Whether it’s the local inventory shortage or the state of the national economy, Tom Rich doesn’t spend a lot of time trying to predict the future—and for good reason. With a company culture that revolves around agent training, collaboration and access to leadership, the broker/owner of Rockford, Mich.-based RE/MAX United has created an environment where productivity can happen regardless of market conditions. In this exclusive interview, Rich shares the philosophy and formula that keeps RE/MAX United and its agents on the path to success.
Maria Patterson: Please tell us how you came to lead RE/MAX United.
Tom Rich: My wife, Tracie, has been a top-producing agent for the past 20 years and I joined her in practice in 2006—right at the peak and just in time to ride the market all the way down. In 2010, I had taken a management position with a large broker and Tracie was an associate broker at another office. We were approached by RE/MAX in 2011 to open a brokerage in our hometown of Rockford, Mich. Just coming out of the recession, I was initially gun-shy, but Tracie saw the opportunity right away. The more we talked with RE/MAX, the more we saw an alignment with our vision of real estate: agent-focused, training and education as a priority, and helping others find the promise of a successful real estate career. Mike Metzner, RE/MAX of Michigan owner, had a depth of frontline experience and a passion to help brokers become the best in their markets, and that had great appeal to us. RE/MAX, from the regional and corporate staff to our fellow brokers in the U.S. and around the world, has provided the most encouraging and helpful peers we could’ve asked for.
MP: How many offices and agents does the firm currently have?
TR: We opened our first office in Rockford in June 2012 with just the two of us and our Operations Manager Kim Maggini. Tracie and I made a list of agents we would want to work with and those we wouldn’t, and went to work recruiting. We organized our budget around the idea that if not a single agent joined us we would be fine—that allowed us to have a mindset of recruiting people we wanted to work with, rather than recruiting to pay the bills. Seven agents joined us in 2012, another eight in 2013, and we filled every desk by the end of 2014 at 28 agents. In 2015, we opened a second franchise in Grand Rapids. At this time, we have 50 agents. We have aggressive recruiting goals and will continue to search for the agents we want to invest in. Our agents are great advocates for our offices and our best source of recruiting, both from within the industry and outside of it.
MP: What qualities do you look for in agents?
TR: When you find someone with a good, strong work ethic, the sky is the limit. We’ve seen over and over again people who are good salespeople but do not do well …read more
From:: Real Estate News