What kind of real estate team are you running? Is it one based on ego, or on success?

These are important questions, as we find ourselves on the precipice of what could be the next real estate boom. Lower interest rates are attracting sellers and buyers into the market once more, prices will rise and a flood of new agents (with the best intentions) will follow.

As those agents come knocking on your door, you should be asking yourself: is more really more?

The promise and pitfalls of mega teams

The “mega team” model has been gaining more attention recently, and of course, it can work, but only under the right leadership. Real estate is a naturally competitive business, and I’m flabbergasted that in today’s transparent world, where everyone can see what their colleagues and counterparts are producing, the size of so many of these “mega teams” still outweigh their production.

New agents: The advantages of joining the right team

As a new agent just starting out, joining a team can be career changing. Most of your expenses are covered by your split, your marketing is done for you, and you have direct access to hands-on mentorship. The right team can help new agents gain traction and set them up for success, until they’re off and running all on their own. 

Team leaders: Balancing quality and quantity 

As a team leader, working with top-performing agents can be incredibly rewarding. Imagine the potential of leading a mega team of a hundred high producers – that’s more power, and significantly more income, in your hands.

However, investing in a team with too many low- or non-producers who occupy your office, consume your resources, and demand your attention as a leader is unlikely to yield any meaningful returns. Even if you charge high office fees, retaining these underperformers ultimately distracts from the productivity of your high-achieving team members and undermines their efforts.

Strong leadership is the key to navigating market cycles

The success and sustainability of a mega team, or any team model for that matter, comes down to two critical factors: strong leadership that is hyper-focused on agents’ success, and agents who sell a lot of real estate. To our home-buying and selling clients, we always tout the benefits of “local” market expertise. This is also the case when it comes to team leaders.

Since booms are sometimes followed by busts, solid leadership makes all the difference. Shooting fish in a barrel doesn’t require much skill and it doesn’t demand leadership, only opportunity. This can be said of an “up” housing market. But what goes up eventually comes back down, and when it does, experienced leadership and a brand invested in its network’s success will help individual agents and brokers weather those up, down and sometimes sideways markets.

The bottom line 

If you’re a team leader, don’t get caught up in the quantity of your agents over their quality, and remember that the bigger team doesn’t always win.

If you’re a team member, ask yourself if your environment and the people in it are lifting you up and encouraging you to be your best self, or if they’re dragging you down. Be wary of the mega team that doesn’t have the production to back up its numbers.

Leaders are responsible for developing strong, professional agents and ensuring they can weather any storm. Whether it’s the fluctuating economy or a chronic housing shortage, there’s no question that running a successful real estate business demands a whole lot of strategy. Given these macro and micro complexities, make sure your agents are professional and ready to work for the team – regardless of its size.