Broker Spotlight: Reaching for the Brass Ring

An interview with Michael Saunders
Michael Saunders,

President

Michael Saunders & Co.

Sarasota, Florida

Chairman

Leading Real Estate Companies of the World

Years in real estate: 30

Career path: I came from a social work background as a probation officer, which helped in real estate, because if you don’t have the ability to work with crazy people, you’re in the wrong field. I was a single mother, and I made the transition from being an agent to opening my own firm. A Canadian client cosigned a loan for me for $5,000 and that was all I needed. I first opened offices only on the Barrier Islands specializing in waterfront properties.

Number of offices: 15

Number of agents: 486

Words of wisdom: Every morning I still get up and ask myself, ?how can I make the business better??

Term of chairmanship of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World: Spring 2007

Tell us about your market: Are Sarasota and the surrounding areas still as in-demand as in years past?

The luxury market no matter what it is?automobiles, fashion, jewelry, homes?is a market unto itself. The expectation is that appreciation in the upper end market will be 25 percent over the next five years. In the last three years, the median home price here has risen 110 percent.

What are the most important services needed to be a successful luxury broker in terms of marketing, technology and customer service?

Those who are peak performers must be skilled in understanding the luxury buyer and qualifying them in how they want to do business. And each one of the luxury coastal properties in our market is unique, so the agents have to know coastal requirements, building regulations, erosion issues, insurance issues. I’m amazed at our agents in this capacity.

Do you enjoy holding the role of chairman and how has the experience affected you in your business?

Over the years, being on the Board of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World has given me the opportunity to work with the best of the best and share best practices. It’s just been one of the more important involvements of my real estate career. The collaboration and commitment of this board to raise the standards and provide services for independent companies is gratifying and exciting.

Tell us about your presence in Leading RE Companies of the World?s Luxury Portfolio segment. What are the primary benefits of being a member of this segment?

As of March 1, Luxury Portfolio had 5,000 listings on the site, with more being loaded every day, but affiliates have to meet the high standard of five top-quality photos per listing before the property appears on the site.

To complement Luxury Portfolio for all clients, LeadingRE has its RELOHomeSearch.com feature, linking all of our members? Web sites, so if a family in Sarasota is moving to Cincinnati they can find the LeadingRE affiliate there and see all the listings in that marketplace. It’s easy to navigate, and the client knows they will be working with a company they can trust.

?Beth McGuire

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