Name: Lauren Freedman
Title: Realtor, Coldwell Banker
Age: 28
Experience: 4 years
Lauren Freedman started selling real estate during one of the worst markets in memory. Just four short years later in 2016, she sold over $24 million worth of real estate, a nearly 50 percent increase over her previous year. Freedman averaged one closing every five days in 2015 and last year averaged a closing every four days. She was named to Coldwell Banker’s 30 under 30 in 2015 and 2016, and made Realtor magazine’s “30 Under 30” list in 2016.
Q: What drew you to real estate sales at such a young age?
A: My mom is a real estate appraiser. I went to real estate school to get work for her. I bought a condo when I was 18 and while I was school, I listed my condo with an agent. I saw what the agent did and I thought, “I could do this and I could do it better.” I ended up not finishing appraiser school. I was managing a restaurant at the time and got my real estate sales license. I didn’t finish the school, but sold a few properties and in 2012, I figured I’d give it a try full-time.
Q: Was it hard to get people to take you seriously at that age?
A: Yes, definitely. People still ask me about my age now. People ask me what makes me different. Sometimes my age works in my favor. Older agents aren’t always so tech-savvy and some of them don’t work at 10 p.m. or 6 a.m., or don’t work on Sundays. I’m always available. Sometimes I get prospective clients who tell me they already have an agent who sold their house, but they’ve called her three times and she hasn’t called them back and they like that I pick up the phone. I always get back to people right away.
In the beginning it was hard with agents, too. When I started, there were one or two agents who were rude to me, just mean. They were talking down to me at a showing. They were trying to make me look bad when I was so young and so new. I had made a small mistake and they embarrassed me. I will remember it for the rest of my life. Now those agents call me for advice. I’m number one in my office and other agents call me for advice. I’m friendly with everybody. If I can help them, I will.
Q: How did you get so busy, so quickly in a flat market?
A: It’s just past client referrals. Ninety percent of the calls I get are people who tell me they heard I sold so-and-so’s house and she told them I was excellent. Every once in a while I run an ad and I’ll get a call from that. Billboards are expensive and it’s a different kind of exposure. A woman I knew in middle school drove past one of my billboards on the highway on her way to Rhode Island. She was looking to get into real estate and called me for some advice. Once I went out to dinner and the waiter said, “I know you, you’re that woman from the billboard.”
But mostly, it’s just referrals from people who were happy with me. It’s a ton of client referrals. I also think some of those younger buyers I helped when I was getting started are now trading up and I wind up helping then on both ends. I did a ton of advertising in the last few years and I’m not doing much now and the calls keep coming. Also, I spend a lot of time at the gym and I meet a lot of people there as well.
I also post most of my listings on my Facebook page. I get a lot of attention from that. I get at least five deals a year from Facebook alone. I post every listing, every sale, sales statistics and photos and many of my friends share my updates with other people.
I also try to make use of technology to stay available to my clients. Texting is a big thing in this market. I have all the apps on my phone so I can do anything remotely that I can do from my computer. My website is set up so that when someone clicks on More Info, it calls me, texts me and emails me and I follow up as soon as I can.
Q: What is your market like now?
A: At the moment, it’s a little slow, given the holidays and the fact that there’s 2 feet of snow on the ground. As soon as March 1st hits, the spring market will be here. Inventory is low right now. I have a list of buyers in the $400,000 to $500,000 range who want a four-bedroom Colonial and are just waiting for something to come on. I have another list of sellers who are just waiting for March 1st. I think this year will be a little bit busier than last year, now that the election is done and over with.
Freedman’s Five Favorite Things:
- Dogs
- Fitness
- Sneakers
- Food
- Sunny, hot weather
