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Lesson Learned: Invest in real estate for endless opportunity

June is Investment Properties and Second Homes Month here at Inman. We’ll explore everything including top investor insights, the latest at Airbnb and Vrbo, and the surprising locales emerging as investor hot spots across the country.

Lake Havasu team leader Eric Gedalje started out on his professional journey bussing tables. After putting his entrepreneurial drive to work, he ended up exclusively representing multiple developments, invested in more than 20 investment properties and is now owner of the No. 1 real estate group in Mohave County, Arizona.

Watch the video above to check out his conversation with Troy Palmquist, then read on to learn more about Gedalje’s best advice for both new and veteran agents.


Name: Eric Gedalje

Title: Team owner

Experience: 11 years

Location: Lake Havasu

Brokerage name: eXp Realty

Rankings: No. 1 in Lake Havasu, No. 1 in Mohave County

Team: The Gedalje Group

Transaction sides: 511 in 2023

Sales volume: $228 million in 2023


What’s one big lesson you’ve learned in real estate?

That by investing in real estate, it can open doors to endless opportunities. I learned this by investing at a very young age.

What would you tell a new agent before they start out in the business?

Make sure you partner with a team that has a strong presence in the marketplace as well as an abundance of resources to offer to ensure a quick start.

What do too few agents know that would make their lives easier?

This business is not transactional; it’s all about building an everlasting relationship that will beat out any objections that come to business.

If you could do anything other than real estate, what would it be?

If I wasn’t in real estate, I would be a serial entrepreneur as I originally started as an investor rather than a salesman.

Tell us a story about your most memorable transaction

I quintuple-ended a deal that started out with a listing in which I had a buyer for, who needed to sell his house. Great clients, lots of coordinating, multiple parties involved. All parties were fully satisfied and even ended up closing early.

Troy Palmquist is the director of growth for eXp California. Follow him on Instagram or connect with him on LinkedIn.