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From community involvement to agent celebrations, founder Gaetano Marra has built a real estate brokerage where fun is an important part of the business plan. The former schoolteacher’s self-named brokerage started out as an indie, then joined Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate in 2020, rising to become one of the company’s standouts within its first five years.
“After years of working in various roles within the real estate industry, I decided to pursue my dream of creating a brokerage that would not only reflect my values but also provide a service experience that went above and beyond expectations for both agents and clients,” Marra said.
The formula is working, according to Marra: “We’re growing by leaps and bounds! Last year, our business was up almost 50 percent year over year, while all of the major competitors in our market were down by double digits.”
With a 99 percent retention rate (and a “killer game room”), learn how this broker-owner is setting a new standard for fun, with an eye on bringing his brand of brokerage to the rest of the state.
Name: Gaetano Marra
Title: Broker/Owner
Location: Fairfield County, Connecticut
Brokerage name: Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gaetano Marra Homes
Rankings: Top 20 BHGRE company in U.S.
Team size: 150 agents
Transaction sides (2024): 750
Sales volume (2024): $245 million
Awards: In just five years with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, the company earned the Founders Circle designation, a distinction that places the firm among the top 20 of BHGRE companies across the country.
What are 3 things you’d like readers to know about you and your brokerage?
1. When I started my company, I wanted to build something different, something that was more than just a business. The goal was to create an office where both agents and clients could feel at home, where relationships were built on integrity, transparency and a shared focus on achieving the best possible outcomes.
I was very intentional about cultivating a culture where people feel valued, heard and understood.
2. Another important pillar of our success is its deep roots in the local community. All of us understand that a successful business must also be a responsible and engaged member of the community it serves.
The brokerage has made it a priority to support local organizations, sponsor events and participate in initiatives that benefit the Monroe area and beyond. We’re the title sponsor of a charity golf tournament, and we support a local high school sports program as an advertiser on their digital scoreboard.
We also have strong ties to Notre Dame Prep School, a high school that is part of my alma mater Sacred Heart University.
As part of a Connecticut state mandate that requires students to take a financial literacy course, I teach a real estate course in three area high schools. I teach students how to become a real estate agent, explain how they get paid and stress the significant impact owning a home can have on building personal and generational wealth.
We offer first-time homebuyer seminars. I also host a community-focused podcast called “The Expect Better Podcast,” where we focus on life, people, business, and relationships. We have guests from local businesses and nonprofit organizations and even well-known celebrities join to share their stories.
At the end of the day, the podcast — like our business — offers a great way to forge understandings and connections across the diverse landscape in which we live and work.
3. Our 150 agents work across three offices in Fairfield County, all located in the southwestern corner of Connecticut: Bridgeport, Monroe and Newtown. We’re a diverse group in age, experience and ethnicity, with a number of agents fluent in Spanish, Portuguese, French and Chinese.
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the state, with about 150,000 residents. The city is consistently ranked among the top 25 most ethnically and culturally diverse cities in the U.S. According to the 2020 five-year community survey, 48.2 percent of Bridgeport’s population speaks a different primary language at home other than English. We’re proud that our Bridgeport team reflects the community they serve.
A few miles north is Monroe, a bedroom community for people working in New York City, New Haven and Bridgeport, highly regarded for its award-winning schools, beautiful parks and sustained growth in local business and industry.
Newtown, a little farther north, offers a charming New England town experience with a focus on community, good schools and a relatively low crime rate, but it comes with a higher cost of living. More than a dozen Fortune 500 companies are based in Fairfield County.
Because of the nature of our service area, we work with clients at all price points, from first-time homebuyers to move-up and downsizing clients.
Tell us about a high point in your brokerage career
Learning that we had become one of BHGRE’s top 20 companies earlier this year was absolutely thrilling! I founded the brokerage in 2018 and then joined the brand in 2020 to help me grow the business, so reaching this level of success so quickly in the company’s history was definitely a high point.
This recognition is not mine alone, though. It’s a reflection of the hard work and dedication of every agent, every staff member, and every client who has trusted us with their real estate needs.
I have the absolute best agents and staff in the business, and no one will ever tell me differently. They are the ones behind all of this, and I am so lucky to be able to call each and every one of them family.
But we are not resting on our laurels; we are in the process of expanding our footprint. I like to say we will be painting the entire state of Connecticut green.
What makes a good leader?
My approach to running a real estate company is this: They say if you build it, they will come, but the more important question is, “Will they stay?” I’m proud to say we have a 99 percent retention rate among our agents.
I don’t recruit; both new and experienced agents come to us because of our company culture. Building that culture has been central to my leadership approach, and I love that we have a team that works hard so we can play hard together.
We have sales meetings and trainings once a month to support agents in building their businesses. Every month, the agent with the most production gets a special parking spot and their picture taken sitting in the Top Agent Throne, an ornate, high-backed chair covered in green velvet.
As a way of showcasing our hardworking agents, we have what’s called the Capper Club. When an agent hits their cap of $5 million in sales, they get a custom green jacket made by a local Italian tailor, who just happens to be my cousin. For every time they cap after that, they receive a jade pin to wear on their lapel.
We also have a fun social event like a cruise or axe throwing once a month. We have a full arcade and game room in the Monroe office, with a basketball hoop, poker table and Xbox.
You know what you’re going to get at our firm: A reliable company culture built around inclusiveness, collaboration and celebration.
