Real estate offices outside the box

Some real estate agents work mostly from home. Others work mostly from their cars or on the go at coffee shops and home showings. Now one agent in Arizona is setting up his office in an old carwash.

Mike Mendoza, an agent with Keller Williams Realty in Ahwatukee Foothills, is converting a closed gas station, convenience store and carwash into a new two-building real estate office, according to the Arizona Republic.

The former Texaco station will house Mendoza's team of 18 employees. Amidst the hot housing market, the team outgrew its old office consisting of 2,000 square feet.

Mendoza plans to convert the gas station, which had been closed for several years, into a 9,300-square-foot office and move his team there during October.

The team's reason for moving reportedly was a lack of space in Ahwatukee Foothills. But the move also shows how real estate offices are moving into unusual places.

Real estate and home loan offices are no longer isolated in the traditional neighborhood spots. They're showing up in shopping centers and mega-complexes that combine brokerages, lenders, inspection services and closing offices in one space.

One mortgage broker in Southern California, Joe Aaron, converted a 37-foot diesel custom motorcoach into a home loan office on wheels. He drives the mortgage coach around his region as a way to advertise his loan services.

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