STANFIELD RANKS 5TH NATIONWIDE:
SERVICE IS KEY TO SUCCESS
In his bustling office, First Team
®
Real Estate agent Sean Stanfield finishes a client meeting and looks down at his phone to see seven missed calls. He begins returning the calls in between answering new ones that keep coming in.
It’s a hectic routine, but for Stanfield, who ranked fifth in closed transaction volume nationwide on the Wall Street Journal’s 2010 Broker Performance Report released in Sept., it’s all part of a day’s work.
“Real estate is a service business and ‘above and beyond’ is the norm in our office,” Stanfield said. “I return calls immediately and if I’m tied up for a while, my office returns them. We take care of everything for our clients. It takes a lot to complete a transaction today and we offer the best marketing, the best service and the most knowledge of the marketplace.”
Stanfield attributes his $178 million in sales in last year’s tough market to his training in past down cycles.
“I built my business in the last down cycle of the 90s,” he said. “Training for success in a challenging market teaches you to work very hard and to adapt to shifting conditions and consumer needs. This is an ever-changing business. If you don’t evolve, it will pass you by.”
Among the major changes Stanfield made was to adopt a team model, a decision prompted largely by the technology explosion and resulting need to get business done faster and more efficiently.
First Team agent Stanfield Sean
“We have evolved into a ‘now’ business,” he said. “The client doesn’t want to wait an hour or two for a response. A team lets me provide the service and response my clients have come to expect.”
With the sluggish market further hampered by a low supply of homes for sale, Stanfield finds himself working hard than ever. He’s doing more print advertising and direct mail and investing heavily in online marketing. He has also expanded his scope of business to include an income property division and has established himself as a preferred REO agent with several banks.
The training and mentoring he has received at First Team since launching his career 24 years ago with California’s top ranked, independent, non-franchised real estate firm have also been instrumental to his success.
“First Team has been number one in our market for a long time and there are reasons for that,” he said. “The company has the best management team in the industry. Founder Cameron Merage is an innovator and always has First Team ahead of the competition. My manager, Chuck Grant, is a constant source of information and strategies that keep his agents at the top of their game.”
An Orange County native, Stanfield is deeply committed to his community and is a long-time supporter of local schools. He is forming the Stanfield Group Charitable Foundation which will generate funds to schools and to cancer research.
Though economists and industry pundits debate when the housing market will improve, Stanfield expects the draw of Southern California to generate a rebound.
“Out market will always recover because we live in the most desirable area in the world,” he said. As far as time lines go, it’s hard to say, but we are in a very opportunistic market for those who know how to take advantage of it.”
For more information on how Sean Stanfield can help you with your real estate needs, contact the Stanfield Group at 714-421-3377 or sean@stanfieldgroup.net
