RE/MAX Broker Spotlight: Q&A With Broker/Owners Building Big Business in a Small Maine Town

Preferred Title: Broker/Owners
Office Name: RE/MAX Infinity
Location: Dexter, Maine
Years in Real Estate: 12 for Jim, 17 for Charlie

Q: How did you both get into real estate?

Charlie: We owned a country store in Cambridge, Maine and when we decided to sell it, we contacted a real estate agent. He came out originally and was there for the showings, but every time the property had a showing, I showed it. Our agent said, ‘You got this’ – and when we got to closing, he said I should be a real estate agent. I had never really thought about it, but I had just sold the store. I took the test to get my license, passed the very first time and it took off from there.

Jim at the time was working as a mortgage lender and would often go with me to appointments. He loved it! We both worked through the boom of the early 2000s and then survived the 2008 bust. And after that, he decided to transition to real estate.

Q: What originally attracted you to the RE/MAX brand?

Jim: We were agents with an unaffiliated brokerage in town when we were invited to attend the RE/MAX R4®. We had always known that we were going to open our own office. It wasn’t “Will we?” it was “When?” We never had plans to open a franchise, we thought we’d be an independent. But we met with a Franchise Sales Consultant, John Downey, at R4 and the rest is history.

Charlie: We have so many repeat clients that we didn’t really feel the need to join a franchise. But then we met John and he made us feel so comfortable. And everybody else we met was super nice, very informative, and answered all of my questions. Whether they were from RE/MAX® Headquarters or were a fellow RE/MAX Broker, they were all just so fabulous. We had a great meeting, shook hands, gave hugs, and it felt right. I told Jim, “I don’t know why anybody would want to be with any other company.” We made up our mind right then that we were going with RE/MAX. 

Q: What were some of the feelings you had around your move to RE/MAX?

Charlie: I was nervous about going to R4, but once we made the decision to join RE/MAX, we were so excited. We picked up these RE/MAX branded t-shirts that said “wake up, kick ass, repeat” and we wore them when we signed the paperwork. We’re RE/MAX Infinity and so we did a cheers: ‘To RE/MAX, to infinity and beyond’. It was amazing and it hasn’t stopped being amazing.

Q: How did the market respond to your move to RE/MAX?

Charlie: We’ve lived here for more than 20 years and everybody knows us and knows we’re REALTORS®. They all noticed when we remodeled our office and added a big light-up RE/MAX sign, and they’ve really embraced us as RE/MAX. We’re really active in our community and that helps. We do something every month where we raise funds and donate back – and now, we incorporate the RE/MAX balloon into each event.

Q: How has your brokerage grown since aligning with RE/MAX? And what has contributed to this growth?

Charlie: It has almost doubled! We’re a small operation and started with four agents and are now up to seven. The RE/MAX brand [has contributed to our growth]. When we first opened our office, we put a light-up RE/MAX balloon in the front window of the office and would turn it on in the evenings. One agent, who had just passed her exam, drove by and said it was like an omen. She wasn’t sure where she was going to hang her license but recognized the RE/MAX brand from when she lived in Massachusetts and said as soon as she saw the balloon, she knew where she needed to be. She called me that night, we met, and she’s now an Associate Broker with us.

Q: How does RE/MAX help you achieve professional goals?

Charlie: We are 100% committed to growth. We’re hoping to bring on new agents and would even like to open a second office down the road. RE/MAX has a few different initiatives right now that we think can help with that.

Q: What tools and resources provided by RE/MAX do you and your agents find to be the most valuable?

Charlie: The leads! We get so many leads through the RE/MAX technology.

Jim: The referrals are huge. That is something we didn’t have before RE/MAX.

Q: What do you think today’s agent finds the most valuable when considering which brokerage to join and how do you ensure your office offers that value? 

Charlie: I think it’s the network. Everyone wants to run their own business, but they also want to feel a part of something bigger. And even though we’re a small operation, having opportunities to go to R4, the RE/MAX annual convention, is important.

Jim: I also think the name recognition is important to agents, and being associated with the number one name in real estate says a lot.

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