Industry leaders say teams will continue to be a force in brokerages

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Anyone who’s been following real estate teams over the last few years knows that they’ve been rapidly growing in popularity and that they come in all shapes and sizes.

Kendall Bonner at Inman Connect New York | Credit: AJ Canaria of PlanOmatic / Inside Real Estate

During a panel at Inman Connect New York on Wednesday called The Future Of Real Estate Teams And Their Impact On Brokerages, moderator Kendall Bonner chatted with speakers Cindy Ariosa of Long and Foster and Gary Ashton of RE/MAX about the kinds of teams supported in their brokerages and where they think teams are heading in the future.

Ariosa explained that about 10 years ago when her brokerage started getting large teams of 20 or more people, she created a new business model whereby those large teams could branch off to their own office location (where they’d have to cover the lease themselves) while still being supported by the brokerage through branding, tools and training.

“This gives them the opportunity to grow the team as big as they’d like and on their own terms,” Ariosa said.

Gary Ashton

Once Ashton’s brokerage started to grow quickly, he decided to establish a team within the brokerage, made up of all its members, so that he was both broker/owner and team leader.

“I’m a teamerage,” he explained.

After the team grew to the point where he could no longer have personal relationships with all the members because it was just too many people, he then created what he called the pod model, whereby he picked about 10 “squad leaders” to manage roughly 15 people per pod. That way agents in a pod could have easier access and more personalized attention from their squad leader. He also typically designates funds to each squad for social events and activities within their pod.

Ariosa said her model gave larger teams both independence and support, which is why it’s worked for them so well thus far.

Cindy Ariosa

“One of the benefits is, they have all the rewards and not much of the risk when we’re taking care of all the expenses,” she said.

Bonner wondered if individual agents might feel threatened at all by such a model, and Ariosa noted that over the years, Long and Foster developed an awards program that includes awards for both teams and individual agents, so that individuals would feel like their efforts for the company were still being recognized and rewarded.

Ashton added that he’s also made an effort to add a bit of gamification to the company as well by recognizing different individuals and pods, with awards for categories including top listing agent and squad leader most engaged with their pod.

Both Ashton and Ariosa agreed that looking towards the future of teams, they will continue to be malleable in their shape and attractive to agents because of their individuality within the brokerage model.

“The idea is, why would you leave [the team] because we’ve given you so many resources and options and the opportunity to develop your personal business under the [team] umbrella,” Ashton said.

“Same with the brokerage,” Ariosa said. “A team isn’t for everybody … I think we found a fabulous solution where the big teams will stay with us … So we’re very open minded and flexible, that’s why we’ve been around for 50 years.”

Email Lillian Dickerson