ABOVE Fall 2013

RMAX LISTED NYSE

HISTORIC MOMENT FOR THE BRAND PAGE 6

THE RE/MAX FALL 2013 REMAX.COM/ABOVE

Flying High Celebrating 35 years of an icon, and the people who make it soar

PLUS BANKING ON RE/MAX

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BORDERLESS MARKET 40

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GREAT OFFICE 43

OPENING REMARKS

Wayne Crosby is a RE/MAX Circle of Legends member and arguably one of the most enthusiastic fans of the RE/MAX Balloon. His office’s balloon festival, pictured, has been delighting the local community for more than 20 years – and raising funds for local charities.

Nothing Short of Magical

BY WAYNE CROSBY, BROKER/OWNER, RE/MAX OF MIDLAND, MIDLAND, MICH.

T ABOUT THIS COLUMN Opening Remarks features the thoughts of top RE/MAX leaders, speaking on major themes within ABOVE.

HE RE/MAX BALLOON IS SO much more than a logo.

The RE/MAX Balloon represents tradition. It represents quality. It represents a promise that’s delivered on by thousands of RE/MAX Sales Associates around the world.

Almost everyone recognizes the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon. Even if you removed the letters, people would still know the brand behind it.

The awareness the RE/MAX Balloon provides is unmatched in the real estate industry. In my central Michigan community of 43,000, we use the balloon in as much of our advertising as possible. People here know our signs, know our red-overwhite-over-blue colors and know who to call when they’re ready to buy or sell a home. We’re always at the forefront of their minds.

When it’s inflated and standing tall in a crowd, the RE/MAX Balloon is a treat for people of all ages. Year after year at our annual RE/MAX of Midland Balloon Festival, we love seeing the looks of excitement and wonder

when a pilot starts the fan and ignites the burner for the first time. As the flames howl and the balloon inflates, people can’t take their eyes off it.

And then, when the balloon starts climbing, they all look up. Not just some of them. All of them.

We’ve used the balloon at our festival for more than two decades, but its marketing power extends well beyond that event. We’ve developed a “Huff & Puff” elementary school program that takes the balloon – and the amazing science lessons it contains – into 18 schools and reaches more than 7,000 students. You want to see magic? It happens every time curious kids come in contact with the marvel of hot air ballooning. And their families know it was RE/MAX making it possible.

An inflated RE/MAX Balloon looks bold, and I think that goes hand in hand with RE/MAX. You need to be bold to succeed as a RE/MAX agent.

If you believe in yourself and are willing to climb into the basket of everything the brand offers, you can truly soar, high up into the sky.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

1

features

26 CONTENTS

I was closing up to 60 buyer transactions a year and earning good money, but my dad’s voice was always at the back of my head saying, ‘You can do better, Son.’ – CHRISTIAN FUENTES

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

Since the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon first flew in 1978, it has continually elevated the brand to new heights.

DREAM MAKER Christian Fuentes’ steady rise from novice agent to top-producing Team Leader and brokerage Co-Owner comes from a simple mantra: Always do better.

PLAYING TO WIN The No. 1 individual RE/MAX agent in Quebec didn’t work his way up by sticking to the sidelines. Jimmy Arseneault is a champion for his clients.

ABOVE ONLINE

View this and past editions of ABOVE at remax.com/above. Enhanced with videos, ABOVE Extra online exclusives and additional resources, the ABOVE website is a fun, interactive way to experience and share the magazine.

ON THE COVER THE RE/MAX BALLOON FLIES OVER A DENVER-AREA NEIGHBORHOOD. PHOTO BY TOM MAYNOR

PHOTOS BY BARRY GUTIERREZ (BALLOONS); JEFF CLARK (FUENTES)

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26 32 36

IT’S EVERYWHERE

RE/MAX Premier

RE/MAX Premier

departments

IN EVERY ISSUE:

01 OPENING REMARKS 48 JUST FOR FUN

20

ABOVE

®

FALL 2013, VOL. 3, NO. 4 ABOVE, a quarterly publication (January, April, July, October), is the official magazine of RE/MAX, LLC, the international real estate franchisor serving the industry’s most productive sales network.

RE/MAX World Headquarters 5075 S. Syracuse St. Denver, CO 80237-2712 PO Box 3907 Englewood, CO 80155

remax.com

®

RE/MAX, LLC CHAIRMAN & CO-FOUNDER Dave Liniger VICE CHAIR & CO-FOUNDER Gail Liniger CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Margaret Kelly PRESIDENT Vinnie Tracey

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EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS AND BRANDING Mike Ryan

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ABOVE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS George White CREATIVE SERVICES DIRECTOR Collin Meek MANAGING EDITOR & ABOVE CHIEF EDITOR

Amanda Derengowski

SENIOR EDITOR Deborah Ball Kearns

INSIDE STORY

8 SNAPSHOTS

R4 returns to Las Vegas; RE/MAX leader is named CMN Hospitals Corporate Partner of the Year; RE/MAX scholarship winner; and more!

17 BANKING ON RE/MAX

Meet four former Coldwell Banker agents who saw greater opportunity for their futures at RE/MAX.

20 FROM FOOD STAMPS TO FORTUNE Randy May lost his home and more during the downturn, but after becoming a real estate agent, he wasn’t down for long.

BUILDING BLOCKS

23 BUILDING REBOUNDS

Learn how to capitalize on a revitalized new-home market.

24 TWO CONSUMER TRENDS TO WATCH Anticipate evolving homebuyer and seller requests.

25 ATTENNNN-TION!

The new MilRES certification course – now available through RU – helps agents better serve active and retired military members and their families.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

FULL SPECTRUM

40 BORDERLESS MARKET

More buyers are expanding their property searches to markets outside their home countries. Learn how you can help them – with insights from two agents who already do.

43 VANTAGE POINT

RE/MAX of Orange Beach, on Alabama’s Gulf Coast, builds on innovation and service to weather tough times – and to bask in the success on the other side.

EDITORS Katharine Davis

Dorota Wright-O’Neill

To reach the editors of ABOVE, call 303.796.3339 or email above@remax.com.

To order additional copies, visit the Shop RE/MAX website at shop.remax.net.

Copyright © 2013 RE/MAX, LLC. All rights reserved. ABOVE is a registered trademark of RE/MAX, LLC. The material herein may not be duplicated, copied or reproduced – in whole or in part – in any way without written permission. ABOVE magazine is provided to RE/MAX Affiliates as one of many benefits. The opinions of guest contributors and interviewed guests are their own and not necessarily those of RE/MAX, LLC, or its Affiliates, or any of its owners, officers, employees or agents.

RE/MAX, LLC, is not responsible for the content of advertisements and assumes no liability for any claims arising therefrom.

RE/MAX, LLC, is an Equal Opportunity Employer and supports the Fair Housing Act. Each RE/MAX office is independently owned and operated. ®

ABOVE & BEYOND

46 BEATING BREAST CANCER

RE/MAX Associates work together to help Susan G. Komen and the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation arm people for the fight.

47 SMOKIN’ THE COMPETITION Minnesota Hall of Famer Jeff Vanderlinde is the guy to know if you have a hankering for prize-winning barbecue.

www.hungryeyemedia.com 800.852.0857 PRESIDENT Brendan Harrington EDITOR Tom Wilmes ART DIRECTOR Lindsay Burke PROJECT MANAGER Susan Humphrey

ADVERTISE IN ABOVE! NATIONAL AD SALES

Susan Wist 303.378.1626 susanwist @hungryeyemedia.com

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INSIDE STORY

MILESTONE

RE/MAX HOLDINGS INC., THE PARENT COMPANY OF RE/MAX LLC, BEGAN TRADING on the New York Stock Exchange on Oct. 2 under the ticker symbol “RMAX” after its initial public offering. The occasion marked an unforgettable moment in RE/MAX history.

RE/MAX Chairman and Co-Founder Dave Liniger, Vice Chair and Co-Founder Gail Liniger, CEO Margaret Kelly and other RE/MAX leaders visited the New York Stock Exchange floor to witness the stock opening.

“To be trading on the New York Stock Exchange is truly a memorable day in the 40-year history of the RE/MAX organization,” Kelly says. “From just a single office in Denver, we’ve grown into a global real estate brand. We’re proud to enter a new era of RE/MAX history as a publicly traded company.”

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

BIG MOMENT RE/MAX CEO MARGARET KELLY, CENTER, JOINS RE/MAX CO-FOUNDERS DAVE AND GAIL LINIGER, FRONT, AND OTHER RE/MAX LEADERS AT THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE, WHERE “RMAX” BEGAN TRADING OCT. 2.

PHOTO BY DARIO CANTATORE/NYSE EURONEXT

Historic Day

ABOVE Online

VISIT REMAX.COM/ABOVE FOR EVEN MORE RE/MAX NEWS AND FEATURES, BONUS TIPS, ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AND VIDEOS, INCLUDING …

How to Close 7 Transactions in 3 Days 104 LIKES!

South Carolina agent Keith Ancone explains how he did it – and how you can, too.

King of the Castle

163 LIKES!

Kyle Cockburn tapped into the global power of the RE/MAX network to broker a life-changing transaction.

Up, Up and Away!

Celebrate the 35th anniversary of the RE/MAX Balloon by browsing photos of the icon flying and mesmerizing crowds around the world.

39 LIKES!

5 Tips for Viral Video Success Stand above the rest by creating memorable videos that make a big impression. Maryland top producer Nathan Dart shares his ideas.

The Phone Rings More at RE/MAX 77 LIKES!

Standout marketing materials will put you first on a potential client’s call list. It worked for California Chairman’s Clubber Randy Aguilar.

LIKE WHAT.YOU’RE READING?.

Let everyone know by posting comments, downloading PDFs to share and using the Twitter, Google+ and Facebook icons to link to your favorite articles.

CONTACT THE EDITORS

Send comments, inquiries and story ideas to above@remax.com.

Just because your deal is delayed doesn’t mean your commission should be too.

Providing RE/MAX® real estate professionals a variety of commission advance products for maintaining steady business cash flow.

1 (877) 882-4368 www.eCommission.com agent@ecommission.com

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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vINSIDE

STORY

SNAPSHOTS

Social Contest a ‘Perfect Fit’ THE MANY ENTRIES IN THE $10,000 RE/MAX “WHAT’S YOUR PERFECT FIT?” SOCIAL media contest perfectly capture just how hard RE/MAX agents work to find their clients the right home.

Over five weeks, people posted stories, photos and videos explaining what makes their homes and communities the perRE/MAX has surpassed fect fit for their lives and families – all for a chance to win one of 50,000 likes on five weekly Apple gift card prizes and the $10,000 grand prize.

Facebook! Are you The top 10 submissions with the largest number of votes and your clients in the loop? You can be at by the end of the fifth week qualified for the grand-prize votfacebook.com/remax. ing period. Browse all the great stories and see the results at myperfectfit.remax.com.

50,000 LIKES!

FIVE IN A ROW!

RE/MAX AGAIN RANKS AS THE NO. 1 REAL ESTATE NETWORK YOU’VE DONE IT AGAIN! For the fifth consecutive year, RE/MAX ranked higher than all other real estate brands in the annual Franchise Times Top 200.

The 2013 report appears in the October issue of Franchise Times, and it shows that RE/MAX also ranks among the most successful U.S.-based franchises in any industry, based on worldwide sales.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

REAL ESTATE COMPANIES BY RANKING Company

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

RE/MAX

14

16

15

12

12

Coldwell Banker

26

29

26

25

17

Century 21

28

28

56

46

47

Keller Williams

36

45

44

41

49

Prudential

45

41

36

--

--

Sotheby’s International

79

89

94

110

354*

ERA Real Estate

113

114

111

113

108

*SOTHEBY’S RANKED AS UP-AND-COMER | SOURCE: FRANCHISE TIMES, OCTOBER 2013

PARTNER OF. THE YEAR. MIKE REAGAN HAS been one of the biggest champions of the more than 20-year relationship between RE/MAX and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, and now the RE/MAX Senior Vice President, Business Alliances, is the 2013 CMN Hospitals Corporate Partner of the Year.

“I was speechless,” Reagan says of receiving the news from CMN Hospitals CEO John Lauck. “I’m just so proud to represent such a generous network of Associates.”

Under Reagan’s steady guidance, RE/MAX Associates have donated more than $123 million to help their local hospitals.

And now, as a Member of the Board of Governors, Reagan offers his leadership to expand support for CMN Hospitals across North America.

Canada’s First Associate Still Going Strong!

IN 1978, RE/MAX HAD A LOT to celebrate: its fifth anniversary, the first flight of the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon and the hiring of the very first – and longest-serving – Sales Associate in Canada: Keith Schultz.

“Nobody knew who RE/MAX was or what we were back then,” remembers Schultz, who was hired by the late Don Fernie, the first RE/MAX franchise owner in all of Canada. “But the concept really resonated with me right from the beginning, and I never looked back.”

Thirty-five years later, remax_ad_061913_B.pdf

1

Schultz still looks to the future with RE/MAX. Having worked for just two Calgary, Alberta, brokerages – RE/MAX Real Estate Calgary South (now RE/MAX First) for the first 26 years and RE/MAX Real Estate (Central) for the past nine – he understands the importance of commitment.

“We always look for loyalty among our clients; 80 percent of my business is repeat and referral business,” he says. “It’s nice to have loyal clients, but it’s important to be loyal to the industry and to RE/MAX, too.”

6/28/13

11:55 AM

FLYING HIGH KEITH SCHULTZ WAS HIRED AS THE FIRST SALES ASSOCIATE IN CANADA THE SAME YEAR THE FIRST RE/MAX HOT AIR BALLOON, ABOVE, TOOK FLIGHT.

Being a loyal RE/MAX agent means Schultz has been there to witness the network’s evolution – like becoming the No. 1 real estate brand in Canada, for starters – but he’s also been there for the constants.

“Over the years, RE/MAX has always done everything

first class,” he says. “That’s one thing that hasn’t changed at all.

“Real estate is a great opportunity to make money, but you also want to wake up every morning and feel good about what you do. Being with RE/MAX has always been fun for me.”

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REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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INSIDE STORY

SNAPSHOTS

NAR Good Neighbor Finalist

T

INA McDONOUGH completed her first Susan G. Komen 3-Day walk in 2007, and she vowed she’d never do it again because it was so hard. Seven years later, she has not only returned time and again, she’s raised more than $1.4 million to fight breast cancer. And now Realtor Magazine is recognizing her as a 2013 Good Neighbor Award finalist.

“I started crying when I

heard the news,” says McDonough, whose Valley Girls & Guys team has grown from its four original members to more than 160.

The 100 Percent Club member with RE/MAX Select Real Estate in Renton, Wash., is one of 10 finalists for the award that recognizes Realtors for improving lives in their communities.

Five winners will be announced and awarded $10,000 at the Realtors Conference & Expo in November.

PRETTY IN PINK TINA McDONOUGH, FRONT LEFT, AND HER TEAM, VALLEY GIRLS & GUYS, RECENTLY PARTICIPATED IN A KOMEN 3-DAY WALK IN SEATTLE.

A LONG DRIVE FIRST!

SET THOSE DVRs

IT’S WINNER TAKE-ALL AT THE RE/MAX WORLD LONG Drive Championship in October, and all the 2013 finals action will rebroadcast on the Golf Channel through the end of the year.

Millions of golf fans will feel the rush of 400-yard drives and fierce competition. They’ll also know that your brand is behind it all.

VISIT LONGDRIVERS.COM FOR DETAILS

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

Catch the firstever network TV rebroadcast of the Long Drive Finals on NBC, Dec. 28 at 4 p.m. ET.

If you’ve ever looked at marketing materials created by RE/MAX World Headquarters and thought, “I’d love to get my hands on extra copies,” then you’re going to love the new Shop RE/MAX website at shop.remax.net.

Purchase RE/MAX products online from any device – iPad, iPhone, smartphone, laptop or desktop – at any time. Need to find a RE/MAX Approved Supplier? You can do that, too.

Visit shop.remax.net today. It’s so easy!

PHOTOS BY MERYL SCHENCKER (NAR FINALIST)

SHOP NOW AT SHOP.REMAX.NET

MULTITALENTED MARCELO LAIJAS JR., PICTURED WITH HIS WIFE, BONNIE, IS AN ENTREPRENEUR, MUSICIAN, ATHLETE, HUNTER AND, NOW, GRADUATE STUDENT.

$10,000 KICK-START A TEXAS BROKER/OWNER CONTINUES HIS EDUCATIONAL JOURNEY AS THE FIRST WINNER OF A RE/MAX SCHOLARSHIP TO REALTOR UNIVERSITY MARCELO LAIJAS JR. HAS MANY PASSIONS AND INTERESTS. As the first winner of a $10,000 RE/MAX scholarship to Realtor University, he can add “graduate student” to a long list of accomplishments. In June, Laijas started his Master of Real Estate (MRE) program.

“I like pushing myself,” Laijas Jr. says. “Education is a

PHOTO BY MIKE SUMERLIN (LAIJAS)

2013 RE/MAX COMMERCIAL WORLD SYMPOSIUM THE SHARPEST MINDS AND most productive brokers in commercial real estate gathered for three days of networking and education at the RE/MAX Commercial World Symposium in September. Hosted at RE/MAX World Headquarters in Denver, the event attracted about 100 Commercial Practitioners from the U.S., Canada and even Turkey to learn the latest trends and ideas for working the commercial market.

The Symposium kicked off with a day of golf at the renowned Sanctuary Golf Course in Sedalia, Colo. When the sessions got under way the next day, Mike Lipsey, founder of The Lipsey Company, and Todd Kuhlmann, an instructor with the CCIM Institute, were among the featured speakers.

Brian Haney, with RE/MAX Great American North in St. Charles, Ill., had this to say about his experience: “I don’t have the time to tell you all that I learned.

The materials and the speakers were great, and meeting my fellow agents was awesome. It was a great event!”

great motivator. In the past, every time I’ve taken a step forward with education, I saw an immediate increase in my revenue.”

Laijas Jr. started out as a substitute teacher but discovered his talent for sales when he supplemented his income by working for a property-management company. Inspired, Laijas Jr. earned a real estate license, and then pursued the Accredited Land Consultant designation and became a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM). In time, he bought his own RE/MAX franchise and became the Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Vista in Floresville, Texas.

Laijas Jr. felt pursuing a master’s degree was the natural next step in his educational journey. He was stunned when he won the scholarship.

“Getting the $10,000 is a huge honor and help,” Laijas Jr. says. “It covers about half the cost of the degree, adding one more layer of motivation to finish strong.”

In the past, every time I’ve taken a step forward with education, I saw an immediate increase in my revenue.

GOING GLOBAL A PANEL OF RE/MAX COMMERCIAL PRACTITIONERS SHARES IDEAS FOR GENERATING CROSS-BORDER REFERRALS. PICTURED FROM LEFT: MOOJAN AZIZI OF VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA; CLARK COYSTON OF CALGARY, ALBERTA; SCOTT HUGHES OF EDMONTON, ALBERTA; AND MICHAEL DAVIDSON OF TORONTO, ONTARIO.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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INSIDE STORY

LEADERSHIP

Shaping the Future

RUSSELL BOYCE, THE NEW PRESIDENT OF THE MARYLAND ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, ENJOYS GIVING BACK THROUGH LEADERSHIP BY SARAH BENNETT

WHAT ARE THE ASSOCIATION’S RESPONSIBILITIES?

W

ITH A REAL ESTATE

One of our primary responsibilities is to protect the rights of home and property owners, and do everything we can to protect the integrity of the industry. We also want to provide as much value as possible to our members and help them be successful.

That mentality mirrors a core ideal of RE/MAX: Be the best you can be – and help others do the same.

career spanning more than two

decades, Russell Boyce understands the challenges agents face every day. So the busy Team Leader with RE/MAX 100 in White Plains, Md., makes time to participate in local and state

WHAT WILL YOU ADDRESS DURING YOUR TENURE?

associations, where he protects the interests of agents and the customers they serve.

Last year, while serving as Secretary of the Maryland Association of Realtors (MAR), Boyce was diagnosed with stage IV non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. His battle only strengthened his dedication to the industry. With his cancer in remission and a yearlong tenure as MAR’s President now under way, Boyce – a RE/MAX Lifetime Achievement Award recipient – has plenty to say about the importance of leadership.

He believes that when you lead by example and empower as many people as you can along the way, everybody wins.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

HOW DID YOU BECOME AN INDUSTRY LEADER? I’ve been blessed in this business, so I always try to think of ways to give back.

Years ago, I was asked if I’d be interested in serving on the local Realtor board of directors, and it was a great experience. I ended up becoming president in 2009. At that point, several state leaders told me I should consider serving at that level. I was honored.

We’re trying to protect property values, not only in the state of Maryland but also across the country. We have to make sure – on both the state and federal levels – that as politicians try to balance their budgets, they’re not doing so on the backs of property owners. Our job is to ensure that agents have all the tools they need to do their jobs, and we can help tremendously by protecting homeownership.

One of my other goals is to engage younger real estate professionals. I want to inspire them to move up and help us baby boomers position our association and businesses for a strong future.

That mentality mirrors a core ideal of RE/MAX: Be the best you can be – and help others do the same.

DID YOU ALWAYS PLAN ON MOVING INTO LEADERSHIP ROLES?

ANY ADVICE FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO GET MORE INVOLVED?

It was an evolution. I think the more you get involved, the more you want to be involved to an even greater degree.

You realize that one voice really can make a difference – and when that epiphany happens, you want to do the best you can do for everybody.

When you volunteer and focus your attention on your interests and passions, it never feels like work. And when you decide to participate, there will be room for you at the table. The associations are always open to new people and new ideas.

LISTING TIPS

INSIDE STORY

Will They

LOVE IT? FIVE IDEAS TO HELP BUYERS SEE THEMSELVES IN YOUR LISTING

BY SARAH BENNETT

T

ODD TALBOT HAS NO USE FOR CLUTTER, BROKEN FIXTURES, ODD SMELLS OR anything that can turn a showing into a disaster.

As co-host of “Love It or List It Vancouver” – a spinoff of the popular W Network program “Love It or List It” that airs in the U.S. as “Love It or List It, Too” on HGTV – Talbot is charged with finding the show’s participants a house they’ll choose over their current one.

Sounds simple, right? Well, the twist is that an interior decorator – co-host Jillian Harris – is also on the scene, improving the family’s home based on their wish list. Ultimately, the owners must decide whether they love their newly upgraded home or want to list it and buy one that Talbot finds.

It can be mighty tempting to stay put. So Talbot has to locate a listing that looks great, feels great and generates the sort of “we should live here” vibe every buyer wants – and deserves – to experience.

Talbot, who joined RE/MAX Masters Realty in West Vancouver, British Columbia, last year, offers these staging tips for agents interested in making their listings irresistible.

1 PHOTO COURTESY OF TODD TALBOT

FIX THE LITTLE THINGS FIRST. Help the homeowners identify any minor renovations that need to be done, and set a timeline for completion. Addressing small fixes before potential buyers see the property increases the odds of a great first impression.

2

DEPERSONALIZE, DON’T STERILIZE. We all advise sellers to depersonalize the home so that potential buyers can picture themselves in the property, but don’t let them go too far and make the space seem sterile. You don’t have to pretend kids don’t live there; you just don’t want people tripping over toys.

3

ADDRESS THE DRAWBACKS, BUT FOCUS ON THE POSITIVES. Resist the urge to mask or gloss over problems or undesirable features. After all, everything will be revealed at some point. So roll up the blinds, show them the view – even if it isn’t that great – and move on to highlight the home’s better features.

4

THINK BEYOND PAINT. Insert punches of color and accents with items that can be changed easily, like pillows, flowers, light fixtures or throws. When supported by neutral backgrounds of whites and grays, these small touches go a long way toward livening up a room.

5

USE LAYERS TO ADD DEPTH. One of the biggest traps of staging is that the result is too sparse. Achieve an inviting, lived-in feeling by layering items and textures.

Whether it’s a shaggy throw rug on a hardwood floor or a contemporary leather couch on carpet, different materials add depth and warmth to a space.

Do you stage your listings?

Send your best before-and-after staging photos to above@remax.com.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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INSIDE STORY

INSIGHTS

Reg Kehler

4x4

SKY’S THE LIMIT Four top producers answer four questions about the RE/MAX Balloon and the value of the brand

What helps you stay ahead of the competition?

Reg: Giving exceptional service helps build strong personal relationships. Following up and giving great closing gifts also set me apart.

Shelley: I try to use the RE/MAX brand at every opportunity, stay at the forefront of technology, and treat all agents and clients with the same respect that I wish to be shown.

Jeffrey: I try to foresee any challenges in my clients’ transactions and anticipate all possible scenarios. This makes clients more comfortable, and helps me manage – and often exceed – expectations.

Susan: I use the technology and marketing tools provided on Mainstreet, and implement coaching and training nuggets from speakers who present at RE/MAX events.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

RE/MAX Professionals Winnipeg, Manitoba Lifetime Achievement Award

What’s your top competitive advantage as a RE/MAX agent?

Reg: The brand name – along with the extensive exposure from all the national advertising – gives RE/MAX agents instant credibility.

Shelley Mondzak RE/MAX Supreme Phillipsburg, N.J. 100 Percent Club

Shelley: The opportunity to turn every listing into additional business is a great competitive advantage.

RE/MAX agents can pursue leads from their own signs, ads and online presence. Also, all remax.com leads have no referral fees.

Jeffrey Decatur

Jeffrey: Brand recognition.

RE/MAX has done an amazing job of telling consumers that we’re more educated, do more business, are more technologically savvy and are global. There’s a higher level of respect that comes along with that.

RE/MAX Capital Albany, N.Y. Executive Club

Susan Geer

RE/MAX Professionals Reno, Nev. Platinum Club

What does the RE/MAX Balloon’s 35th anniversary represent?

Reg: I think of the most recent RE/MAX R4 conference in Las Vegas and the fantastic speech that Dave Liniger gave. His message was, “Never give up.”

Shelley: The fabulous marketing that’s made the balloon one of the most recognizable logos is what comes to mind. There’s no doubt our high-flying beauty makes everyone who sees it think of RE/MAX as being synonymous with real estate.

Jeffrey: I think of achievement – of all it takes to turn a vision into reality. It makes me proud to be affiliated with RE/MAX. Susan: It represents longevity, stability, strength and brand-name awareness. And, of course, RE/MAX agents being No. 1.

Susan: Definitely the brand! Brand awareness is a huge advantage for RE/MAX agents. It not only provides an edge on a local level, but nationally and internationally as well.

What’s your dream trip in a RE/MAX Balloon?

Reg: I would love to go to a romantic location like Carmel, Calif., to have a fantastic dinner and evening with my wife.

Shelley: I’ve flown in a RE/MAX Balloon and been in the chase vehicle several times with our New Jersey team. Every flight is a unique experience, but flying over the Las Vegas Strip would be a dream come true.

Jeffrey: My dream trip in the RE/MAX Balloon would include visits to historical sites around the globe – and frequent stops at wineries to refuel!

Susan: I’d like to be able to fly around the world with a large megaphone and preach the truths and reality of the RE/MAX model.

Let us help you build your business Here’s to our continued commitment to success in 2013. Let’s build on our long-standing relationship and create an even stronger one. We can accomplish this together through: • A variety of strategic alliances that can help you manage and grow your business • Short Sale outreach programs, a dedicated escalation web tool and online education at the Bank of America Agent Resource Center • Bank of America Merchant Services electronic payment processing solutions that can help Broker Owners streamline office operations • Bank of America at Work® program for RE/MAX affiliates* If you’d like to learn more about how we can work together to build your business, please contact Shay Shearer, National Relationship Executive, at 1.502.287.2675 or shay.shearer@bankofamerica.com.

Visit the Bank of America Agent Resource Center at bankofamerica.com/agentresources for tools and information to help you manage and grow your business.

* Eligibility for the Bank of America at Work® program terminates when (a) you terminate your relationship with the sponsoring company or organization or (b) the sponsoring company’s or organization’s Bank of America at Work® program plan is terminated by either the company or organization or Bank of America, at which time rates and fees will revert to the current rates and fees as stated in the Personal Schedule of Fees.

Equal Housing Lender. ©2013 Bank of America Corporation. Credit and THIS INFORMATION IS NOT INTENDED OR AUTHORIZED FOR CONSUMER DISTRIBUTION. Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC. collateral are subject to approval. Terms and conditions apply. This is not a commitment to lend. Programs, rates, terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. All trademarks are the property of Bank of America Corporation or their respective owners. Bank of America and other advertised companies are separate entities; each is independently responsible for its products, services and incentives.

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NEW TO THE NETWORK

INSIDE STORY

Banking on

RE/MAX FOUR FORMER COLDWELL BANKER AGENTS SAW GREATER OPPORTUNITY FOR THEIR FUTURES AT RE/MAX, SO THEY SEIZED IT BY DEBORAH BALL KEARNS

P

PHOTO BY JEFF CLARK

EOPLE WHO join RE/MAX from other national competitors have various reasons for making the switch.

For some, it could be more brandname recognition.

For some, it’s a higher compensation model. For others, it’s the support, education and tools.

But one thing that resonates with everyone who joins RE/MAX is the instant credibility they receive by aligning with real estate’s No. 1 brand. We talked to four agents who left Coldwell Banker for RE/MAX in the past 18 months – and are glad they made the switch.

NATALIE VIZIR, LEFT, AND MARY BETH BUCKLES, WITH RE/MAX SIGNATURE SERVICES IN DANA POINT, CALIF.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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INSIDE STORY

NEW TO THE NETWORK

MARY BETH BUCKLES AND NATALIE VIZIR RE/MAX SIGNATURE SERVICES DANA POINT, CALIF.

NEW STANDARD FOR SUCCESS Mary Beth Buckles was a top producer at her former Beachside Coldwell Banker office in Orange County, Calif., closing $15 million in sales volume annually in recent years.

Despite her success in luxury sales, Buckles felt like she had reached her peak potential there. So she started exploring her options.

It wasn’t long before she set her sights on RE/MAX Signature Services in Dana Point, where she found exactly what she was missing at Coldwell Banker: a global brand name, unparalleled brokerage support, national advertising, a sophisticated luxury properties program in The RE/MAX Collection and much more.

“The prime location of the office in Dana Point and the brand-name credibility sold me on RE/MAX,” says Buckles,

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NATALIE VIZIR

who simply walked in one day to discuss her future with RE/MAX Signature Services Co-Owner Mike Jesse. “Mike flew me to RE/MAX World Headquarters in Denver, where I met with Dave Liniger and the regional staff. That was really impressive; no one has ever gone to such lengths to recruit me in the 20 years I’ve been in real estate.”

Little did she know, Buckles began a trend; several other agents from her former Coldwell Banker office have since moved to Jesse’s brokerage.

One of those agents was Natalie Vizir, who made the switch in April. Vizir, who also specializes in luxury homes

ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

and closed $25 million in sales in the past year, says she, too, felt limited at Coldwell Banker. The RE/MAX model and brand fit Vizir’s business much better.

“I feel that the RE/MAX model is geared toward professionals who are more experienced and are serious about their business,” says Vizir, who adds that she’s seen a 20-percent increase in production in 2013.

Both Vizir and Buckles say that RE/MAX puts them in prime position for tackling the resurgence they’re seeing in their market. Prices are up dramatically, inventory is low and bidding wars are back in

Southern California.

“I’m happy I made the change, and I know I’m in an environment where my Broker/Owners care about my success and I have their support,” Vizir says.

“RE/MAX is going to help me provide a higher level of service for my clients.”

Buckles couldn’t agree more, and adds that now is the time for agents to position themselves for the future. There’s no better place to do that, she says, than at RE/MAX. “If you’re a seasoned agent working for a brokerage on a lower split and you think you’re getting more support for it, you’re wrong; I know I was.”

PHOTOS BY JEFF CLARK

The RE/MAX model is geared toward professionals who are more experienced and are serious about their business.

MARY BETH BUCKLES

NANCY BENARD

RE/MAX agents have a passion and confidence that’s contagious.

RE/MAX ULTIMATE PROFESSIONALS SHOREWOOD, ILL.

SHAD AZAR

RE/MAX HALLMARK REALTY TORONTO, ONTARIO

HAPPIER THAN EVER Nancy Benard had always been impressed with the RE/MAX agents she dealt with at the closing table over the years. She started her career in real estate with Coldwell Banker in 2007. At first, she was happy.

But as she closed more and more transactions, Benard says she lost more independence to run her business her way.

“Every decision I made – whether it was my marketing, setting my fees or raising my commission – needed my broker’s approval,” Benard says. “My hands were tied.”

Benard was approached several times by Kathy Dames, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Ultimate Professionals in Shorewood, Ill., and finally agreed to meet with her last fall. After crunching the numbers and realizing she would earn more at RE/MAX, Benard made the switch to RE/MAX in September 2012.

“I’ve been smiling ever since,” Benard says with a chuckle. “At my new office, there’s such a strong sense of camaraderie; everyone wants you to succeed. It’s a much more positive environment.”

The brokerage-level support has pleasantly

surprised Benard, who before had to pay extra fees for services like marketing, IT and web design. Now it’s all provided by an in-house staff, which gives Benard more flexibility to spend FOLLOWING THE SIGNS time with her clients.

Shad Azar couldn’t take it “This year has been anymore. He was simply tired incredibly busy, but there’s of seeing all the RE/MAX yard always someone asking, signs and RE/MAX adver‘What can I help you with?’” tisements at sporting events she says. “I share a part-time and home shows around Toassistant with the top-proronto, where RE/MAX enjoys ducing agent in my office, unbeatable market share. and it’s been a life-saver!”

As an agent with Coldwell Since moving to RE/MAX, Banker, Azar didn’t have the Benard has seen her busibrand-name credibility and ness increase by a dramatic clout his RE/MAX counter40 percent. She and another parts did. In fact, he says, he agent in her office beat spent a lot of time explaining out five other real estate what Coldwell Banker was to companies for an exclusive clients, who mostly assumed agreement to market and he worked for a bank. sell new construction in a “I figured if you can’t nearby community. As of beat them, join them,” says Sept. 1, some 87 percent of Azar, who joined RE/MAX the lots had been sold.

Hallmark Realty in Toronto With plenty of business in June 2012. in the pipeline, Benard A big reason he made is on track to finish the the switch was because year strong. he had hit a pro“It’s so duction plateau. rewarding to When Azar looked Renee Buckhoff of work hard for at the REAL Texas has her own Coldwell Banker my clients – all Trends Canadian to RE/MAX story. with the backing 250 to compare Read it online at of the RE/MAX his old brokerage’s remax.com/above. brand.” productivity to

that of RE/MAX Hallmark Realty, he started wondering what RE/MAX agents were doing to outproduce their competitors in such an overwhelming way.

When he joined RE/MAX, he finally understood.

“RE/MAX agents take real estate seriously,” Azar says.

“They have a passion and confidence that’s contagious. Our Broker/Owners, Debra Bain and Ken McLachlan, lead by example and personally invest themselves in our success. The brokerage’s support is second to none.”

Toronto’s market is as hot as ever, and Azar is working hard to keep up. In fact, his production is up by 50 percent in the past year and shows no signs of slowing.

“The phone rings on its own now that I’m with RE/MAX,” Azar says. “I’m still out there pounding the streets and working hard, but having the advantage that comes with the RE/MAX Balloon is awesome. If you want to be the best, you have to surround yourself with the best; I’m with the No. 1 brand in the world.”

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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INSIDE STORY

RESILIENCE

From Food Stamps to Fortune RANDY MAY LOST HIS HOME AND MORE DURING THE DOWNTURN, BUT AFTER BECOMING A REAL ESTATE AGENT, HE WASN’T DOWN FOR LONG

BRANDY AND RANDY MAY

BY DEBORAH BALL KEARNS

T

HE INDIANA WIND was howling around Randy May’s pick-up truck on the night he broke his neck.

May, a construction company owner, never really saw the tree that crashed down onto the vehicle and changed his life forever. It sparked a chain of events that would cost him his home and leave him wondering how in the world he’d get his life back on track.

The 2006 injury didn’t paralyze May, but it put him into a back-and-neck brace

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that limited his mobility and made it difficult for him to lead his company. Maybe it didn’t even matter, because the construction industry downturn smacked him almost as hard as the tree had. Building stalled almost completely. Projects dried up. Phone calls stopped.

The need for his services screeched to a halt.

In a classic case of unfair timing, May and his wife, Brandy, had finished building their dream home – a labor of love – just six months before the accident. The

ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

mortgage payments didn’t shrink just because May’s income had, and the couple soon found themselves eating through their savings, just to pay the bills.

They understood the math.

In a matter of time, they wouldn’t be able to pay their mortgage anymore.

“I felt totally helpless,” May says.

ASKING FOR HELP Familiar with the short sale concept that would let them escape their impossible situation, the Mays turned to

Tracee Lutes, a well-established independent brokerage owner in Bloomington, Ind. She deftly guided them through a short sale and helped them get out from under the crushing weight of their mortgage debt.

“Tracee was kind, professional and compassionate the whole time,” Randy May says. “We were devastated that we didn’t have any money to buy our three little girls Christmas presents that year. Tracee and her assistant, Georgia Johnson, put together a toy drive for us.

How amazing is that? We were absolutely shocked.

When someone does something like that for you, you don’t forget it.”

The Mays were so impressed with how Lutes ran her business that they wanted to earn their real estate licenses and join her team. They asked if she would have them. Lutes said yes.

There was no overnight success, no immediate turnaround in their lives, but from that point forward the Mays had a goal and a renewed sense of hope. It was a new beginning, and that was reason enough to work as hard as they could.

Randy says he remembers feeling shame and embarrassment when he used food stamps at the grocery store. But those moments also drove him.

He became fiercely determined that his family wouldn’t have to rely on assistance for long.

They took the classes, earned their licenses (in 2008) and spent far more time working than relaxing.

“Brandy and I worked the graveyard shift at Target making $8.50 an hour to

supplement our income while we got started in real estate.

It was humbling,” May recalls.

“That was a tough time for us because we were so new to the business.”

After nights stocking the store shelves, the Mays built their real estate business during the day, generating leads, working with the team and learning the ropes. Slowly but surely, things started to click.

In 2011, Lutes announced she was planning to buy into the RE/MAX Acclaimed Properties brokerage in

Randy is an amazing example of what can happen when you have a positive, never-give-up attitude.

Bloomington. The Mays had enough faith and confidence to follow her there.

“By that point, I knew that if I focused on providing great service, I’d be successful,” Randy says. “With RE/MAX, I’d have the added benefit of brand-name recognition and great tech tools; everything was at our fingertips. This was great timing for the move.”

PHOTOS BY JEREMY HOGAN

UPWARD CLIMB

ON FIRM FOOTING RANDY, LEFT, AND BRANDY MAY HAVE PERSEVERED THROUGH A TRAGIC ACCIDENT AND ECONOMIC DOWNTURN TO BUILD NEW CAREERS – AND THEIR NEW DREAM HOME.

The couple has flourished ever since. Although Brandy left sales to launch a successful asset-management career, Randy hit his stride at RE/MAX Acclaimed Properties. In 2012, his first full year with RE/MAX, he earned his way into the 100 Percent Club. This year, through August, he’s closed

TRACEE LUTES

28 transaction sides for $4.5 million in volume.

The Mays now own a beautiful home in a historic district of Bloomington.

They’re renovating it into their “dream home 2.0.” And with his real estate business humming along, Randy even had time to take a once-ina-lifetime mission trip to an AIDS orphanage in Uganda with one of his daughters.

Lutes believes that May’s attitude has had everything to do with his remarkable success.

“Randy is an amazing example of what can happen when you have a positive, never-give-up attitude,” Lutes says. “Most people would’ve quit in the face of such adversity, but he just kept pressing forward.”

By turning his misfortunes into an opportunity for new dreams, May believes he’s rebounded full circle. The darkness of his post-accident period is long gone.

“I only wish I had gotten into real estate 30 years ago,” he says. “I love what I do, and I couldn’t be happier than I am right now.”

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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They’ve served us.

Let’s serve them.

S ta n d o u t a s a n e x p e r t h e l p i n g a c t i v e m i l i ta r y, veterans and their families. The Military Residential Specialist (MilRES) certification gives you the k n o w l e d g e t o a c c o m m o d at e t h e u n i q u e c i r c u m s ta n c e s o f m i l i ta r y m e m b e r s i n t h e i r h o m e t r a n s a c t i o n s.

Visit MyRU on Mainstreet and start helping today. one-time fee MilRES Certification is offered for a one-time fee of $225 including program updates.

Now available through

Includes $10 Donation For each course registration, a $10 donation will be made to a fund that supports military families.

NEW CONSTRUCTION

Building

REBOUNDS RE/MAX PROVIDES ASSOCIATES WITH ACCESS TO THE MOST RELEVANT RESOURCES FOR A REVITALIZED NEW-HOME MARKET

BY KELLY WHEELER

W

HEN THE REAL estate downturn hit, nimble agents adjusted their businesses accordingly, establishing the right relationships and educating themselves in the areas that mattered. Many of these agents ended up thriving at a time when others struggled or left the business altogether.

Now it’s time for another adjustment. As real estate rebounds, new-home construction is returning, too. Once again, the sharpest agents will position themselves to take full advantage of the opportunities.

“Home sales are up across the board in our market, with new-home sales really taking

off,” says Marian D’Unger of RE/MAX DFW Associates IV in Flower Mound, Texas.

D’Unger, author of the book On the Level: New Home Construction Nailed Down, says her new-home business has doubled in the past year alone.

“This is a great market to be in right now,” she says.

RE/MAX provides Associates with access to specialized resources through a relationship with Bank of America and through education such as the Certified New Home Specialist (CNHS) course via RE/MAX University. Take advantage of these tools and grab a share of the new-home market.

BUILDING BLOCKS

BANK OF AMERICA RESOURCES Establishing a solid relationship with a trusted lender is critical for agents working any market, but particularly with new homes. Bank of America, a longtime RE/MAX Approved Supplier, offers products, services and tools specifically tailored for those working in new construction.

Through its relationship with Metrostudy, an independent market research provider, Bank of America provides RE/MAX Affiliates with key insights into their local market activity.

From this relationship, agents can learn essential information about local markets, such as the top builders, the most popular

communities, local economic conditions and much more.

“Armed with hyperlocalized information from Metrostudy, we can sit down with RE/MAX agents and give them a very detailed market analysis to help them in their business,” says Andrew Leff, Vice President, National Builder and Renovation Executive at Bank of America. “Having that information is a tremendous competitive advantage.”

Bank of America also provides RE/MAX agents with access to services that directly benefit their clients.

The lender’s “builder platform” includes elements such as interest-rate locks up to six months for qualified buyers and communities, renovation lending, condominium project approval services and many other benefits.

For more information on Bank of America services, visit agentresources.bankofamerica.com/builder.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

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BUILDING BLOCKS

2

M A R K E T WATC H

Consumer

TRENDS to Watch

EVERY AGENT SHOULD ANTICIPATE EVOLVING HOMEBUYER AND SELLER REQUESTS

BY TARA-NICHOLLE NELSON

I ‘PET PARENTING’ TREND In a recent survey by pet-sitting marketplace Rover.com, 76 percent of surveyed Americans with dogs said they consider themselves “pet parents” rather than dog owners.

This reflects a serious shift.

Pet parents have long prioritized homes with big, fenced-in yards. But I predict we’ll see it become much more mainstream and common for house hunters to focus more on petfriendly features in the course of the home search. Many will even ascribe similar importance to proximity to parks and pet-friendly yards as they do to school districts and kidfriendly amenities.

Features like built-in pet showers, condo complexes with dedicated pet potty areas and breed-specific meetups will become a compelling draw.

Similarly, homes staged and photographed to highlight pet-friendly features will no longer be novelties, as buyers demand that their furry family members come along on house hunts and be accounted for in the home selection process.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

HAVE A UNIQUE VANTAGE point because of my marketing work with non-real estate companies. I can see consumer trends in one area and interpret how they will impact real estate and consumer demands – before they actually happen on a large scale.

I’ve spotted a couple of consumer trends in other industries that I predict will soon trickle into real estate consumer demands on a mainstream scale. As a real estate agent, you should be familiar with these trends and know how to leverage them.

Here’s your heads up!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tara-Nicholle Nelson is a real estate broker, attorney and Real Estate Realist for Trulia.com. She writes the most-read single-author real estate blog in the world at Trulia.com/blog/taranelson.

COLLABORATIVE CONSUMPTION TREND Collaborative consumption is a fancy new name for what is really age-old behavior: bartering, renting, buying and borrowing directly from other consumers instead of big companies.

Thanks to the Internet, collaborative consumption is bigger than ever. And, yes, it will affect real estate. The most desirable vacation homes will be those that already have built-in collaborative consumption streams of revenue.

To the potential buyer, a vacation property’s repeat renters and favorable online reviews will represent a significant advantage.

Likewise, some homebuyers will want to make sure they have an extra room to list on short-term homestay sites. Couchsurfing.org and Airbnb.com are among the most popular such sites, allowing homeowners to rent out a room or their entire home, depending on local laws.

Some potential buyers may even factor these potential side incomes into their homebuying budgets.

E D U C AT I O N

BUILDING BLOCKS

Attennnn-tion!

THE NEW MilRES CERTIFICATION COURSE HELPS AGENTS BETTER SERVE ACTIVE AND RETIRED MILITARY MEMBERS AND THEIR FAMILIES BY KEITH MILLER

I

F YOU DON’T HAVE A PERSONAL CONNECTION WITH THE MILITARY, YOU UNDOUBTEDLY know someone who does. More than 23 million veterans and 2.6 million active duty personnel are among the American ranks. That could be quite the referral network!

The Military Residential Specialist (MilRES) certification, offered by MilRES, provides a strong foundation for attracting and working with active military, veterans and their families – giving you a unique competitive advantage. And it’s now available through RE/MAX University.

C O N S I D E R M i l R E S YO U R B A S I C T R A I N I N G . YO U ’ L L L E A R N :

THE NUANCES OF VA LOANS There’s a lot more to VA Home Loans than you may realize. You’ll go beyond the basics and into the details, empowering you to offer assistance to military clients regarding this flexible financing option.

OTHER GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS Programs such as the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) and Transition Assistance Program (TAP) are offered exclusively to servicemen and women.

As an agent working with military families, you can tap these resources to help servicemembers with their home sale or purchase.

THE UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES OF MILITARY FAMILIES Military families face a number of unique stresses, such as frequent relocations and having a loved one out of the home for extended periods of time. You’ll walk away with a better understanding of these situations and the resources to help.

TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE MILITARY CULTURE With its hierarchy, pay grades, codes, subgroups and even its own language, the military has a culture unique unto itself. When you better understand the military world, you’ll better understand your military clients.

HOW TO PROMOTE YOUR CERTIFICATION Earning the MilRES certification is the first step.

Next, you need to let others know about your expertise.

You’ll learn the types of messaging that connect with military clients, as well as the various avenues to promote your skills and services.

The MilRES designation is very important from my perspective.

This goes a long way in helping agents educate veterans and military members about the benefits available to them and finding housing that fits their needs.

– JOHN CARNEY, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES (DELAWARE)

AVAILABLE THROUGH

Register for the MilRES certification at remaxuniversity.com.

For more information, contact MilRES instructor Buddy West at info@gomilres.com.

The MilRES Certification is offered for a one-time fee of $225, including program updates. For each course registration, a $10 donation will be made to a fund that supports military families.

REMA X .COM/ABOVE • FALL 2013

25

“WE’RE A COMMUNITY OF 23,000 PEOPLE, AND OVER THE YEARS VIRTUALLY EVERYONE HERE HAS SEEN THE BALLOON.” – RICH MOEN, RE/MAX SOLUTIONS, WATERTOWN, WIS.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

It’s Everywhere SINCE THE RE/MAX HOT AIR BALLOON FIRST FLEW IN 1978, IT HAS CONTINUALLY ELEVATED THE BRAND TO NEW HEIGHTS

BY KATHARINE DAVIS

PHOTOS BY BARRY GUTIERREZ

T

THE RE/MAX HOT AIR Balloon can be seen everywhere – from Mexico to New Zealand, television spots to bus stops. It’s on business cards, websites and hundreds of thousands of yard signs. But when the winds are calm and the weather is just right, there’s no better place to see the RE/MAX Balloon than in the sky.

That’s why on this crisp fall morning, almost 35 years to the day from the first flight, a crowd is gathered in the predawn darkness. As the sun begins to rise, so, too, does the unmistakable balloon envelope.

The burner – loud and

35TH ANNIVERSARY powerful – lifts the basket with its intermittent glow.

The sky – now a stunning collection of vibrant oranges, pinks and blues – serves as a mere backdrop for a masterpiece: the red, white and blue RE/MAX Balloon.

Though we, the spectators, remain planted firmly on the ground, our collective gaze follows the balloon as it makes its journey over homes, highways and mesmerized onlookers. It’s beautiful and it’s captivating – and it’s one of the most iconic corporate symbols on the planet. But the strength of the RE/MAX Balloon isn’t just in its aesthetics. Its

strength comes from the offices that use it, the communities that experience it and the millions of impressions it generates each year.

Plus, as Broker Associate Craig Smyser of Texas puts it: “If you’ve ever had the chance to fly in one, you know it’s a heck of a lot of fun.”

Rising to the top The fun started in 1978 when the RE/MAX network, just 5 years old at the time, was in need of some major brand recognition. It came in the form of a sevenstory-tall balloon, swathed in the signature RE/MAX colors and dreamed up by

RE/MAX Co-Region Owner Bill Echols. As it floated over the New Mexico desert during the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, the RE/MAX Balloon immediately commanded the attention of local spectators – and instantly provided the publicity Echols sought for RE/MAX. Word of its success spread across the regions, and soon the popular visual of the balloon helped make RE/MAX a household name. The corporate logo had been born.

The RE/MAX Balloon certainly attracted attention then, but today, with more than 100 balloons in the fleet and regular flights

ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

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Watertown, Wis. When his town’s local festival, Riverfest, no longer allowed tethered balloon rides, Moen turned to festival flyovers. Planning the launch point and flight route to maximize visibility is part of the strategy, but for Moen the greatest publicity came from an unplanned source.

“A couple of years ago, the lead singer of Kansas happened to see the balloon as he was performing.

He stopped and said, ‘Hey, gang, there’s the RE/MAX Balloon,’” Moen remembers.

“Everybody looked up. You have the lead singer of Kansas acknowledging the RE/MAX Balloon going by – you can’t buy that exposure.”

Standing for something

That kind of recognizability inspires regions, offices and agents to use the balloon in all sorts of creative ways.

For instance, Wayne Crosby, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX of Midland, in Midland, Mich., co-founded the RE/MAX of Midland Balloon Festival in 1990. He and cofounder Tom Bergeon, Balloonmeister for the RE/MAX of Michigan Region, saw a need in the community – and a way to fill it. Combining the allure of the Balloon with the fundraising campaign of the local United Way, they created what is now thought to be the second-largest balloon festival east of the Mississippi River.

“It’s a two-fold thing,” Crosby says. “It reminds the community that there are always people less fortunate out there, so you need to

ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

PHOTO BY BARRY GUTIERREZ

in 26 countries, it garners more interest than ever. It has appeared at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium during Finland’s 2012 Winter Classic hockey game, above the 2013 Canadian Open in Oakville, Ontario, and in the 2013 U.S. National Hot Air Balloon National Championship in Longview, Texas.

These scenes – and so many like them – are a reason RE/MAX remains the No. 1 name in real estate.

“The balloon is a unique and powerful advertising medium,” says Smyser, during a call from his office at RE/MAX Capital City in Austin, Texas. “It draws people’s attention. I mean, when was the last time you came across someone who wouldn’t stop to look at a hot air balloon going by?”

Steve Lombardi, Aviation Director of RE/MAX of Texas and founder of the Ballunar Liftoff Festival in Houston, agrees.

“The best part about it: Even if you have a hundred billboards, nobody’s going to take a picture of a billboard,” he says. “But if you put that balloon up along the side of the road, you’re going to get a hundred people stopping to take pictures.”

As Katharina Weiss, Regional Administrator of RE/MAX Deutschland Mitte (Germany Middle), explains, “It’s a big promotion for us. People are fascinated by the RE/MAX Balloon because they don’t see hot air balloons every day.”

Harnessing that brand power is a no-brainer for Rich Moen, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Solutions in

LEFT TO RIGHT, TOP TO BOTTOM: PHOTOS COURTESY OF RE/MAX GERMANY MIDDLE; RE/MAX OF MIDLAND; RE/MAX NEW ZEALAND; RE/MAX FINLAND; RE/MAX PROFESSIONAL ADVANTAGE; CRAIG SMYSER; RE/MAX EUROPE; PHOTO BY JOHN CORRIVEAU

GERMANY

MICHIGAN

NEW ZEALAND

FINLAND

INCREDIBLE LEGACY TEXAS

ILLINOIS

MICHIGAN

PORTUGAL

The RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon was first imagined on the streets of New Mexico, in the car of Bill Echols. As the then Co-Region Owner of the New Mexico/Arizona/Nevada region drove to his office one day, he saw four hot air balloons flying overhead.

Instantly he knew: RE/MAX belonged in the sky.

Echols fought hard for his vision – bringing the balloon to life, flying it for the first time at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in 1978 and championing its ongoing use. What began as a means of advertising in New Mexico quickly spread across the regions. Just a few years later, the balloon became the RE/MAX corporate logo.

“Above the Crowd!” – also dreamt up by Echols – was the slogan to punctuate it all.

Though he got his start in radio, Echols was a RE/MAX man through and through.

The RE/MAX Distinguished Service Award winner served the brand in many roles, including advertising director, aide to the Chairman and Vice President of Public Relations. Sadly, he passed away in 2009.

RE/MAX Balloon

BY THE NUMBERS

1978 YEAR THE RE/MAX BALLOON FIRST FLEW

26

number of countries where the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon flies

108

NUMBER OF HOT AIR BALLOONS IN THE RE/MAX WORLDWIDE FLEET

750

POUNDS

weight of the typical RE/MAX Balloon

90,000 CUBIC FEET

VOLUME OF THE TYPICAL RE/MAX BALLOON ENVELOPE

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

reach out and help your fellow man. It also makes it far easier for our agents to do business because the whole community embraces us.”

Bergeon notes that one of the best ways to reach the public is through schools.

Bergeon visits 25 schools annually to present a series of five educational programs, each detailing the science and history of man’s first form of flight. An inflated balloon on school grounds instantly engages the students and helps introduce RE/MAX to a larger audience.

Kitty Moring, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Professional Advantage in Byron, Ill., knows that children who participate in the RE/MAX school programs (RE/MAX of Northern Illinois hosts 50 a year) take home much more than free collateral.

“I have 500 kids seeing the RE/MAX Balloon when they’re 9 years old,” she says. “That’s an impact of a lifetime and an experience they’ll never forget.”

PHOTOS BY TOM MAYNOR (TOP LEFT, BOTTOM LEFT); BARRY GUTIERREZ

Remaining ‘Above the Crowd’

Whether it involves consumers flying over Australia or athletes watching a costumed Balloon Man cross the finish line at a Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, every balloon event has helped the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon expand from a one-time flight in the desert to the international icon it is today.

“It’s an added value we can give our customers,”

says Cathy Walker, a Sales Associate with RE/MAX All-Stars Realty in Markham, Ontario. “I’m always looking for fun ways to contact my clients. Hosting a balloon event provides another excuse to call or email them.

It gives me an extra reason to talk to people, and it also gives people a reason to talk to me about real estate.”

Conversation is exactly what Echols and other champions of the RE/MAX Balloon hoped to inspire back in 1978. Thirty-five years later, it’s what keeps the balloon in the air.

“I’ve heard people say, as the RE/MAX Balloon flies overhead, ‘I used them to sell my house,’” says Moen, the Wisconsin Broker/Owner. “People have a relationship with the balloon because they worked with me to buy or sell a home.”

Adds Walker, who is often asked by local businesses, including the City of Markham, to use the Balloon at area events: “People always tell me, ‘I saw the RE/MAX Balloon today’ – even if the flight has nothing to do with me.

The balloon is unique and stands out, so it’s certainly making them notice us.”

For her part, Moring hopes all Affiliates understand that the balloon works for them.

“We’re not just some small, local company,” she says. “The RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon ties us all together as one huge network.”

Visit remax.com/above for a slideshow of even more images of the balloon around the world.

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dream maker Christian Fuentes’ steady rise from novice real estate agent to top-producing Team Leader and brokerage Co-Owner comes from a simple mantra: Always do better

BY DEBORAH BALL KEARNS | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFF CLARK

W

WHEN CHRISTIAN FUENTES WAS JUST 12 YEARS OLD, his family left their home in Mexico City to start a new life in the United States. It didn’t take long after arriving in Southern California for Fuentes to realize he would always feel like an outsider if he didn’t learn English. He wanted desperately to communicate and make friends.

But he also had another motivation.

“I knew I had to learn the language so I could have a girlfriend,” jokes Fuentes, now 38, who still speaks with a rich accent. Fuentes is a fast talker and a direct communicator who looks people in the eye – because he knows exactly what to say and how to say it.

After all, he hasn’t become a Hall of Fame Team Leader and highly respected brokerage Co-Owner by mincing words. Fuentes is the epitome of a self-made American success story. He worked his way up from the grind of the retail world while studying for his associate’s degree, and now commands multimillion-dollar transactions and coaches dozens of real estate agents to realize their own potential. He’s exactly the type of professional the RE/MAX system was designed for: self-motivated, passionate and driven.

“My father always told me, ‘You can do better,’ and he’s always pushed me,” says Fuentes, who with his wife, Jeannette, co-owns RE/MAX Top Producers in Diamond Bar, Calif. He also leads the Dream Team, a 10-member group that ranked No. 2 among RE/MAX teams in California last year.

Fuentes doesn’t just talk a big game; he practices what he preaches. Sticking to a schedule, he says, is essential; Fuentes is often the first person in the office – and the last one to leave. He takes time to mentor his team members and agents, doing role-play exercises for common buyer and seller objections and using proven coaching strategies he learned from years of following Tom Ferry and Mike Ferry.

As one of the network’s young, top-producing stars, Fuentes has built a reputation worth emulating, a business that commands respect and an unbreakable loyalty among all who work with him. And he did it by working from the bottom up.

Diving right in

Fuentes applied the same eagerness he had for learning English to learning how to sell real estate. He followed his father’s suggestion to take a real estate appraiser class and earn his real estate license. At 21, he dove into the field by working as an assistant for a busy team.

From there, he absorbed every shred of knowledge he could from team members and coaches. Eventually, he worked his way up to becoming a buyer’s agent on a topproducing real estate team.

“Before meeting with potential clients, I’d practice in the mirror, using scripts for responding to common buyer objections,” says Fuentes, who never goes into a client

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meeting unprepared.

“I was closing up to 60 buyer transactions a year and earning good money, but my dad’s voice was always at the back of my head saying, ‘You can do better, Son.’” Fuentes knew the voice was right, so he started the Dream Team at a local Century 21 brokerage. He soon met Jeannette, who owned a Mexican restaurant next door to his office. A year later, she sold the business and joined Fuentes’ team as a buyer’s agent. He mentored her, and the two quickly became best friends. In no time at all, they fell in love and got married.

From the start, Jeannette Fuentes saw something special in Christian.

“Ever since I met him I saw his passion for real estate and life,” Jeannette says.

“For some people it’s all about the money, but not for Christian. He truly loves what he does, and I admire him for that.”

Fuentes channeled his passion for the business into growing his team. He developed the listing side of the business while mentoring buyer’s agents to work with those clients. Fuentes was particular about who joined his team, making sure to choose members based on their drive and passion for the business. It wasn’t long before the Dream Team began putting up impressive numbers.

“I’ve always told my team not to copy anyone,” Fuentes says. “But I want them to take my example as motivation for their own success. I push them to match my schedule and keep up with me because I’m out there producing and working in the trenches.”

Being the natural-born leader he is, Fuentes gravitated even more toward coaching, which became an integral part of the Dream Team’s skyrocketing success. With that success came the realization that Fuentes could take his team further instead of being limited by high commission splits and

“I’ve always told my team not to copy anyone, but I want them to take my example as motivation for their own success.”

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QUALITY TIME FAMILY LIFE IS PARAMOUNT FOR JEANNETTE AND CHRISTIAN FUENTES. THE COUPLE, WHO WORK TOGETHER, PREFER TO LEAVE WORK AT THE OFFICE SO THEY CAN DOTE ON THEIR DAUGHTER AND NEWBORN SON.

what he felt to be an outdated brand at Century 21. Drawn by the RE/MAX model and the productivity of its agents, Fuentes moved his team to RE/MAX in 2007. That’s when they became unstoppable.

The mentoring niche

Accountability is a big deal to Fuentes, so he hired a Tom Ferry coach to keep him on track. Within a short time, Fuentes caught Ferry’s attention and was invited to become a coach for the organization.

Then the housing downturn hit and Fuentes had to adjust his own business plan and what he was teaching his agents.

He drilled the importance of accountability into his team members and the agents he coached, and encouraged them to focus on building the buyer’s side of their business.

Leslie Wilson was one of the agents who benefited from Fuentes’ expertise and mentorship. Wilson was working at a mom-and-pop shop, closing fewer than 10 deals a year, when he joined Fuentes’ team in 2007. He worked closely with his new mentor to create a manageable schedule and

a plan to capture more buyer leads and set more appointments.

In 2012, he closed an astounding 70 transactions as an individual agent. Wilson and Fuentes also have created an investment partnership to buy, fix and sell residential properties in their market. Wilson credits Fuentes with helping him hit his sales stride.

“Christian is a wealth of knowledge, because he’s been doing this a long time and knows how to approach just about any problem from the right angle,” Wilson says.

“Thanks to him, I became a multimillionaire before the age of 30. He helped me change my life and get to where I am today.”

Realizing the next dream As the local market in SoCal began to rebound in 2011, Fuentes and Jeannette began setting new goals. The Dream Team was closing upwards of 150 transactions a year, and the couple wanted to build their

MENTOR’S CORNER

Top-producing Team Leader and go-to mentor Christian Fuentes shares his thoughts on …

+ Building a team

“That’s one thing that agents don’t get: You can only grow so much by yourself. You need the right people around you. Once you get to a certain level of steady business, bring in an assistant who can free you up from all the busy work so you can focus on generating even more leads.

The next step is hiring a buyer’s agent.”

+ Social Media

“It’s a great marketing tool for your business, and it’s a great way to share wins and success stories. This is still a face-to-face business, though, and social media can never replace in-person interaction.”

+ Scripts

“Learn how to handle every objection. Practice your scripts in front of a mirror, roleplay and keep practicing. And when you’re done, practice again.”

+ Working with your spouse

“You have to be good at turning yourself off after work hours. When Jeannette and I leave the office, we have a strict policy on not talking about work. It has to be separate.”

+ Balance

“Don’t let the business burn you out. I keep a well-balanced schedule, working about four-and-a-half days a week. I take weekends off, spend time with my family and get plenty of exercise.”

own brokerage to mentor and create top producers. They opened their own office, aptly named RE/MAX Top Producers.

Monique Zacarias, who joined The Dream Team in June as a listing and lead coordinator, has known Fuentes since they were fresh out of high school. Even then she admired how he tackled his goals with panache.

“Working for him is so easy,” Zacarias says. “He wants everyone to do their best, and he’s your biggest cheerleader. Christian is in this business to stay.”

All of the hard work and determination Fuentes put in over the past 17 years has paid off in a big way. He continues to sell, earning his way into the Diamond Award Club last year and closing 131 transaction sides so far this year. And he recently ranked No. 10 on the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals’ annual list of the Top 250 Latino Real Estate Agents in America – an honor Jeannette says makes her particularly proud.

Fuentes still leads the Dream Team, in addition to other agents, while Jeannette manages the day-to-day brokerage activities. The pair run a smooth operation at the office – and at home with their two young children – because they keep their personal and business lives separate.

“We have our own offices, and we each have our own assistants,” Fuentes says.

“It’s important to maintain that work-life balance. There’s a fun, positive energy in our office that stems from the environment we’ve created. We do lunches, happy hours, parties and sales contests. We show appreciation for our agents because they’re the reason we’re so successful.”

By all accounts, Fuentes still has many chapters to write in his success story.

He’s come a long way in his career, but with plenty of business to go around for him and his agents, Fuentes still hears his father’s mantra in his head: “You can do better.”

“Even when I closed 250 transactions last year, I asked myself, ‘Great, but how do I get to 400 or 500?’” Fuentes says. “It all goes back to accountability and having someone push you to your limits.

“My saying in the office is that success is contagious; I want our success to be viral.”

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playing to The No. 1 individual RE/MAX agent in Quebec didn’t work his way to the top by sticking to the sidelines. Jimmy Arseneault is a champion for his clients JIMMY ARSENEAULT will never forget his first day on the job as a real estate agent, just five years ago. He had nothing much in his office except a desk and a phone.

He had no secretary, no listings and no experience selling real estate. What he did have, though, was entrepreneurial drive – a defining characteristic of all RE/MAX agents.

Motivated to control his fate in the business, Arseneault jumped in his car and drove the streets of Gatineau, a city of 270,000 in the French-speaking province of Quebec, just across the Ottawa River from the Canadian capital of Ottawa.

He jotted down the addresses of people who advertised their homes as “for sale by owner” and called them later that day.

From that enterprising exercise, Arseneault cobbled together his first listings.

It was an auspicious start to what would quickly prove to be a very promising career. By the end of 2010, his fourth full year as an agent, Arseneault topped the $1 million mark in annual commissions, earning his way into the RE/MAX Diamond Award Club. In 2012, Arseneault was the top-earning individual RE/MAX agent in all of Quebec. He ranked second in closed

BY DAVID YATES PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTIAN FLEURY

transaction ends with 250. This year, the Lifetime Achievement Award winner expects to outdo himself.

“By mid-August of this year, I was already at 205,” he says. “That’s the same number I had in November of last year.”

In other words, business is booming.

It’s a remarkable feat given that Gatineau is a city whose neighborhoods are made up mostly of modestly priced homes.

Arseneault’s listings – a lofty 150 of them – range from $90,000 to $700,000, with many sales around the $200,000 mark.

“I have to sell a lot of houses to match the brokers in the big cities like Montreal and Quebec City, with their luxury-home neighborhoods,” he says. “We don’t have neighborhoods like that in Gatineau.”

His rapid rise to the top has brought positive changes to Arseneault’s business.

First, there is the addition of two more Diamond Award Club trophies to his office at RE/MAX Vision (1990), as well as a growing collection of sports memorabilia that reflects his fervent support of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team.

And he no longer walks the streets looking for potential listings.

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SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPS Arseneault’s name and status as a top-producing agent is well-known throughout western Quebec, thanks to his extensive advertising reach across a wide variety of media. His brothers Yannick and Mathieu are also with RE/MAX Vision (1990) in Gatineau, giving the family name even more visibility in the community.

Marketing is his strength, Arseneault says. He spends a considerable amount each year to advertise properties on TV and radio, and in print.

He has an especially strong presence in local real estate publications. He buys eight pages in every issue of two magazines, which circulate in a wide area around Gatineau. Each page is topped by a 3-inch-deep banner proclaiming Arseneault’s success as a RE/MAX agent.

“I have a lot of visibility in the magazine; that’s one thing that brings both buyers and sellers to me,” he says.

“Even in slow times, like December, I keep advertising. It’s important to keep my name out there.”

Even in slow times, like December, I keep advertising. It’s important to keep my name out there.

MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT Arseneault arrived in the real estate industry in a circuitous manner. As a young boy growing up in ShawiniganSud, a small town in central Quebec, he wanted to be a police officer. After high school, he enrolled in a police technology course at a junior college

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in Ottawa and went on to a police course at another college in Gatineau.

He learned the always-on observation skills an officer needs on the street, as well as organizational skills and management tactics.

In the end, however, becoming a police officer didn’t fit his personality. Rather than deal with conflict and violence, he wanted to run his own business.

So Arseneault and his brother Yannick bought a convenience store in Gatineau in 2002, which helped him develop his entrepreneurial ambitions and prodigious work ethic.

“I worked from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week to make the store a success,” he says, describing a hectic time of keeping shelves stocked, running

the cash register and ordering new supplies. It also became an exercise in learning how to manage details.

And just to develop his management juggling skills even more, Arseneault bought his first income property, triggering his interest in real estate. He began taking courses to become a real estate agent. He also dove into the business of real estate investment by buying several apartment buildings, which fueled his passion for real estate even further.

WORK HARD BUT EFFICIENTLY Attention to detail and successful management techniques allow Arseneault to operate at a high level without a secretary, relying instead on the support services provided by his office.

He hires a professional photographer to take photos of all of his properties and personally writes all the marketing copy, the first step in drawing potential buyers to him.

“Jimmy has strong organizational

ONE-TWO PUNCH AGGRESSIVE MARKETING COUPLED WITH CONSISTENT AND RESPONSIVE CUSTOMER SERVICE HELPS JIMMY ARSENEAULT STAY AHEAD OF THE COMPETITION.

skills and can do the same amount of work in an hour or so that someone else might take three to four hours to do,” says Edith Gagnon, Manager of the RE/MAX Vision (1990) office. “He focuses totally on gathering listings.

He doesn’t stop work to spend time chatting with people.”

She points out that Arseneault spends many long hours in the office and answers all his calls.

“He is extremely proud of the fact that he is capable of handling it all, yet he’s strategic about asking the office staff for support to handle administrative tasks for him when necessary.

They’re there for that,” she says. “It’s a win-win situation, because they free him up to do the work he is good at.

He’s able to use RE/MAX resources to the maximum.”

MAINTAIN A BALANCED PERSPECTIVE Arseneault says a balanced life is important to him. When he’s working he’s all about work, and when he’s off he turns his attention to his family and his health. He maintains a balanced diet and exercises regularly. He also drinks two litres of water a day – no sodas and no alcohol.

Arseneault couldn’t do all that he does without his wife, Mélanie, who manages all of the household affairs and looks after their three children – Shana-lee, 5; Evan, 2; and Lou-May, born in early July. Arseneault always schedules family time and takes his daughter to school every day.

“It’s the quality of the time that counts,” Arseneault says. “I like to plan several vacations each year; I take

He’s strategic about asking the office staff for support to handle administrative tasks for him when necessary.

the family to Florida, the Caribbean or Europe. We went to Florida two weeks after Lou-May was born.”

The vacations allow him to spend long stretches of time with his family and refresh his business focus and enthusiasm. Even the anticipation of a vacation helps to revitalize him, especially as he nears the end of a particularly busy day.

“I always like to have projects waiting for me at the office,” he says of returning from vacations he plans for the family and special trips they take to the Super Bowl, Stanley Cup Finals and the Monaco Grand Prix.

CELEBRATE SUCCESS Arseneault’s affinity for sports hints at his competitive nature. And to be clear, he likes to win. He attended the RE/MAX Quebec annual convention, held at the Montreal Convention Centre in February, and he was very excited when it came time to announce the top 10 commission-earners and Diamond Award Club members.

Nina Mastropietro, Regional Director for the RE/MAX Quebec region, which has 3,400 agents, witnessed Arseneault’s competitiveness and passion for real estate firsthand.

“He expected to be announced as the No. 4 earner and had a big smile on his face after No. 5 was announced,” Mastropietro says. “He thought he would be called next.”

When he wasn’t, the smile grew bigger, because he realized he was in the top three. His name still wasn’t called when No. 3 was announced.

“When it was just him and another individual, he was just about ready to explode,” she says.

Arseneault was completely overwhelmed when he was announced as No. 1. Mastropietro saw tears of pride in his eyes.

And what does she see as the reason for Arseneault’s success? Both his positive outlook and the positive impact he has on his clients’ lives.

“He makes dreams come true for people,” she says.

CHAMPION SPIRIT Sports play a big role in Jimmy Arseneault’s life. And he’s an especially big fan of the legendary Montreal Canadiens, the winningest team in the National Hockey League, with 24 Stanley Cups.

His office is full of Canadiens mementos,

including three wooden seats from the old Montreal Forum, the team’s home until it moved to the Bell Centre. The seats, one each from the red, white and blue sections of the old arena, represent not only the team colors, but of course the RE/MAX colors, too.

He also has a replica

of the 1993 Stanley Cup from the Canadiens’ last title win, and a ring commemorating the victory.

“The secret to success in hockey, just as in work, is passion,” Arseneault says. “It’s not talent as a salesman that got me to where I am; it’s hard work and determination.”

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FULL SPECTRUM

GLOBAL

Borderless Market MORE BUYERS ARE EXPANDING THEIR PROPERTY SEARCHES TO MARKETS OUTSIDE THEIR HOME COUNTRIES. LEARN HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM – WITH INSIGHTS FROM TWO AGENTS WHO ALREADY DO BY AMY REININK

Y

OU DON’T HAVE to be a multilingual internation-

al tax specialist with a long list of international contacts in order to help global buyers.

In fact, thanks to advances in technology, such as Skype, Facebook and Twitter, it’s easier than ever to jump into the international real estate arena.

Two RE/MAX Associates – one based in the United States and the other in Canada – share their experiences building active networks for international referrals, and their tips for guiding clients through the international buying process.

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Lisa Mundahl-Greene RE/MAX JUNCTION | SEATTLE, WASH. 100 PERCENT CLUB

TIPS FOR CROSSBORDER TRANSACTIONS Hire a translator.

TAPPING LOCAL NETWORKS WITH GLOBAL CONNECTIONS

to make it special. She hired a car service to pick up the family from When Lisa Mundahl-Greene set the airport, as well as a translator to a goal last year to pursue internaaccompany them during their entire tional transactions, she didn’t have trip. She also gathered Chineseto look much further than her own language resources to place in their office for leads. hotel room.

“RE/MAX is a powerful internation“I wanted them to know I was al company, and Seattle is home to honored that they had traveled such some of the most powerful internaa long distance, and that they had setional corporations in the world,” she lected me as their Realtor,” she says. says. “I knew that there As Mundahl-Greene, was opportunity there.”

The power of the family and the So she sought out global.remax.com translator drove around networking opportuniThe site has changed Seattle, Mundahlthe way buyers around ties with executives at Greene kept an open the world search for international businesses mind about her buyers’ properties. with a presence in expectations and asked the region, including targeted questions Boeing, Microsoft and about precisely what RE/MAX listings shipping companies they were looking for in displayed from that operated out of the a property. dozens of countries Port of Seattle. and territories “I had to get past my Mundahl-Greene also own ideas of what was networked overseas and a good investment and Number of languages in April was invited to really find out what they and currencies, participate in a RE/MAX valued,” she says. respectively, conference in Beijing. available to visitors She closed the deal in “Since owning real August. Over the past estate in the States is MILLION 18 months she’s closed Total listing views since very different than many about a half-dozen interthe 2011 launch other countries, I went national transactions for to China armed with buyers from China and professionally prepared India. Along the way, she RE/MAX agents and translated informawho have received has learned that Skype inquiry emails about tion on homeownership is “absolutely essential” specific properties in the U.S.,” she says. for communicating with Her preparedness international agents paid off, and while in China she conand clients, and she has grown adept nected with a local family interested at connecting with RE/MAX agents in buying an investment property in in other countries on Facebook.

Seattle. They set a date for a visit a She also relies on the resources at few weeks later. global.remax.com – the RE/MAX netMundahl-Greene knew it was an work’s global property search portal important trip for the family and – to prepare international clients for wanted to do everything she could trips to the Seattle area.

725,000+ 36 & 40

30.3

PHOTO BY MICHAEL HANSON

47,000

Lisa Mundahl-Greene says that when she first started handling international transactions, the language barrier was her top concern.

Then she made an important discovery. “People prefer to have a local Realtor who is very, very knowledgeable rather than an agent who speaks their language,” she says. Hiring a translator while international clients are in town helps ease any language concerns and protects the agent.

Connect with an international tax specialist. Jonathan

Gelderman says it’s vital to find a trustworthy cross-border tax specialist who can help you and your clients avoid legal and financial snags. “You can’t just walk into a U.S. accounting office and say, ‘Hey, I live in China and I bought a place in Arizona.

Can you do my taxes?’” he says.

“You can talk to four different accountants and get four different stories about how to do it.” The key, Gelderman says, is talking to the right person.

Expand your sphere of influence.

Networking is an essential part of finding leads and connecting with international agents. Thanks to social media such as Facebook and Twitter, it’s never been easier. “Far too many people underestimate the power and value of Facebook,” explains Gelderman, who says he uses it to keep in touch with his network of international agents.

Tap into RE/MAX resources. Mundahl-

Greene says RE/MAX makes it easy for agents to do business internationally.

“It’s the only company with the tools – such as global.remax.com – a network that spans more than 90 countries, and the comprehensive agent-to-agent referral system in place to cover the globe,” she says.

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FULL SPECTRUM

GLOBAL

Jonathan Gelderman RE/MAX ALDERCENTER REALTY ALDERGROVE, BRITISH COLUMBIA LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

DOING HOMEWORK TO UNDERSTAND THE MARKET Four years ago, a local developer approached Jonathan Gelderman about an international investment opportunity.

That conversation led to a thriving international real estate career for Gelderman, who now manages a multimillion-dollar portfolio of investor funds connected to roughly 100 properties in Arizona. His target for the portfolio was to gross 30 percent annual return, and he’s exceeded that goal every year.

Gelderman, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada, credits his success to solid research – examining historical sales trends, employment, net migration and other factors – before jumping into the Phoenix real estate market.

Gelderman also prepared his investor clients for struggles they might encounter doing business in the U.S., such as short sales, which are rare in Canada.

“Although new guidelines are helping a lot, the short sale process still can be very frustrating for buyers who are ready to make their move,” Gelderman says. “But if investors aren’t willing to work through buying short sales, they’re going to lose out on a lot of the top available listings.”

So Gelderman prepared Canadian investors for “a numbers game,” warning that “for every 10 offers we write, one gets accepted.” He says he has writ-

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If investors aren’t willing to buy short sales, they’re going to lose out on a lot of the top available listings. ten roughly 2,000 offers for investors – about 1,400 short sales and 600 court sales – netting 100 successful transactions on Arizona properties in four years.

Gelderman says his success also stems from earning the International Real Estate Specialist (I.R.E.S.) certification and working with an international tax specialist familiar with the tax structures of both countries. The latter, in particular, has helped investors avoid fines – or worse, being taxed twice on

the same transaction. Finally, he says, networking – both on Facebook and in person in Arizona – has helped him expand his reach.

“I went to a networking function in Scottsdale and met the CEO of a bank,” Gelderman says. “He ended up connecting me to someone who owns another bank, which funded several transactions for me. You never know who you’ll meet when you get outside your own sphere and market.”

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FULL SPECTRUM

Vantage

POINT RE/MAX OF ORANGE BEACH, ON ALABAMA’S GULF COAST, BUILDS ON INNOVATION AND SERVICE TO WEATHER TOUGH TIMES – AND TO BASK IN THE SUCCESS ON THE OTHER SIDE

BY GUY BUSBY

PHOTOS BY MATTHEW COUGHLIN

I

F THE ENTRANCE OF RE/MAX of Orange Beach has the feel of a hip Internet café, there’s good reason. In the lobby of the two-story building, visitors work on laptops while perched at counterheight tables. The aroma of fresh-brewed coffee fills the room, and upholstered chairs provide a comfortable place to relax amid the colorful art on the walls.

Additionally, visiting clients are offered loaner

laptops, along with free Wi-Fi. And the team is also happy to send faxes or emails for clients, if needed.

“We’re in a resort community, so a lot of people work with us to buy vacation and investment properties,” says Broker/Owner Patrick Daily. “This space gives them a quiet place to work or get online.”

Coastal homes and condos have long been a key part of the real estate

business in Orange Beach, Ala., but business hasn’t always been a breeze.

RE/MAX of Orange Beach survived not only devastating storms, including Hurricane Katrina, a massive Gulf Coast oil spill and other catastrophes; it also thrived during the economic downturn as many other brokerages around it were shuttered.

“We took our lumps, but we got through it,” Daily says.

‘EXCITING IN THE UPPER TIER’ Sitting at his desk, beneath a carved crab mounted on the wall with Mardi Gras beads dangling from its wooden claws, Daily reflects on the many plaques and ribbons on display in his office.

One plaque from 2009 reads “Broker/Owner of the Year.” Another reads “Diamond Award.” A series of yellow Chairman’s Club trophies represent at

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least a half-million dollars in earnings a year.

“I have two more statues at home,” Daily says.

The leader of the No. 1 RE/MAX team in Alabama last year, Daily also does everything he can to support his brokerage’s 55 agents. His systems work.

In fact, four of the state’s 16 top teams operate out of the RE/MAX of Orange Beach office. With so many successful teams – including those led

by Daily, Ricky Carruth, Doug Grantham and Tinsley Myrick – good-natured competition is inevitable.

“It’s exciting to be in that upper tier,” says Scott Myrick, a Sales Associate on wife Tinsley Myrick’s team, along with Tina Maynard and newcomer Debby Danner.

“We have a lot of really good real estate people down here, and to be able to say we’re among the best makes you want to keep going.”

Tinsley Myrick credits hard, consistent work and cooperation as reasons for her team’s success.

“It’s definitely a team effort,” she says. “We never stop email marketing and sending mailers; we’re very passionate about what we do.”

A common theme for success at RE/MAX of Orange Beach is cooperation. For example, Scott Myrick met with about 15 of his fellow agents to share tips about one tool that leads to his positive results: the telephone. Myrick made cold calls to condo owners to

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find sellers in a building where buyer demand is strong. He got two listings within two weeks from that effort.

Calls may seem like an obvious part of business, but some agents are reluctant to pick up the phone or are not sure how to use it, Myrick says.

Before coming to the Gulf Coast, he was an executive with Kraft for 16 years.

Working in the food industry, where products have to be moved quickly, was good preparation for the real estate business, he says. Kraft also stresses the importance of

We have a lot of really good real estate people down here, and to be able to say we’re among the best makes you want to keep going.

“It takes some willingness to set your ego aside and take the chance that someone might be short with you,” he says.

“Phone calls are a great way to reach out to people and make that instant connection.”

SUCCESS FAVORS THE WELL-PREPARED Daily bought RE/MAX of Orange Beach 10 years ago.

ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

training, a priority at RE/MAX. “RE/MAX is constantly investing in the organization and in business to keep us all in front,” Daily says.

Tinsley Myrick says that when Dave Liniger stressed the need for Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) training at the RE/MAX Convention in 2009, Daily brought that message

back to the office – and the vast majority of agents heeded the advice.

“I appreciated that heads up,” Myrick says. “He basically said, ‘If you’re not involved in short sales and REOs, you’re going to get left behind.’ I definitely ended up doing my fair share of short sales.”

So did many of her colleagues.

In addition to encouraging education through RE/MAX University and other channels, Daily provides workshops on a variety of timely subjects each Thursday. At a recent session, representatives from Apple met with agents to show them how to go paperless.

Sales Associate Paul Hopper says the regular training sessions are very helpful to him, especially as a newer agent to the industry.

“It’s going well, and I know the training opportunities have a lot to do with that,” he says.

CAFÉ CULTURE BROKER/OWNER PATRICK DAILY, FRONT, AND THE REST OF THE ASSOCIATES AT RE/MAX OF ORANGE BEACH GO ABOVE AND BEYOND FOR CLIENTS WITH AMENITIES LIKE A COMPLIMENTARY INTERNET CAFÉ AND LOANER LAPTOPS.

NEW METHODS, PROVEN RESULTS To expand on the spirit of camaraderie, Daily introduced an apprenticeship program last year to bring new agents and new ideas into the office.

“The less-experienced agents bring their knowledge of technology and fresh skills into the program, and they’re paired with an agent who has sharp sales skills and more experience,” Daily says. “We’ve had tremendous results.”

Hopper was one of the program’s first apprentices.

When he started in the summer of 2012, he worked with some seasoned agents, answering their questions about technology and social media, for example.

“I had people ask me, ‘What’s this cloud I keep hearing about?’” Hopper says.

“So I’d explain the benefit of being able to access documents from anywhere, and it clicked with a lot of them.”

Likewise, experienced agents help apprentices learn about contracts, prospecting and other aspects of the business.

“Patrick even drove us around in his SUV, all the way from West Beach to the Florida state line, just looking at all the condos and educating us about sound condo construction,” Hopper says.

The program works well for everyone, Scott Myrick says.

“When you’re working next to someone young, who’s really motivated and eager, it reminds you that you need to be that way, too,” he says.

“They have a lot of ideas, and when you talk to them about how to do things, you remind yourself of all the things you should still be doing.”

AN ENVIRONMENT FOR GROWTH The supportive culture at RE/MAX of Orange Beach is just what Ricky Carruth was looking for when he joined in 2010. He started in Gulf Coast real estate during the boom times, and he did very well.

Then, when housing took a nosedive, Carruth ended up working on an oil rig and sleeping on friends’ couches.

Through those tough times, though, he didn’t lose his passion for real estate. And he did the hard work to rebuild his career. He realized that education would get him back there, and he knew that

We like the theory of abundance. We feel like we’re greater working as a team versus working independently. was something Daily offered at RE/MAX of Orange Beach.

Carruth had met Daily years earlier during the sale of his first listing in 2002. When he was ready to give real estate another try, he jumped at the chance to join Daily’s office.

“I’d always wanted to come to RE/MAX, just

because all the best people are here,” Carruth says.

He’s taken the time to observe and learn from the best at RE/MAX. Since 2010, Carruth has closed about 150 transactions. He earned his way into the 100 Percent Club his first full year with RE/MAX and kept climbing to make it into the Platinum Club in 2012. He’s already closed enough volume this year to qualify for the Chairman’s Club.

“Taking care of customers, making sure they’re happy and going above and beyond for them – those are critical strategies,” he says. “All the seeds I’m planting right now will produce fruit in the future.”

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT The cultures of collaboration, learning and productivity at RE/MAX of Orange Beach are tremendously conducive to the agents’ all-around success. And its culture of giving is one more major advantage and motivator.

Many agents at RE/MAX of Orange Beach have the desire to help others. Some have established scholarships for local students, some raise money for local charities, and others volunteer their time in the community. Office members are also active in the Family Promise program, which assists up to 15 homeless families in Baldwin County.

TINSLEY MYRICK

Although many awards adorn offices here, one recognition is proudly on display in the front lobby: a replica of a check for $196,000, representing the money raised by RE/MAX of Orange Beach for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. For six out of the past seven years, the office was the top fundraiser in the state through the Miracle Home program, which allows RE/MAX agents to make regular donations through their businesses to help local kids.

“I’m not trying to brag when I talk about my office,” Daily says. “I’m just very passionate about my people and all the good we do.

“We like the theory of abundance. We share. We work together. We feel like we’re stronger working as a team versus working independently.”

For more insights from top Team Leader Patrick Daily, visit remax.com/above.

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ABOVE & BEYOND

COMMUNITY

Beating Breast Cancer RE/MAX ASSOCIATES WORK TOGETHER TO HELP SUSAN G. KOMEN AND THE CANADIAN BREAST CANCER FOUNDATION ARM PEOPLE FOR THE FIGHT

RE/MAX AND KOMEN HELP LOCAL WOMEN WIN

M

ORE THAN $7.5 MILLION. THAT’S HOW MUCH RE/MAX has donated to Susan G. Komen and the fight against breast cancer.

It’s a lot of money, and it’s an imporKOMEN IN. tant collaboration. Together, RE/MAX ACTION. Associates and Komen Affiliates are able In 2012, Komen proto make a difference in women’s lives vided grants through the RE/MAX sponsorship of totaling more the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure than $92 million, a result series, the Home for the Cure fundraising of fundraising program and general donations. The best programs like part: Up to 75 percent of those donations Home for the Cure. remain local – meaning neighbors are helping neighbors. There are two great ways you can get involved:

11,000

1

Home for the Cure

You can make regular donations to Komen after each home sale. In addition to monetary gifts, you can send Tribute Cards to homebuyers and sellers after each closing. Learn more at komen.org/homeforthecure.

2

Race for the Cure

RE/MAX Associates can register race teams in their areas at their local Race for the Cure, a series of more than 120 5K events each year. Plus, the RE/MAX national sponsorship provides you the opportunity to set up a RE/MAX booth and promote your local office. For more information about representing RE/MAX at a Race for the Cure through March 2014, please contact Katie Wegener at kwegener@komen.org.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

diagnoses were made through a Komen-funded community grant

52,000

people benefited from psychological services or other kinds of treatment assistance, such as food, transportation and emergency financial assistance

544,000 clinical breast exams and mammograms were provided in total

SHOWING SUPPORT RE/MAX OF NEW ENGLAND REGIONAL STAFF, BROKER/OWNERS AND AFFILIATES FROM ACROSS MASSACHUSETTS FORMED THE RE/MAX TEAM AT THE SOUTH BOSTON RACE FOR THE CURE IN SEPTEMBER.

CANADIAN AGENTS BACK UP CBCF RE/MAX Affiliates in Canada also work hard to make a difference in the fight against breast cancer and have donated more than $2 million to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation (CBCF).

Yard Sale for the Cure and Sold on a Cure are the flagship fundraising programs of RE/MAX in Canada. RE/MAX Associates help to keep much-needed funds in local communities, by participating in the Sold on a Cure program and making regular donations for CBCF IN. each closed transaction. And every dollar ACTION. raised through Yard Sale for the Cure – an iniIn 2012, the tiative sponsored by RE/MAX that helps comCBCF was able to direct munity members clear out their clutter and $19.9 million collect donations for CBCF – is spent directly to breast canon research, promotion and awareness. cer research and another To learn more about Sold on a Cure and $6.6 million other ways RE/MAX supports CBCF, visit to grants and cbcf.org/soldonacure. fellowships.

G R E AT L I F E

ABOVE & BEYOND

Smokin’ the Competition THIS MINNESOTA HALL OF FAMER IS THE GUY TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE A HANKERING FOR PRIZE-WINNING BARBECUE BY NATHAN SOLHEIM

S

team beat 545 competitors to win one of the world’s most prestigious and competitive barbecue contests.

“Winning is all about bragging rights,” says Vanderlinde, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Edge in Delano, Minn. “I love competing against the other teams. I know them all and we’re good friends, but I still enjoy kicking their butts.”

For Vanderlinde, the American Royal Grand Championship is the zenith of a passion that flared in 2006 after he fired up a smoker with a couple of local barbecue competitors. He was hooked at first bite. Today, Vanderlinde is head pitmaster for his team – he’s in charge of picking through cases of meat at his local market and building flavor profiles for the rubs and sauces.

Competitive barbecue teams compete in four categories – chicken, pork shoulder, brisket and ribs. Shiggin’ and Grinnin’ placed third in ribs and sixth in chicken at the American Royal, and while they didn’t make the top 10 in the other categories, their overall performance was enough for Vanderlinde and teammates Ted Moonen and Derek Schansberg to take first place and $12,500 in prize money.

The team’s previous best finish in a major competition was fourth in the 2011 Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue in Tennessee, where they competed against 96 teams from 24 countries. They’ve also had top 10 finishes in the Sam’s Club National BBQ Tour and the World’s Championship BarB-Q Contest at the Houston

Livestock Show and Rodeo in Texas. They’ve even been featured on the Discovery Channel’s “BBQ Pitmasters.”

Although Vanderlinde won’t divulge his tricks for creating the best barbecue (that would be like President Reagan releasing U.S. nuclear codes during the Cold War), he does reveal that Minnesota sugar maple wood is a staple in his smoker.

“I’m very competitive, and I love feeling the pressure,” says Vanderlinde, a RE/MAX Hall of Famer who joined the network in 2008. “I don’t dwell on our losses, but I expect to do well at every competition we enter. Just like in real estate, I expect to stay on top.”

PHOTO BY DAVID BOWMAN

HIG (SLANG), VERB: To steal barbecue secrets. Grin, verb: What Jeff Vanderlinde does each time his team wins a barbecue championship.

Vanderlinde and his competitive barbecue team, Shiggin’ and Grinnin’, have had a lot to smile about. Since coming together in 2008, the group has competed in 14 to 18 competitions a year.

It’s become a top 10 regular, and been crowned Grand Champion nine times. The sixth victory was at the 2012 American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open in Kansas City last December, where the

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JUST FOR FUN

CONTEST

Here’s Your Ticket

Count the number of RE/MAX Balloons photographed in this edition (excluding RE/MAX logos), and send your guess to above@remax.com

by Dec. 1, 2013. One drawing winner will receive a base registration to the 2014 RE/MAX R4, March 3-6 in Las Vegas.

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ABOVE THE RE/MA X MAGAZINE • FALL 2013

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