Broken? No, not by a long shot.
The August 18 “Good Morning, RE/MAX” kicking off day two of the all-virtual 2020 RE/MAX Broker Owner Conference (BOC) was a mash-up of light-hearted moments, insightful interviews and a fascinating presentation that was all business.
In a thought-provoking talk titled “The RE/MAX Model is Broken,” RE/MAX Chief Customer Officer Nick Bailey explored the notion that the cost of being with RE/MAX poses an obstacle for agents and the brokers who support them. His verdict: The model is far from broken – as long as brokers are attracting the type of driven, productive professionals RE/MAX is built for.
It’s only broken, Bailey said, when brokers try to build a brokerage with agents who aren’t a good fit for RE/MAX.
“Look, it’s not for everyone. It’s for people who are serious about selling real estate,” Bailey said, noting that RE/MAX was never meant to be the cheapest, safest option for part-time or unmotivated agents. But for full-time pros who want to elevate their careers, develop their skills, align with like-minded peers, and leverage massive competitive advantages, RE/MAX is a perfect choice.
“It’s hard to compete against RE/MAX when you’re on the other side, but it’s also very easy to forget how great this model and this system is – as long as it appeals to the right people.”
Nick Bailey
Citing what he called a “race to the bottom” in real estate, Bailey said agents drawn to RE/MAX tend to focus more on closing sales than on saving a few dollars. At the same time, he demonstrated how RE/MAX fixed fees have stayed relatively flat in the past decade while splits and royalties tied to home prices have increased much more.
In return for their fees, agents receive tremendous value, Bailey noted.
“No one in the industry has what we have,” he said. “We just need to tell our story louder.”
Amy Lessinger and Kim Minor, two longtime leaders who built successful RE/MAX brokerages, echoed Bailey’s point that strong agents create strong offices. Lessinger said her business survived the Great Recession not by cutting costs, but by providing value.
“At the time, everybody else was flocking to low-service, low-fee models. What we chose to do was take those historically great producers who had fallen because (their office) had no support, no tech, no tools, no training, nothing, and we brought them back up,” said Lessinger, who recently sold her office in Nevada to join RE/MAX Headquarters as Vice President, West Region. “I think the biggest key is a focus on productivity. You want agents to be drawn to what you offer, and what you offer is about making money, not saving money.”
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Written by George White
