(Bel Air, Calif.) Over the past few months, Rodeo Realty has expanded the size of its Woodland Hills, Calif. office by 3,000 square feet, secured space for a new office in prime Beverly Hills, and began searching for new branch locations in Brentwood, Calif. and the famed Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. The residential real estate firm has hired more than 100 agents in 2010 alone.
“My company gives agents an edge, by providing them with the technology and marketing tools they need to succeed in this market,” said company founder and president, Syd Leibovitch.
Rodeo’s 3,000 square foot Woodland Hills expansion accommodates 12 new private offices, six cubicles, and space for Rodeo’s affiliate company Encore Escrow. The company plans to increase the branch’s number of producing agents by 25 or more.
Leibovitch secured more than 12,000 square feet of prime Beverly Hills real estate on Cañon Drive to build-out a new office for its existing Beverly Hills operations. Once complete, the branch will house more than 100 agents.
Rodeo is searching for 10,000 square feet of office space in Brentwood, Calif. to service communities such as Santa Monica, Malibu, and West L.A. The company is also actively looking for space on the Sunset Strip. In the past few months, Leibovitch has doubled the size of his Information Technology department, and hired a new regional manager and publicist.
“Becoming a real estate agent means owning your own business, and you have to invest in your business to make it grow,” said Leibovitch. “I try to lead by example and always show that Rodeo Realty is a leader in agent support.”
Syd Leibovitch founded Rodeo Realty in 1986. It’s one of the largest independently owned residential real estate firms in California, with more than 700 agents and 10 offices in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Affiliate companies include: L.A. Mortgage, Encore Escrow and Progressive Title.
Rodeo Realty Expanding in Southern California
(Bel Air, Calif.) Over the past few months, Rodeo Realty has expanded the size of its Woodland Hills, Calif. office by 3,000 square feet, secured space for a new office in prime Beverly Hills, and began searching for new branch locations in Brentwood, Calif. and the famed Sunset Strip. The residential real estate firm has hired more than 100 agents in 2010 alone.
“My company gives agents an edge, by providing them with the technology and marketing tools they need to succeed in this market,” said company founder and president, Syd Leibovitch.
Rodeo’s 3,000 square foot Woodland Hills expansion accommodates 12 new private offices, six cubicles, and space for Rodeo’s affiliate company Encore Escrow. The company plans to increase the branch’s number of producing agents by 25 or more.
Leibovitch secured more than 12,000 square feet of prime Beverly Hills real estate on Cañon Drive to build-out a new office for its existing Beverly Hills operations. Once complete, the branch will house more than 100 agents.
Rodeo is searching for 10,000 square feet of office space in Brentwood, Calif. to service communities such as Santa Monica, Malibu, and West L.A. The company is also actively looking for space on the Sunset Strip. In the past few months, Leibovitch has doubled the size of his Information Technology department, and hired a new regional manager and publicist.
“Becoming a real estate agent means owning your own business, and you have to invest in your business to make it grow,” said Leibovitch. “I try to lead by example and always show that Rodeo Realty is a leader in agent support.”
Syd Leibovitch founded Rodeo Realty in 1986. It’s one of the largest independently owned residential real estate firms in California, with more than 700 agents and 10 offices in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Affiliate companies include: L.A. Mortgage, Encore Escrow and Progressive Title.
Media Relations 101 for Real Estate Agents
What do you do when a reporter from the local newspaper, or a national publication, calls asking for quotes about the real estate industry? A) Run for the hills. B) Put off the call until a later date. C) Claim that you don’t want competitors to know your trade secrets.
If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you just lost an opportunity for the best free advertising on the planet. And, you lost the opportunity of potentially being that reporter’s trusted source in the future, the real estate pro that he/she calls first.
Knowing how to respond to media inquiries and pitch story ideas to reporters is an important marketing skill for one big reason: The public is more likely to take notice and trust a news story written by a credible publication than spend the same time scanning your paid advertisement through and through.
I worked as a newspaper reporter for more than a decade. The media world moves fast; deadlines are often the same day or hour. Anytime I dealt with story sources who couldn’t get it together enough to call me back, I moved on.
It’s sad, because many of those people who didn’t take the call, played “gatekeeper” to their boss, and the like, lost out on the possibility of increased revenues and future interviews.
That said, real estate agents should also know a few rules of the road when dealing with the media.
The Do List:
1. Do call reporters back immediately. If you get their voicemail, leave a cell number. Set up a protocol in your office to make sure calls from the media are forwarded to a live body that can talk on the record.
2. Do provide substantive quotes and content. This may make the difference between you or your competition getting in the paper. Remember that good reporters call multiple sources.
3. Do be proactive and call reporters when you have an interesting story idea. Ask them about the types of stories they prefer to write and the types of information they prefer. Meet their needs.
4. Do get to know the real estate reporters in your area. Offer to meet for a cup of coffee to discuss trends you are observing in the real estate market. Reporters can pick up on story ideas that you would have never thought of.
5. Do offer to provide other resources and interview opportunities that can help the reporter accurately cover his/her beat or story, even if those resources aren’t directly linked to you.
The Don’t List:
1. Don’t ask to speak “off-the-record” when you are being interviewed. The line between on-the-record and off-the-record can get blurred. Also, reporters are looking for information and quotes that can be used in their story.
2. Don’t say things that you would feel uncomfortable having viewed by thousands of readers. If you are bound by a confidentiality agreement with a client, do not break that agreement.
3. Don’t ask reporters to let you see the story before it goes to press. But you can ask to review your quotes and context of the story over the telephone. Some reporters are open to this idea, and some are not.
4. Don’t pitch bad story ideas. That’s the quickest way to lose a reporter’s ear. Trends that nobody else has written about, human interest stories related to the housing market, and significant transactions are typically good bets. Charity events, average real estate listings, and your latest marketing gimmicks are not worthy of a story.
5. Don’t, and I repeat DON’T, ever try to bribe a reporter or editor to write a story. Generally speaking, reporters cannot accept gifts, lunches, etc… that exceed $20 in value. And some reporters and editors cannot accept anything other than your quotes and insight.
Rodeo Realty Lists Academy Award Winning Producer's $25 million Calabasas Ranch
Located in the heart of Calabasas, Avalon Ranch is a 190-acre equestrian estate currently owned by Jim Wilson, an Academy Award winning producer who worked on the movie “Dances with Wolves.” The property includes a 7,500 square foot traditional farm house built in 1999. Hardwood floors, stone fireplaces, slate floors, wainscoting, built-in bookcases, beamed ceilings, country gourmet kitchen, French doors, wrap around porches, and stunning views are just a few of many of the home’s features. The property also includes two guest homes, a 16 stall barn with full amenities, swimming pool, spa, tennis court with viewing pavillion, secondary barn, utility building, duck pond, expansive pastures and corrals, sand ring, more than 1,000 trees planted, and hundreds of fruit and citrus trees. For more information, visit www.avalonranch.us/ or e-mail JimPascucci@RodeoRE.com. Jim may also be contacted at (818) 222-7707 or (818) 653-2691.