Shawn Westerik
By Susan Doran
Why would a pair of hotshot real estate professionals who between them had more than two highly successful decades with Re/Max choose to leave all that behind to start up an independent brokerage?
When that question is put to friends and business partners Shawn Westerik and Ryan Hodge, who did just that, the answer seems to boil down to wanting to provide a new option for their hometown of London, Ont.
To put a finer point on it, first and foremost they “want to build the best brokerage in London,” says Westerik.
Although the thought of leaving the largest real estate organization in the world was daunting, “We felt we could offer a unique and high-quality sales system for a reasonable compensation plan to any type of Realtor, whether new agent or seasoned professional,” he says.
After weighing the pros and cons of such a move, they finally made the leap in September 2013. Up to that point, “We had been building notoriety with our volume…and a lot of Realtors were calling us wanting to go out for breakfast or lunch to get themselves educated about how we were doing what we were doing.”
Before they launched their independent brokerage, The Realty Firm, they were the top-producing team at Re/Max Centre City in London. Often, they say, those asking for advice were competitors from different firms. “They were requesting our help and we were not really even supposed to be giving it to them,” says Westerik. “But it gave us the confidence we needed to start our own brokerage.”
Hodge says they “did due diligence,” taking a full year to research and build a feasible plan while continuing to work long days at Re/Max. “We thought we could create a turnkey business, because our own personal sales system is tried, true, proven, easily reproduced and salable.”
They say this system can be duplicated by their sales reps, “allowing them to be successful without making 200 cold calls or spending exorbitant amounts on advertising.”
The pair wanted to make their move in a dignified and ethical way, they say. They have a lot of respect for their previous broker of record and did not want to “purge” that brokerage, as they had witnessed the animosity that such actions had caused in other companies, they say.
“So we started from scratch,” says Westerik, although admittedly, as time passed and word got around, some agents from their former brokerage wound up joining them.
Westerik and Hodge say that no matter how high your confidence levels, one of the most daunting aspects of starting up a new brokerage is worrying about whether people will believe in your vision.
Ryan Hodge
“I still recall when we first opened,” says Hodge. “There were just five of us – and all this office space – wondering, ‘Should we set up a bowling alley?’”
With The Realty Firm, it appears for now that won’t be necessary. Since September, “over 30 agents have joined us,” says Westerik. “They want to do what we do…Here you can be mentored by two guys selling 200 houses yearly.”
The Realty Firm brand “has been very well received in London,” says Hodge. “For us, the biggest success story is how our agents are doing – some have doubled their production from last year.”For the brokerage’s sales reps, the process begins with simple goal planning. “We are very goal oriented,” Hodge says. Registrants are assisted in creating goals around net profit and scheduling, which combine to help them design “the perfect day and week” in real estate, after which they develop their business further with the help of mentoring/training.
“It’s geared to the individual,” Hodge says. “If we get them to time block quality of life first, then lead generation time, the rest will fall into place naturally. We believe in everyone here and we have seen this have great success. We set aside time to talk with them, keep them on track, follow up. We are very invested in our people.”
It comes down to goals, time management and the desire to grow, Westerik and Hodge agree.
A positive and in-sync work environment is also crucial.
“We have the conviction to turn people away. We’re proud of that,” says Westerik. “We want the right mix. We’ve had to say no to some registrants who have a desire to work here. They did not fit in with how we look at the business…They don’t respect the business as a whole, do not have the passion for the business.”
He and Hodge refer to this as “taking the business back.” They believe that in many cases the real estate business is trending towards turmoil, due to such issues as lack of knowledge, poor ethics and poor communication.
“At The Realty Firm, we facilitate professional transactions,” says Westerik. “We are broker/owners who are still actively selling. Our registrants like that; we’re in the trenches with them…If there is a problem or mistake, we address it and fix it. We are accountable to ourselves, our competition and each other.”
Both Westerik and Hodge have vast reserves of passion for the business. They say the challenges include “finding enough hours in the day.”
“And being tired,” adds Westerik with a laugh. “We are not really fun guys,” he continues in the same vein. “We are very focused, very business oriented…We’ve actually had six or seven top-producing agents call us about franchise opportunities, but we’ve put that on the back burner for now.”
Asked what drives him and his business partner, Westerik says, “People ask what motivates us. We are both married with three young boys, so running a brokerage and keeping our wives and boys happy, we need good organizational and time management skills. Thinking of putting six boys through university motivates us!”
