Eleven and eleven hundred.
For author and CENTURY 21 Judge Fite Company President and CEO Jim Fite, those two numbers represent the amusing beginning of his illustrious real estate career in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, and its current, extraordinary pinnacle.
In his new book, “Success Through a Recession,” Fite offers detailed insights and information gleaned through a journey only someone who has been through multiple economic downturns has the experience to provide. With 51 years of it, he certainly qualifies.
“The book is about planning for the good times and planning in the bad times, or the tough times,” he says. “Strategic planning is critical for any business. What is the vision? If I didn’t have a vision for our company, I wouldn’t go through what you have to go through to achieve the vision. You’ll find all kinds of books about how to grow your business, how to start a business, how to be successful in life.
“I have yet to find a book about when times get tough, here’s what you do, here’s the plan of action, and here’s how to execute your plan and tweak your plan to come out on the other end. That’s why I wrote it.”
Each section concentrates on a specific theme, such as vision and mission, strategic planning, diversifying income and making year-end decisions. Bullet-pointed learned lessons end each chapter.
But back to 11 and 1,100. The latter represents the number of agents employed at CENTURY 21 Judge Fite Company. The former? Fite tells the tale, after noting that his parents founded the company 86 years ago, so his real estate career was likely preordained to some degree.
“I was the youngest of four children, and at age 11, we all started cleaning the office,” he says. “My dad got printed business cards for me with his company logo on them, which was the Judge Fite Company at the time. The cards had my name, phone number at the office and my title, which was vice president in charge of maintenance.
“He said, ‘Okay, son, I want you to go to school and give each one of your teachers at least two of my…of your business cards, and I want you to say, ‘Hi, this is my new job, and by the way, do you know anyone interested in buying or selling real estate?’
“That was the script he gave me at 11 years old. I didn’t have a license, but I could refer someone to my father. He told me if anyone said they’d like to buy or sell real estate, to get their name and phone number. The librarian said she wanted to buy a house, so I got her name and number that first day, and she did buy something, with my father as the agent.”
Fite doesn’t recall if his business cards resulted in any other school employee transactions, or if he was given a piece of the librarian commission, but he’d gotten a taste for the business. He and his sister, Jan Fite Miller, now executive vice president, would take over the company from their parents in 1977, 40 years after its founding. Since then, it has grown exponentially. Jim’s son, Eric Fite, joined and became chief operating officer in 2018.
As the company grew, the Fites started the Judge Fite Charitable Foundation, which provides relief to victims of home fires, crime or other life-changing occurrences. All proceeds from the book go to the foundation.
“Success Through a Recession” includes quotes from his parents and other business leaders. They are unique in that they often contain humor but are serious. Here’s one from his father: “Never go to lunch with anyone until you have seen their W-2.” In other words, be careful who you listen to, as people tend to embellish the truth and underestimate the facts.
Fite relates that for new agents, it is imperative to seek the guidance of brokers and other experienced business leaders in order to avoid making many mistakes. His book provides a multitude of examples of how CENTURY 21 Judge Fite dealt with tough times. One is working with other businesses.
“A section in the book is about going to see your vendors, the people you owe money to,” he explains. “You don’t run and hide if you can’t afford to pay them. You go see them face to face. Then there’s a step-by-step process that I have personally undertaken when things weren’t looking good.
“I renegotiated every one of our leases by having this approach. First, pay your bills before they’re due. So when you have tough times, you’re not already behind. I renegotiated every single lease, whether it was a copy machine lease or a postage machine lease, whether it was a rental lease or an office lease. And I was successful. We came out on the other end, and profitability increased when the market came back and our company came back.”
Even now, at age 69, Fite says he continues to learn, not just about real estate, but about life. It’s a lesson his parents taught him early on, and another reason he wrote “Success Through a Recession,” which is his third book.
“I quit college before eventually joining the company,” he relates. “My mom and dad made me agree to read, study and think an hour a day, five days a week, for the rest of my life. I pass on that pledge to the people joining our company, to read, study and think an hour a day, five days a week. Think about how you’re going to grow your business, about how you’re going to improve your family. Read about all those subjects. Study. Go to seminars. That’s the only thing they made me promise to do.
“So I try to have an influence on our people to do the same. It has worked extremely well for me and for our company. It’s worked well for our leadership team. It will work well for anybody.”
For more information, and to order a copy of “Success Through a Recession,” click here.
