'Unfiltered': Real estate missing ‘collective leadership’
Watch the conversation with industry icon Stefan Swanepoel on the “self-centered, arrogant” leaders in real estate, NAR’s missteps and opportunities ahead.
NextHome CEO James Dwiggins has emerged as a significant voice on the topics that are shaping the real estate industry: lawsuits, innovation, leadership. But Dwiggins doesn't just answer questions, he asks them of guests on Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, his podcast with Keith Robinson, NextHome's chief strategic officer.
On this week's episode of Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, Stefan Swanepoel, one of the most respected voices in the industry, talks about the challenges and opportunities facing real estate today.
Swanepoel — a four-decade industry veteran, best-selling author, and founder of consultancy T3 Sixty and Real Estate News — speaks candidly about the leadership gap in real estate while offering advice for agents and industry leaders.
See why real estate is fractured, and what opportunities lie ahead: There have been "many, many upheavals in this industry," says Swanepoel. "We've had turmoil every time, I think, when people have been self-centered, arrogant, cocky and have done things for their own benefit rather than trying to be a contributor to the bigger cause."
In this "fragmented" industry, can anyone steer the ship? Yes, Swanepoel says — but they haven't stepped up.
"We need a collective leadership in the industry. And one would have felt in the last 10 or 20 years it should have been NAR. They were at the right place, the right time. They had the vehicles, they had the budget, they had the trademarks, they had the advocacy, they had the education. And sometimes I feel they've abandoned us."
But that also means there are opportunities for new leaders, as well as working agents and other real estate professionals, to help make things better — which is something Swanepoel will discuss at length in his upcoming "Opportunity Report."
In the meantime, he offers some encouragement, and tough love, for agents and brokerage leaders working through a challenging time:
"Get the right attitude. Stop being boring. Don't do the same thing. Outperform your competitor. Be different. Accept change. Don't sit on your hands. It's okay. You can win. The industry has got to blow — we are nowhere near dead. This is not the beginning, this is not a new chapter, this is not the end — it is simply just life. There are ups and downs. There are changes. Sometimes you get a bump in the road. So what? Get your attitude fixed up. Accept responsibility and go forward. You can hit a home run, and if you don't, the people around you are going to hit it. Because I'm going to give them the roadmap."
The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in the Real Estate Insiders podcast belong solely to the podcast creators and guests, and not Real Estate News.