COVERPROFILE
First row: Nancy Umbreit, Mary Pat Munding, Elizabeth Gabler, Evie Cohen, Kim Johnson, Monica Zweck, Terry Crook, Diane Liebert, Heidi Wattier. 2nd row: Christine Damiano, Cliff Bravin, Karen McDonald, Dula Sugadhan, Carey Fine, Jenny Crow, Mark Dinkelman. 3rd row: Sarah Papini, Nick Bukowski, Bob Dalton, JD Belanger, Joe Mulder, Jeff Tomlan, Brent Sommervold. (Photo by Timothy Seibert)
Real Estate Agents and Clients Praise
EQUITY COLORADO-FRONT RANGE By Judy Finman, At Home
W
ith its many innovations and unique strategies, real estate firm Equity Colorado-Front Range continues to attract increasing numbers of customers and agents. Thanks to Equity’s revolutionary fee structures, where the agents take home the bulk of their earnings, both clients and the agents who serve them benefit as never before. Managing Broker Nancy Umbreit says, “We had a fabulous year this year with sales up 35 percent. My Niwot office is 72 agents strong and growing. Agents benefit from the enthusiasm of the office and the fact that their opinion matters. Those feelings roll out to our customers in happy, patient and creative agents.” The company has grown to more than 440 agents in Colorado. Besides Umbreit’s Northern Front Range office in Niwot, branches are located in Denver, Colorado Springs and Summit County.
Praise from a customer Mindy Faulkner moved into her newly purchased home in Firestone in March. Her agent was Josh Roberson of Equity Colorado-Front Range. She had learned about him and about Equity through friends. “Everyone had a great opinion of them,” she says. 4
AT HOME
Previously, in buying a house, she had a bad experience with a broker. “Josh was the total opposite of my last experience. He had our best interests at heart and went above and beyond what we expected. He was so flexible. If we wanted to look at a property again, even out of the way, he would say, ‘No problem, we’ll make it work.’ He was always available to answer our questions. “Every person I know who used Equity says great things about them. They are really just about family, and what’s best for the clients.”
Equity offers unique benefits “Realtors with an Equity office keep a higher amount of commission from each sale, which gives them more resources to spend promoting all their listings as well as increased personal income,” explains Umbreit. “The average real-estate agent pays a big chunk of their commission to their home company, whether or not they use the office, administrative support and educational services.” Equity agents pay $499 with a sale, as opposed to the 30-50 percent of their commission that many pay a larger firm. Additionally, the agents only pay $52 per month in desk fees that cover technological services, free E & O insurance (which is like malpractice insurance), as well as a Reporter-Herald – AtHomeColorado.com
fulltime manager who works almost 24/7 answering their questions. Another favorite feature is the company’s profit-share policy: anyone who recruits a new agent is rewarded $100 every time that new agent closes a deal. Equity nationwide paid out over $59,000 in July alone in Profit Share. Umbreit offers her agents the education they need to succeed – “the skills a good agent has to have. I especially try to help them enhance their listening expertise – the most strategic skill in any agent’s tool kit. The low fees motivate them to come over to Equity, but they stay for the support they get.”
Part-time real-estate sales “If you have toyed with the idea of becoming a real estate agent, you can start part-time while still doing other work,” Umbreit says. Several Equity agents are doing just that, including Nick Bukowski, who has been a firefighter for 11 years, currently with the Loveland Fire Rescue. Nick earned his real estate license in April of 2015 and became a Realtor a month later. “I have always been fascinated with the incredible architecture people can create and build,” he says. “I began investing in real estate once I graduated college and fell in love. I enjoy helping people, whether that is finding a dream home for a couple who have saved their whole lives, a young person buying their first home, or an investor. To see a smile on my client’s face at closing is very rewarding. I enjoy the challenges I am presented with on a daily basis and I love August 27-28, 2016