8Transcending Barriers: How Technology is Enabling Global Real Estate – Page 40

September 2013 $6.95

STRONGER THAN EVERRE/MAX Helps Agents Stay

Ahead in a Changing Market

www.rismedia.com@RISMediaUpdatesfacebook.com/rismedia

Dave Liniger, Chairman and

Co-founder of RE/MAX:

Dave Liniger, Chairman and

Co-founder of RE/MAX

66 September 2013 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE

RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE September 2013 67

Real estate agents want to align

themselves with an organization that

can help them stay ahead in an ever-

evolving market. With 40 years of success and

continuous leadership behind it, RE/MAX is a

perfect ft for many of them.

Leadership. Guts. Passion. Drive. Heart. Agents with

these qualities know how to get the job done, especially

as the real estate market continues to improve. These

agents get results for their clients. They like being in

the driver’s seat and in control of their success. And

they’re exactly the kind of entrepreneurs Dave Liniger,

RE/MAX chairman and co-founder, wants—and has—in

his organization.

For 40 years, Liniger and his wife, Gail, have built a real

estate empire on the simple notion that agents should

be in business for themselves but not by themselves.

The Linigers’ leadership has inspired legions of real

estate professionals to look for opportunities amid the

challenges.

That’s why RE/MAX, a force of more than 90,000

agents in more than 90 countries, is so well positioned

to help professional, productive real estate agents ele-

vate their careers and capitalize on the positive momen-

tum in today’s real estate market.

Inspiration to All

The RE/MAX story can’t be told without mentioning the

leadership of Dave Liniger, one of the most vocal advo-

cates on matters that improve the industry for profes-

sionals and consumers. After working as hard as anyone

to help agents, brokers and distressed buyers and sell-

ers through the diffcult days of the economic downturn,

Liniger entered 2012 on an optimistic high note. He

knew the recovery was beginning to gain steam. What

he didn’t know was that he’d soon be fghting for his life.

In February 2012, a life-threatening staph infection

nearly killed him; on Valentine’s Day, he actually fat-lined

for a short time. He endured months of hospitalization

and multiple surgeries, partially paralyzed for much of

the time. Told he might never walk again, the extremely

active and tough RE/MAX leader fell into despair.

Liniger ultimately leaned on the optimistic, goal-orient-

ed mindset that had guided his own success, and that of

RE/MAX. He knew he couldn’t give up, and shouldn’t give

up, so he decided he wouldn’t give up.

STRONGER THAN EVER

RE/MAX Helps Agents Stay Ahead in a Changing Market

by Maria Patterson

68 September 2013 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE

From that point on, Liniger focused

completely on recovery. He attacked

physical therapy with his trademark

tenacity. He set benchmarks and

goals: If he could walk 10 steps, he

could walk 100—and then 1,000.

He struggled along the way, but

kept moving toward self-suffciency.

Finally, with limited mobility despite

months of rehabilitation, he returned

to work in July 2012.

Fast-forward to the RE/MAX R4

Convention in February 2013 and

an unforgettable Opening General

Session. Liniger, who a year earlier

had missed the convention for the

frst time ever, appeared on stage

and shared his story with a crowd

of more than 7,000 RE/MAX Asso-

ciates from around the world. When

he fnished his emotional address,

he stood up from his motorized

wheelchair and, with only a cane,

walked off the stage to a thunder-

ous ovation—an electrifying mo-

ment in RE/MAX history.

The overwhelming support for the

RE/MAX leader at R4 confrmed that

his struggle, detailed in his New York

Times best-selling book, “My Next

Step: An Extraordinary Journey of

Healing and Hope,” was well worth

the battle.

“We all have moments in our lives

when we have to choose whether to

give up and admit defeat or press on.

It could be a medical problem, the

loss of a loved one, or a professional

situation like the real estate down-

turn we all went through,” Liniger

says. “The thing to always remember

is that you can get through it. It’s not

easy, but with the right attitude, de-

termination and people around you,

you can reach any achievable goal

you set for yourself.

“During the worst hous-

ing market in decades, our

agents chose to get train-

ing on distressed proper-

ties and return to the ba-

sics that helped make them

successful in the frst place.

And they made it through. That’s

one of the main things I love about

RE/MAX people—they never, ever

give up. They always fnd a way.”

That top-down resiliency perme-

ates the RE/MAX organization. A

can-do confdence has always been

a RE/MAX strongpoint, and it shows

in the performance of the sales

force, which has kept RE/MAX No. 1

in the United States since 1997 and

No. 1 in Canada since 1987.

The 2013 RISMedia Power Broker

Report of the 1,200 largest U.S.

brokerages that chose to participate

provides a good snapshot of current

trends. RE/MAX agents in the report

averaged 16.8 transaction sides in

2012, more than double the 8.1 av-

erage of all others. No other national

franchise topped 11. What’s more,

when the 1,200 frms are ranked by

transaction sides per agent, 90 of

the top 100 are with RE/MAX.

40 Years of Success, Evolution

In addition to the return of Dave

Liniger, the 2013 R4 gathering

also marked the 40th anniversary

of RE/MAX. Other networks have

come and gone over the past four

decades, but RE/MAX has pushed

forward while staying true to its

roots.

“Our company is built on the

strength of individual entrepreneur-

ship and innovation,” he says. “Gail

and I realized in the beginning that

we would succeed only if our agents

succeeded. A lot has changed in 40

years, and we’ve evolved with shifts

in the industry, but what hasn’t

changed is our core principle: at-

tracting the best agents, and then

supporting them, so they can deliver

outstanding results to their clients.”

That principle drew Susan Coveny

to RE/MAX more than two decades

ago, when she was already a suc-

cessful agent with more than 15

years of experience. Over the past

23 years, she has earned more than

$20 million at RE/MAX Prestige in

Long Grove, Ill., qualifying her for the

RE/MAX Luminary of Distinction ca-

reer award.

During the downturn, Coveny went

from about 24 closings per month to

just two or three. But she didn’t give

up.

“It was my job to keep things going

and get us through the hard times so

we could be on top of the game when

the market came back. And here we

“I really don’t think

an agent can

thrive without a

brand like

RE/MAX behind

them. We have so

much excitement,

energy and synergy in

this company; I’d never

consider leaving.”

- Susan Coveny,

RE/MAX Prestige,

Long Grove, Ill.

Dave Liniger signing a copy of his New

York Times best-selling book, “My Next

Step: An Extraordinary Journey of Healing

and Hope.”

RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE September 2013 69

are,” says Coveny, who’s now felding

more leads and business than ever.

“I really don’t think an agent can

thrive without a brand like RE/MAX

behind them. We have so much ex-

citement, energy and synergy in this

company; I’d never consider leaving.”

Innovation Leads to More

Productivity

With home sales and prices on a

steady rise, the U.S. housing market

has regained its glow, shifting from a

buyer’s market to a distinct seller’s

market.

RE/MAX CEO Margaret Kelly, who

appears regularly on national news

programs to discuss housing trends

and the market’s positive momen-

tum, says it’s no surprise RE/MAX

added agents in 2012 and even

more in the frst half of 2013.

“The agents who join us want the

support, the brand name visibility

and the credibility of the RE/MAX

brand behind their business,” Kelly

says. “Part of the reason RE/MAX

appeals to so many entrepreneurs

is because we’re always looking for

ways—through technology, educa-

tion, resources, advertising and

more—to help them stand out and

increase their business.”

Innovations are the norm at

RE/MAX. In the past 20 months,

RE/MAX has rolled out three game-

changing websites: www.theremax-

collection.com, a luxury-home search

site; www.global.remax.com, for

international property searches us-

ing local languages and currencies;

and www.remaxcommercial.com, the

RE/MAX commercial property search

portal. The new sites fortify an al-

ready vibrant web presence centered

on remax.com, which attracts about

50 million visits each year and was

ranked by Hitwise as the industry’s

top franchise site in terms of annu-

al traffc in 2012. Since 2006, the

site has delivered more than 12 mil-

lion—and counting—referral-fee-free

leads to RE/MAX agents.

National advertising is another

longtime RE/MAX strength that

benefts every agent. As competi-

tors have cut back or eliminated

national advertising, RE/MAX

keeps investing in it—and

the results are telling. In a

recent MMR Strategy Group

survey that asked U.S. and

Canadian homebuyers and

sellers to name a real estate

brand, RE/MAX was mentioned more

than any competitor—and named

frst more than any other company.

That brand awareness is powerful.

When people see a RE/MAX ad, they

think of the local RE/MAX agent they

know or have heard of.

Education provides a different

kind of edge. The award-winning

RE/MAX University, which has

helped RE/MAX lead the indus-

try in professional designations

and certifcations for many years,

launched a revolutionary eLearn-

ing platform called MyRU in 2012.

It delivers an interactive, multi-

platform learning experience to

RE/MAX agents on a 24/7 basis

and further solidifes the network’s

commitment to education.

“The competitive advantages

RE/MAX offers simply can’t be

matched,” Kelly says. “The best part

is that RE/MAX agents use them to

build their personal business.”

Forging Their Destinies

Many RE/MAX agents embrace the

resources and transform them into

more business, more profts and,

most importantly, more happy clients.

Georges Bardagi is a perfect ex-

ample. Bardagi, a Team Leader with

RE/MAX du Cartier in Montreal, Que-

bec, has been an elite producer for

two decades. He started his career

at RE/MAX in 1991 and kept fnding

new reasons to stay.

Over the years, Bardagi has suc-

ceeded in great markets and in bad

ones. Right now, Montreal is riddled

with for-sale-by-owner listings, all or-

ganized on a regional website that

poses a unique challenge to his

business. When Bardagi approaches

those sellers, who are often

“RE/MAX has 40

years of support

and results

behind it, and

nothing beats that.

I never have to sell

the brand; I only

have to sell my

team’s abilities.”

- Georges Bardagi,

RE/MAX du Cartier,

Montreal, Quebec

Margaret Kelly, CEO RE/MAX

70 September 2013 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE

frustrated after months of no activ-

ity, he’s backed by the brand locals

know and trust.

“RE/MAX has 40 years of support

and results behind it, and nothing

beats that,” Bardagi says. “I never

have to sell the brand; I only have to

sell my team’s abilities.”

That’s not a problem for Bardagi,

whose team has closed more than

$70 million in sales so far this year.

“At the end of the day, if you have a

great brand but the agents don’t pro-

vide great service, business will suf-

fer,” Bardagi says. “RE/MAX agents

are the best. People know they can

trust us to do a great job.”

That’s wisdom Ryan O’Neill can

agree with. In 2012, he was the

RE/MAX system’s No. 1 Team Lead-

er worldwide for transaction sides.

O’Neill, 38, represents the next gen-

eration of RE/MAX agents: young,

tech-savvy, and as driven and pas-

sionate as their predecessors.

Like Bardagi, Coveny and thousands

of other RE/MAX top producers, O’Neill

uses the tools—remax.com, Lead-

Street (a management system for free

remax.com leads), RE/MAX University,

etc.—and forges his own destiny.

“What I love about RE/MAX is that

you’re in charge of your own value

proposition,” says O’Neill, who leads

the 50-agent real estate team with

RE/MAX Advantage Plus in Lakeville,

Minn. “I offer an environment that

fosters happiness, rewarding work,

and the ability to generate new leads

and business. The market is always

evolving, so we have to work hard to

stay ahead of what’s going on.”

O’Neill’s market didn’t experi-

ence the crash other metro areas

did across the U.S., but low inven-

tory and strong buyer demand is

creating a different kind of challenge

for his team members. Being with

RE/MAX reinforces their credibil-

ity with consumers and instills con-

fdence in their ability to overcome

any obstacle.

It’s really no secret why agents like

O’Neill are successful at RE/MAX.

They have the drive to go the extra

mile, and they’re willing to work hard

and do whatever it takes to make

their clients happy.

At RE/MAX, they’re in control of

their results—and that’s just the way

they like it. RE

For more information, please visit

www.remax.com.

RE/MAX Balloon Celebrates 35th Anniversary It’s one of the most recognized corporate symbols on the planet, and

understandably so. At seven stories tall, the RE/MAX Hot Air Balloon

grabs attention wherever it fies. In October, RE/MAX will mark the 35th

anniversary of its iconic balloon.

First introduced at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in

1978, the balloon perfectly represented the RE/MAX network’s “Above

the Crowd” commitment to quality. Today, the nearly 120 RE/MAX Hot Air

Balloons in operation comprise the largest feet in the world.

“What I love

about

RE/MAX is

that you’re

in charge

of your own value

proposition.”

- Ryan O’Neill,

RE/MAX Advantage Plus,

Lakeville, Minn.