Mark your calendars for the ultimate real estate experiences with Inman’s upcoming events! Dive into the future at Connect Miami, immerse in luxury at Luxury Connect, and converge with industry leaders at Inman Connect Las Vegas. Discover more and join the industry’s best at inman.com/events.
Inman Connect New York’s broker track offered sessions full of insights for brokers. We’ve gathered the highlights for easy access for those who missed the event. The panels and presentations were filled with advice from industry leaders on retaining top agents, navigating market challenges, and finding inspiration for effective leadership.
From practical tips to perspectives on the current market and facing adversity, the insights shared will help give brokers an edge in the competitive real estate industry.
Workman: Now’s not the time to lose top-producing agents
Verl Workman got his real estate license in 10 days.
His sister-in-law, on the other hand, spent 18 months training to be able to cut hair in Utah, Workman, a real estate coach and owner of Workman Success Systems, said on opening day at Inman Connect New York.
“Great leaders aren’t hired; they’re developed,” the real estate coach said, adding that brokerages who don’t nurture great agents will lose them.
Brokers need to see silver linings and lead through down times
‘Every challenge presents a silver lining. You just have to be willing to look at it right,’ ERA President Alex Vidal said on stage at ICNY on Tuesday
Brokers need to stay nimble, nurture their agents and foster a sense of energy and collaboration that existed before the COVID pandemic, a group of real estate experts said.
NextHome CEO: Make buyers’ agent agreements a priority
James Dwiggins, CEO of NextHome, argued at ICNY that commission lawsuits and pressure from the feds are going to bring about change in the real estate industry. “These lawsuits are going to end with a settlement,” Dwiggins said. “It’s going to change structures of this business.”
‘Super-connectivity’ the key to uncovering affordability
At ICNY’s Broker track, Hilary Farnum-Fasth said agents need to dig deep into their networks to find the right partners to put the buying puzzle together for their clients.
As any agent making a go of this market can attest, homeowners aren’t exactly tripping over themselves to put their house on the market, leaving buyers with little to choose from. And despite mortgage rates creeping into a range that could spur a spike in sales activity, high prices continue to hold back buyers.
Ryan Serhant: Real estate has a big problem with chasing trends
Ryan Serhant said at ICNY that the industry hasn’t fundamentally improved enough, making him fear that past mistakes will be repeated. Looking forward, the star broker did express some optimism about the future — fears about a lack of innovation notwithstanding — and argued that “markets should never dictate your outcome, markets should dictate your strategy.”
Anywhere CEO touts ‘protection’ from commission suit chaos
Anywhere CEO Ryan Schneider challenged individual leaders to step up, rather than be dependent on NAR to lobby for the industry in Washington during a session at ICNY. He added that the most important thing for leaders today are vision and attitude.
“Once you have a clear vision about what’s the right thing, then you have to get there,” Schneider said. “Do I want to spend my time and money on litigation, or do I want to spend it on agents and franchisees?”
Brokerages must focus on culture, community, connection in 2024
Leaders from Sotheby’s International Realty, Compass and Douglas Elliman shared how luxury clients are responding to the market and how their brokerages uniquely support agents. The luxury leaders agreed that high-net-worth clientele are certainly responding to changes in the market, like fluctuating rates, in a different way than the market at large.
Jessi Healey is a freelance writer and social media manager specializing in real estate. Find her on Instagram, LinkedIn, or Threads.
