Well, last week the big news was that Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway acquired local real estate giant, Long and Foster. And yesterday, the big news was that Long and Foster has acquired Evers & Company.
Donna Evers has been my broker for the past ten years, and while I hoped this would last forever, I'm realizing that Donna is way beyond the age when most people kick back - although she certainly doesn't look it. She isn't really retiring, but I'm guessing that being the Broker in Charge is a whole lot less taxing that owning the company. And a marriage to Long and Foster was not the worst option, for Donna or for her agents.
So there are a lot of questions that some of the agents have about what comes next. Will this be a good corporate marriage? Or will it be a funky fit? Should I stick around or check out options?
When it comes to these situations, this isn't my first rodeo. Over my 35-year career, this has happened four times. And here is my advice to myself, and to anyone else who might find themselves in this situation::
- Don't let all of the distractions get in the way of your business.
- Moving to a different company is extremely disruptive when it's a change of location. Give your new arrangement a chance.
- When brokers all over town start calling, don't let it go to your head. They learn to take advantage of any sort of chaos at a competitor for their recruiting efforts.
- Your decision to stay or go has to be a business decision, and it's likely to be a better one if you wait until the dust settles before you decide.
And you know what? As I call my clients, they don't seem to care whose sign is in their front yard, as long as it has my name rider on it.
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