My office here at the Kentwood Company in the Greenwood Village DTC.
I realize now that I’m a freak in the real estate business. I have only worked for two firms in my 33-year career. Usually, it seems Realtors change offices often. Most recently, my office is at The Kentwood Company overlooking the homes and offices in Greenwood Village.
Why would I continue to work at this fine firm for the last 21 years. The answer is simple. It’s the Realtors here. They are among the most productive and ethical Denver real estate agents. The result is we sell more listings and sell them faster than our competition by working as a team. Look at these results of Kentwood Company vs the Denver MLS sales.
Our All-Star Team of Kentwood Realtors Outsold the Overall Denver MLS in 2010 sales compared to 2009.
Certainly, there are other factors that have kept my office in the same place over the last 21 years. Of course, the company provides the best secretarial support in the business, fabulous marketing opportunities through its unique, in-house marketing department and the teamwork of this fine group of agents.
Kentwood Company Brokers Tour New Listings Every Week
Teamwork has become rare in the real estate business. When I first started to work in this sometimes crazy for back in 1978, teamwork was the rule. Every office in Denver toured listings every Wednesday morning. This is called the broker tour or caravan. Now, with the rush toward independent brokers working on their own under a franchise umbrella like RE/MAX, caravan has all but disappeared. Not only in Denver but in other cities like Camarillo and Ventura California.
I still enjoy going out on Wednesday mornings walking through the listings of my colleagues. It supports them with their sellers. But I’ve actually sold homes as a result of seeing them first seeing them on our broker tour.
Why do we sell more homes and seller listings faster? It’s clear that our listings are selling faster than all listings in the Denver MLS system. Why is that? I am convinced that part of that is due to broker caravan tour. We know more about our listings than agents who work on their own under a common roof. That’s because we actually see them on broker tour.
Also, based on sales volume, we sell more residential property in Denver and any other real estate firm. It’s the productivity of our agents that contributes to selling more homes and selling them faster. The typical real estate agent in the Denver MLS system sells very few homes per year.
Most of the agents at the Kentwood Company at the Denver Technology Center in Greenwood Village have actually been there longer than I. The median average is more than my 21 years in one spot. So, I am a freak in the real estate business but least I have company.
I agree, it’s the Realtors that make an office. I have worked with the same group of dedicated Realtors for the past eight years. As you point out, teamwork is important in order to ensure that our clients have the very best service possible.
I think you hit on a great issue Larry. With all the changes in the market the past few years, I know that caravan’s have all but died in our area. Sure, there are a few that are arranged by the local board, but with every agent in the area getting their broker license and working independently out of their own home its killed the comradarie we had working as a team.
An agent has to know their inventory. Simply relying on MLS to search and then going to look at property for the first time with your clients is lazy. If you know what’s out there you will spend less of their, and your, time bouncing from house to house trying to find something they’ll like.
We restarted caravan at our Century 21 office recently and its working…we’re getting homes sold.
Good post. – Joe McDermott
Good post. I agree that colleagues make it or break it. I’ve only been in one real estate firm and enjoy it very much. We all co-operate with one another and that helps to make the working environment pleasant.