Tim and Roxie Gross
Broker/Owners
RE/MAX Signature
Houston, Texas
Region Served: Houston/Magnolia, Texas
Years in Real Estate: 7
Number of Offices: 4
Number of Agents: 170
What were the most challenging issues you had to overcome as the brokerage expanded in recent years?
We’ve always tried to prepare for the next chapter by reinvesting and hiring more staff than we currently needed but knew we would need. Staying positive and putting in the hard work day after day, while being open and adapting to the changing industry, has been crucial. Another challenging issue is agent turnover. We feel such a personal connection to every agent we bring on and support, and we still struggle with the turnover in this business on a personal level.
Why did you decide to retain three recruiters to help build your team?
If you’re in real estate, especially on the broker side, you know it’s a small and shrinking margin business. We’ve been able to maintain profitability by being “lean and mean.” We have fewer overall staff personnel than traditional brokerage models; however, each of our team members plays a critical part in the success of the business. We hired our first recruiter a little over two years ago and discovered that the expense was easily justifiable if they were successful, so last year, we decided to triple down and hire a staffing company to help us find two more amazing recruiters…and ended up expanding our work family from 100 to 170 agents.
How do you plan to inspire greater agent productivity this year?
We have multiple mentor programs. If you’re in your first year with our company, we pair you with an experienced mentor and hold mandatory Monday mentor trainings, with topics ranging from contract basics to real estate case studies. We’re also reactivating our “Road to…” series this year, which is a monthly gathering of like-minded agents who will help support and advise one another with a goal of greater productivity for all.
What first attracted you to RE/MAX, and why have you remained committed to this brand?
Brand awareness. After meeting with multiple franchises, RE/MAX presented the best opportunity for growth and potential agent success. We love the brand because everyone knows and trusts RE/MAX. Since then, RE/MAX has shown a commitment to our success and our agents’ businesses. The corporate vision and action plan models how we run our brokerage in that we’re out there learning and improving as much as possible while offering dedicated support to clients.
Final Questions…
What’s your best time management tip?
Game-plan your three most important goals that you want to accomplish or make progress on the following day, then plan to have them done by noon.
What’s your No. 1 tip for dealing with difficult buyers and sellers?
Be proactive when explaining the real estate process. Communicating your systems and processes with possible outcomes helps lessen stress with difficult clients.
What’s your best tip for running a successful meeting?
Respect everyone’s time by starting on schedule, staying on topic and ending on time.
For more information, please visit www.remax.com.
John Voket is a contributing editor to RISMedia.
