel (Host)
You know what. Yeah, it's a short book, but honestly the story is pretty darn interesting, Libby.52:36 - Libby (Guest)
So it's a long story very, very long story.52:40 - Mel (Host)
Uh, there's a lot that's happened in it, for sure. But as we kind of wrap up the interview, because this has been a wonderful learning experience, getting to know you, getting to know more about the real estate, owned properties and how you do that, but if you could buy, you know money wasn't an object. You could live any property in the world, no limitations on price, location or style. Where would you live?53:08 - Libby (Guest)
Funny that I actually had this conversation with myself Right where I am. Right where I am, this house was meant for me. I have a small Cape Cod. It's in a normal neighborhood yeah I love it. I love it. I. I debated selling, I was thinking about moving, and then I started doing some work to my house with the intention of perhaps selling. Well, I love it. I don't want to go anywhere, so I'm going to say where I am right now. I like where I am right now, with my entire life, everything.53:44 - Mel (Host)
You know what? We should all be so lucky.53:47 - Libby (Guest)
Yeah, well, you know what? I could sit here and focus on bad things, but what's that going to do for me? No, it has to be good, it has to be good. So you have a good life.53:57 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I love to picture the house that I'm in and you know 20 years, my wife and I, you know being a little little slower, but one level sprawling ranch.54:07 - Libby (Guest)
That's what you want A sprawling ranch.54:09 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, Well, we're we. Uh, we have ideas on how to make our home livable on one level Most of it's on one level anyway, so it's not a, so just add that addition and enjoy your retirement. The room I'm in is not going to be, uh what it is.54:25 - Libby (Guest)
Uh, you know in the future when that happens but uh, we'll put in nice floors a fireplace, and then you're good to go.54:33 - Mel (Host)
That's pretty much the plan we're going to have a downstairs shower. That's like. That's the only other thing that you didn't mention, so there you go, You'll be happy you did it.54:41 - Libby (Guest)
You'll need two bathrooms on the first floor, so you know yeah, no, no, put a master suite with the bathroom and then do the other bathroom and you're good to go Lock up the second floor.54:54 - Mel (Host)
Don't let anybody up there Turn the heat off. Yeah, no, we'll open that up and we literally have had this conversation so you're just as happy as I am. I really am.55:05 - Libby (Guest)
I love where I am, so that means that we've got everything that we want.55:09 - Mel (Host)
You know what so?55:10 - Libby (Guest)
it's good stuff.55:15 - Mel (Host)
It wasn't what I expected when I was younger.55:17 - Libby (Guest)
Well, I don't think any of us know what to expect when we were younger, I can assure you I did not say I want to be a foreclosure agent when I get old.55:24 - Mel (Host)
There were a lot of. Lamborghinis and Ferraris. You know, in those dreams back when I was younger, and then I'm like well, where am I going to put it?55:31 - Libby (Guest)
They're expensive to fix. Maybe, buying them is okay.55:41 - Mel (Host)
But when you have to put a tire on for $2,000, it loses its charm really quick. Yeah, we have too many potholes around here for that. One last thing I'm going to ask you before I wrap things up. You've told me some of the craziest. You told me some of the most interesting. What is the funniest thing that you've ever had happen while you were showing a property? Showing or listing Well either.55:57 - Libby (Guest)
You know, honestly, just the funnest thing to have, because I don't have a showing one. I have a listing one.56:01 - Mel (Host)
There you go a listing one.56:03 - Libby (Guest)
Back when I first started foreclosures, I received a listing assignment from Chase Home Finance and I think it was in Trafford, which is a small Western PA town. When I got there the house was occupied by Mr Zier. His name was Mr Zier, his name was Mr Zier and he was not happy about losing his house to foreclosure and he held me 100% responsible. It was my fault that it went to foreclosure and so you know, I kept trying to talk to him about moving out, giving him money to move out, all that. He didn't want to hear any of it.56:37
So we finally did the eviction, which took about eight months. So from the beginning of that eight month time period I was talking to him posting notes on his door going to his house, and he just wouldn't hear any of it. So we finally get to the eviction day and I show up for the eviction and the house is vacant. He did not wait around for the sheriff's to kick him out. So I go inside the house and I'm photographing the rooms and you know, making a list of what remains, and I get to the upstairs bedroom and written on the wall in red paint was Keller Williams must die.57:18 - Mel (Host)
Because obviously you work with Keller Williams, must die Because obviously you work with Keller Williams, and I bet he must have thought my name was.57:23 - Libby (Guest)
Keller Williams or something. But yeah, so Keller Williams must die. I didn't know if I should be afraid, but I laughed really, really hard.57:31 - Mel (Host)
No, I think that in that case, you know, that seems like the appropriate response to just give a nice belly laugh, because what else can?57:39 - Libby (Guest)
you do. It was crazy. It was crazy. I was not responsible for him losing his house, but he didn't want to hear anything about it.57:45 - Mel (Host)
No, no, I'm sure. I'm sure he'd already made up his mind as to what happened. And again, you were responsible. So, cause you were the only face that he probably ever saw, um, in that process. So, um, Libby, thank you so much for joining us.58:01 - Libby (Guest)
You're welcome. Thanks for asking me. I had a nice time talking with you.58:04 - Mel (Host)
Now we have some of your links to your website, your social media. Where is it that people can go? Where do you recommend people go to learn more about you?58:13 - Libby (Guest)
My website. Your website, definitely my website, and it's attainable two ways website, definitely my website. And it's attainable two ways agentlibbycom or pghforeclosurescom.58:29 - Mel (Host)
Both of those will take you to my website, all right. Well, we definitely appreciate it. We will tag your social media when we put this out there, so, if you don't mind taking a moment to share this on your social media as well. I know you've got some, was it? You're on Instagram, you're on LinkedIn, you're on Facebook, I think I saw. So thank you again for joining us, and you know this definitely has been a very big learning experience for me. I'm not at all familiar with REO, so thank you for joining us, libby. And that's going to wrap up this episode of the Inner Circle podcast, and I hope that everybody else listening also found some enlightening, entertaining advice and have some great takeaways on how to turn a real estate career to the next level. Thanks again for tuning in. We're on Spotify, itunes, youtube, instagram at America's Inner Circle and thank you, no-transcript.
Navigating Foreclosures and Fostering Furry Friends with Libby Sosinski
Explore the inspiring journey of Libby Sosinski, a top real estate agent from Pittsburgh, PA who blends her passion for the property market with a deep commitment to animal welfare. From her early dreams of homeownership to leading in the foreclosure niche, Libby’s story highlights perseverance, honesty, and seizing opportunities. She shares how rescuing pets from foreclosed homes and maintaining integrity have shaped her career and reputation. Libby discusses turning transactions into lifelong relationships through transparency and genuine connections, while also letting go of unproductive ties to attract better opportunities. Filled with heartfelt anecdotes, practical advice, and reflections on her legacy as a “real estate Santa Claus,” this episode offers a profound glimpse into her fulfilling and compassionate life.
00:00 - Molly (Guest)
I think it's really important to show your clients how much you value them. So big believer in pop buys with something they would actually want, not like a here's an ice cream scoop, cause I have the scoop on real estate Like yeah if you do that, that's okay. It's not my vibe.00:17 - Mel (Host)
It probably works for you, I can think of somebody in my mind who would actually do that.00:21 - Intro/ Outro (Ad)
But yeah, like that's just their sense of humor as well.00:24 - Mel (Host)
Right.00:30 - Molly (Guest)
Yes, yep, exactly. So that's your brand, you know, maybe that's a thing, but I mean I love ice cream. So, yeah, really showing that you appreciate and value those past clients, because they should be the pillars that kind of feed you your next referrals.00:39 - Intro/ Outro (Ad)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.01:18 - Mel (Host)
Hi, my name is Mel Allen and I'm the host of the Inner Circle podcast. This is a podcast where we're going to dive into the stories of some very successful real estate agents in the country. If you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, well, you're in the right place, and today we are honored to have Molly Branson from the Washington DC area. Molly, thanks for joining us today.01:38 - Molly (Guest)
Thanks for having me Happy to be here.01:45 - Mel (Host)
Well, you have a pretty interesting journey into real estate. One of the questions I often ask people is you know kind of like what would you be doing if it wasn't this? I already kind of found that out because I checked your YouTube channel out a little bit and so you didn't start in real estate. But I guess what I'll ask is what kind of made that transition happen? We'll fill in what you used to do. Uh, you know, later on in the podcast.02:06 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, definitely. I mean honestly, I, I, it was just like kind of a cross points. When it was after college I had a plan I was going to go into nursing school, Um, but I just had so much student debt and I couldn't imagine putting more onto that and monthly payments and everything. So that's why I decided, I mean I don't know how, at the time I was like, oh, I know, I'll do an unpaid, like unsalaried sales position.02:35 - Mel (Host)
That seems wise, Like I anybody who's done sales knows exactly what you're talking about.02:41 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, Right, yes, so I just kind of decided I dove in headfirst, I was like still waitressing to save up money and yeah, that just kind of carried me through the first year or so. And now here I am.02:55 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, and you've been doing this for what is about nine years now.02:59 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, it's gonna be 10 in June of 2025. Yeah, wow.03:04 - Mel (Host)
Well, congratulations on almost hitting that 10-year mark. Thanks. What was the first deal that you did like? What was it that kind of happened as you put that together?03:16 - Molly (Guest)
It's funny that you asked that because I was literally talking to my husband about this two nights ago, my first deal. I used to work the front desk a lot at my office and I got a random phone call from some investor and those usually don't pan out, but this one, it was a investor from out of state and he wanted to buy a property in a, you know, not so great area, for I think it was $70,000, which in my area is like very low, um or well below the average, but I think it was $70,000, which in my area is like very low or well below the average. But I think it took me like three, four months. It was a very hectic process but we got it done and that was my very first deal, Wow.03:57 - Mel (Host)
And you've come quite a long way from there. We'll get more into that, I'm sure, as we get going here. But after that first sale and you're like, yes, I can do this and you know, uh, this really is a possible thing, I can get paid for doing this what was it that really kind of pivoted and made you realize this absolutely really is something worth staying on?04:17 - Molly (Guest)
was it that first one or honestly, I think it was just my overall excitement for being in this industry, like I was in the office practically seven days a week hosting open houses, just trying to meet as many people as possible, and I just kind of realized that I was having a good time, like I wasn't even closing deals at the moment. But I knew I really enjoyed doing what I was doing and I felt like I was being productive and that just kind of felt good. So that's why I just kept on going. It took me a while to actually get my first deal done. I did a ton of rentals in the beginning as well, which are great, but yeah, I think it's just the overall excitement Well.04:55 - Mel (Host)
I guess they say you know, do what you love, You'll never work a day in your life. So that's right?04:59 - Molly (Guest)
Does it feel I definitely work days now?05:01 - Mel (Host)
So the shine is maybe rubbed off a little bit but at the same time, you've got some really good feathers in your hat. I mean, you were 30 under 30 by. Was that the National Realtors Association?05:19 - Molly (Guest)
National Association of Realtors.05:21 - Mel (Host)
Sorry, National Association of Realtors. So you got that feather in your cap. I think I saw that you were the youngest. Was it president or vice president of a group?05:32 - Molly (Guest)
Yes, I was the youngest vice president of the brokerage Granted. That is still on my bio on my website and now I'm 32. So I don't know if it's still accurate, but four years ago, Right, you know things change, but at the time, totally, totally true this feels right yeah.05:54 - Mel (Host)
Well, as you've gone through that journey, as you've gone through now you know, nine, almost 10 years what has been one of the most rewarding things that has happened? Either a deal or a project or something that you put together, that together, that really was just like man.06:05 - Molly (Guest)
This is a cherry on the top so far honestly there's so many just from buyers and sellers and developers. I think in general the most rewarding clients are probably my first time home buyers, especially when we can get creative, like I've kind of I always try to I don't know if push is the right word but just kind of get clients to open their eyes a little bit to at least the investment side of things. So I've had a few clients that thought they could afford one price point but you know, explained multifamilies, duplexes, that type of thing and how that can allow you to be qualified for a higher price point but also your monthly payment will be lower than the other house, and a lot of people have ended up doing that. So I think that that is the most exciting thing is because now you're also not only a owner of your own place but also you're an investor too. So I think that's pretty cool.06:57 - Mel (Host)
And you've got income from your, your the place that you own, so that's that's definitely great. On the flip side of that, what are some particular challenges? Or maybe it looked're when I am working with a seller and a buyer.07:28 - Molly (Guest)
it's typically their first or second or third time doing a transaction, not necessarily something they do every single day, so they don't have like that ego where, which isn't a bad thing. But a lot of my developers have an ego and they don't necessarily listen to like floor plan or finish or pricing advice, and I think that that has been the most challenging. So I've just tried to rework because you really have to learn. Every type of client needs different communication styles. So I've really tried to rework how I communicate with my developers, like less fluff, just more direct. This is the numbers to back it up and that I found gains a lot more respect versus like I think that we should do this yeah.08:14
Yeah, can't say I think or we should. You're like this is what needs to happen. Yeah, we're doing this.08:15 - Mel (Host)
But then the first time home buyer, you're just like well, you know.08:19 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, I'm like let me hold your hand. Yeah, exactly.08:22 - Mel (Host)
Have you put together, you know kind of any deals that felt like it was a big risk. You know, like, where you were really stepping out on a ledge and did it pay off or, you know, did it fall through?08:31 - Molly (Guest)
I mean, I'm going through one right now. On my own personal side of things, I bought a house in DC, a row house, and you know, as I mentioned, developers can be sometimes frustrating to work with, even though I love them.08:47
So I decided to develop myself. So I'm turning this house into three condos and it is a very large project. It's going on for like a year and a half at this point and I'm definitely learning why. You know just the stressors of being that developer. So I think that's making me better at advising those developers. But it's a big risk and I don't know if it's going to pan out yet.
09:08I really hope it does, but so far to date that's my riskiest move is, you know, taking a step into the development side of things?09:15 - Mel (Host)
Are you also kind of like acting as your own general contractor? Are you hiring that out?09:20 - Molly (Guest)
Thankfully no, because it is such a large project. Like I've done smaller flips, but this one is really big. I brought on a developer who I've worked with for many years in the past and she's fantastic, so yeah it's fun working with her on the other side good to have those relationships.09:34 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, being your own general contractor, especially for a big project, is something that never not everybody's built for. I'll just say that, um, already I think kind of touched on this and I think it's one thing that a lot of people you know realize in real estate is that you have to communicate with, you know your different clients in very different ways, and even from client to client, would you say. That's your unique approach that sets you apart from some others in the industry. Or, you know, is there more to it?10:04 - Molly (Guest)
I think. So I don't know. I hope everybody does it. So that's what I mean. I don't know if it's very unique, but maybe it is. But it definitely is an important skill to develop because you'll just be able to connect with so many more people if you learn how to communicate with different types of people. You know you can't be the same person all the time. Maybe that sounds weird, but chameleons are good.10:27 - Mel (Host)
I completely understand. Yeah, we had a house not too long ago sell across the street from us and the realtor every time he saw me he wanted to come over and talk to me and I just had to say you know, buddy, look, you love to have 20, 30 minute conversations. I just don't have the time.10:45 - Molly (Guest)
Read the room you got to read the room.10:46 - Mel (Host)
You got to read the room. It's really important to understand, you know when you maybe have said too much or ask too much, and I think that that's a wonderful skill for people in real estate, especially to learn and to you know. Kind of look for those signs, maybe that somebody's asking a question in the subtext, that you know that, that maybe they're afraid almost to ask out loud, but yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.11:11
How do you stay motivated? How do you you know when you've got any of those slowdowns that you know they do happen in the market? How do you keep yourself? You know, pushing forward and pressing forward on things.11:22 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, I mean I think there's two answers to that question. Number one I've realized that I am a more competitive person than I thought I was. I like finding the deal and getting the deal done and it really is, I don't know. I just I view my income obviously as potential for future investments too. It's not just like, okay, great, now I'm going to buy a new car. It's mainly to fuel this next side of my business, which I'm gaining more excitement for, the developing and investing side. So that's kind of what has fueled my. Whenever it's slow, I'm like okay, we need this to fuel that. But also I am trying to lean into the slow times. It is stressful when it's busy and it's stressful when it's not busy. So I'm going to try to. You know I'm a new mom, so when it's not busy, maybe it's just the world saying like, hey, it's. You know you have this time now to be with your family, so I'm trying to focus on that too.12:19
Yeah, do you find that during some of those times you're you know taking advantage of some of the education, you know, opportunities that that, uh, your free time gives you. Yeah, for sure, For sure. I mean I think I I recently downloaded like a floor plan, class Um. That's something I'm probably going to do over the holidays, Uh, but yeah, always trying to learn and there's so much to learn constantly, so whenever, yeah, downtime is usually a good place to do that too.12:45 - Mel (Host)
Nice yeah, then you're ready when things come back up. Now there's obviously there are probably some times when you've been presented with something that maybe was a little questionable, a little, you know, somebody trying you to toe a line. How do you kind of keep those values or principles, how do you guide that in your daily work?13:05 - Molly (Guest)
I think you just got to be straightforward with people and tell them why a decision isn't the best decision or maybe how it's not the right thing to do, and sometimes they'll listen and sometimes they won't. But if they don't then I will distance myself. But I really think you just have to voice your opinion and, yeah, if they don't listen, that's kind of the red flag for a future.13:31 - Intro/ Outro (Ad)
Yeah, yeah, the distancing yourself.13:34 - Mel (Host)
I can definitely understand that, and people sometimes tell you who they are and it's good to believe them.13:40 - Molly (Guest)
I agree yeah.13:41 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, now, obviously you just brought up something that I think is pretty important, and you know the slow times are one of the ways that you can do that. But even during the busy times, how do you balance, you know, being a new mom or just being a person, when you've got all of this stuff that you're juggling, what is your, you know, kind of your ritual of preserving that time for yourself?14:03 - Molly (Guest)
of preserving that time for yourself. Honestly, I think what I have been trying to do. My son is nine months old now and I just ended up bringing him to a lot of showings and that does present other challenges, but it's been great overall. Like my clients love it as well. I always ask them to have time too, of course, if it's all right, but I think I've just been trying to include him more in my like business side of things, at least the front facing stuff, and that's been a, that's been a hit, and I'm just excited to like look back and you know, he's going to say my first house tour is ruined. He was three months old, you know, but personal time is definitely lacking and I don't have a solution for that yet.14:44 - Mel (Host)
You know, I think everybody handles it a little bit differently. I mean, you know some people, you know, some people it's sports or yoga, and some people it's, you know, just taking a few minutes to read or listen to.14:57 - Molly (Guest)
You know, an audio podcast or something so for sure. Honestly, sometimes I get into my car and I'm like I don't want any music, I don't want an audio book, I just want silence and it's very nice.15:09 - Mel (Host)
I actually completely understand that I a couple of times a week I'm just like everything off.15:15 - Molly (Guest)
I just want to hear the wind.15:20 - Mel (Host)
I mean, you've been in this now for, for you know again, over nine years you've probably seen some things come and go. What are some of the biggest changes that you personally are seeing in the real estate industry across that time?15:32 - Molly (Guest)
I think, just the amount of information available to sellers and buyers. There's so much people can learn online, not only just inventory, you know, looking for their own houses, but just also the process and tips on getting your home ready for the market. So I think that that has kind of changed the role of the agent. You know it's less of you know just opening up doors and finding houses, and it has to be so much more as a guide and someone to get creative and make you think a different way in order to present an opportunity in a new light. Or you know, just, you have to be smarter as an agent, honestly, because everyone else is getting smarter.16:16 - Mel (Host)
So yeah, yeah, I think you know, if you don't know the information, it's kind of like why, why would you be there, right, you know, yeah, and you have to be creative too Like.16:24 - Molly (Guest)
I think that be there, right, yeah, and you have to be creative too, Like, and I think that that's cause I used to like chat to BT all the time in my business and I'm sure that's going to impact things even more in every single industry. But it's like the creativity side of things when it comes to like creatively marketing the listing or staging, or telling a buyer why one house is better than the other. Here's why you know that's going to be more important.16:50 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think for a lot of buyers on paper you know two houses might be really similar but you know there could be opportunities. There could be. You know a lot attached that you know could present future investment opportunities or there could be you know differences in how you can use an existing property.17:03 - Molly (Guest)
So yeah, for sure.17:04 - Mel (Host)
And I think that a lot of people you know need to know that, and so getting that information and making sure you present it can be super helpful to them and to you.17:12 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, agreed, agreed.17:14 - Mel (Host)
How do you, you know, how do you kind of keep up to date on some of the things that are changing, some of the trends that are coming up in in the world of real estate, especially in DC? I mean, it seems like it's a pretty, it's an interesting market, you know, compared to some other places I've looked at.17:30 - Molly (Guest)
It definitely is. It definitely is, and there are also just tons of realtors in our market too. I feel like I always make the joke that everyone in DC knows someone working in politics, a lawyer and a real estate agent.17:40 - Mel (Host)
Like there's just so many of us.17:47 - Molly (Guest)
You, because I'm not someone who's like scouring blogs and trying to figure out what's coming up. I kind of just my brokerage does a really good job of keeping people in the loop about what we should know and what we should focus on. So I think it's really important to have a source that summarizes important things for you, because I don't have the time to scour the Internet and figure out what I should be looking out for next.18:12 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that probably sounds like a full-time job in itself. Time to do that. So it seems like a lot of folks in real estate I know. Some people start out in these really small boutique firms and then they feel like they're really not shared a lot of information. And then I hear that some of these brokerages where they're all they do, it seems, is doing a lot of sharing. Has that been your experience in what you've come across as well?18:44 - Molly (Guest)
I mean honestly. So I've been at three different brokerages, all varying different sizes, and I will say I think all of them did a really good job about providing value to their agents. And I mean, on the subject of how the industry is changing, I mean I think a broker's role is changing so much more as well. They have to provide so much to their agents because there's so many brokerages where you can create your own team or brokerage but it's just a lot less support. So it just depends on what you're looking for. But I felt a good experience overall.19:15 - Mel (Host)
Nice. Yeah, I've heard that from a lot of people. You know, just in my own kind of life and in my own world, there's nothing against. You know, these boutique firms. I think that their job is a very different one, right Then the brokerage that you're working with, where brokerages, I think, are also designed to help train people and help bring people up to speed. You know, and at some point you have all the knowledge you need, you have a good team of people that you work with, and that's when you know the boutique might be the right thing, I think, for a lot of people.19:43 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah true.19:45 - Mel (Host)
Are you seeing, especially in DC? Are you seeing any real estate trends or any shifts in the market that people should, in your mind, be paying attention to?20:03 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, I mean I think right now DC proper has been a harder market for our sellers versus the suburbs outside DC in Maryland and Virginia. We're still seeing multiple offers pretty typically for like a detached single family home in Maryland or Virginia, but in DC it's a much different story. There's just higher inventory and I think more people are looking for more space at this point. So I think condos especially if you're an investor as well, I would kind of steer away from condos. They can still be a decent opportunity if you're occupying the home but I've just seen slower growth in value for condos across the board in DC.20:37 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah.20:38 - Molly (Guest)
But, definitely.20:38 - Mel (Host)
I feel like there was a time when I would walk down. You know, the blocks of DC and the row houses are all in some sort of construction. Yeah, it doesn't look like that anymore. You know, over the past 10 years that has really shifted.20:51 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, it has. It has, which you know is a good or bad thing, cause we always hear about how there's a housing inventory crisis. But DC, you know, they've also put a lot of rules and the permitting process takes forever. So that has made a lot of developers kind of look elsewhere.21:08 - Mel (Host)
So, yeah, yeah, dc has their fees. Um, if you know anybody, you know not to knock it. It's a lovely place in many, many ways and you know it's unique being that it's a district, not a state, and that comes with its own you know rules. But for any people who are new, for any people who are kind of aspiring, you know thinking about real estate, maybe in that position that you were, you know, some time ago what is a piece of advice that you wish somebody had said to you, pulled you aside and said hey, you know what, here's what you need to know.21:44 - Molly (Guest)
I think I would. I would tell people that you can't be scared to tell others that you're in real estate. My first couple of years I was a little bit hesitant to kind of blast it out to my sphere, and by blasting out I mainly mean having a presence on social media. I think in the beginning I was just kind of worried about not sounding like an expert because I wasn't at all. But if you're a new agent, really what you should be doing is just touring as many properties as possible, cause that'll teach you about the inventory in your market, um, and then also recording and providing opinions of those listings that you're touring and I probably got.22:26
Now I get a decent amount of business from my sphere through social media Cause I'm always touring and you know setting up polls. Do you prefer this over that? And people love it, and it's a subtle reminder that you are in real estate and that you know about real estate. So I would have done that way, way, way earlier. Like, what right I want to get my license, start doing properties and post it on Instagram or Tik TOK, whichever one you use.22:47 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I think social media has definitely been one of the big changes in real estate. That makes you know people's opinions, like you're saying much more accessible, which can really help you if you're you know if you're looking for that right person who you want to mesh with, or you know if you're looking for a good property.23:05 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, for sure.23:07 - Mel (Host)
So you know flip side of that, any big mistakes that you see people making that you think are really easily avoidable.23:19 - Molly (Guest)
I think sometimes people are too negative on social media. I would try to avoid that Like if you're touring someone else's listing and you're like I hate this, that agent might see it. And I also granted, you know, negativity sometimes does sell if you can make it funny. But I would just kind of be wary of being too negative online, um, and maybe even too boastful online. I think that social media or real estate agents were kind of like peacocks and were like so showy and like look what I have, look at my car, and like give me a break. Like what are you doing for your client? You know, right, right, yep, yeah.23:53 - Mel (Host)
I think that's some good advice. Do you have any favorite resources or tools? We talked about this a little bit earlier with the. You know the constantly learning, always learning, and you know you favor books. Do you favor apps? Do you favor, you know, any kind of sites that that can give a lot of info for people to kind of get up to speed and learn more?24:12 - Molly (Guest)
For sure. I think when I first started off in real estate, I spent a lot of time on biggerpocketscom and their podcast as well. Back in the day, that gave me a ton of information on the investing side, which is always very helpful. People are always interested in talking about real estate investing, so I think that you need to become well-versed in that, and that's a great resource. Audible is a favorite app Always listening to audio books, and then also a new one that I'm looking at more on their newsletter is Keeping Current Matters. They just have really good stats that you can easily share on social media or include on your newsletter. So those are my top three.24:50 - Mel (Host)
Nice. I appreciate you sharing those with everybody. When somebody is kind of ready to you know, uh, you know they've maybe got a couple of sales under their belt and they're looking to really kind of start scaling up, what do you think are some great steps for people to take in that process?25:04 - Molly (Guest)
That's a good question. I think it's really important to show your clients how much you value them. So big believer in pop buys umyes with something they would actually want. Not like a here's an ice cream scoop Cause I have the scoop on real estate. Like, if you do that, that's okay. It's not my vibe.25:24 - Mel (Host)
It probably works for you, I can think of somebody in my mind who would actually do that, but yeah, like that's just their sense of humor as well, right, yes, Yep, exactly so if that's your, brand. You know, maybe that's a thing, but yeah, I mean.25:36 - Molly (Guest)
I love ice cream. So, yeah, really showing that you appreciate and value those past clients because they should be the pillars, that kind of feed you, your next referrals and also just your sphere, like you should be having coffees and lunches or happy hour with people that you met at some like a club you're part of or maybe, if you're cause I grew up in this area. So I try to stay in touch with a lot of different people, not only because I'm extroverted and I like having a lot of connections, but it also does you know, people are like what do you do? And I'm like I'm a real estate agent. They're like I know someone looking to sell. So you just need to be constantly not only in front of people on social media but getting those face-to-face times with past clients and also people in your sphere.26:22 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think somebody told me a long time ago you can be really bad at what you do, but if you tell everybody you might actually be successful. But you can be great at it. And if you don't tell anyone, guaranteed to not be successful they're not going to know. Yeah, they don't know that you do it.26:42 - Molly (Guest)
I think it is a fine line, though, cause I think so many people are like closed 18 million in deals. I don't know, it's just it. It depends. Sometimes it's too much, sometimes you don't do it enough. So I think you have to be careful about that line. To yeah, to walk over yeah.26:54 - Mel (Host)
Well, again, it's kind of reading the room, right, you know like right back to where we started.26:58
He's just had a baby. Maybe that's not the time to approach him and say, you know, like when you're meeting that baby for the first time, hey, I've got a house for you because you're going to need part of the process of you know building and you know knowing when to bring those things, maintaining the strong relationships with those clients how are you know, what are some ways that you do that with? I mean, you talked about you know kind of going back to those people. How do you maintain those relationships and be ready when they're ready?27:31 - Molly (Guest)
I honestly I need to be better at it. I really do. I try to do one pot by a year at least. So that's the in-person.27:42
What I've done lately is bags of popcorn like designer popcorn. It's really good. I end up eating like half the bags. And then I also do a holiday card no-transcript I'm trying to do here. If you do, great. But I also want to show you you could still own this home this is what average rents are for and maybe move out and become that landlord or investor and start building that real estate portfolio, because I do think real estate is just a fantastic method to growing wealth, so it's important to give them that information.28:48 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I mean every piece of property that I've purchased has gone up in value, so they don't tend to go down. And there are usually key exceptions to that that you see coming. Um, I mean that it sounds like you've got that. You know, you've got those pop-ins, you've got those gifts, you've got the Christmas cards. Is that kind of part of how you built your brand and and you know what would you describe as as being your brand, I guess?29:13 - Molly (Guest)
I think my brand is just being personable, cause I do, and I do call my clients. Like, if I'm in the car for more than 20 minutes, I'll call at least one person. Um, that's my rule for myself. Um, but I generally do like keeping in touch with past clients. Um, like, I've been invited to past clients weddings, obviously, housewarming and everything but I I just like at the settlement table, I'm going to miss you, like. I know it's like a goodbye in some sort of way, and I would say, 99% of the time I'm sad that I'm not going to see you as much as I did. So I think that that's just my brand, yeah.29:49 - Mel (Host)
Building relationships. I mean, it really seems like you know long-term, you know lasting relationships. That's a, that's a great way to set yourself apart, I think, from others. Um, how about, you know, maybe sometimes when the things didn't go as planned, uh you know, did you manage your way out of that? Did you lose that relationship? Were you able to salvage it?30:06 - Molly (Guest)
Um, I think it depends on what went wrong. Um, if it's something that went wrong on my end, I am absolutely upfront and apologetic for it and explaining why. And, granted, like I have dropped the ball before, not proud of that, but you know, I still actually have maintained positive relationships, because if you mess up, you need to own it instead of hide from it. I think that that's really unprofessional when people do that. When it's, you know, maybe client wasn't treating me very well, which has happened too that's probably like the 1% where I'm like all right, congratulations, so happy for you, and then I don't really keep in touch.30:41 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, just like delete that contact. Yeah.30:44 - Intro/ Outro (Ad)
Yeah.30:46 - Mel (Host)
I can definitely understand that. Yeah, I think, you know, I've had a situation or two where somebody kind of buried some information and you know, and I found out later and and uh, on the flip side, I wasn't happy when somebody told me that you know about something that I didn't want to hear, but but I ended up being in a much better position than when they you know, when it was buried. So I think, absolutely honesty, you know, that's, I think, part of a brand you know like, where you know, you know that, uh, you can be relied on because you're going to eat crow, so to speak, and share with them the bad news, rather than have it buried and find out later. For sure.31:20
Yeah, what are some of the proudest moments that you've had that have come about in your career in working with these people and and helping developers or homeowners get that property?31:40 - Molly (Guest)
I think I'm really happy when a seller comes to me and they need to buy either in order to move, because that, I think, is maybe the most stressful situation is when a sale has to happen in order to buy or like.31:54
there's a chance that you'll be carrying two mortgages for six months, like that's very scary. So, like my proudest moments are when we have a really good plan in place and we find the house that they like, because we're already prepared to list the home, we've done the work that we need to do months in advance, we're able to list as soon as they go under contract and then hopefully sell by the time that they close or go into contract by the time they get closed. And that has happened I mean, happened three times this year. Um, and it is also really, really cool when it's someone from your, from your sphere, like when I'm.32:32
it's more stressful for me because it's just one extra level of like I'm losing sleep because of my dear time, I can't mess this up.32:40 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah exactly.32:42 - Molly (Guest)
Exactly, but that's honestly. When I'm really proud of myself, is when I can save that stress for them and make it as seamless as possible.32:52 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, there are definitely a lot of people in that position where you've got that window of time and it is a small window sometimes. It is, that's good to be able to get that.33:01 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah.33:02 - Mel (Host)
And I carry your stress with me Right, right yeah. Yeah, yeah, it seems like it. I mean, if you're having these relationships, you know people from you know all these years ago and you're still touching in, you know that's, that's uh, it seems like you really feel what they feel, and I think that that's honestly some of the people I think who I've thought of as being successful at this, do that as well.33:27 - Molly (Guest)
So not that my opinion matters, but the seller and buyer's opinion.33:28 - Mel (Host)
That matters. In that case, where do you see yourself going in the next, you know, five or 10 years? Where is your career going to go as you kind of go to that next decade?33:39 - Molly (Guest)
That's a great question. I see a lot of past clients coming back and having to sell. So I guess I see my side of the standard buy and sell growing just because that base has been set for this first 10 years of business. But then I also see the side of me doing more investments and development. So I think that I'm going to try to figure out how to do both of those hand in hand and I think honestly what might be nice is I might be able to build a more choosy for who I get to, who I have time to work with, cause I am also building a team, obviously, of agents of similar caliber, but I might be able to like refer out some other buy and sell business, maybe ones that are like, oh, they want to look an hour and a half away. I'm like, well, I have someone for you and then, you know, leaving more time for family and also my development side of things. So I hope that answered your question, yeah development side of things.34:41 - Mel (Host)
So I hope that answered your question. Yeah, no, it doesn't really. It does really well, and I think you know having a good team of people around you you know whether you're in their brokerage or they're literally your team um, it sounds like a pretty, pretty natural next step for a lot of that, especially, as you said, you've got that book of clients who already know you, who are probably going to come back to you, and that's a great place to be in. Um, yeah, which just shows that you, you've been doing your job right. What is the uh? Is there kind of like a legacy that you'd like to leave in the world of real estate, in in dc or you?35:12 - Molly (Guest)
know, or the world, that's also. That's a very deep question. Um, overall, I just want I just want to make people happier. I know that's kind of basic, but I just want to make people happier. I know that's kind of basic, but the world is so stressful right now and real estate transaction can be so stressful for realtors on the other side and also your clients. So I just want to bring a little bit of light to everybody, make everything feel a little bit lighter, and that's kind of what I want the legacy to be. Like man, like she did, make this better, yeah.35:46
I'm not going to be dragging you down, remember, molly.35:49 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that was great.35:53 - Molly (Guest)
Yeah, but I wanted to be more like oh, she was so nice, no-transcript hoarder, um, or just very messy, and that's always a challenge, especially if they are like truly hoarders. You can't be like. I'll bring in my cleaning clue crew and we'll clean this right after you, no problem right, because I have done that, but it's like they really like no, these are my things, don't touch my things.
36:45I'm like, okay, we need to put a plan together, but I haven't had two, two weird events since I have been on a showing and then, accidentally, the seller was in the shower. Um, that was awkward.36:58 - Mel (Host)
A strange, unusual and awkward. Yeah, we maybe should.37:15 - Intro/ Outro (Ad)
A strange, unusual and awkward?37:16 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, maybe, yes, exactly, exactly, uh-huh. That's why I always knock very loudly whenever I'm on showings, even if it's vacant. So, yeah, no, catching somebody in the shower. Not on my list today, yeah, no. So if, if real estate wasn't the thing for you, do you think you would still be in nursing?37:27 - Molly (Guest)
Is that you know one of those places that you could still, you know, in a different world, picture yourself being in. I think I think I was. I was attracted to nursing because it wasn't a standard nine to five and it was front facing, uh, like people facing Um, cause I couldn't imagine being at an office, um sitting at a desk or on my computer. You know, I need like the movement, I need to be connecting with people. So I think, in a different life, yeah, absolutely, that could have been something that I could have potentially thrived in.37:52 - Mel (Host)
Who knows, Well, you definitely seem to thrive with that. You know connection with other people and, again, you know being that front facing, being that extrovert, having those you know connections that you're making with people and I think that's a really good thing. Yeah, thanks. So what is what's something about you? Maybe that that people don't know, but you know they really. Should we get an opportunity to have you share that with that with people right now?38:17 - Molly (Guest)
I feel like I'm a pretty open person, so people know I think a lot about me. So fun facts are always difficult, a challenge for me.38:27 - Mel (Host)
It's like no, I already told them everything.38:29 - Molly (Guest)
I already told them everything about me, you know, um, I I think like a fun fact that I tell my clients and granted, is real estate connected? But like I own and manage 10 units myself, 10 rental properties, and that's just growing, so I do have a decent amount of experience there. I also did like a three mile swim race last month. That was challenging. Yeah, there's just there's a and I and I own a dog named Doug Lee.39:03 - Mel (Host)
All right, swimmer check Three miles Like that's definitely.39:06 - Molly (Guest)
Three miles, that was rough yeah.39:08 - Mel (Host)
That's not a short swim. That's definitely a pretty fun and interesting factoid for sure, Like was that for a fundraiser? Was it just for you know, a competition or?39:18 - Molly (Guest)
It was. It was to raise money for cancer research. It was open water and I didn't. I swam and I swam growing up and in college, but I definitely wasn't very prepared for the three mile race. I was like my only goal is to not drown and not come in success.39:41 - Mel (Host)
But, I've been in a couple of you know road races and you know, that was kind of my yeah, just don't be last. And you know, complete it Like that's a very, very simple goal.39:58
As we wrap up. You know things here. I think it's always fun to ask this question and you know you are in DC and a lot of times people end up in places that are kind of interesting and you know, for a whole list of reasons. But if you could buy and live in a place, any property in the world, no limitations on price or location et cetera, you know. You know you could have a villain hideout, you could have a mansion on a hill, you could have your own island, what would it be? Where would be the perfect place for Molly to live?40:27 - Molly (Guest)
and be in that paradise, I mean off break. I was thinking, oh, portugal, or somewhere overseas and beautiful and by the water, but I also want something that's easy to get to and that's not necessarily Portugal. Um, so the older I get, the more I love lakes. Like lake life is great, um, so maybe something on like Lake Michigan or yeah, just something, something with a lake where we can hang out in, in in a boat, on the water, um, and I can also maybe drive to um or fly in like an hour. Uh, so that'd be, that'd be my answer, cause I just want ease of getting to there.41:20 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I wish I could bring the lake that's near me just a little bit closer. But yeah, I know what you mean about being on the water. For me personally, you know it's. It's just a happy place to be. So I can be stressed and I can go out there and just be like you know what for two hours. I'm forgetting about the world and being on the water and and it's a, it's a wonderful thing.41:40 - Molly (Guest)
It's great yeah.41:41 - Mel (Host)
And I think people need to find that. If you don't know, if you haven't found that yet, definitely find that thing. You know whether it's a lake or a city. Yeah, yeah, what is the? Well, I mean, we talked about the shower any other kind of funny or crazy, kind of like weird things that you know, unusual things that have happened when you've been showing a property.42:08 - Molly (Guest)
I mean, like I have granted, these clients were friends, but I have definitely scared clients before, like hidden in the house and then said, oh, the seller told me the door is unlocked. I'm running a couple of minutes late and then they walk inside and yeah, I've really like that was a hilarious moment, um, but honestly, other than that, I've had like weird. I've worked with some weird people but like weird, weird houses and weird, yeah, nothing, nothing like sticks out at the moment.42:38 - Mel (Host)
No, I mean, hey, that's, that could be a good thing, Right? I mean, you know it takes all kinds like everybody needs a roof over their head and that means you definitely have some, you know some people who are kind of unusual and different there, but it's good that the property wasn't the one that was Right, exactly, exactly.42:58
Some social media. I've seen some videos of you. I've seen some of your stuff online. Where is a place that people can really kind of connect with you? Where are you most often on? A place where people can find out about your work, find out more about you?43:12 - Molly (Guest)
I would say I'm most active on Instagram Molly Branson Realtor and I am, honestly, most active on stories and not necessarily posting. I think I need to get better at that, but my most engagement in messages are through stories, Nice.43:25 - Mel (Host)
All right. So we will make sure to share that with us as we, as we send this out, you know, into the world, because that basically brings us to the end. Molly, I really thank you for speaking with us today and letting people kind of get to know you and your journey in real estate. And you know, again, it's almost 10 years. You've been some, you know, checked off some pretty nice boxes in there I mean the 30 under 30, being the youngest VP and at the time you know and and letting people know kind of like you know, a little bit of a view into where you would be and and, and you know that being on the water, and I think that's a great thing. So we'll wrap it up here again, thank you for joining us.44:03
That is going to conclude this episode of the Inner Circle podcast and I hope everybody who is listening found something enlightening, some great takeaways Again, some places that Molly goes to learn that might be helpful for you and a way to take your real estate career to the next level. You can find us on Spotify, itunes, youtube, instagram, at America's Inner Circle, on all of those places. Again, thank you very much, molly, and we look forward to hearing more from you and look forward to everybody joining us again next time.44:32 - Molly (Guest)
Thank you for having me Appreciate it.44:33 - Mel (Host)
Definitely been a pleasure.
Building a Brand on Relationships: How Molly Branson Continues to Find Success
In this episode of America's Inner Circle, Molly Branson, a thriving real estate agent from Washington, D.C., shares her journey from taking an unpaid sales role after college to becoming a trusted professional in the industry. She discusses how her passion and perseverance helped her overcome early challenges, spending countless hours building her skills. Molly highlights the importance of tailored communication, adapting her approach to connect effectively with developers, first-time buyers, and other clients. Her insights reveal the significance of enjoying the work and staying motivated, even during slow periods, while maintaining a clear vision for the future.
00:00 - Alex (Guest)
Learn how to do the job, learn how to actually put deals together. Learn how to navigate contracts. Learn how to navigate financing and inspection issues. Learn that, because if you don't learn that, lead generation doesn't mean anything. Lead generation is a waste of time. If you can't actually close a deal, you can't actually manage your client's expectations. It's just not worth it. Go learn the job.00:25 - Intro (Ad)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.01:04 - Mel (Host)
Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast. This is a podcast where we're going to dive deep into the stories of the most successful real estates in the country. If you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, you're in the right spot. Today, we're honored to have Alex. Is it walking from Chicago? Yep, walking All right. Well, Alex, welcome to the Inner Circle Podcast and tell us a little bit about how you got into real estate.01:31 - Alex (Guest)
Yeah, well, thanks for having me. So I started working in real estate when I was 12. My dad's been a broker since 93. I started working with him when I was 12, and I was just enthralled. He was running late for an appointment. I was 12 and I was. I was just enthralled, I was. He was running late for an appointment one day and he said hey, I need you to log in to the MLS and print something off of me. I was like what's the MLS? So I, you know, printed off what he needed. I ran the MLS sheet out to him.01:59
It's very, it's in true realtor fashion. There's real time and then there's realtor time. And then I came back in and I most kids were playing, you know, you know video games, and my video game was the MLS. I loved looking at listings, I loved learning about the market. I was just so fascinated by it and, um, I started going to open houses when I was 12 and I begged my mom to take me and she wouldn't take me. So I just got on a bike and went by myself and so I just told people who I was and they're like, oh, you're a realtor's kid and you're coming through here, yeah, so that was how I got started, that was, and I haven't stopped since, Well, very self-motivated, Right.02:39 - Mel (Host)
So you know, the self-drive I'm sure is very helpful in your real estate journey. It never took no for an answer, that's for sure. Well, what was your first deal? Like, Walk us through that, you know, like how you kind of first got into. You know, yeah, this is definitely the thing for me.02:54 - Alex (Guest)
Yeah, so my first deal. So I actually restarted my business in 2016. So I so I got licensed in 2011, but I was selling real estate in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa, which is where I'm from, and I ended up moving to Chicago at the end of 2016. I went to school at DePaul University, but I sold real estate all through college.03:17 - Intro (Ad)
And.03:17 - Alex (Guest)
I went back to the Quad Cities after I graduated and I was there for two years and I missed Chicago. So I came back and started over again. So I only share that because I have two first deal stories, but I'll tell you the more interesting one about Chicago first. So when I was restarting my business here, there was an agent named Millie Rosenblum who was the queen of luxury real estate in Lincoln Park. I used to see her signs all over the DePaul campus and when I came back I was like can I sit down with you in your office for an hour, just ask you questions about how to get started? She was so gracious. She said yes, absolutely, I was there, took all kinds of notes and at the end I asked her I said well, what can I do to repay you?04:01
And she said tell you what kid sell one of my listings. We'll do a deal together, we'll call it even All right, fine. So I ended up, through friends of friends, I met somebody that was looking to buy a condo and he didn't have a huge budget. But I was like, yeah, I'd love to help you. So I ended up taking him around showing him properties and the place he ends up buying. Millie Rosenblum was the listing agent and it was on Lakeshore drive, which is so quintessential Chicago, and that was how I got started. So that was it was. It was a full circle moment and that's how I knew I was going to be okay.04:38 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, you landed on your feet there in Chicago. It seems like that's right. That's pretty cool. I mean, you know you definitely have an area where you've now, it seems like, made yourself kind of a person who specializes in selling some of these historic single family homes, luxury condos. You know you're a top producer from what I could dig up on you in. You know those uptown, lakeview, lincoln Square and Edgewater neighborhoods in Chicago and that's got to be. You know something that you've had some pretty amazing moments through that. What were some of those things that you know that that let you know. Yeah, this is definitely I mean, obviously that first one was a big one, but what were some other ones that made you realize this is definitely the right place, the right path.05:21 - Alex (Guest)
Oh, that's a great question. Definitely the right place, the right path. Oh, that's a great question. I've never been asked that before. So I actually, just a month ago, I, you know, I. So I live in Buena Park and you know, in the city of Chicago you have North of Irving Park Road and South of Irving Park Road and you know South of Irving Park Road. That's everything you see on TV and in the movies. That's downtown, that's Lincoln Park. That's everything you see on TV and in the movies. That's downtown, that's.05:47
Lincoln Park that's all the swanky parts of town. Well, when you go north of Irving Park Road, those are the little less glamorous neighborhoods. They live more like inner city suburbs. They don't feel like you're really in a city. That's what I love about it, because I grew up in a small town. So for me I like that quieter moment. So I spend a lot of time.06:06
I give architecture tours for free in the summer. That's just something I do for fun. I've done that for years, very involved philanthropically. I sit on a number of different boards of nonprofits and community organizations and they all tend to overlap, which is where a lot of my business comes from. And they all tend to overlap, which is where a lot of my business comes from.06:26
But the most recent one, from a month ago, was kind of a culmination of all the work I've done the last eight years of rebuilding my business in Chicago and it was the crown jewel of Buena Park. It was this large 11,000 square foot mansion on a half acre lot, a block from the lake, and you know, and it's it's one of the houses I feature on my architecture tours every year and I, you know, it's my favorite house in the neighborhood and another broker had it for a year and a half before me and I was so bummed that I didn't get the listing the first time. But I was. I was a good sport about it. I was like you know, I'm not the first on the call sheet, like I get that. You know I'm probably not going to be the first pick. Well, I hope she sells it. I then proceeded to go through my database and just who do I know that I can bring through there as a buyer? And I showed it three times to different buyers over the year and a half that broker had it. Well, then in January of this year, I get the call from the seller saying, hey, we're not going to renew with that agent. She's been great, we love her, she's a delight, but we're going to go a different direction. Would you consider taking on our listing? And I was like heavens opened up. That is a sign. That is a sign. That is a sign. So I took the listing and I did everything I could. I did a private open house for the Chamber of Commerce. I did a private tour. I did two brokers opens. I did a oh my God. I did a private tour for the library, for some of their top donors. I've done videos. I did a story video about the house and so many agents are putting out videos.08:15
Welcome to my new listing at 123 Main Street, and I hate that I'm more sit down and tell a story, so I talk about the history and the architecture of the house and why it was important. Finally, I've sold enough single family homes in the neighborhood to know that a lot of the buyers who buy these homes come from one of three zip codes. So I put a big, massive postcard together and I said well, it's a big house and it's on a large lot, which tells me the buyer for this is probably going to be somebody already in a single family home, probably smaller, like a standard single family home, and they're going to want more space and more land. So I sent out a postcard and, lo and behold, two weeks later I get a call from an agent saying hey, one of my clients just got your postcard and they want to come look at your house. And the way that story goes is we sold it to someone from that postcard list.09:04 - Mel (Host)
So that's a great story, yeah, and the fact that you knew that house so well, I got it.09:09 - Alex (Guest)
It had to felt knew it forwards and backwards, and that's you know. I hear that comment a lot and I hear that comment all the time. It's like wow, you really know your product? Cause I do. You know, I take pride in my, in what I sell. I I try to learn the house just as well, if not better, than the sellers and I know the neighborhood and it's neighborhoods, like I said, are not the most glamorous neighborhoods in chicago, but they're. They're neighborhoods that a lot of you know the brokers just don't work in regularly. So you need to be able to tell a story in a way that makes people feel comfortable and at home, because and the biggest selling point is the fact that I live here it's you know I could. I have a little different knowledge than than most agents who would come to sell a large home in a, you know, nice but not top of the line neighborhood.09:56 - Mel (Host)
So yeah, well, I think knowledge and you know that that uh intimate. Uh, you know familiarity in the story, you know right, people need, I feel like, a lot of the times to keep their attention. You know familiarity in the story, you know right, people need, I feel like, a lot of the times to keep their attention. You know, otherwise, it's just like yeah, it's got doors, yeah, it's got a lawn.10:12 - Alex (Guest)
Human beings, in our nature is just to be. You know, we're story people, we relate to stories and actually that house, how I sold that house, like you know, the postcard got them in the door but I was sitting there and I was listening to them. I just, you know, kind of eavesdropping during the showing and they mentioned something that pizza is a really big part of their family. Their first date was at Giordano's pizza. They did their rehearsal dinner at um, another big pizza place downtown, and every Sunday they always have friends or family over or neighbors to have pizza. Like that's a big deal for them. So I overheard this and I asked them. I was like, well, have you had Michael's pizza, which is just a block away in the neighborhood and it's tavern style? Like, oh, no, we haven't. And I was like, well, tripadvisor, it's always top 10 in Chicago for tavern style pizza. I'm like, oh, we'll have to try that sometime.11:01
So when they decided to come back for a second showing, I decided it was like on a Saturday night around like five, 30, six o'clock, I'm like, well, it's going to be dinner time, I'm going to be hungry. So I just said you know what? You guys, go ahead and get started. I need to run a quick errand, I'll be right back.11:17
So I go down the street, I get two large pizzas and I come back and we had pizza right there in the house and so they had dinner in the house and my clients were gone weekend, so it's like it wasn't like they were coming back anytime soon. But that's how I put the deal together and I listened to, I asked them questions, we were having a conversation, but I understood what their needs were and comments or what you know, what their concerns were with the house, especially since this was going to be the highest sales price in the neighborhood in almost 20 years. So they're having an issue with understanding comps and understanding value, and the fact that I could sit down and have a conversation with them directly, with their agent present, made a huge difference, oh, I'm sure, and also being able to sit and advocate for my clients too. So it was, but it helped me understand how to put that deal together, and so I tell people I sold a $3 million house of pizza.12:12 - Mel (Host)
It was $40 in pizzas is what sold that house Must have been some darn good pizza. I'll just say that much Damn good pizza, that's right. Would you say that that's probably one of your most rewarding real estate deals, or is there something that's even better than that?12:27 - Alex (Guest)
Time and I had this perfect buyer who had vision. So I found him the right designer, the right contractor, the right grant writer. That got him grant money for historic preservation tax credits. I found the right lender who could do a construction loan. He would not have been able to buy or remodel that house without me and I truly felt like I did something great there. The amazing part is I went back about two years later. I went to go see all the work that he had done. Well, when I got there, I saw several other homes on the street had all started turning over as well. People were redoing their roofs, people were putting in new windows, people were painting their homes. I mean, it was a big, huge house that was just kind of like the crown jewel the neighborhood, but it just been forgotten. And the fact that that house came back to life and to see what it did for that neighborhood that's probably one of my other favorite stories is just how one house had such a big impact on a neighborhood yeah, yeah, those do.13:38 - Mel (Host)
It does fall like dominoes where? You can see those changes positively kind of roll out across the neighborhood have you had? I mean, now that we've talked about that, you know that crown jewel in the neighborhood that you've helped out. It sounds like in two places has there been a challenge, a failure that you overcame or that you faced, as you've been in your real estate career.13:59 - Alex (Guest)
Oh, plenty. You know my entire career. I've always run towards the difficult listings. You know it's. You know some agents go towards the meat potatoes, stuff that they can churn and burn and it's not about relationships, it's all about where's the next deal and just moving right along. That's never been the case for me and you know real estate's a relationship business. You hear this stuff all the time and, yes, it's true, and that's, of course, the right thing.14:31
For me, my skill set has always been able to go into a unique house and be able to figure out what's going to get it to move, and a lot of times it's price, sometimes it's staging, sometimes it's just repositioning and reframing how it's being presented. I think one of my greatest challenges has been, you know, I sold Brian Urlacher's house a few years ago and that was a big, massive 11,000 square foot house on nine and a half acres. It took me three and a half years to sell it but it finally sold and we ended up selling it. And a lot of times with those homes you end up selling them to someone who understands what it is. There's somebody that is usually and what I mean by that is it's usually somebody within a half mile to one mile radius.15:21
Somebody that knows that house, somebody that knows that land probably even knows the seller. And then the people who bought it ended up buying it too, and I realized the value. No one really liked the house because they just kind of dated and it was big. A lot of rooms were useless and it was just. That was the feedback that we kept hearing over and over again. Well, but everyone loved the land.15:40
Well, finally we realized the value was in the land. In the land, yeah, we ended up pricing it at land value and it sold, and the people who bought it tore it down. So that was kind of a realization of really listening to what the feedback is. Yeah, my big challenge right now that's been really fun is I have a house in the south suburbs listed, and I don't really do a lot of work in the suburbs, but every once in a while I'll take a listing there just because I think it's going to be a fun challenge.16:08
Um, this one has been interesting. It's actually it's currently owned by Rudolph Isley of the Isley brothers, um, who passed away last October. The previous owner, though, was R Kelly, and so you know there's been lots of documentaries on Netflix about surviving R Kelly, and you know, when he was on trial a few years ago, there was a lot of. You know, just the house was featured constantly. So there's a lot of stigma attached to that house, and, but what's even more of a challenge is not the R Kelly stigma. We actually haven't heard too many comments about the R Kelly stigma. You know the media likes to run with that, because it sells. If it bleeds, it leads Right, and that's something that navigating the media to our advantage has been something a bit of a challenge, which I've done on other listings before this one.17:00
Though the property taxes are $256,000 a year. Year, that has been my bigger challenge. It's not been the r kelly history, it's been the tax bill taxes and it's 22 000 square feet on four acres. So finding somebody who wants to take care of a monster house like that, you know, that's another challenge in and of itself. Yeah so, but I've really been able to sink my teeth into that because it's been so. There's so much meat on the bone there of of what to do and how to sell it and and getting creative with it and how to, you know, step outside the box.17:35 - Mel (Host)
So that's been my fun current challenge it sounds like it's a lot of potential there though I've put listings up for auction in the past.17:45 - Alex (Guest)
I mean pretty much a lot of my sellers they know I'm going to try anything. They know I'll throw anything to see what sticks. And part of the reason I think that's the reason I get a lot of these listings is because they've heard my reputation referral or, frankly, I've had other sellers call me because they've watched what I've done on other listings. Yeah, like they see, I see how you do your listing descriptions, see how you do your photos. I see the events you do. I've been to you know certain events that you do and you know, they just know that there's.18:17
There's this desire to succeed and and a desire to almost like prove people wrong. Because when you hear it's almost like you know, because my dad growing up he would always tell me he's just like he never wanted to do a lot of high-end real estate because he's like, well, they don't sell, they don't sell, they don't sell. And I was like I don't buy that, frankly, I just don't buy that they do sell. And so I just do everything I can basically to prove my dad wrong. I should probably see a therapist.18:51 - Mel (Host)
It seems like something's worrying about that for you. So you know, I mean you know, having a tiny chip on your shoulder I think you know about that is probably working in your favor. So on my shoulder. Story of my life.19:05 - Alex (Guest)
I've been accused of the same.19:06 - Mel (Host)
So it's okay. Uh, you're in good company with that. Well, it sounds like you've you've taken what, uh, you know, some would probably call some risks then, in doing some of these listings, you know what is? I mean, what is one of the risks that you've taken that maybe worked out, or maybe didn't work out, that you'd like to share?19:23 - Alex (Guest)
Oh, I can share that story. So I had a listing a few years ago that we put up for auction and it was on Billionaire's Row here in Chicago, also known as Astor Street, and it was right at the peak of the pandemic summer of 2020. I mean, it was this massive 6,000 square foot 1890s mansion that needed a lot of 2020. I mean, it was this massive, you know, 6,000 square foot 1890s mansion that needed a lot of work. But it's like what's this worth? I mean, this is also right at the peak of the George Floyd protests and the social unrest, and downtown on Michigan Avenue had storefronts bashed and it was only three blocks away. So really trying to get people comfortable with buying a $2 million home that needed another $2 million worth of work done to it at that point in time. So what do you do to get people in the door? So I told my clients that we need to do something drastic Either. You know you can always do a price drop, but even a price drop is not going to guarantee that it's going to sell. So you know you can always do a price drop, but even a price drop is not going to guarantee that it's going to sell. So you know, and you don't really know where the bottom is until somebody makes you an offer, but what you need to do is get people fighting over it, and what I suggested there was let's put it up for auction.20:38
So we interviewed multiple auction companies, we selected one, and we had we had a bunch of people bidding on it. It was an online bid, and then the buyer who won failed to perform. So that was you know. It was really disheartening. So you know they. You know just, things didn't work out, and we ended up going back on the market. But what happened, though, is the we got the attention of a buyer who missed the auction and came back, and he was like I'm so glad that I didn't want to miss it again. Yeah, yeah, correct, didn't want to miss it again. So that's exactly what happened. So it ended up working out fine. It worked out OK. So you know, the previous buyer had, you know their reasons for for whatever, and, but it ended up working out all right.21:36 - Mel (Host)
It definitely sounds like it is.21:38 - Alex (Guest)
That's a good risk. Yeah, I mean client's confidence and how do you keep your moving forward in that time? Because that client was so, you know she was, she was upset, you know, by how it all went out. You know she didn't get the price she hoped for. She, you know, went along with the whole process and then you know it just, it was a tumultuous, tumultuous process and but it was a wonderful learning experience for everyone involved and I would absolutely do it again.22:11 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, buying and selling. I could say from my perspective you know, as somebody who's bought and sold a couple of houses it can be an emotional roller coaster for us, you know. You, on the other hand, you know you have a different kind of set of emotions that sometimes you're going through. I mean, manage that, but you're also sometimes you're talking about these houses that take, you know, three or multiple years or multiple attempts, you know, to sell.22:35 - Alex (Guest)
How do you stay motivated, sometimes during those periods where you're like, well, it's just, it's not getting that attention yeah, it's, you know that's the thing is, um, whenever agents, I get calls from agents all over the country that you know I've met, who, who know my skillset and my talents, and they they're just like well, what would you do here, what would you do there? And just last week I was on the phone with an agent in Colorado who has a condo that he can't move, a condo, you know. He's just like. This is he's like.23:01
The problem is is, you know, the bedrooms are in the basement, all the. You've got the main level living space and then the two bedrooms are in the basement. I said so, it's a reverse one and it's a reverse two story. And he said a what I said yeah, a reverse, it's like it lives like a two story. You've got bedroom, you know, main level and bedrooms upstairs, except here the bedrooms are in the basement. He's like what? Oh my God, it's like right, just rephrase you know it was like make it up, make it up, you have fun with it.23:29
And um, I haven't checked back in with him to see what's happened since then. I was like reframe how it, you reframe how it's being, you know, portrayed and um, you know, sometimes it's just a matter of changing. It's like I always, it's like a Rubik's cube. You just have to keep turning it until everything matches up.23:49 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think some people get so committed to a story they forget that they can rewrite. You can reorganize the story.23:54 - Alex (Guest)
And not even get. They get committed to a conventional story. Yes, they get committed to overused adjectives and phrases that you see in real estate all the time. How many times have you seen a home? I bet you, if you looked up the words open concept or updated kitchen on realtorcom, you're going to get thousands of responses Too many.24:14
It doesn't tell me anything. It doesn't tell me anything. And that's not. You know, you have to, you have to rephrase, you know how you use it.24:25
And also and also, I just sold a condo here in Chicago, in North Halstead, which is one of America's first gayborhoods, and this particular condo faced into the alley, so it didn't have a view. It had a massive private terrace on the second floor, oh nice. And so I had to rephrase well, how do you sell this property that's on the back of a building across the street from a nightclub that is very noisy. So I knew we're going to sell this to someone young in their 20s, probably gay, first-time homebuyer that's going to love that terrace. It's going to be fantastic, yeah, terrace, and probably goes to that club. That's who we're going to sell this to.25:11
So I wrote the listing description. I'm so shocked I didn't get in trouble for fair housing violations. But I used a lot of kind of millennial Gen Z gay and, by the way, I'm an openly gay man, so it's not like you know gay and, by the way, I'm an openly gay man, so it's not like you know discriminating here. But I used a lot of euphemisms Like remember this past summer when the you know that demure went viral Very demure, very cutesy, it's so brat, you know.25:40 - Mel (Host)
I used all of that. It was all in there. Oh, that's great.25:43 - Alex (Guest)
My description was so unhinged and so just so written for someone who would appreciate it, which would be a young gay man or woman or you know they, they or gentle them that it worked we sold it to actually, I sold it pre-market, with no photos on the MLS. Wow. I sold it to someone who read the description and said I knew this was my condo and I was like perfect.26:09
You knew your target audience you're the target audience I knew they would pay a dollar and I knew that would work. And that's exactly what happened. Wow, didn't have to paint, they didn't have to stage, they didn't have to do anything yeah, hit that one out of the park correct so and by the way, that client is someone that frequents that nightclub, so they didn't care. Yeah, go to Wrigley, hit that one out of the park. I mean Correct. And, by the way, that client is someone that frequents that nightclub, so they didn't care about the noise.26:32 - Mel (Host)
There you go, right, yeah, I'm sure enjoy it. It's not noise, it's Correct. Now, obviously you touched upon something that I want to dig into a little bit deeper there. You know where you said well, you know, geez, I'm surprised I didn't get you know flagged for. You know putting some of these words in there. You know how do you guide, you know what is. Because you have to tow lines, I mean every, you know every job. You have a line that comes up and you're like you know, do I tow it, do I step over it? Where do I go? And and how do you kind of over that?26:59 - Alex (Guest)
Yeah, so I look at my sellers and I ask them because your sellers are such a wealth of information, not just about the house, but who your buyer is going to be, and so we'll go back to the big mansion that I just sold. For example, I looked at my sellers, who were very poised, very. They're very classy people, they're very, but they're not, you know, they're not stuffy, very respectful. They don't wear designer clothes. They don't wear, you know, they're not your typical when you think, like new money, you know, name brand, everything like that is not who these clients are. They're very, very quiet and very private. So I thought about that and I was like you know, whoever buys this house is going to be somebody who has silent confidence, somebody who doesn't need to prove themselves, somebody who doesn't need to be seen, somebody who doesn't need is not going to be in the middle of society causing a ruckus. This is going to be somebody who moves very quietly. So probably somebody in finance, probably somebody who's going to who, who values their privacy, values tradition, values people. You know, an heirloom. That's really what this house was was an heirloom.28:31
So I made a video and a lot of my listing description was about the architecture, was about you know what the importance of this particular architect was. But then I made a video and I said you know, this house was built. It feels like silent confidence. It sits back off the street, lets you know it's there, but it's not the most ostentatious house on the street. It's very, it's very quiet and it kind of hides in plain sight. That's and I and so I ended the video saying and I think the next buyer is someone who also has silent confidence saying, and I think the next buyer is someone who also has silent confidence, that got so much attention because people are like oh, because basically what I did was I just said if you're pulling up in a Lamborghini, this is not your house. You're not the right house.29:17
Now, if you pull up in like a 1990s Rolls Royce, this is your house. Somebody who understands and treasures things that are rare, right, and that's exactly. And the buyers showed up. They got out of the car wearing a hooded sweatshirt, yoga pants and a sweater. And their car was and this is how I knew too they were driving an Audi S8, you know, but it was custom with the matte finish on it, and I knew. I knew that was a custom car and I knew it was rare and I, like this is somebody who likes very specific things, but the color of the car was a dark Navy blue with black wheels that kind of that color scheme hides. It's not flashy and it's not somebody who's trying to draw attention to themselves, but it is very high quality.30:13
That was how I knew immediately that was our buyer Fun car to drive, by the way I will say, of course, this is somebody that understands what they were getting themselves into and when they came in, they asked all the right questions. They were. They talked about the you know the you know. They were talking about laying out their furniture and he mentioned something about well, this would throw off the scale, this would throw off the symmetry. I'm like he gets it, you get it, totally understands his house. It was like that's our buyer, that's the guy, yeah, the one, silent confidence, worked in finance, like that was exactly what it was. So you know, you know, putting in words, that that particular buyer pool will resonate with without being racist, sexist, homophobic, any of that sort of thing. But think of what they value. That's really what my guiding principle is is what are those people going to value? In the case of the condo I just mentioned, they're going to value fun. They're going to value energy and excitement and being social. That's what they're going to value Because it's an exciting place. So that's what's fun going to value, right? So they you know, that's the you know, because that's it's an exciting place. So that's what's fun for me is is going in.31:31
I helped an agent out in the suburbs. She listed this house that was built in like the mid nineties. It was the original owners. And then the owner said well, this is kind of a boring house. It's is a boring house Like they bought. They bought the house all builder grade basic finishes in it, haven't changed it, but the house was clean and it was. It was extremely well-kept, well-managed. Eat off the floor clean. And I told that agent I said, lean into the boringness of it. Lean into the boringness of it. You will sell it to someone who's going to appreciate that it has good bones. So don't talk it up as being this thing, that it's not. Call it what it is, and sacrifice the buyers who won't appreciate it.32:15
So she made this hilarious video of her wearing the most boring outfit. I think she's wearing like a beige sweater and like you know, not just kind of average pants and she's like welcome to the most average house in suburbia. And she's like see this beige color. It's been that way since 1995. See this beige floors, beige, this beige that. And then the video went viral and she got multiple offers on it because people loved how authentic it was. Right, it wasn't trying to be something, it wasn't. And I was like I was and actually I was like I told her don't stage it, don't stage it. Oh, don't even stage it. Nice, don't even stage it Cause you have staging is going to take away from how boring this house is and she would put in in her in her listing description. Are you looking for the most basic, boring yet well-cared-for home in suburbia? This is the one. Yep, you got it right here.33:12 - Mel (Host)
Got it right here. I love the leaning in. Yeah, that's a good topic. That's a good topic and it doesn't get more cookie cutter than this folks.33:19 - Alex (Guest)
And then she put that in there. She's like do you want to blend in with society? This is your house. And she sold it to some people who I'm pretty sure were like kind of introverted and that was like, yeah, we want to blend it, we don't need anything flashy.33:36 - Mel (Host)
Nice, yeah, yeah, introverts, they can be really great, sometimes Absolutely.33:42 - Alex (Guest)
Absolutely, but that's knowing your buyer.33:45 - Mel (Host)
That is knowing your buyer for sure.33:46 - Alex (Guest)
Again, know who your buyer is going to be. And look at your seller and look at who they were when they bought the house. That'll tell you.33:52 - Mel (Host)
Right, yes, yeah, I think that that's a very yeah. There's a reason why people buy a house a lot of times, especially the builder grade, you know, kind of ones where it's like they're at that point in their life.34:01 - Alex (Guest)
They didn't tell it. They just need something utilitarian. They're not looking for the latest and greatest everything, they just want something to live in and, you know, well-built roof over the head.34:10 - Mel (Host)
That's what you need. That's right. So you look for somebody who needs just that. That's right. Now. You must have seen some changes, obviously being in this, for you know, going on 14 years in real estate, what are some of the changes that you've seen that have really affected the real estate market during your career?34:29 - Alex (Guest)
So when I got in the business in 2011, that was the bottom, bottom, bottom of the market. I didn't sell anything my first year in the business. That was a fun time. The changes I've seen have mostly been with technology. I mean, you can talk about the NAR settlement and all that jazz. I finally think I just don't care about that topic because it's so uninteresting at this point. But the main thing I've seen have been influencer agents on the rise. People using social media and how they're using social media to shop for homes. Using social media and how they're using social media to shop for homes. Agents getting more creative with putting themselves out there with their real estate content. I mean, now it used to just be you help people buy and sell real estate. Now you have to be an influencer and a media personality and there's so much pressure to do all this stuff. Now, with technology and with social media, that's probably the biggest change I've seen, because in 2011, yeah, we had facebook, but people were just posting pictures of their vacations on there?35:33
Yeah, I don't think anybody called themselves a content creator not at all, and that's probably been the biggest change that I've seen has been that. Do you think that that kind of that change, that trend is going to contacted this other agent on you know, instagram or tick tock or what have you, or youtube, and then we started working with them and got really bad advice got passed around to team members. We did this. We just need somebody to help us out who's actually going to help us buy a place.36:23
What social media has done is it has filled the space with people who know how to be content creators but don't actually know how to be agents and actually be good agents and close a deal and get through a difficult contingency or a difficult transaction that's what I do really well and agents like me who've been in it for a long time and have had a lot of miles. That's the biggest change I've seen is our time is finally coming to shine and it's the because people really value true expertise, not just oh yeah, they're hot or oh yeah, they, you know, post funny videos. That only gets you so far. You got to know how to do the actual job.37:04 - Mel (Host)
But they actually listen as well as they talk and understand the laws. That's right. Those are pretty important things that you have to know. Contracts and everything else Yep, where do you think people can you know kind of if they're kind of coming up or interested in the real estate market? Where could they go to keep you know on these trends of what's happening in real estate? Do you think social media is the best place for that? From consumers or agents, from up and coming agents, I'd say yeah.37:33 - Alex (Guest)
So for up and coming agents, I mean, obviously social media is a good place to start, but one of the best things you can learn how to do, especially as this market starts to change, because the last four years it's been very easy to be a real estate agent. Real estate's been falling out of the sky and you can just sell a house in a weekend. Those days are coming to an end and I know it because I have been there before and I've weathered many storms and I know how to get through those things and how to coach your clients, how to price properties, how to stage them. What you have to do differently and it's a you know what I tell a lot of agents is go learn the basics. Go learn your contracts, forwards and backwards.38:22
The other best, the best thing you have at your fingertips when you're new. You have time, you have time. Go sit in the CRS certification course. Go sit in GRI and ABR, and those are the three best designations you can get as an agent to get started, because they teach you how to do the job Right and they just don't teach you that in pre-license. You've got to go learn it on your own. You learn by doing and you learn by sitting in a class and the best thing you can do is go, sit in a class and train and learn. And any of those designation courses offered by NAR are wonderful, any of those. You know I have the CNE, which is certified negotiations expert. I've been through Dale Carnegie training. I've been through Karis negotiation training. I mean I've always. I love taking negotiation training classes because I learn something new every time I go. You know I've learned. I went through CLHMS, certified luxury home marketing specialist. I mean any of those courses are going to be worth it.39:24 - Mel (Host)
Any of them are. Yeah, nice. Yeah, I think you know a lot of people think books or things like that, so that's great that you have very specific trainings.39:34 - Alex (Guest)
Gary Keller is a millionaire real estate agent. I mean that's great learning how to build a business, but learn how to do the job. Learn how to actually put deals together.39:44 - Intro (Ad)
Learn how to navigate contracts.39:45 - Alex (Guest)
Learn how to actually put deals together. Learn how to navigate contracts. Learn how to navigate financing and inspection issues. Learn that, because if you don't learn that, lead generation doesn't mean anything. Lead generation is a waste of time. If you can't actually close a deal, you can't actually manage your client's expectations. It's just not worth it. Go learn the job.40:07 - Mel (Host)
I think honestly that's probably one of the most important pieces that you've just said right here is taking those courses, managing expectations, because absolutely I had a lot of them when I've been buying and selling my houses and if somebody didn't meet them, guess what? I'm picking up the phone. I'm calling somebody else.40:30 - Alex (Guest)
Well, right, and that's just what I've said. And I've had people come through open houses this year and I don't really do a lot of open houses anymore, but clearly I need to because the number of times I've had people come into my open house is going. Oh, my God, you actually know what you're doing. We're looking for a different agent. Can we meet with you? People come to me asking me to help them. It's not me like trying to pick up business, I'm just there opening a door and they're like oh, you actually have half a brain. That's been just knowing the job and knowing the market.40:58
Go to broker open houses, go to you know your brokerage opens and or go tour vacant listings and just learn the market, learn the inventory, learn about pricing. Ask the agent One of my greatest tools I had when I first got started. All those years I spent on my bike going to open houses. I would ask agents well, do you think it's priced right? Do you think it's staged right? Why do you think it hasn't sold? What's your feedback been? And I've learned so much because I learned what how agents think, number one, number two. I also learned how to solve problems like oh, this place feels cluttered. People think it's smaller than it actually is. All of that you become. The more you learn and retain and implement, the more valuable you become to your clients.41:52 - Mel (Host)
And then you become invaluable to your clients. Right, yeah, now I completely agree with all of what you just said and, honestly, you just blew through an entire section without me having to ask you a single question about it, which is great, so I'm just going to jump forward.42:02 - Alex (Guest)
I will say to put a bow on that. Never stop, don't, ever stop. I still 14 years in this business. I still go to broker's opens. I still go learn the inventory. If there's a listing that comes on the market in my neighborhood that's vacant, I ask the listing agent if I can go through it. I still am learning all the time. I don't do it as much as I would like to because I'm busy with my own clients or you know what. I'll show that property to another client eventually, so I'll see it. But make a point to go learn what's out there and go meet the other agents. I can't tell you how many times I've won multiple offer situations for clients because I knew the agent. Not that we have the best offer, I just knew the agent. They knew I'll get my clients through a deal, so that that type of networking is incredibly valuable.42:50 - Mel (Host)
I agree, in any industry, if you're not meeting with other people who are in that industry and finding out more and asking questions, you know you're putting yourself in the wrong places. That's right. What if somebody is looking to kind of scale up? So somebody is, maybe they've done some of those classes, they've got a couple of sales under their belt, but they're not where they're supposed to be, where they want to be. How are they going to meet some of those goals?43:14 - Alex (Guest)
So the first thing they need to look at is how are they generating new business? Look at how are you doing consistently, some people and you need four levers. You need four things that you do to really do it. So for me it was philanthropic involvement. It was farming, which kind of goes with philanthropic involvement, but it was a monthly market report that I sent to my farm.43:39
Open houses are a big one. How are you going to consistently and measurably meet new people every month and stay in contact with people you already know? And then look at your system. So for me, my sphere they get one postcard and one email from me a month, so there's 24 times a year. They hear from me and then clients who've bought with me in the last three years. They get a quarterly gift. And then I send handwritten thank you notes. I send, you know, social media. I make sure I follow all my clients on social media and a lot of them follow me, follow me back, so you're always just omnipresent in people's lives. And then, when you have a consistent stream of business coming in, you know, my rule of thumb is, if you start doing two to three deals a month consistently and that trend continues for about 90 days or more and you can sustain two to three deals a month for six months.44:34
You need to hire an assistant. Best thing I ever did was hire an admin. Agents just want to hire another agent to help them with showings and buyers. That makes no. When you get, you're getting bogged down on paperwork and marketing and all this other crap. The administrative $15 an hour work is not worth your time. Your time needs to be spent eyeball to eyeball with the public and the best thing I ever did four years ago I hired an admin that I met.45:04
A longtime friend of a friend just happened to work out that he was moving back to Chicago, was looking for he had worked in real estate in Kansas City and he was looking for someone to start with in real estate. I said Great, so he came to work for me. That was four years later, my first year he I hired him. My business doubled doubled my first year because I was freed up. I could go to these meetings, I could go do more open houses, I could do more lead generating activities. So I would catch the fish and he would fry them. It made a huge difference. Like, oh my God, imagine going back to selling real estate without an admin now. Oh my God, kill me, kill me. I couldn't do it.45:44
And what's great too is clients have gotten so comfortable with him that a lot of times clients just call him for stuff. Now they don't call me, they just call him because they know it's like okay, you know, can we change the pictures on the listing? Can we do that? I don't get that phone call. He does.46:00
So, great, I don't want that phone call. It's not a high use of my time. And then when clients do call me, they're like really sorry to bother you. I just want to ask you a question. No, no, these are the questions.46:11 - Mel (Host)
I'm here for the gifts you've got the emails that are going out, you've got the postcards that are going out. You've got an admin who can answer the phone and answer a lot of questions just as well as you can. But what are some of the other ways that you're kind of making sure that when those people call that they're getting the help that they need.46:40 - Alex (Guest)
Yeah, so it's having really good systems in place and having really good canned conversations or scripts. You say to all your clients it's you know, say what you're going to say, say it, say that you said it, you know and I have milestones. You're setting proper expectations. And communication will save you so much time and frustration and headaches. So many agents are constantly chasing fires and putting them out and constantly you know, oh, I got it, oh God, this deal is blowing up. I say this deal is blowing up maybe three times a year and it's probably because the deal actually is falling apart and because it's the same shit.47:21
You already you know as an agent the things that are going to go wrong during a transaction, more than likely the inspection, the appraisal, the final walkthrough and financing. It's going to be one of those four things. Or maybe title Once a year I'll have a title issue or a boundary or a lot line issue or something unique. You get a lot of that shit you can figure out and a lot of that stuff. And I always tell my clients and, by the way, that phrase alone, I always tell my clients. I say that to other clients.47:51
So I'm like when client, because so for so many of your clients, this is the biggest thing, the biggest life event they're ever going to go through, aside from a wedding, and it is such a big deal for them. You have to be a neutral party in that. You have to be the guiding light. They are looking to you for guidance and if you're emotional and upset and pissed off or excited with them, it's going to make it more difficult, because now you're in it with them, you need to grab your clients by the nose and take them with you, and I think that's part of the reason why a lot of clients choose me is because they see me as that steady force of just going nope, stop, knock it off. You're coming with me, but having those conversations that you have all the time. So, like an example, I'll tell my clients okay, your inspection is Thursday at 10. I'm going to meet you there, I'll meet you out front.48:51
Here's what we're looking for Mechanical, structural, health and safety. Those are the four main things we're looking for. We're not looking for cosmetics. We're not looking for little piddly items that are a little honeydew list. We're looking for big, expensive, deal breaking stuff. And then I was like sound right, and they're like yep, sounds good, alex, and they just go along with it because that is what we're looking for. We're not going to get pissed off over a scratch in the floor Give me a break.49:13 - Mel (Host)
A broken tile in your kitchen is not. Yeah, I'm not worried about that.49:18 - Alex (Guest)
By the way, you probably saw it during showings, pointing those things out, knowing it's like here's how you fix that, here's what we do about that. It's by the way, you're buying a used house. It's just like buying a used car it's going to have issues.49:32 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, there's going to be a day here and there.49:34 - Alex (Guest)
Right, it's using that plain language to get people understand, because otherwise you will run the risk of entitlement, you'll run the risk of people just being assholes and you're going to run the risk of your deal getting away from you. You have to manage people's expectations and the more you do that, the smoother your deals are going to be, the better reputation you're going to have in the industry among your peers. And I'm not saying don't go to bat for your clients. You absolutely go to bat for your clients when things are drastic and important and are in their best interest, because that's what you're supposed to do.50:09 - Intro (Ad)
So you know, you just.50:11 - Alex (Guest)
I think that's one way that agents create a lot of extra work for themselves. They don't set their proper expectations.50:17 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think setting proper expectations definitely is a pretty valuable thing and you know you've talked about some of those things that can go wrong, that probably have gone wrong. What are some examples of when something really did go wrong and how you kind of pulled them out of their hole of despair, managed the situation and got it taken care of?50:36 - Alex (Guest)
Oh man, I had a new construction deal Two years ago now. This was they were pregnant and with twins and they were building a house. I had to sell their current home they were in and then they were like living with friends for a couple months and then their house wasn't done on time. And you know, really trying to temper, and I told them they're like, well, the builder said it was going to be ready by the end of July. I was like, no, it's not. No, I'm telling you right now it's not going to be done by the end of July. We closed at the end of September and you know that 60 days in the long I told him that I was like here's the thing You're building, the house that works for you. You're getting exactly what you want and it's going.51:26
You know, we had we just we kept having issues with the builder where you know they're saying well, we need you to come pick this. Probably you could have told us a week ago we could have picked all these other, you know, tile and light fixtures and all this other stuff. We could have picked all of that, right, had you given us more time. It was really trying to manage. That process was really. It was tough, got it closed. You know there's just, it was every turn.51:50
You know I hate doing new construction with a fiery, burning passion, because stuff comes up all the time yeah and um. You know there's, there's always something like that. You know I, I've got one deal. I've got one deal right now, as we speak, where, um, we did the inspection on Monday or Tuesday, I think it was the roof is shot, the sewer line has has a six foot stretch that needs to be replaced. We've there's no appliances in the house that need to be installed. There's no ac unit. The electrical panel's overloaded, needs to be upgraded. We're talking about a good thirty thousand dollars in work that needs to be done. Wow and um. But I mean most agents go and of course, my buyer's like, and I'm just like what next, oh and then we found out we had radon.52:45 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, there you go. Yeah, cause you always need that.52:50 - Alex (Guest)
Right, it's just like one of those deals where everything that can go wrong does. I'm like okay, well.52:56 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, you've probably dug some deals out of some holes then, as a result not just looking the clients out, what's one of those ones that you'd say that you've really been proud of? That really kind of like this was one.53:12 - Alex (Guest)
I had one, probably five years ago now, where the appraisal came in. Actually, no, just recently I just had one where the appraisal came in really low and even the buyer's agent was concerned this appraisalraisals nonsense. And the lender wouldn't change. My client had already moved out and I I just we had, we had.53:44
It was again one of those deals where everything that could go wrong did. I mean the. The roof was shot on a room addition that was put on underneath the upstairs unit owner's deck, so they had to pull up the upstairs unit deck, replace the roof and then put the deck back down. We had a water pipe leak at the final walkthrough. We had so many inspection issues and we had tons of problems.54:13
Appraisal came back and failed. We were all oh, and there was a special assessment in the condo association that my client had to pay, and we gave and gave and gave and finally that appraisal issue came back and I went back to the buyer's agent. I said not another dime, your client needs to come up with the difference. And I was pretty proud she did. And I went back to my client afterwards and I was like, by the way, the house didn't appraise, but the buyer's paying the difference. She's like what I was, like I'm not even going to bother you with that battle Like because it didn't need to. She'd already done enough. So she appreciated. But that was one of those things where sometimes you just need to take a stand and like firmly, you know, plant the flag. I was pretty proud of that because that was a. That was one where most agents would have taken it to their client and like hey, I got another issue. I just I've said no.55:03 - Mel (Host)
Yeah.55:08 - Alex (Guest)
So that was great and I got a lot of wrong information so I felt bad about like false advertisement and all this other stuff. So it was just. You know it was a. It was a tumultuous deal. We got through it, oh, and the buyer's agent was gone in Paris for three weeks for her wedding. So I ended up doing the vast majority of the work so pretty much everything, yeah, oh my.55:37 - Mel (Host)
Well, let's let's look forward, let's think of, kind of where some of your goals are over the next five to 10 years. Do you have any goals or dreams that you're working toward and hoping to put in place?55:47 - Alex (Guest)
I'd like to hire two more people. I need a full-time marketing person and a full-time buyer's agent Somebody that can take on a lot of the showings and running around. Agent somebody that can take on a lot of the showings and running around. I'm getting too tired for this shit. Running around and showings, oh, my God, I love my clients to death I really do. But, my God, I need an extra set of legs.56:10 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, some of the legwork I'm sure can be.56:12 - Alex (Guest)
Literal legwork. Literal legwork. So there's that. You know, my vision has always been to get to $100 million in volume with four people and I know I can do it and 100 units, an average of a million dollars a piece. So you know, I know we're right there. We're very close. I just need to hire two more people. I just need to hire two more people.56:37 - Mel (Host)
Is your idea kind of like developing this whole boutique firm of your own? Is that kind of like the legacy that you're working toward?56:44 - Alex (Guest)
A boutique firm of my own under another firm's umbrella. I mean, I have no interest in opening up my own brokerage. I have my managing broker's license so I could if I wanted to, but I have no interest in that. I don't want to be a babysitter. Yes, no thank you.57:03 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, so a team within a team.57:06 - Alex (Guest)
Team within a team and a small team. I don't you see some of these real estate teams that got 15 people on them. I'm like why that just looks like an HR problem. I don't want to deal with that. Yeah, so no, I'm very much organic an HR problem. I don't want to deal with that. Yeah, so no.57:20 - Mel (Host)
I'm very much organic, very much one house at a time, there you go. I like that. Is there any ever been anything that was kind of like, you know, just really strange, really unusual, you know, or just kind of really interesting? I mean, obviously the you know the the house that you started off telling us about sounded like it was a pretty interesting place. But anything you know that you started off telling us about it sounded like it was a pretty interesting place but anything that you'd kind of describe as odd or unusual.57:44 - Alex (Guest)
That's like most of my listings, oh God. Just as kind of a general note. I mean I've had listings over the years. A lot of these larger historic homes have caretakers that come with them. I've dealt with a number of caretakers over the years who or sometimes you get people who want to be a caretaker that just kind of stalk the house.58:10
I've had a number of those over the years. I had one guy who cornered my cellar in a basement once saying he was going to buy this house, and that freaked her out, freaked me out. I had one one guy's big, 12,000 square foot mansion on a hill that everyone loved and admired for years and it was just kind of a. I've always gotten the crown jewels that are, like the jewels, a little tarnished. That's what my listings have been by and large. You know I had one where, you know, this guy shot out the windows in that listing because he was looking for a warm place to sleep that night. I had to go testify against him in court. It was just I've had listings that I believed were haunted.58:56
I've had listings that, and actually one listing I thought for sure was haunted, I was in that house. I only went in that house myself one time, otherwise I always had somebody come with me because that house freaked me out. But I went in there one time and it was an estate sale and I just I walked around and I was talking out loud to myself and I said you know what? I'm just the realtor. You're welcome to stay by all means. I'm here to help you but please don't materialize and please help me sell the house and I'll make sure to find the right buyer. That's going to make sure you're respected. And I sold the house a week later and the buyers asked me she's like, is the house haunted? And I, straight up, I could just tell like she's really.59:41
She's kind of a she's a sci-fi nerd and I was like well, I don't know if it is for certain, but I tell you what I don't come here by myself and I'm and I did. I told her. I was just like, well, you know, I just told if there were ghosts in here, I made a speech last week that said they could stay, so I hope you're okay with that. She's like oh no, that's why we came to look at the house and I was like, oh, thank God, and she bought it and she's been there ever since.01:00:07 - Mel (Host)
Again the right buyer.01:00:10 - Alex (Guest)
Again, it's like that knowing when to share things like that, you know, bring out the correct. It's bringing out the truth in a very authentic, genuine way, and that's you know, yeah, you can.01:00:23 - Mel (Host)
You could definitely overshare and I think that you know you looked for the signals that she was ready to receive that she was wearing a.01:00:31 - Alex (Guest)
She was wearing a star trek shirt. Yeah, that's when I knew I was like, oh, she's a nerd, that's exactly what we're gonna sell this house to. So I was like, oh, she's a nerd, that's exactly what we're going to sell this house to. So I was like, great, and she loves that house, loves it.01:00:43 - Mel (Host)
That's good, that's great. You know all's well. That ends well in that series. If you weren't in real estate, though, have you ever thought about that? What is it that you would do if you were not selling houses?01:00:59 - Alex (Guest)
I would either be a talent agent or a producer that's what I would be doing.01:01:01 - Mel (Host)
I could see that being honest with people, getting the right people in the right place at the right time I've heard that from many, many people people asking what I'd be doing is like I'd probably be a talent agent.01:01:11 - Alex (Guest)
The instant response always went oh, I see that, yeah I could definitely see it as well.01:01:16 - Mel (Host)
Oh, I see that. Yeah, I could definitely see it as well. Well, what is what's a fun fact about you?01:01:29 - Alex (Guest)
That maybe a lot of people don't know but probably should. Oh, I don't know if it's a fun fact or a random fact, but I'm a huge theater geek is dovetailing on the aforementioned talent agent comment. Yeah, grew up in theater, musical theater, did it all. I actually went to school.01:01:46
How I ended up in Chicago was I went to DePaul University to go look at the theater school and I was going to school for theater production and management and I walked through the theater school and like okay, if you're here to be an acting major, you go this way. Directing majors go this way. And there was like, okay, and theater administration this way. It was like me and one other kid and I was like, okay. So I start walking down the hallway. I see all the acting majors. They're like crawling around on the floor acting like cats and I was like if I have to go to school with these assholes for the next four years, I'm going to hate my life. And that was. But I liked DePaul and I liked the campus and I liked being in a big city. And I flipped through the catalog and saw they had a degree in real estate. Like great done. And DePaul was the only school I applied to. Wow.01:02:35 - Mel (Host)
How about that? Some could call that very, very lucky, all right. Well, I think that covers most of the, you know, the really digging in kind of questions and I think you had some really great answers and, honestly, I think, so many good things about especially those courses that people should take. But let's, as we kind of reach the end of this, as we think about closing this up, let's ask a little bit of another fun kind of question, and that is if you could, you could buy and live any property in the world no limitations. You know you've got all the money in the bank that you need to buy it price, location style. Where would you want to be and why?01:03:17 - Alex (Guest)
Probably that big mansion I just sold. I'm not even making a joke. That is my favorite house I've ever been in and the only other house I would consider. Did you see the movie Beverly Hillbillies with the big pink mansion that I think Jeff Bezos owns now? That's the house I'd want. That's the house 1930s old Hollywood, you know sunset Boulevard kind of thing. That's my style.01:03:50 - Mel (Host)
You've got options. All right, that's good. Well, you happen to know the right person, I guess is the person who's in there now. So if they go to sell, maybe they'll call you first. Yeah, that's right. I hope so. Now I did find a bunch of social media for you, but obviously I don't want to give away the one you know. I'll let you do that. Where is it that people can find you if they want to find out more about you, if they want to work with you and your work?01:04:27 - Alex (Guest)
Where more about you if they want to work with you and your work, where is it that you recommend people go? They can go to my website, alexwolkingcom. Instagram at Alex Wolking, on all platforms. So TikTok, instagram, facebook, all of it. And my business page is alexwolking underscore real estate on Instagram. But you'll get Kevin, you won't get me on there. I am on Instagram all the time. It is a problem. I love Instagram, so you know sometimes I'm faster on Instagram than I am on text.01:04:54 - Mel (Host)
You know, I completely understand that it depends on which of my accounts I'm signed into.01:04:58 - Alex (Guest)
That's great, I'm signed into no-transcript at America's Inner Circle.01:05:26 - Mel (Host)
We're in all those places, Alex, we'll be sure to tag you, and thanks again, Alex Wolking, for joining us and we'll see everybody again next time.01:05:34 - Alex (Guest)
Thank you so much.
From Open Houses to Historic Homes: Alex Wolking's Unique Approach to Real Estate
Welcome to The Inner Circle podcast! Join us for an insightful podcast episode featuring Alex Walking, a prominent figure in Chicago's real estate scene. Discover how Alex has navigated the city's dynamic market, from mastering open houses to dealing with historic homes. Gain valuable insights into high-end real estate strategies and the challenges of the industry. Learn about Alex's journey, innovative approaches, and the legacy he is building in Chicago real estate. This episode delves into the evolution of real estate and Alex's unique ability to craft compelling stories and close deals. Don't miss out on this adventure behind the scenes of Chicago's real estate market!
00:00 - Justin (Guest)
Wherever you want to specialize, in your neighborhood or your parents' neighborhood or somewhere that you're comfortable with, where you want to target just getting to know all the players, because, especially when you start off, you're so scatterbrained at times. Keep it simple and then build upon identifying who are the players there and, obviously, to market yourself and farm that said area.00:23 - Intro (Host)
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.01:02 - Mel (Host)
Hi, this is Mel Allen, your host of the Inner Circle podcast, and this is a podcast where we're diving deep into the stories of some of the most successful real estate agents in the country. If you want to learn how to establish yourself as a top agent, you're in the right spot, and today we're honored to have Justin Wong from the East Bay area of California. Justin, welcome.01:23 - Justin (Guest)
Hey, good to be here. I'm excited, I'm excited.01:26 - Mel (Host)
Well, let's start, you know, by kind of looking at some of your background in this industry, so kind of how long have you been doing this and what are some of the areas that you've kind of come to specialize in along the way?01:38 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, sure, so I've been. I mean, I can't believe it, but I've been doing commercial real estate. I, you know, headed straight into it, uh, commercial real estate versus residential. I've been doing it for about nine, going on ten years. Um, I guess my epiphany into commercial real estate was I was always, you know, in sales, business development.01:59
Uh, right around 27 28, I had my realization saying, like, for the job that I do, which was not real estate, is this something that you want to do in the long term? And I looked in the mirror and said no, I've always had a family, my father specifically. He started with house flips, duplexes, fourplexes, multifamilies and stuff, and you know, I've always been in that background of, especially as a kid, using real estate as a vehicle to not only get wealth in that sense but also do things outside of the rat race. From the nine to five, my father he worked in the US Postal Service and that was a great career for him, but he wanted to do other things, obviously, and so I took that in mind and I dove into real estate. I was actually working in downtown LA prior, moved back to the Bay Area, got my license and got seated up with a brokerage that I trusted, and then I won't say the rest is history, but there's so much more to that journey in that sense. But that's how I got plugged into real estate.03:21 - Mel (Host)
That's definitely really interesting. I mean coming from a childhood where flipping houses was kind of a normal for you, so you saw a side of real estate that a lot of people are just kind of like maybe I could get into that and you're like no, that's where I started. It was on the back of my mind.03:36 - Justin (Guest)
I went to college, UC Irvine, I did business, econ, but I did not have the intent of going into real estate. I was always around it and I remember between me and my sisters like on a Sunday we'd go to like a random property and pull weeds. You had a glamorous life of real estate back then and I'm like why are we doing this? It's not even our property. He's like I know, it's our investment, you know.04:03 - Mel (Host)
Right, no, that's yeah. So in our property, he's like, yeah, I know it's, it's our investment. You know, right, right, no, that's yeah. So it's a different way of thinking about property that, uh, yeah, a lot of people are are not familiar with. So now you mentioned that you have a you, you you have a brokerage that you work for a team around you, or do you? Are you on your own now?04:17 - Justin (Guest)
Uh team. It's a. It's a very small team and I'm always going to be Rookie of the Year because it's a very older, tenured commercial real estate team. It's a small team. I think it's only about three, four of us now in San Francisco with SVN commercial real estate and I came in as the youngest and I've remained the youngest and that's okay. I mean, I know commercial real estate can be, from what people have told me, like an old boys club and I get that and thankfully, throughout my years I've paid my dues and gotten better with every transaction and I can talk about my deals with a lot more confidence than I did before.04:57 - Mel (Host)
Well, that's good. Speaking of talking about your deals and where you started out, what was the first deal that you put together and, kind of, how did that launch you? I?05:07 - Justin (Guest)
mean the first first deal was small. It was a commercial lease deal retail. You know, mom and pop that wanted like a 2000 square foot retail space and that was fun in that sense and I'd say, in regards to the sales side, I went into duplexes and triplexes and fourplexes and then I started to. You know, I've done up to 35 units for multifamily, oh wow.05:35
But what I've learned with every sort of product type is you have a different set of buyers and sellers and a different hurdle of challenges. Some clients aren't as sophisticated, more mom and pop, and the other ones are more tenured and they're savvy business people and I understand that. So it's just you learn little things along the way and that's okay and I'd say that I, you know, I guess within my niche I like multifamily. Going back to, you know, my father and tenants and units. That's something that I've always kind of held on and feel good about. But in that sense, a lot of times you'll have multifamily people that get tired of you know, managing these tenants. It's a lot more strenuous. So they look to sell their multifamily and look into something that's a little bit low maintenance, something out of states retail with triple net. I could talk about that later on but something that could get a high return with less headache. So I kind of go back and forth between retail and multifamily and that's kind of how it came to be over the last couple of years.06:52 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, it sounds like in your line of work you're having a lot of moments where you're teaching people, but you also have a lot of moments where you're learning about the clients and how their needs probably shift over the years too.07:03 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, I mean, I'd say, especially in the Bay Area there's clients that are very successful and you know they got into real estate at the right time. Like it's crazy. Like you know, in the 60s, the 70s I had this one client that used to work for the city of Oakland. So he was very cognizant of, you know, permitting and zoning and he found dist properties and he built his quote-unquote real estate empire. But now he's getting up there in age and he can't manage everything. So he's learning to try to divest and I won't say right off into the sunset, but let his cash, kind of he doesn't work as hard for his cash. Let's just say that Right?07:41 - Mel (Host)
yeah, he wants his cash to start working for him more now. Yeah.07:45 - Justin (Guest)
You know, and he's a little bit more old school where he really should outsource it to more property management in that sense, but they choose to, since it's in their area, they choose to be a little bit more involved, which I don't know how they do it, but you know, each to them Right.08:06 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, it definitely takes a lot to be uh, to be involved in in properties that you uh, that you own in an area. I mean, I've only been involved in that slightly, but, uh, you know everybody that I know who does it. It's it it seems like it's a full-time job on top of a full-time job. So, um, what were some of the moments that you know, uh made you realize that this really was the right path for you? Like, you know, obviously, selling it, you know making a deal is good, getting that, you know, getting that check is great, but what was it? You were like I really want to keep doing this.08:40 - Justin (Guest)
I'd say it was 10 units in the Bay Area, but just underwriting it itself. It was one of those deals where what we call it like a cover land play. I mean that you could get income in the present, get cash flow, but it was on a huge lot. And so a cover land play is you can take the cash in the present with its current use, but down the road. You know, right now it's not a great time for developments, but down the road should it be more favorable to develop and with construction costs and whatnot you could, you could tear it down and you can make a.09:16
I had to. It wasn't just a straightforward hey, sell this multifamily, you know, and it's done. My marketing was I had to paint a picture saying you know, sure you can do it right now, but there's so much more you can do. Here's the zoning. And I had to be very much. I had to know it, I had to be very sharp with it, I had to check with the city everything else that comes with it.09:48
And the good part about that transaction was I was tested mightily by the buyers that came. They had a slew of questions and just having your eggs lined up, it was a tougher property. The reason why I say it was a cover land play was it wasn't in the best part of town but it had potential. Sure, you're getting cash flow with these said tenants. It's a big lot Down the road you can do said intended use and so to market it and paint that picture and work with these buyers. It took a long. Yeah, like I said, it's not the best part of town, so it took a much longer expected period to get the deal done. But when I was done with that deal I felt so much more, I learned so much more and I felt so much more accomplished to get the whole spectrum of commercial real estate, of underwriting it both in the present and in the long term.10:43 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, there's a value proposition there that you were able to see, able to get the client to understand and kind of like all of the value of that just to yourself and kind of going through that process it sounds like was really valuable and really pivotal for you.10:57 - Justin (Guest)
Right, and you know no disrespect or no you know whatever to those that do residential. But you know, underwriting that specific deal really challenged me about both the present and the long-term and just it was pretty cool in that sense.11:13 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, because I mean, on paper, having two properties, it's like you're going to make X amount of dollars off this, but this one is built out. There's nothing else that can happen there other than knock down and rebuild. But this one you've you've got options, and options can be really valuable. I mean, it can be challenging and can be scary. I think sometimes the people but you know, helping people see the value in those options Sounds like it was. It was it was the right thing for you.11:38 - Justin (Guest)
Right and I'd say recently and then the last couple of years, because the market hasn't been good for commercial real estate. I'm getting better, or upping my game too, because to make some of these commercial deals, not everyone always has cash on hand right now, in terms of cash leverage and finding the right buyer, in the sense where cash is hard to come by, especially for distressed properties, looking into different value propositions to get the deal done, like seller financing. It's a lot harder to find the right buyer in a tougher market. Sure, there's opportunity out there in a tougher market for commercial real estates, but to hone it down and actually close the deal, that's another factor that I am heavily feeling the last couple of years.12:25 - Mel (Host)
Yeah Well, I mean that sounds like it's a pretty challenging time. I mean, have you had, you know, some of those most particular challenges in in these most recent years, or is there one that you can think of that that may be? You know, looked like it was going to be a failure at first, but you've you know. You overcame that. You actually turned it into a successful move.12:44 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, going back to, I guess these cover land plays, but there was this one distressed property. It was pretty rough. Now that I think about it, I did it last year where you couldn't get typical financing. I won't say it was horrible, but there were a lot of things that from a traditional loan perspective you're not going to get it approved. So what they did was the buyer, you know, put some cash in, also did a hard money loan and also got the seller to finance 40% of the deal as well and piece it together. And the hardest part for the seller was the seller had never done seller financing. It was something that they weren't accustomed to. It's something where you put it in the market, you cash out easily in that sense, and having that conversation saying if you really want to sell this property truly you want to sell this property at this point in the market, we're going to have to get a little bit more creative to close the deal.13:46 - Mel (Host)
Right, yeah, the best way sometimes isn't the way that you want it to happen.13:51 - Justin (Guest)
Exactly, and everyone wants the best, the cleanest transaction, the best price and whatnot. But just looking at reality of how things are, do you want to get the deal done or do you want to let it sit on the market?14:05 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, and I'm sure from the client's perspective that was a bit of a but a bit of a risk.14:10 - Justin (Guest)
you know that they weren't sure that they wanted to to take Exactly, exactly, and at the end of the day we we got the deal done it.14:18 - Mel (Host)
It took a little bit more pulling a little bit more tug, but that's part of real estate. Yeah, Speaking of risks and speaking of you know, hey, that's real estate. What are some risks that maybe that you've?14:41 - Justin (Guest)
taken times that you've kind of gone out of your comfort zone to make some of these happens and where you mean I'll be straight up just to make sure that, amidst these conversations and these offers that I get, is to really stick to my gun, done what is ethical.14:51
There are a lot of things where you get some very interesting deals of how they write it, credit back here. We're going to do this particular loan, write the deal like this, but then the actual price is going to be X, y, z, but you're going to get a higher selling price, right. I think the biggest thing is like the barrier to entry for this industry is, for all intents and purposes, it's not that hard in that sense. So you get a slew of, you know, I have a handful of agents that I love working with and then there's some agents that aren't as favorable in that sense. And I would say you know, in regards to doing the right thing and obviously not getting to any legality, trouble and the best interest of your clients, you've got to be very cognizant of some of these conversations that come your way.15:36 - Mel (Host)
Right, right. Yeah, I'm sure that you could be in a sticky situation, depending somehow on the you know, the creative financing. I mean, I'm familiar with that myself. On one of the houses that I purchased, I asked actually the seller to ask for a higher price in negotiations and then to kick some of that back to us just because it put us into a better financing zone. And it worked out, but they were kind of like I feel like I'm breaking some law and I'm like no, no, it's you know.16:08 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, and having that conversation too. Some things I get it, other things I'm like, uh, I don't know. Yeah. I want to be attached to this, exactly, exactly and uh, especially for some of these bigger deals. Yeah, no it, it would. It would amplify. It's not just a single family house, it's like an apartment complex, right, yeah, yeah.16:28 - Mel (Host)
Well, I think you know, talking to you in this brief period of time, I can tell that you probably don't have a poker face. Would you say that you know, kind of letting your emotions show to your clients is something that sets you apart from others, or what is it that sets you apart from others who are in your industry?16:47 - Justin (Guest)
Well, I'm a cancer, meaning that I have my heart on my sleeve. My sisters and my mom has told me that I guess. But I'd say I guess my tenacity, my energy is something that's always my charisma, I suppose, is something that I often get in regards to feedback. But you know, the biggest thing about commercial real estate, at least from my own internal conflicts, is I have a younger face too. I don't know if it's because I'm Asian, I look a bit younger. But especially when you start in commercial real estate, it's an older crowd and you have older clients and you have older agents. So for myself, I might not have, you know, it's nine years now but first starting off I might not have as much experience in transactions, but for every listing appointment, for every showing, I better make sure that I know my stuff. I got to be that much sharper, and so maybe that's that energy, that charisma that I put out there of letting it all all in, is the reason why I'm able to win my clients.17:52 - Mel (Host)
So, hey, you know I don't have any commercial holdings or anything right now, but you know, if I was interested in that area, you know I'd certainly be calling you. Yeah, I appreciate it. So you know, obviously not everything's on the up and up and we've all seen ebbs and flows. When you're, you know, in charge of, you know, making sure that you get paid, how do you persevere through those times when there are, you know, some slower market periods?18:18 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, I mean, you know, obviously you got to save for rainy days and you're not always going to be having killer years, especially the last couple of years. That's one thing to keep in mind. Another thing too is as much as I like sales, commercial leasing is another vehicle for commercial real estate that keeps the lights open. In that sense I mentioned one of my first deals was like a 2,000 square foot retail lease. I mean, the know the commission wasn't that crazy. But oftentimes, you know, being within my network, I'm the commercial guy and I appreciate everyone's consideration. I do get leads but more times than not they're not to sell.18:56
You know a 10-unit apartment or you know this big listing Oftentimes it's. You know small businesses that are looking to open a restaurant or a retail space and you know I'll qualify them as best as I can I can. You know, given my experience, that you know I'll let them know what I can and can't do. But that's another thing that you know I'm certainly able to do, especially during harder times, and I will say this I've done a couple recently. I've done a couple of office deals because, as you know, downtown office, especially in San Francisco, isn't too favorable right now. But I will say that they do pay tenant rep agents a lot more to bring a good, reputable tenant into said office space. Oh, there you go. You know they're like back in my day, you know it was like five dollars a square foot, but now we're only asking for like $3 a square foot. And you know, if you have a good tenant, you kind of hold the cards and they kind of roll out the red carpet for you. If you have a good tenant, Nice.19:52 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that's good. Yeah, it's good to maintain those relationships with some of those clients over the years, for a lot of reasons obviously no-transcript.20:19 - Justin (Guest)
Is this a long-term ordeal? Are you going to use the real estate as an owner user term ordeal? Are you going to use the real estate as an owner user? Just understanding those dynamics and based off of my experience, I'll try to guide them as best as I can. I think the biggest thing is what I found that you get more respect from your clients is actually disagreeing with them. Having those harder conversations saying, well, did you think about this factor, or what about this, or what about this scenario? Yeah, so the conversations that aren't as smooth, I can't always be a yes man. Oftentimes, when they circle back, they're like you know what? You had a good point, I didn't think about that, thank you.20:56 - Mel (Host)
Yeah yeah, disagreeing doesn't always mean arguing and I think that sometimes people have a hard time, you know, kind of thinking like well, geez, you know, if I disagree with them it's going to sink this deal. And I've always found that people, if you tell them about, you know some of these concerns, some of these realities you know in the way that they're thinking, that they may not have perceived. That's why you're there I mean you're there to you know, to help them understand. You know benefits or risks that they may not see on their own. That's, you know. That's a big part of, I think, your job.21:27 - Justin (Guest)
Commercial real estate right now because it's a tougher market. When I do my broker opinion of value on these properties, I try to be as real as I can with them saying you know, maybe their expectation is the price is here. I think it's here, why Right?21:44 - Mel (Host)
Right, right, yeah, you should be able to educate them on it. You should have the knowledge to not just be like, no, it's here and you know that wouldn't be a very power. That discussion wouldn't lead anywhere, I would think.21:55 - Justin (Guest)
There are and there are other people too that will quote unquote, buy the listing, saying, yeah, you know, I, I think it's such a high price, Let me get the listing, and then it'll sit on the market. And then you know they'll ask for a price reduction and be like, oh you know, it just didn't work out and he ended up selling the actual property at the price that was. Kind of hits me. Sometimes I'm like, yeah, that's how I evaluated the property and it sold at that number anyways, but you wasted a ton of time and effort, yeah.22:23
I don't know it's going back to like my strategy. I try to be as pragmatic, as real as I can and tell my side of the story of how I view the property. But you know other people have different strategies, so whatever.22:36 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah Well, I mean, sometimes you know what you want to do and what you can do. You can't always bridge those gaps, but doing what you can, you know actually trying to be real, trying to be forthcoming with all these things. You know it can take a little bit of time. How do you make sure that you're, you know, taking that time to educate your clients? But you know, balancing the work life, you know combination and making sure that you also have time to actually enjoy your life while you're in the middle of some of those demands.23:06 - Justin (Guest)
I'd say the good thing about pickup basketball is I've been doing it for so long and I think for me, health, just being active, is a big part of my life. It's actually therapeutic in that sense. I play ball every Wednesday night from 730 to 10 and then every Saturday morning from 10 to 12.30. That's, you know, no buts, no ifs, ands. Like that's something that I'm committed to. And having said that, like I'm super competitive and whether it's real estate or trying to get the game winning points, it's something that kind of resonates anyways. And having said that, like it's it's good to be in good health, I do things such as meditation, just trying to wake up early, you know, going to the gym, having my moments as well, cause once the day fully starts, I mean it can get a little, especially in real estate, it can be a little chaotic. I mean you have to go from one one part of the Bay area to the next and you know that's okay, that comes with the business.24:08 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, you know, and I think some of these things that people have a hard time doing is looking at things with yourself. As you know, that's a meeting, right, and that meeting can be just as important as a meeting that you're having with a client, you know. So, your pickup game while somebody who doesn't enjoy basketball may not understand how important that is to you, you still know that it is, and I think that that's the important thing that a lot of people need to realize is that, yeah, you have those business things you have to do. You have to set up time to file all of the things you have to file for clients Super important. But meditating, waking up early, playing pickup basketball, I mean, do you agree? Those are just kind of, in a way, as important, you know, as the things you're doing with clients.24:51 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, I mean, there's something to be said about mental health, your own inner peace. You know you're only as if you're not, if you don't have everything situated internally, you can't be doing what's best for you, for your clients. If you're a little bit more rattled in that sense and you know it doesn't have to be basketball If people like hiking or other things that keep them going, that's, that's totally fine, you know yeah.25:12 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, personally, for me it's a walk, you know I'm like, I've like, even though it's getting cold here, you know I, I'm, I'm still bundling up and going out and taking walks a couple of times a day, because to me that's, you know, getting my mind reset, getting a, you know, into a good place mentally, where I can then prepared to do things for other people. Is is important to them as it is to me, right?25:35 - Justin (Guest)
So that's the funny thing too. When I do my one Wednesday run for basketball, it's probably the most intense games, because this is like midweek for all these guys that they're doing their grind and everyone looks forward to ball. To kind of release all that tension in that sense.25:53 - Mel (Host)
Um, well, speaking of tension and the things that give you that, um, what are some of the biggest changes? Uh, cause, you know changes can definitely be. You know they can be, uh, relieving on the backside, but they can be kind of tense. What are some of the biggest changes you've seen in the real estate industry, as you've been in this career now for nine years?26:13 - Justin (Guest)
I'd say, you know, just shifting between buyers and sellers markets. You know, I'd say that's. You know, in previous years, when interest rates were more favorable, you know times were good, even for retail and office. You can get really good rents. Like you know, it was more on the landlord side and now you know it's shifting otherwise and hopefully it gets better in 2025.26:38
But, especially for office and retail, I think it's going to take several years for San Francisco, and Oakland for that matter, to get the workforce back to what it was pre-COVID. But it's just adjusting that shift and having these conversations with your clients. They have these expectations, whether it's multifamily, retail or office, that the price is here. But because of all these mitigating factors, it's having those hard conversations. And you know, especially for loan maturity as well, for some of these higher price commercial properties, you know when the loans do, what's the plan? Right, right. And the evaluation of the property was much higher before, especially in downtown San Francisco. It might be significantly lower. And what is the game plan? Right, right? Yeah, those are the conversations we're having now.27:31 - Mel (Host)
Yeah.27:51 - Justin (Guest)
Well, how do you kind of stay ahead of those kinds of trends so that you going on throughout commercial real estate? In regards to my off time, I network. I'm very much involved in a nonprofit called ARIA, which is Asian Real Estate Association of America. I'm also involved in CCIM, which is another commercial real estate intensive organization. But, you know, going to different events, stay at the markets, learning about different trends. You know, speaking to my peers you get a better sense, not only on a macro level but even on a micro level, of what's going on in the Bay Area.28:30 - Mel (Host)
So, from your own experience recently, are there any trends that you're seeing that are kind of starting out that people should be aware of, should be paying attention to, you know, right now, as the market is possibly going through another shift?28:45 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, I think multifamily is pretty stable. You know there's always going to be a need for housing. I think that you know, at least on the local level, in terms of public perception and feeling safe, I think that policy is definitely heading in the right direction from what it was four years ago, so hopefully that that should improve multifamily in that sense. I think that retail is always. You know you're not going to have your big Sears floor space. Like you know, retail is is getting better, but it's just it's shifting in a lot of ways. You know, for retail plazas, every 10, 15 years they have to adapt to the consumer. You know what is the new consumer? What do they want? You know what are the food trends, what are? You know how do people shop? Obviously, amazon and e-commerce is a big factor now, so they had to adjust their playing field in that sense. But it's good that you know post-COVID, that people are going out there and you know spending money and doing what we were doing before the pandemic happened.29:51 - Mel (Host)
In my area. You know, nobody ever expected food trucks would be, as you know, common or as good you know as they are, and you know that left a lot of brick and mortars unhappy about it, until some of the brick and mortars decided, well, you know what we can. We can actually have a food truck and go send it to these events too. And then, you know, here's our brick and mortar name in front of new audiences and, you know, in new environments, and I think it's one of those you know kinds of things that nobody saw that trend coming and all of a sudden it's now relied on by a number of people. I mean delivery.30:21 - Justin (Guest)
Oh my God Right, people take out delivery like it's, it's, it's, it's nutty, you know.30:29 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I mean, people definitely are of the mind sometimes and I think that that's probably you know something with uh, with people who are newer coming up, that they can just pick up the phone or they can go to their app and they can order something, and while to some degree, sure, that's true, but but you know, you're definitely you know a kind of a, a hands-on business. I would, I would think where you're really. You know, have you seen any kind of trends you know in uh, your industry like that.30:58 - Justin (Guest)
That that people are kind of thinking is a is a good thing.31:00
Yeah, I mean, I'd say most restaurants right now, the uh and, mind you, the business model some, some of them work, um, but that traditional sit-down restaurants with the full, full kitchen and and the floor space in that sense, um, while there is a need in terms of new businesses, that everyone's pushing for what we call a QSR, which is a quick service restaurant like a Chipotle, something more on the go, because you don't need as much square footage, you can get a higher count, especially during lunch and dinner time, and you can still have a really good product Like it's as you've seen with Chipotle, like it's not cheap anymore, like you'd still get a pretty high price point in that sense, really good products Like it's as you've seen with Chipotle, like it's not cheap anymore, like you'd still get a pretty high price point in that sense, and uh, you know the the setup isn't as crazy versus, you know, a full on um sit down restaurant where you know you need a whole team for, for for that business model.31:50 - Mel (Host)
Right, right, right, yeah, very different, very different models. Things have definitely, uh, changed in in that, yeah, and I know what you're saying. I mean we could go on about that, but how about let's let's get gears and let's let's talk about some of the people who are listening to this. I mean, obviously you know, as somebody who's been in this for a while and you've been doing this, what are some things that you've learned along the way that you wish some, some advice, maybe that somebody you wish had given you when you were getting started, that you can pass on now to other folks.32:20 - Justin (Guest)
Oh well, I mean there's there's a lot of things to keep in mind, but I think the biggest thing is going back to mental health.32:26
I mean, you know your first couple of years you're going to you're going to get your butt kicked.32:29
There's going to be more L's, more losses, than than anything. I think that a lot of times, especially for commercial real estates I mean, it's a much longer sales cycle. So you know, going back to mentally just grinding on these deals, being persistent, seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and continuing to get better, because I will say this, with every transaction I have internally I have a lot more confidence and it resonates for the next conversation with prospective clients, whether a hot lead or what have you. But the more experience you have, the better suited you are and people can feel that because it's not something theoretically speaking of what you learned in the books about real estate, but you've been in the grind, you've done these transactions, you know how hard it is and that will make you so much better in the long run. But for the first couple of years, I'd say just getting your hands immersed in different deals and learning in that sense and and just getting your butt kicked early on will make you better in the long haul.33:40 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, I think you know, I recall this is something that I've not just heard you know basketball players say, but I've heard other people in business say is that you know you need to take away a lesson from the L's right. You know you need to lose up and you need to lose in so many different ways that there's no other choice than for you to succeed.34:01 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, and even going back to basketball. I mean, there's such a big social aspect for basketball it's not you know you play and you know you go home or whatever. There's a big you know on the sidelines, these conversations, you know and you network and you find other ways. You know how do you get better. You often talk to your not your colleagues, but your teammates. You know and slowly you pay your dues and hopefully you become a better player. That's the plan.34:30 - Mel (Host)
And I think that's, you know, one of the reasons why you know, working with other people, having networks, having people who are you know, who are you know in that kind of mentor relationship, can be really good, because you'll have somebody who on the sidelines is going to say, hey, this is a pretty common mistake that I'm seeing you make and helping that person to navigate their way through that. What are some of the common mistakes that you see people who are kind of new to this do? What are some of those?34:59 - Justin (Guest)
Well, your analogy to basketball, to commercial real estate, is perfect. It's being coachable, because not everyone wants to hear you keep missing the shots or you keep not getting the listing. Here's why Not everyone wants to hear that. I think being humble and taking a step back and being open-minded in that sense and sometimes there are things where you might be like you're doing this for a reason or we can agree to disagree, but at least having an open perspective to hear people out and make your assessment from there that's a life lesson, right lesson right, yeah, yeah.35:33 - Mel (Host)
I think being coachable is one of those things in so many ways in life. If I was to go rock climbing today sure, I did it when I was in my twenties but I would definitely hire somebody to say no, this is how you want to do that. I don't want to be a hundred feet up making a bad decision like that.35:49 - Justin (Guest)
So, yeah, the things that I did before in my twenties for basketball. I'm not as nimble to do it in my late 30s now, exactly, exactly, yeah, you have to evolve.35:59 - Mel (Host)
You know you definitely do. Yeah, and being coachable, I think, is going to work in your favor, and not just real estate, but kind of in any area of your life. That's right. Where is a resource? How can people locate a resource that you know, whether it's a book, a website, an app that you're using, that's really helped you in your business, that you could recommend other people kind of investigate, look into?36:27 - Justin (Guest)
I mean I use SF Business Times, I use CoStar, I use Crexie. Those are platforms specifically to commercial real estates, not only, at least for Crexie and CoStar. Not only do they have listings but you know they have general trends that go on within the Bay Area. I always try to stay on top of news in that sense. I mean you know there's plenty of sales books. In that sense I'll just leave it at that yeah, no, that's great.36:56 - Mel (Host)
I mean, you've named a couple of things that I think are helpful so, you know, if somebody is looking into your area, I think that would be a great place for them to start. And you know, I find sometimes one tool leads to another.37:09 - Justin (Guest)
Sometimes yeah, and you know, in terms of commercial real estate, in terms of education, specifically CCIM, which is Certified Commercial Investment Member, that's an organization that does offer intensive investment classes where you'll do the exercise of underwriting a deal, you'll do the aspect of the marketing in terms of demographics for a retail property, a lot of macro level stuff. If you really want to invest and put the time into it, I'd say that that would be probably the best resource if you really want to hone down in commercial real estate.37:45 - Mel (Host)
Nice, I appreciate the recommendation there. If somebody is kind of doing, well, they've got these things down, they've done the investment of time, they've researched these things, they know what they're doing but they're not in a position to scale what's something that they could then kind of do as a first step to start scaling up their career in the industry.38:06 - Justin (Guest)
Definitely your farm, meaning that wherever you want to specialize whether it's in your neighborhood or your parents' neighborhood or somewhere that you're comfortable with where you want to target, just getting to know all the players and going back to it what's your product type? Was it multifamily, retail or a little bit of everything? Like starting off, it's good to be a little bit more honed down because, especially when you start off like you're so scatterbrained at times, you know keep it simple and then build upon identifying who are the players there and, obviously, to market yourself and farm. That said, area Nice.38:48 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think definitely. You know, building a network of people is never going to be a bad thing, and you know trusted people. You can bounce questions off. It's always going to come back and help you. And then you find out that you're the one answering questions.39:01 - Justin (Guest)
So yeah, full circle right.39:04 - Mel (Host)
Right, right, right. So what's I mean? I think you've touched upon this already in a way, but what are some of the ways that you've used, you know to techniques, to build it and maintain strong relationships with clients?39:15 - Justin (Guest)
Follow-up it's follow-up. It's not very complicated. In that sense, whether it's residential or commercial, real estate is always going to be a relationship industry and I hope that, whether it's Zillow or AI and all these other things that are theoretically trying to outsource real estate, but at the end of the day it still is a relationship business. It still is guiding your clients, whether it's investment or owner, user or for residential, helping a newly wedded couple start their family, having that expertise and being that beacon of light, that guidance.39:56
In that sense, Just understanding that that will always be a big part of real estate and just remembering little things. In that sense I mean this can be very small, but a happy birthday or Christmas, or just maybe the anniversary of when you sold said property, or just maybe the anniversary of when you sold said property. There are many different ways to touch a client and, more so than anything, that the highest form of passing it forward from the client is a referral, meaning that I trust you so much I will put my good friends with you because I trust that you will do a good job as well. Love, a good referral.40:38 - Mel (Host)
It's the cherry on top. Yeah, really, it really is, and I think that you've you kind of touched upon this too. I mean, one of the other ways is, you know, like you know, so you're seeing something shift. You talked about that planning that you're doing with those clients and you know making sure, hey, are you still on that plan? Because the way I'm seeing things, it might be start to make some take some action on that plan if you weren't already.41:04 - Justin (Guest)
That's right. Is it a short-term plan? Is it a five-year plan? Is it a 10-year plan? Some of these commercial deals they know the market's bad, it's okay. They're just hanging on to it until things get better. Other people yeah, they need to have an exit strategy and cash out and shift to the next thing. But that's okay. Everyone's different.41:22 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah. And plans, you know, for people definitely change. I know that I've abruptly changed some of mine. You know, like children, things like that, can you know, can sometimes do that to you. As far as how you've been able to develop yourself, you know, do you believe the key to or I guess I'd say what would you say is the key to a strong personal brand in real estate, how did you develop your brand? You know, again, setting yourself apart from others in your area.41:54 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, I mean, I'm not gonna lie, I'm a little bit more quirky than your typical commercial real estate agents.41:59
You know I'm comfortable in my skin but trying to be at least what the cool kids do now being a little bit more social media savvy. You know, commercial real estate, from a marketing perspective, is always one step behind on residential, just in terms of you know how you market a property or like just different things to put yourself out there. I always feel that commercial is one step behind and maybe it's because they're an old boys club or they're more traditional, but eventually, you know, things do shift, uh, to what the residential heads do. So I think for myself, being younger, it's to my advantage where you know the older heads are not doing social media, they are not informing clients or, you know, educating in that sense on a platform that they often overlook. That's actually one of my 2025 business plan goals is to you know everyone's a little bit shy at times, but to put yourself out there more and hopefully maybe get some more business, but it's something where I would like to see how that goes.43:03
Well, it's an evolving world and you have to evolve with it, and I think one of the things that happens is that people reach a point where they feel like they don't need to educate themselves anymore on those new things, those new trends in some ways, and I think that's you know, that's when you get old, right right and I think you know starting off with commercial real estate too, like just getting out there and feeling uncomfortable, whether it's, you know, an appointment, a cold call, or going on a podcast, or putting yourself out there on social media, like you know there's there's so many different ways you can go about your business and, you know, being a trendsetter is certainly pretty cool too.43:39 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, it certainly isn't a bad thing, but putting yourself out there I mean you know there runs the risk sometimes of that not going as planned. Do you have any stories of when a client relationship didn't go as planned and how you managed your way through that situation?43:54 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, no, I've had a couple of lessons in that sense. But well, if you really don't know your stuff, you shouldn't speak upon it, you'll get in trouble. I know they say fake it till you make it, but especially for these bigger deals, when you see something where you're not too sure about I won't say it's burned deals, but it hasn't been pretty in that sense. And it gives me a lesson too, like you know, for one I shouldn't have said that aloud. And second is, why did I not know that? Like I should be better? Right, it's one of those humbling lessons in that sense. And you know, that's why I'm on a team and that's why I work with other colleagues in the industry to to know what I'm good at and what I'm not good at and to partner up accordingly.44:37 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, Well, I think that's one of the good things is, if you have somebody you can lean on for those areas where you're maybe, yeah, that's a good thing.44:46 - Justin (Guest)
Yeah, with commercial real estate there's so many different ways. I mean there's hotels, there's apartments. There's a slew of slew of commercial real estate and I'm not going to be good. I'm probably not going to be good at a hotel or a gas station, but I'm probably gonna be good at apartments and you know what.45:02 - Mel (Host)
That's okay right, yeah, yeah, I think. Uh, you know, as they say, the riches are in the niches and uh, you know, you try to do everything. Uh, you're not going to do anything.45:11 - Justin (Guest)
Well, yeah, I mean, like I said early, I'll try, but sometimes I'm like I'm a little out of my league, you know.45:19 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, well, all right. Well, let's move from some of the humbling moments to you know something that you know maybe it's a little boastful something that has been maybe your proudest moment that's happened in real estate.45:31 - Justin (Guest)
I mean, just on a side note, I mentioned ARIO, asian Real Estate Association of America. I mean, just on a side note, I mentioned ARIA, asian Real Estate Association of America. I mean that was something. It's unpaid, it's a nonprofit, obviously, but in terms of leadership skills and just intrinsically getting better as a person, I joined ARIA in the Greater East Bay chapter pretty close to when I started real estate and you know I started with that organization, you know, obviously for business, for networking, just like you know right. But then, you know, my broker told me to get involved with ARIA, but not just attend, but, you know, make an impact and that's how you're going to have a more fulfilling experience with an organization. So I did join the board and then fast forward like it was crazy, but you know, I became president in 2019 for the board, which was awesome. Being so young and, you know, holding a board down, let alone my own business, was quite a challenge.46:30
But 2019 also rolled over into COVID, which no one saw coming, and the funny thing about that was this isn't all real estate related, but I'm very proud of it in the sense where I was president for two years in 2020 and 2021. And while we couldn't do a lot of things that you typically can do for a non-pandemic sort of year, but you know we did fundraise and we did give back to the community. You know, at a time of need where hospitals needed more masks, you know we fundraised you know over $15,000 and dispersed that to several hospitals throughout the Bay Area and then we were able to get some recognition. You know ARIA is a national organization and for one of those years we got chapter of the year and it was probably one of the younger presidents I think I still am now that I think about it but you know one of the younger presidents to lead a chapter when no one really knew what to do, and you know, even for my own business, just how I talk and how I approach clients like that whole experience was very empowering for me and just just to lead an organization made me better for it.47:43
And you fast forward to 2021, when there were a lot of hate crimes in the Bay area, especially in the Asian, asian community. I actually spoke up on behalf of Aria in Oakland, chinatown, and talked about some of the injustices that were going on and called it out. And I mean, you know, I came with the intent to get business for real estates but with the pandemic and all these other things that happened next thing. You know, I'm at a rally and definitely outside of my comfort zone, right, right, definitely outside of my comfort zone. But when I take a step back and reflect on what I did, what I accomplished and, from a leadership perspective, how much I grew, that is invaluable and that's something that I'm very proud of.48:24 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, there's something to be said about helping other people. It's one of those things that is so rewarding in a different way than financial can be, and there's so many ways to do that right. You could be the person who brings you know a can to a food drive of food when you know when you're down on your luck, but you can be a person who stands up in front of other people being very uncomfortable. You know saying these things. Or you know fundraising for the hospital. I mean those, and the cool thing is that you did so many of those in such a short period of time. That's really. I mean, pat yourself on the back, if you haven't already, because that's pretty awesome, right, and that's the thing too.49:01 - Justin (Guest)
I mean, obviously we have real estates and then there's basketball and all that, but there's other things too. I like to give back whenever I can, and that's one of the things that I do, so yeah, I would say if you're feeling down, give something to somebody who needs it, man, you will.49:17 - Mel (Host)
You will immediately feel, feel a heck of a lot better. And I just wanted to say the ARIA, as you've been calling it A-R-E-A-A, am I correct? That is correct, yeah, yeah. So yeah, if people want to check that out, see if there's a chapter near them, you know, I think that would be pretty cool for a lot of people and might, you know, might again lead to some of those kind of networking and growth moments that people could be looking for. That's right.49:40 - Justin (Guest)
You know national organization, different chapters, and I just so happen to be in the Bay Area, but you know, I'd say collectively, like we're family, it's a very solid organization.49:53 - Mel (Host)
Nice. What do you see kind of going forward for you? I mean, you've made all of these accomplishments already. I mean you've been the president of this chapter. You've been in this business now for nine years. Over the next five to 10 years, what are some goals, some dreams that you are kind of working toward putting together for yourself? I mean straight up.50:12 - Justin (Guest)
you know, doing more and bigger deals. That's something that everyone wants. But right now I'm currently on a team, but maybe in the next five, 10 years do my own thing, to be honest.50:24 - Mel (Host)
Would you want to build your own team, or would you want to be completely independent or kind of TBD?50:29 - Justin (Guest)
Let's do TBD for now. I like the aspect of a team. I think through my experience with Aria and the leadership that has certainly done well for me in that sense. But you know, right now we're in a tougher market and maybe I'm just being a little little little scared. But to make that jump, that would be something to to keep in mind down down the road. And I'll leave it at that.50:54 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, hey, you know, and yeah, dreams you know, kind of shift. It's cool to think of you know doing these things on your. You know more on your own and I think everybody likes being surrounded by a group in some way or another. You know that that are helping you and so that's pretty cool. I'd love to see where you end up going, you know, with this in in five to 10 years.51:14 - Justin (Guest)
So yeah, I mean, life is funny that way, like you know going when I was 27 in LA, then going into commercial real estate and then being with Aria and speaking on the podium, and you know, life takes you in a bunch of different places.51:28 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, unexpected, and usually in, uh, in some good ways. And uh, what? What's your legacy that you want to, uh, you know, leave the real estate world with? I mean, you know you often don't get, I think, statues, uh, you know, but, uh, but, what's your, I guess, the profession better for you, having been in it.51:49 - Justin (Guest)
I'd say right now it's happening already where it's the change of hands between some of the older commercial real estate guys that have been sent in their ways or maybe not as forthcoming for sharing deals and whatnot. Then there's the new guys in town that are, I won't say, changing practices within commercial real estate but opening the business to the table. In that sense, and I think it is happening with the chains of guard, there's a lot more buyers that are getting into commercial real estate. And I'm just saying this for Old Boys Club it used to be kind of narrow and closed on who does these deals before, and that's changing. And I'm just saying this for old boys club. It used to be kind of narrow and closed on who does these deals before, and that's changing and I'm going to be a part of that.52:27 - Mel (Host)
So yeah, breaking down silos is a is really good, whether they're information or they're just kind of like you know, like these towers of people have built for themselves. Sometimes knocking those down, leveling them for people who are coming in can be a wonderful, wonderful thing. So thank you for your part in that. All right, well, let's, you know, get away from that. I was, you know, kind of in depth looking at the future but looking across all of the properties that you've worked with, what are some of the most interesting or unusual ones that you've ever worked with? You know either building or, I guess you know client or some combination.53:05 - Justin (Guest)
I mean that 35 unit multifamily I mentioned before that was in. That was in Stockton. It wasn't in the best part of town and you know I had to get their cooperation for inspections and whatnot and other weird things where I don't necessarily feel safe. Other weird things where I don't necessarily feel safe there's that I've done some deals in the tender loan in San Francisco.53:32
Commercial real estate isn't always as pretty as like the luxury homes you see for residents and people, let's just say that yeah, and I think I've done some mixed use deals where the whole thing should honestly just get demolished because like it's in terrible shape and I don't know if it's safe. You know, you see a slew of those things that get done and it comes up with the territory.53:52 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah. So we'll leave it at that. If you weren't in this world, like you know, you've probably, you know, done some different things before you got into real estate. But if it wasn't for real estate, what do you think? What do you see yourself doing? If, all of a sudden, tomorrow, you're just like you know what I'm done, what would you shift to? What would you pivot to?54:14 - Justin (Guest)
Well, I mean, I know we're on this podcast. I'm very much into sports. I do my own. It's like a personal, you know, my personal project. But you know I do a sports podcast called Just the West. My name is Justin, you know, just covering the NFC West. So I probably start with something with sports. I'm a very passionate San Francisco 49ers fan, warriors fan, giants fan, but football would be number one for me. So, in regards to something that I really like outside of real estate, it would probably be something in the sports mantra of where, where I plug whether it's marketing or sales, I don't know but I'm I'm super competitive and that's something that I would look into.54:57 - Mel (Host)
All right, we get that. You're competitive, got the sports.55:01 - Intro (Host)
All right.55:02 - Mel (Host)
What is something that people maybe don't know about you, but probably should?55:07 - Justin (Guest)
Oh, you know, going back to Aria, Asian real estate and whatnot, I mean I have a very unique story where I'm fifth generation Chinese. My family actually came here in the 1880s San Francisco. They were around for 50 something years and they couldn't buy property because they weren't allowed to the Wong Laundry thing that you always hear. That did happen. It's a real thing. I'd say that early on growing up I didn't know I'm not white enough, I'm not Asian enough. I'm unique in that sense. My parents had a very American childhood and so, yeah, my family has been around and we have a lot of history in the United States, in the Bay Area, and so real estate has been very well for my family and it will continue to be a big part for my family and you know it will continue to be a big part.56:08 - Mel (Host)
Nice, well, that's good. Yeah, I mean, that's definitely quite a few generations back. I mean, I know some people who have far fewer generations in this land, so that's pretty cool to know that you've been around, your family's been around, and in that area too, for that long. So, yeah, no for sure. Now, this is one of those things that's just kind of more for fun and it's one of the ways that we like to kind of conclude every episode of the Inner Circle podcast with it's to ask you the question, as we work toward the end if you could buy and live in any place in the world, any property in the world, no limitations on price, location, size, style, et cetera where would it be and why? Why would that appeal to you?56:50 - Justin (Guest)
This doesn't really I mean in terms of pragmatically, but I'm a kid at heart. The idea of living in Japan would be super cool. I love the food, I love the culture, I'm very much into anime and all that, but I know that real estate is a little bit limited and it might be smaller. So I mean, obviously I I try to get, get a better place in Japan, but that would be something that would be pretty cool. And I, I love the culture, I love how they they have manners, they, you know their respect to one another. The food that would be something that would be pretty cool for me.57:26 - Mel (Host)
I think the layers of craftsmanship alone, where they think you're a beginner at something until you've been doing it for 20 years, it's very unique to us Americans, yeah.57:37 - Justin (Guest)
I marvel at it for sure. So I marvel at it for sure, yeah.57:42 - Mel (Host)
All right. Well, let's look at something else here. I guess what I would want to know is are there any other kind of funny stories that you've had that you'd love to share with people here, Whether it's something that happened while you were showing a property or while you were doing that final tour, final walkthrough with a client? Is there something weird that's happened in your experiences?58:12 - Justin (Guest)
I won't say it was weird, it was kind of scary. I showed a property and there was a squatter, there was someone that was not welcome to the place, and you know it's like. You know I won't say it's like a robbery, but you know, instantly my nerves just jumped up, oh yeah, yeah. And then I took the client you know get back and close, and I had to call the listing agent and you know they called the cops and whatnot. Yeah, I mean that was in the Bay Area.58:48 - Mel (Host)
That's in Oakland. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You never know how those situations are going to go, so yeah, getting the client out of there.58:54 - Justin (Guest)
I think that's the right thing. And, mind you, when you show properties you do put yourself in, depending on the neighborhood, but you know, uh, not not in the best part of town. You gotta be very wary, you gotta be very street smarts. Yeah, like uh, it's a thing for sure.59:09 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, no, I definitely, uh, definitely understand that. Yeah, you gotta, it's good to know the lay of the land. It's good to have somebody local, you know, like yourself, who who understands. Uh, you know the street smarts that are required for that, all right. Well, that's basically as far as what I have. That's everything I got. But obviously people who are listening to this are going to want to know you know who you are, how they can connect with you. You know, maybe they're also interested in, you know, some of the teams that you mentioned. Maybe they're interested in your pickup basketball games, how, how they reach you, how, where can people find you? Or you know you got some clients out there who want to work with you as well.59:49 - Justin (Guest)
If you want to go for social stuff, it's pretty easy Instagram at the underscore J, underscore Wong. Twitter at the same thing the underscore J, underscore Wong. Also, my blog is on Spotify. It's just the West and NFC West podcast. Yeah, I mean, I think one of the things too is I'm open to social media. I'm trying to be better. So, like I said, one of my goals for 25 is to put more real estate intensive content out there, so you might see me on, who knows, you might see me on TikTok, I don't know. I still got to figure that out.01:00:23 - Mel (Host)
All right. Well, hey, you know what? We'll tag you. We'll get things started on getting you out there in social media. We'll tag you in this podcast when it goes out so that people can also do that and you can share us with your network so people maybe who haven't seen this side of you can see a little bit more of that. Excellent, I appreciate your time. This was awesome, definitely. Thank you very much for joining us, and I'm just going to wrap this up, justin, because that concludes this episode of the Inner Circle podcast, and I hope that you, justin, and I hope that everybody listening, found some enlightening things here and sure you have some great takeaways now on how to take a real estate career to the next level. So, thanks again, everybody, for tuning in. You can find us on Spotify, itunes, youtube and Instagram at America's Inner Circle and again, thank you very much, justin, for joining us and we'll see everybody next time.
From House-Flipping to Multifamily Deals with Justin Wong (Commercial Real Estate)
Welcome to The Inner Circle podcast! This week’s guest is Justin Wong, a commercial real estate agent from the San Francisco Bay Area, who shares his inspiring journey from his father's house-flipping projects to becoming a rising star in the industry. With nearly a decade of experience, he reflects on starting with small lease deals, transitioning to multifamily properties, and thriving as part of the San Francisco SVN Commercial Real Estate team. Justin offers valuable insights into navigating client dynamics, leveraging creative financing, and adapting to post-COVID market trends in the Bay Area's commercial sector. Beyond real estate, he reveals a passion for sports, dreams of living in Japan, and a commitment to building meaningful connections.
00:00 - Yuqi (Guest)
Just be prepared to fail, because when you first starting out whether you're going to go solo or whether you're going to go with the team, there's going to be a lot of no's before you hear yes, people say you know rejection. It's not only part of the process, but when we get enough rejection they're just information, they're not rejection anymore.
00:19 - Intro
Welcome to America's Inner Circle, the podcast that dives deep into the stories, strategies and secrets of the most successful real estate agents in the game. Whether you're an aspiring agent, a seasoned pro or just love a good success story, you're in the right place. Each episode, we sit down with top agents who share their journey from the ground up how they overcame challenges, seized opportunities and made their mark in the competitive world of real estate. Ready to learn from the best, let's unlock the keys to real estate success together. Here is your peek into the Inner Circle.
00:58 - Mel (Host)
Thanks for joining the Inner Circle podcast. I'm Mel Allen, your host, and today we're going to be joined by a guy, and I love this hook that you have with your name, yuichi. Now Yuichi is Gucci with a Y. That's funny and you know what it's memorable Like you have a great hook for your name. People obviously know who Gucci is and it's going to be hard to forget you.
01:20 - Yuqi (Guest)
Yeah, yeah, that's exactly how I came up with it, because if I just say Yuqi, yuqi, you know you have some good wins behind you.
01:46 - Mel (Host)
And it looks like you have a pretty interesting life as well, and we will tag you and your social media in this. So you know, just make sure if there's something you don't want us to share, sure, but I'm sure that it's all good. So why don't we talk a little bit about kind of how things got started for you and tell us about your journey, of how you got into real estate, what led you to this path?
02:11 - Yuqi (Guest)
When I was finishing up my last two semesters of college, I just was really trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life and I just didn't really see myself going into a traditional job. Like most people. I got my real estate license in my last semester of school. It's during the pandemic in 2020. That's when I got my real estate license and then at the time I was in Santa Barbara and Santa Barbara was a place where it was really small it's too small to really start up a real estate career and the next place will be the closest place to Santa Barbara was Los Angeles. You know, I didn't really feel too much attachment to Los Angeles, so I moved back to the Bay Area where I had originally lived for a few years, because I already knew some of the neighborhoods had a little connection there. So I moved back to the Bay in 2021. And I started my real estate career.
03:07 - Mel (Host)
Now and I saw it looks like you when you first jumped in there was maybe a little bit of property management and some other things that you did. Did that help you, I guess, knowing a little bit more about the real estate market? Exactly?
03:19 - Yuqi (Guest)
That's a great question. Before I actually sold my first house, I did work in a property management for about six months. That's actually how I got my first and second listing. I think I got two listings signed from the property management and I think I just quit. I was like you know what? Because I had plans to become a real estate agent and I would just, you know, work in the property management to ramp things up. And I got two listings at the job and you know I told everybody I would say, hey, this has always been what I wanted to do. I really thank you for the opportunity. So I kind of just took the two listings and ran with it and just never looked back.
04:06 - Mel (Host)
And is that really kind of how your first deal, your first successful real estate transaction, started? Kind?
04:10 - Yuqi (Guest)
of yes. You know what? Yes, because when I took my first listing from the property management, it was not an easy listing. It was a listing, you know, we had tenants in place, we had the tenant, we had tenants in place, we had the tenant. Actually, when I got the first listing, my first listing was $1.86 million.
04:31
It was at the time the seller actually had a listing agreement with another well-known real estate agent in our area but it was too much trouble for that real estate agent. She didn't want to deal with it anymore Because the tenant in the house that was really violent and the tenant actually told her, said you know what? So the tenant basically threatened her, said don't ever come to my house, don't ever, just don't leave me alone. So she had too much of trouble and she basically fired you know, fired my seller and at the time, you know, being so new in the industry, I was like you know what, I'll gladly take this on. I have nothing else better to work on. You weren't scared off, I wasn't scared off. So I took this project on and it did, you know, really take a long time to get everything in place to get the property sold.
05:26 - Mel (Host)
Well, I mean that's great, you know I mean obviously not so great that the person had to deal with that, but you know that set things up for you to take this deal on and make that, you know, first successful transaction and as you kind of got going and got some more transactions under your feet, what were some pivotal moments or, you know, turning points that made you realize this was really where you want it to be.
05:50 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think the satisfaction that you get each closing either it's helping buyers get their first home, second home or helping a seller to sell the home beyond, beyond the paycheck I do feel a big sense of accomplishment when each client expresses their gratitude towards you Just people, when they show off oh Richie, thank you so much. You really helped us, you really educated us on this process, or you really went out of your way to help us get what we wanted in terms of the price. So I do think they're, behind the paycheck, a big sense of appreciation that the people, the clients, show towards you about the work that you do. I think that really plays a big part of what makes my job meaningful.
06:45 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, I mean, you're an expert in these areas that they probably know almost nothing about. So what are some of the unique things that you've developed in your approach to real estate that sets you apart? I mean, I think the fact that you're saying you're helping, you're solving a problem for people, I think that that's pretty unique, but on your own, what do you think is kind of unique about the way that you've managed to do this?
07:07 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think, living in a world where there's just so many real estate agents, I do think trust is the biggest thing. I think when you meet with a client, you're having that conversation, whether it's through the screen, but most likely in person the screen, but most likely in person when the person you're talking next to you you're talking to either it's a potential client or a current client, when they feel that they can really trust this person, not only that this person has the ability to execute the job, but also this person has my best interest in their heart. So I do think that makes a big difference.
07:48 - Mel (Host)
I definitely agree. I mean, I think that you know intention speaks for a lot and trust, you know being a big intention is going to really help you, you know, maintain that relationship with people. And this is one of those areas you know, as a person who has worked for myself, I understand how you're going to have slowdowns. You can have speed ups. How do you stay motivated during those slowdowns and then also maintain consistency if things are ramping up in the markets?
08:14 - Yuqi (Guest)
That's a great question. I think most of us are entering into that season now. You know, at the end of November, December, there really aren't a lot of business to be had because most people are not just buying or selling during these seasons. You know, to be honest with you, it's challenging just to stay motivated, to keep the same routine. Still, wake up early in the morning and either it's going to the gym or, you know, track your taxes or start business planning for the next year. Not every day it's easy, but I just, you know, just gotta get it up and keep grinding. Yeah, I completely understand.
08:48 - Mel (Host)
I mean, I, you know, make to-do lists when I really don't have anything to do. You know it keeps you going and, like you're saying, it makes you, you know, get up, makes you set that alarm clock to go off the next morning. What are some of the values and principles that guide your daily work? I mean, you've already touched on trusting, but how do you make sure that your clients are really getting that best possible experience that they can from you?
09:11 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think a lot of times it's just taking myself back and to really start experiencing things from the client's perspective. So instead so instead of oh do I have is, instead of thinking that what's what's next for me in this process I really try to start think, trying to start to think what's next for the client in this process, just trying to put myself in a client's perspective.
09:38 - Mel (Host)
I think that really uh helps me to see, just just help me to understand what the client is experiencing from from their experience yeah, I think that that's a fantastic way, you know, being able to kind of externalize that perspective and and think about it from you know, what do they need to know? Uh, you already know, of course, what you think they need to know, but but from their side, what is it that they don't know? That they need to know, I think is a great, is a great way to measure how you're making progress and make sure that they feel they're making progress too. You already mentioned, too, when you're having a slowdown, getting up, going to the gym. But as things get busy or as things shift, how do you maintain that kind of balance between your personal and your professional life in real estate, especially if you are in a very demanding time in the industry?
10:29 - Yuqi (Guest)
You know, I think, as someone who's upcoming, who's relatively new in the industry, I prioritize my business over my personal life. You know, if there's a client that's calling me, and if there's two persons who are calling me at the same time, one is a client, one is a friend, and you know, at this stage of my career, I pick up the phone, I pick the client's call over my friend's. So I think it's just a matter of priorities.
10:55 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, and I can definitely understand how that is as well. You know, sometimes when you're, you know, in charge of your own destiny, you have to say you know, I've got to put, you know, I've got to pay my bills first and then then I get to nurture my relationships right yeah, For all of the other things Right Now.
11:14
You've been in this for four years. We've obviously been through some really interesting times. What are some of the biggest changes that you've seen in the real estate industry since you started, you know about four years ago?
11:24 - Yuqi (Guest)
you've seen in the real estate industry since you started about four years ago. I think the biggest thing is definitely the NNR settlement when I first started in 2021, basically, anybody can just call up any agent and write an offer and we'll get paid right away if the offer is accepted and the transaction closed. But that's not the case anymore. Now there is more hoops, there's more regulations, there's more transparency, there's more education that need to be had up front with the buyer and or even with the seller, before you can, before you can get paid. It definitely regulates. It regulated the industry in a more professional towards the more professional spectrum, but there's definitely more professional towards the more professional spectrum. But there's definitely more transparency on the table and there's higher standards also on the table too, since I started.
12:14 - Mel (Host)
Well, you know, I mean, I think a lot of those probably are intended to, you know, to help the clients that you're working with. So probably some frustrations and learning curves in that, but but it's hard to say that it seems like it's a, it's a bad shift. Speaking of shifts, when there are changes that are coming in this, when there are trends, when there are shifts in the marketplace, how do you what's your kind kind of process in adjusting and adapting to those we're staying ahead of?
12:42 - Yuqi (Guest)
them. Really Just keep an open mind, I think we go to NNR trainings, car trainings and also our offices have trainings from brokers and leadership from the company. Just really attend these and trying to process it again from the consumer's perspective and just co-op and also role play with your teammates and your colleagues. Just really. Because when it comes to when the NNR thing, when the buyer agreement first, the buyer agreement really started to take place, we we practiced among just teammates about what to say, how to get buyers to get comfortable, what to say when they uh push back on signing the buyer rep. So there's, it takes practice to to um, to get familiar.
13:34 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, role playing is definitely. You know, it can be mundane, it can be challenging, but it really it really does bring out I I feel like I've used it myself in training and, you know, with people and it's very helpful, you know, in the long term. So I'm glad to hear that you know you're doing some of that. Well, speaking about trends, speaking about shifts, what are some that agents and investors you think should be paying attention to, that are happening right now or that you're seeing coming?
14:00 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think when it comes to single family homes people who are on the single family sector most people are still willing to go with buyer broker agreement. They're willing to commit to working with one buyer agent who's going to find their next home and they are committed to working with that one agent. But from the investor segment, not many investors are willing to commit to one buyer because they wanted to see different deals brought to the table from different agents. So it's a different game, really Different approach.
14:38 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I can see those are. You know, there's probably a lot of conflicting things going on there where you know investors, obviously they're beholden to getting the best deal for their at the bottom line.
14:49 - Yuqi (Guest)
So, yeah, yeah, they're hesitant to to tie it up with just one agent. Yeah.
14:54 - Mel (Host)
Well, looking for people who who you know we're going to be listening to this and who are thinking this is maybe a career for me, this is maybe a path that I want to go down. What would be a piece of advice that you wish somebody had told you when you were actually getting your start?
15:12 - Yuqi (Guest)
It's a great question, I think just be prepared to fail, just really be prepared to fail, because when you're first starting out whether you, because, when you first starting out whether you're going to go solo or whether you're going to go with the team um, there's going to be a lot of no's before you hear, yes, uh, it's really, you know. People say, you know rejection it's, it's not only part of the process, but when rejection, when you get enough rejection, they're just information, they're not rejection anymore. So I think you have to be really comfortable to get yourself out there to hear no's, whether that's through in-person, whether that's through a phone call, whether that's through email. So there's going to be a lot of no's before you can make your first transaction. So it's definitely not an easy business, but it's a business that you can make your first transaction. So it's definitely not an easy business, but it's a business that you can build on if you are comfortable just getting rejected and gathering information and just wake up the next day and to renovate a different angle.
16:13 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, well, I think failure is one of those things that a lot of people think like, oh, it's never gonna happen to me, I'm never gonna be there, but I think it's inevitable. Those things that a lot of people think like, oh, it's never going to happen to me, I'm never going to be there, but I think it's inevitable. Right? You don't know what, you don't know many times and you're going to make mistakes along the way. What are some common mistakes that you see? People who are starting out that, or maybe even that, you made. We won't reveal which one it is that you think could easily be avoided by people who are getting started.
16:37 - Yuqi (Guest)
When I first started I was with a very small brokerage. It's a very local brokerage. It's really like a family-friendly environment where everybody feels like a family among each other, which is great for the business. But at the time, for any newcomers that's not really a great environment for any people who's new in the business because, as someone new, you want to make connections with people who do a lot of business in in your area and a lot of times these people are in big brands like compass, color williams, red oak in my, in my neighborhood, in my industry. So you want to be in a big brokerage where you can make connections with a lot of people who do business in your area and get yourself known, introduce yourself and conversate with these people, build a relationship. I didn't have that in my first brokerage so I think that's one of the biggest mistakes that I would have avoided had I known.
17:37 - Mel (Host)
Well, and I can see that you know a smaller brokerage where you have people who are kind of you know that that family type of environment, long term I'm sure it's really great to be there when you're well established. But you know a lot of those bigger firms have education programs. You know you're going to be doing those role playing examples and you know they know that change is happening all the time and very quickly, rather than siloing information. You know where somebody is like, well, I don't want, I don't want you to know, because then he might take away some of my business. You know, and maybe not even intentionally thinking like that, but in those big businesses, you know those larger firms, I think you know they're, they're used to kind of pivoting because that's, that's, that's how they've built their business.
18:17 - Yuqi (Guest)
Yeah, of course, and they have a lot more resources. They have a leadership team, legal counsel team, broker of record and a lot of top agents. They talk in front of the office meetings in the panels, so you have a lot more resources to object from as someone who's new. So that's definitely one of the biggest mistake that I made is by joining someone. By joining a very small boutique brokerage versus a big franchise brokerage firm where a lot of top agents that in your area work in that brokerage.
18:55 - Mel (Host)
Well, I think that leads right into the next question too, because I think you've kind of tiptoed in this area, because it sounds like this is probably your recommendation brokerage. Well, I think that leads right into the next question too, because I think you've kind of tiptoed in this area, because it sounds like this is probably your recommendation for how somebody should really take their first step if they're looking to scale up.
19:08 - Yuqi (Guest)
Yeah, and also joining finding a mentor. It's definitely one of the most important things as well, especially if you haven't done any transaction, you don't know how real estate works at all. Join a top sales team in your area where you can even if you get 20% of split for the first five 10 transactions, but you can get those experiences under rebuilt by working with the top agent in your area where your company is going to get boosted, which is essential in terms of getting new clients. So I recommend that as well.
19:49 - Mel (Host)
Great. Speaking about clients. How do you start to build and maintain those strong relationships with those clients? What's some advice that you have?
19:57 - Yuqi (Guest)
for that. Just call them, text them. I know it's hard to call nowadays because you know I mean to be honest, I struggle with that too. There's clients who I've closed. You know I had transaction with last year, two years ago. It's so hard to just pick up the phone to call them and say, hey, you know, I haven't talked to you for two years, how's the house? How's the house? You can only ask that so many times, right? So I think it's it's a lot of times. I try to be their friends on social media so that way it's easier to just comment or reply to their stories on what they're doing. That feels more, much more organic than just pick on the phone, random, and call them.
20:39 - Mel (Host)
Yeah yeah. Nobody likes those just checking in. It's like kind of like, what are you checking in?
20:43 - Yuqi (Guest)
about you know, right. I mean they know, they know what are you checking in about, right, but they still just to be polite and conversate back. But I think it's just a lot more organic if you just add it on social media.
20:57 - Mel (Host)
And social media probably is one of those ways. And this is another question that I had for you about you know, kind of building your own personal brand. I mean, obviously you are, you know, as you said, with a larger firm, but you want to stand out, you want to make yourself known. What are some ways that you think are keys to building that strong brand in real estate and how you kind of have built that for yourself?
21:18 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think you know, one of the biggest thing is definitely authenticity. Uh, you have to really stay authentic to who you are and think for, for myself, my name example, right, my name is yuchi. It's it's something that's very unique and it's you probably don't hear many of that name, um, you know, in in any industry. So that's authentic to myself. Right, that name is associated with my identity, which is not a very common name and that could be. That's my brand, right, but your brand could be you have awesome hair, or you have a great smile, you have a cool story, whatever that's unique to you. You have to really stay true to that.
22:03 - Mel (Host)
And, in fairness, you do have a little bit of a marketing background. Thinking about kind of like your brand and what thing you're going to make stand out about yourself is really an exercise that people need to go through.
22:11 - Yuqi (Guest)
Definitely.
22:12 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, definitely Now we best lay plans. You build your brand, your things are going right, but sometimes things don't go as planned. What was you know? Can you share a story of a time when maybe something didn't go the way that you had hoped, and how you managed that and how you handled that?
22:32 - Yuqi (Guest)
Last time just about a year ago, about two years ago. 2020, 2023, 2022, these years were a really tough time for buyers In our market here in the Bay, in the East Bay, berkeley, oakland market. It's really hard for buyers to get their offer accepted, and especially when the interest rate was lower and we have such shortage of housing here in East Bay. So every single family homes that you know that's put on the market usually in two weeks they're going to receive anywhere from five to 25 offers and your buyer is one of them. Your buyer is one of five, 10 or 15, sometimes 20 offers. So I think when you're working with them, you know you spend all those times finding them the home, going through the disclosures with them, going through the comps, and then you end up do place an offer in, but not the first time you're going to get your offer accepted.
23:32
So a lot of times you have to go through many times to get their offer accepted and you know those times that's not only frustrating. So a lot of times you have to go through many times to get their offer accepted and those times that's not only frustrating for the client but also it's frustrating for you as well. I think a lot of times. You just got to keep going. You just got to tell yourself I've tried my best and I can't control the outcome because I can't really get advice on how much to offer on the home. I can only give them advice. So you just really need to tell yourself you know I have delivered the best experience to my client in this transaction that I can. And if we didn't get it, let's move on to the next one.
24:09 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I think anybody who's gone through the process of buying a house has definitely had that. You know I had my heart set on that one. You know the house I'm sitting in is the only one that I've intentionally wanted to buy and bought. So there've been several along the way where it was like, well, that was not the house I wanted to be in, but you know it was a place to be and it wasn't the one I had my heart set on. But you know you need a. You need a roof over your head, so to speak. In some ways it's the only one that was available in my market. So, you know, sticking through, you know making those movements and managing those situations probably has also brought you to some really proud moments.
24:52 - Yuqi (Guest)
What are some of the proudest moments that you've had as a professional here in the real estate industry? One of the first ones that I can think of is my first listing right, my first listing. You know, the listing agent who had a listing at the time didn't want to deal with it and was freaked out and terrified by the situation because the tenant who was living in the house that the realtor tried to sell at the time was violent right. So they threatened her and they just scared her away. I think I was able to come. Someone who's hungry, someone who's brand new. I took on the challenge. Um, I, you know I handled the situation. So we, we, essentially we we bought them out and we went through a lot of hoops. It took about almost a year to get this property sold, and, you know, for a great price, and there's just beyond a paycheck. There is a big sense of satisfaction that you feel that you've accomplished something that someone else didn't accomplish. So that feels good.
25:50 - Mel (Host)
So I bet your goals have probably shifted since that first one that you've had somewhat. You're still fairly new to this, but where do you kind of see yourself going, or hope that you're going as far as dreams and goals for the next five or 10 years?
26:04 - Yuqi (Guest)
Being a real estate agent is great. I do think there's more to be pursued. I think a lot of times when a real estate agent becomes experienced once I do become more experienced and I acquire more capital I would love to get into some of the fixed flip, some buy and flip, buy and hold and a lot of these bear strategy method on top of selling real estate, because I do think selling real estate gives you a lot of perspective on how things work in the real estate industry. So I think I would love to get into these other aspects of real estate too, just to keep learning about the whole real estate industry.
26:49 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, I've flipped a house and I will say that acting as your own general contractor is an experience and you definitely learn a lot, especially when you know when timing is is of the essence, as it as it often is. Was it a positive experience for you? It really was, actually. You know it was definitely taxing. I had to go in and I had to, you know, do some of the work myself.
27:13
You know the people that I hired, while they were skilled at what they were skilled at, you know, sometimes, not always and thankfully, you know, while I didn't appreciate it at the time, my father taught me a number of skills that ended up coming in handy and allowed me to finish some jobs that were incomplete by some of the people that I'd hired to come in and do the jobs. But I also found that I was able to actually save quite a bit by, you know, kind of splitting up the work. You know, hiring somebody to pull out who is cheaper than the people who were putting in, because if those people are doing both the pulling out and putting in, the bill can quickly, quickly climb. So it was one of those lessons that I learned, quickly and early on, about doing this. So it was a very interesting property and I'm sure you know I mean you know this this first one that you dealt with probably checked a lot of boxes in the interesting category. Was it the most interesting or kind of unusual property that you've worked with so far?
28:13 - Yuqi (Guest)
There is one of the instances where you know, there was such a beautiful triplex in Oakland. It was one of the most historic buildings in Oakland. It was being meticulously restored to its old glory, its old Victorian, but also mixed with modern updates. The list of the price, the list of property well below market, the market value they listed actually like anywhere from 50% to 70% below market value. So they listed $995,000.
28:45
And I had a client who wanted to make an offer on this property and it's his first offer and our offer ended up being one of 30 offers. So there's 29 other people who also made an offer on this house and we got it and we, we, you know, we got the house just on the first try, without counter offers, just outright. So that was definitely one of the most uh amazing experience that I think I also, I experienced as well as the client. You know, I, I, I really don't. I don't think he actually fully understand how hard it is to get their offer accepted as their first offer here in the Bay Area. Not only he did that, but also he uh beat out 29 other offers and without being the highest price actually. So it was. That is amazing, that's that was.
29:36
That is something absolutely a rarity yeah, that is something I think I can't.
29:40 - Mel (Host)
I I'll remember for a long time. I can't even imagine. I mean, my neighbor's house got 25 and I think that they it was weeks of negotiating with all you know like the top five. Um, so good for you what?
29:54 - Yuqi (Guest)
what year is that? Is it still this year?
29:57 - Mel (Host)
a few years ago, gosh, it was like two years ago yeah, right, yeah years ago now, and, uh, yeah, and, and the funny thing is it's a tiny house on a large amount of property, so, um, you know, it's just this very unique, uh, piece of of land and property and house, and I couldn't believe the lines of people who were trying to get it.
30:17 - Yuqi (Guest)
Yeah, yeah, it's kind of like Black Friday a few years ago. It's Black Friday for some TVs, it's for houses.
30:25 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, yeah, I'm like boy. I don't know that I'd line up for that, but I guess I wasn't the target market If you weren't doing this with the skills you have knowing what you know. If you weren't doing this, like you know, with the skills you have, knowing what you know like if you could go back, what would you maybe think of as a different career path other than real estate? Or maybe you were already on a different career path when you switched. What would you be doing instead If I wasn't?
30:50 - Yuqi (Guest)
selling real estate. I will probably become a fix and flip guy. I'll put all my mind and my energy and my learning ability into learning how to fix and flip and also also fix and hold. Perhaps not in the Bay Area, because, you know, in a Bay Area, here it's the capital required, it's it's, it's substantial. I'll probably move to a different area, maybe Texas or Georgia and and and in these markets, because it's it's it's more doable, I think, the cap rates and the numbers and also it takes a lot less capital to start Right.
31:31 - Mel (Host)
yeah, a lot more flexibility too, I would say, with. You know some of the neighborhoods and probably you know the regulations of some of that as well. In certain areas, you know, certainly there are places, like you know, washington DC, where I wouldn't want to be doing this, but you know, 10 years ago that was a that was a hungry market for people who were looking to do that. So you know, and you got to, you got to stay on top of those trends. So you're, that'd be a very cool thing. It'd be interesting to see if you end up, you know, kind of going there, as you've already kind of mentioned it now. So let's look at you know more about you. What is, what is something? That that's you know a fun thing about you that most people may not know about you, or you know people who are only dealing with you as a real estate agent maybe wouldn't know about you.
32:26 - Yuqi (Guest)
I love competing. I love playing basketball, I love playing poker, I love playing pool, I love to win. It's also about how to put yourself forward and put your client's interest forward and to really represent them in the best way possible. So I am very competitive, I would say.
32:51 - Mel (Host)
Well, that is a good quality to have, I would say, in the industry that you're in. So that's definitely going to help you and your clients, and I'll remind myself that, if I'm ever in your area, to make sure that I bring my cue with me so we can have a friendly competition.
33:07
Yeah, if you could, you know, kind of think about your dreams about where you would like to be in the world. You know, not necessarily for an investment, not necessarily world. You know, not necessarily for an investment, not necessarily for you know for selling, but out any limitation, price, location, style. If you could buy and live in any piece of property that you know of, what would it be and why?
33:30 - Yuqi (Guest)
I will either be in Hawaii, santa Barbara or San Diego. You know, I think I'm a beach person. There's something that really there's something about the ocean that makes me feel. Every day, when I wake up, the first thing I do is to go to the ocean for a swim. I get tremendous energy from that. You know, my neck feels better. My lower back, you know my my neck feels better. My lower back feels better. The rest of my day feels better and, uh, I just love being around the ocean. I think these will be. If it were up to me and you know, my dream were to be fulfilled, I would love to be in one of these places, buy a property in one of these places.
34:15 - Mel (Host)
Well, as a person who's visited Hawaii a couple of times, I will tell you that it's hard to have a bad time when you're there, especially if you like surfing and you're near the North Shore.
34:24 - Yuqi (Guest)
Exactly.
34:31 - Mel (Host)
What's the kind of the craziest, funniest thing that's ever happened while you were in the middle of showing a property. I mean, you know, I wouldn't say that being threatened by you know the person at that first property would be a funny thing really, but you know.
34:39 - Yuqi (Guest)
I think a lot of times when you meet a neighbor, when you go, you know, when you go to show a property and a neighbor happens to be there sometimes a tenant happens to be there and you know they tell you, they tell you too much about the house than you care about, and it's sometimes it's like you know, know what, you know, I, I've heard enough, but like no, no, no, let me, you haven't heard the stories from 20 years ago about what happened to this house and uh, but you know, yeah, with your clients, they just bombarding you with the information and but you're like, you know, in one hand they're just being so hospitable and enthusiastic about you know, telling you about the house, but but on the other hand, you feel like you know we've heard enough, we just want to walk away and take a look at the bathroom again, and you know, but they're still so eager to tell you about everything, about the neighborhood or the house.
35:27
So I think those new situations do happen and it's funny, and actually another funny story, I think, is this one time, I think, the house I told you about that my client, you know, he got his offer accepted for, you know, for one of the 30 offers, right, and you know we're doing the final walkthrough. We're doing a final walkthrough. It was supposed to be a quick, two minutes final walkthrough, just me and my client and a seller's agent, but the seller happened to be there. You know, the seller, you know, had probably owned the house for 40 years and you know it was first time that he met face to face with the buyer and he was so, so excited and he just literally spent next two hours and and and in explained every detail about the house, about the memories, about how everything works, about what was updated a couple of years ago, and just so much information that he was so excited to share with my client. And I can tell my client I was like you know what, I've heard enough. Just get me out of here already.
36:33 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, at some point. It's just like information overload I'm sure. Write a book, send it to me already. Yeah, at some point.
36:39 - Yuqi (Guest)
It's just, like you know, information overload, I'm sure, Like write a book, send it to me Exactly, or do a Q&A, record a Q&A for yourself and send it to me something like that Exactly.
36:48 - Mel (Host)
Yeah, that's probably even better than writing it. That's definitely a story. Yeah, most of the time when you get a house, there's a lot of imagination about what that backstory is and how somebody made a decision about something in a house. But to hear it sometimes I don't know if it would make it better Before we let you go here. Yuqi, where can listeners connect with you? Now we'll tag you in some of your social media, but where would you direct people to learn more about you, learn more about your work of your social media, but where would you direct people to learn more about you, learn more about your work?
37:20 - Yuqi (Guest)
Yeah, so I primarily do the Bay Area, specifically the East Bay, berkeley, oakland area, el Cerrito, el Pali. You can find me on Instagram. I'm pretty active there. Nowadays I post mostly about either my dog or real estate. There's nothing in between. So you know I'm happy to just be friends. You know you want to go get a coffee, go play basketball, go play poker anywhere here in the East Bay, or if you happen to want to buy a house or sell a house, be happy to connect with you too. So it's it's Uichi underscore California. It's Y-U-Q-I underscore California. Be happy to make a connection there.
37:58 - Mel (Host)
All right, Well, great Well. Hopefully we'll direct some people there. Feel free to share this on your social media as well once it goes out, and I look forward to you getting lots of people wondering what about that triplex? What are the stories that were involved? Those are the messages on Instagram that you're going to be getting. So thank you very much for joining us, Yuqi, and I hope you continue to rise and you know, and you're able to, you know, do that that flip and sell, or flip and hold that you're thinking about.
38:28 - Yuqi (Guest)
Thank you very much, bill, and I appreciate your taking the time to interpret me All right.
38:33 - Mel (Host)
Well, I look forward to hearing more about you and keep listening to the next editions of the podcast here on America's Inner Circle.
38:42 - Yuqi (Guest)
Thank you very much.
How To Find Early Success As An Agent with Yuqi Luo, East Bay CA
Welcome to The Inner Circle podcast! This week’s guest is Yuqi Luo (pronounced “Gucci with a Y)" who is a Bay Area, CA realtor. From navigating the challenges of starting his career during the 2020 pandemic to thriving in the bustling Bay Area, he credits resilience, local expertise, and a commitment to continuous learning for his success. Yuqi offers practical insights into buyer strategies, managing client relationships, and overcoming obstacles like low inventory and bidding wars.
FAQ
Being an Inner Circle agent distinguishes you as one of the top real estate agents in the nation. After making it through our rigorous, data-based selection process, you can share the award with pride. Agents are featured on America’s Inner Circle’s website and receive a branded media package for posting to their own website and social media profiles.
America’s Inner Circle was created to provide an avenue for high-performing real estate agents to be recognized and awarded for their hard work and success. It is a resource for agents to receive the credit they deserve and a resource for buyers and sellers to connect with the best real estate agents in their area.
Anyone is eligible to be considered for the award. All nominees are subject to the same selection criteria.