PROPTECH

A decade ago, “proptech” was barely a thing. But in the time since, the sector has exploded to include scores of startups and behemoths such as Opendoor. Proptech has seen a flood of investment money as well. And in a world where the sector is ascendant, here’s what some of real estate’s smartest minds advised proptech players to do.

Proptech

David Calderon,
Chief of Staff, Localize

Proptech companies should focus on removing tasks from an agent’s to do list, not adding tasks to it. Tech should be proactive versus reactive.

Proptech

Tracy Weir,
Founder & CEO, Membio

Free the data, fuel innovation. Propech companies, associations, MLSs and brokerages need to standardize and exchange data. There’s still far too much proprietary and protected data. We need to work together

Proptech

Sean Black,
CEO, Knock

There’s clearly an opportunity to make the transaction more efficient for everyone, that you could double the number of transactions, half all of the fees and you can automate all the work, and keep the level of professionalism the same.

Proptech

Kevin Hawkins,
President, WAV Group

The only way to survive is to be profitable. Real net profit. Stop talking about EBITDA.

Proptech

Heather Elias,
Vice President, RealStaq

When building tech for the industry, remember that the consumer, with all their fears and dreams, is at the center of the whole experience.

Proptech

Clelia Peters,
Managing Partner, Era Ventures

There’s a long history of external capital coming into industries and driving growth in our country. I actually think it’s a much more positive thing to have venture capital coming in to stimulate growth via innovation.

Proptech

Eric Stegemann,
CEO, TRIBUS

Get back to good business fundamentals. Profits over P.E. Clients over charts. Mission first. The money will follow.

Proptech

Frank A. Felice,
Chief Revenue Officer at Sisu

Create a culture of electronic data sharing.

Proptech

Tim Heyl,
CEO, Homeward

Be visible and available with your team and your customers.

Proptech

John Garner,
Founder and CEO, Freemodel

Proptech companies should not try to replace humans in real estate, but rather help them let their humanity shine.

Proptech

Gopinath Dhanakodi,
CTO, Membio

Build tech stacks that are easy to integrate for partners.

Proptech

Guy Gal,
CEO of Side

Be intellectually honest.

Proptech

York Baur,
CEO, MoxiWorks

Two-thirds of any tech company is its people, and it's the best asset you have. The demands for leadership go up in a changing market. Be ready.

Proptech

Austin Allison,
co-founder and CEO of Pacaso

In a changing market, resourcefulness is critical. Don't spend money too easily. One of the opportunities in this kind of market is that it forces businesses to be resourceful.

AGENTS

Real estate agents have worked for generations, but there has perhaps been no time as disruptive to the profession as the present. From the rise of well-funded tech startups to a slew of ongoing legal cases challenging agent pay, the only thing that’s certain is uncertainty. Here’s how industry leaders suggested surviving and thriving in these disruptive times.

AGENTS

Nicolas Jankowsk,
Vice President of Operations,
McQuaid & Company

Use the slower time to your advantage; focus on connection with your community and positioning yourself as the go-to agent in your area.

AGENTS

James Dwiggins,
CEO, NextHome Inc.

Agents need to get good at asking buyers for a commission in a post-DOJ vs. NAR world.

AGENTS

Marc King,
President, Keller Williams

If you are willing to go that extra mile you will triple your business.

AGENTS

Josh Harley,
CEO, Fathom Realty

Double down on your marketing while others are pulling back.

AGENTS

Molly McKinley,
CEO, Redtail Creative

When apron strings tighten, focus energy on the loyal, engaged clients first. Doing good by your advocates is always good business.

AGENTS

Russ Cofano,
CEO, Collabra Technology

The industry must move from a transactional relationship with consumers to a home ownership-life cycle relationship. The hyper focus on lead generation undermines this philosophy.

AGENTS

Joseph Rand,
Chief Creative Officer,
Howard Hanna Rand Realty

Start treating buyers more professionally, because you might soon need to negotiate your commission with them.

AGENTS

Bernice Ross,
CEO, RealEstateCoach.com

There is gold in your database. Double down on being in regular contact, face to face, with the top 150 people.

AGENTS

Andrew Flachner,
Cofounder and President, RealScout

Good sphere of influence marketing is where you can take shallow intent and make it deep intent.

AGENTS

Ishay Grinberg, CEO, Rental Beast

Housing affordability is pushing folks to rent. That presents opportunities to service north of 50 percent of the population that rents before they buy. Thus, incorporate rentals to your strategy.

AGENTS

Dave Collins, President, Unique Realty

For agents, spend time studying and understanding the trendlines so that you are best prepared to educate the consumer and your clients beyond the headlines. Don’t follow the crowd, stand above it.

BROKERS

The real estate brokerage has evolved. Thanks to the rise of rock star agents and teams, brokerages are scrambling to recruit and arguably have less leverage than they have in the past. But that doesn’t mean they’re irrelevant. What follows is the best advice from industry leaders on how brokers can thrive in a changing world.

BROKERS

Jason Gesing,
CEO, eXp Realty

Start enhancing your remote work capabilities to help reduce waste.

BROKERS

Brian Boero, CEO, 1000watt

In your marketing, focus on saying what your competitors are unable or unwilling to say. Same goes for your recruiting story.

Brokers

Mike DelPrete,
real estate analyst

I don’t need to log into another website and another freaking dashboard to manage the whole transaction. I just wanted someone to talk to.

BROKERS

Josh Harley,
CEO, Fathom Realty

Use this opportunity to reduce unnecessary expenses and invest more in your agents’ success so they can close more sales, gain market share and help your brokerage grow.

BROKERS

Andres Hoyos,
Founder and CEO, Sync Brokerage

Focus on quality versus quantity. Run your business with low operational expenses, allocating capital to sources that will increase productivity and drive revenue.

BROKERS

Tim Heyl,
CEO and Founder, Homeward

Being visible is important, especially throughout the remote work environment. I want to make sure I make myself more visible to my entire company. I need to hear what's happening in order to continue to evolve.

BROKERS

Austin Allison,
co-founder and CEO of Pacaso

In a changing market, resourcefulness is critical. Don't spend money too easily. One of the opportunities in this kind of market is that it forces businesses to be resourceful.

Broker

Brad Inman,
founder of Inman

I used to say the real estate ship is slow moving and takes a while to turn around. But this one feels like everything in this day and age: The changes in the market suddenly happened very quickly.

BROKERS

Mike Perna,
CEO, The Perna Team

Brokers, find better non-revenue ways to tie in agents to the brokerage.

BROKERS

Lisa Larson,
Managing Director, RestB.ai

The industry is moving fast, if you want to keep up, automate and integrate AI.

BROKERS

Thomas Heimann,
CEO, Realty Partners

Don’t cut back in the wrong place. Invest in your agents and systems, marketing and support services to help them grow their business.

BROKERS

Rick Eisert,
Broker-Manager, Royal LePage Team Realty

Do not lay off support staff. Use them to assist agents with day to day tasks. The support staff can also train agents on how to effectively use current technology.

TEAMS

The rise of teams is perhaps the most significant trend of the last few years in real estate. What began as a way for agents to work together has now evolved into a massive industry. Many teams are so big they effectively operate as mini brokerages. There’s also no sign this trend is running out of steam. In that light, here’s what industry pros recommended teams do to succeed.

TEAMS

Vija Wiliams,
President, Ben Kinney Brokerages

Focus on building the right economic, cultural and agent attraction environment for teams. That should be a primary focus.

TEAMS

Wendy Forsythe,
Chief Strategy Officer, Fathom Realty

Leaders inspire through focus, discipline and commitment. The industry needs that kind of leadership today and tomorrow. Figure out what that means to the people you lead.

TEAMS

Brian Gubernick,
Chief Real Estate Officer, Homeward

Apocalypse plan now. Build ‘if-then’ statements. For example, ‘if GCI drops by x percent, I will reduce optional expenses by Y percent.

TEAMS

Philippe Lecoq,
CEO, Proprio Direct

Never let a good crisis go to waste. Invest to streamline operations, develop agents and deliver the best digital experiences to consumers.

TEAMS

Josh Epps,
Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Fickling & Company

Brokerages are your best friend. Let them partner in your success.

TEAMS

Bob Hale,
CEO, Houston Association of Realtors

We’ve got a website and I just looked and in just one week we delivered 64,000 leads to the agent. Most of those go unanswered. One thing that the team leader can do is to make sure that not one of those leads goes unanswered.

TEAMS

Laurie Reader
CEO, Laurie Reader Real Estate

Go deep with your people. We are in the human resource business. The profit is in your people.

TEAMS

Chris Heller,
Chief Real Estate Officer, OJO Labs

This is the market to grow. Grow team size, market share and profitability. Lastly, reduce expenses.

TEAMS

Michelle Kerr,
Founder and Owner, Duet Property Group

Build and protect your culture. Your culture will allow you to navigate all markets, attract and retain good staff, and create an atmosphere of creativity and openness.

TEAMS

Jason Noah,
General Manager, Localize

Put ego aside. No one human can do it all. You deserve more. You deserve better. Take advantage of your team, support, and the technology you have available to be better, faster, smaller and more efficient.