Meeting client expectations

Just as agents’ views of what makes a top producer have shifted, the market has continued to evolve. And consumer expectations change with it.

Redfin’s 2015 survey of recent buyers and sellers revealed that many respondents would like to see the real estate industry change, with only 15 percent saying that they like the way that traditional agents work. Of the 1,000 recent homebuyers surveyed, 69 percent said they would be open to investigating an alternative to the traditional agent.

Buyers place a high value on responsiveness as a trait among agents. Among buyers, 47 percent say they prefer an agent who gets back to them over qualities such as professionalism, experience or knowledge of the neighborhood. Responsiveness ranked lower with sellers, at 31 percent.

“The most important thing is finding out what the clients need from you and then doing it,” says Leonard, who has a team of five buyer’s agents and another listing agent. “Every client is different. If I went in and communicated with every client the same way, that wouldn’t be effective. Certain people need certain pieces of information, depending on what’s important to them.”

In order to handle more deals and maintain attentive service for every client, building a real estate team probably seems like the logical next step for most agents.

Montro has worked on his own for most of his career, but recently felt the need to bring on a team. He joined Keller Williams to learn the team concept, then hired on his first team members last year, with mixed results.

“Some worked out and some didn’t, so I learned some lessons last year,” Montro says. “This year is my first go with a real team. I’m really excited to see how much I can grow out of it. I have 10 buyer’s agents right now and I’m looking to expand to 25.”