Andrew Castillon cut his teeth in the real estate industry in team environments before moving on to launch his own team this year. Given his experience, Castillon understands the pros and cons of working on a real estate team better than most.

Castillon came to real estate in 2017 from the corporate sales world. As a newer agent still learning the ropes, working on a team provided invaluable mentorship, Castillon said. He got his start working with Grigory Pekarsky and Brad Robbins, co-founders at Vesta Preferred Realty.

“It made sense to go join Grigory’s team because I had a friend and a mentor,” Castillon said. “Even when you get your license, you still don’t know what you’re doing. It helps to have someone who you can call … walk through all sections of these 13 pages to put in an offer so you don’t sound like an idiot when you talk to your client.

“I really appreciated all the guidance I got.”

Castillon found his footing in real estate and started picking up clients and growing his business. He felt the need to expand and joined Scott Newman’s team: Team Newman powered by Keller Williams. In April, Castillon moved to Compass with plans to start his own team.

Castillon stressed that when he made career moves, first to join Newman and later to go to Compass, those shifts started with honest conversations with his team leaders. It was important to leave on good terms, he said.

“I was lucky to be part of two strong teams and leaders,” he said. “It’s helped me find my personality and how to cultivate my business … I still have extremely great relationships with both of them.”

Now, Castillon is in the process of onboarding two agents and building his own team, The Lincoln Advisory Group. He toyed with calling it the Castillon Group, but he said putting his name in the brand ultimately didn’t feel right.

“I didn’t want other agents to feel like they’re coming to work for me,” he said. “I want them to feel like they’re part of something they can contribute to. I don’t want brokers to feel like I’m micromanaging them.

“I want to create a collaborative experience, and I want it to be something that we build together.”

Castillon said one of the benefits of the team structure is the chance to see up close how others work and to learn new processes. The team structure isn’t for everyone. Some agents need the autonomy of doing their own thing all the time. But others will flourish in a more collaborative setting.

Agents thinking about joining a team should get a clear picture on the resources that will be available to them and have an in-depth conversation with the team lead so there’s no ambiguity about how things will work, Castillon said.

“What is that team lead’s expectations? Is there a collaboration in that initial conversation?” he said. “What are the resources? What is the team structure? If you know those things up front, you’ll know if it’s a good fit or not.

“The cons are when people don’t have these upfront conversations.”