‘Playmakers:’ How eXp’s CEO scaled up after he ‘lost everything’  

Editor's note: The Playmakers podcast explores the biggest shifts in real estate with those who are shaping the industry's future. Check out our top takeaways and watch the latest episode from host Andrew Flachner, co-founder of RealScout.

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in the Playmakers podcast belong solely to the podcast creators and guests.

On this episode of the Playmakers podcast, Leo Pareja acknowledges that he's made plenty of mistakes during his two-plus decades in real estate. He shares some of the lessons that ultimately propelled his career — and can give younger agents a head start. 

Pareja started selling real estate as a teenager, and by age 28, he was the leader of Keller Williams' top team worldwide. Despite that early success and the titles he's held since, including CEO and co-founder of data and analytics platform Remine and now CEO of eXp Realty, Pareja is quick to recall the blunders he's had along the way.

"I think one of the problems for people who are getting the highlight reel — you just don't see the entire iceberg," he said. "There's been plenty of times I've pushed the chips in and it did not work out. Luckily, it's worked out more than it's failed."

Know when to get out of your own way: "We are taught to work on our weaknesses," Pareja said, but as an entrepreneur, he learned quickly that trying to master every task was an inefficient strategy.

A personal example? "I'm not a manager of people. And so I need to get out of the way and let someone who's talented at that role do that," Pareja said. "If you're not detailed, you hire a good CFO. You're not a good operator, hire a COO," he said. "All of a sudden, you're a brilliant leader who leverages talent."

Smart hiring choices pay dividends later, he added: "If you have the right people, you don't need to micromanage anybody."

Find people who are better than you — and ask for advice: Pareja said he didn't become a big producer "until the financial crisis when I lost everything." As he worked to regain his footing, he realized some agents were handling hundreds of transactions a year while he was stuck closing 30 to 50. When he decided it was time to scale up, he turned to some of those big producers for tips — a strategy he has repeated throughout his career.

"I actually got into the habit of finding the best person — on the planet, in the country, in our industry, in my company — at doing whatever I thought I wanted to do next and actually calling them," Pareja said, adding that those individuals "almost always" took his call.

Work-life balance is overrated for young agents: Younger agents lack experience, but they have more gas in the tank — so they need to put that energy to work while they can.

"If you talk about work-life balance when you're 20, you're a fool," he said. "What I could do in seven or eight hours is still 10x the output of what I could do at 22 in 12 hours."

His advice for those 20-year-olds? "Work until you need to sleep" and "don't waste" the period in life when you can devote the time that becomes tougher to allocate once you start a family.

No gray area when it comes to Clear Cooperation: As a vocal supporter of the National Association of Realtors' controversial Clear Cooperation Policy, it's not surprising that Pareja believes "the more transparency for the consumer, the better."

But with private listing networks on the rise, it's clear that not everyone has the same mindset. Though Pareja acknowledged some brokerages can decide not to participate, he believes Clear Cooperation is a "black and white" issue.

"We cooperate or we don't," he said. "Because the concept of 'let me try it off the market to then put it on the market' is predicated on a market existing."