Marie Schutt is the managing editor of Chicago Agent

According to a recent REAL Trends survey, there are 35,000 to 50,000 real estate teams in the U.S. The same report projects that number could reach 100,000 by 2019. Teams are clearly a fixture in real estate, and that means there is another option available for agents who want to jump-start their career, do business under a successful brand or bolster their sales volume.

But there’s no silver bullet when it comes to real estate team structure. What works for one agent will not work for another, and what fits one market will not make sense somewhere else.

In our cover story, we’re exploring the various team business models agents will encounter in the industry. Team size, compensation, the other roles employed by the team, and the personalities of all involved will dictate whether a team is a good fit for an individual agent.

On a personal note, our Senior Editor Peter Ricci, who has been with Chicago Agent for more than six years, will be leaving us this month to pursue bigger and better things. Peter has been an incredibly valuable member of our editorial team, and we will greatly miss his passion for reporting that matters, his perspective on the market, his endless trove of stories and, of course, the pyramid of soup cans that has been a fixture in the office longer than I have. We wish Peter the best and can’t wait to see what he will go on to accomplish.