Feb 22, 2023
Relentlessly Local Real Estate w/ Oleg Bortman of The Brokery
BRT S04 EP08 (170) 2-19-2023
What We Learned This Week
- Rich Dad Poor Dad - make money $ work for you, not the other way around
- Relentlessly Local - Geo Farming your area, & know it backwards & forwards
- Real Estate is a business, learn your P&L
- Marketing Plan - Attract the clients, team, & partners you want, repel the rest
Guest: Oleg Bortman of The Brokery
https://www.linkedin.com/in/oleg-bortman-215099a/
Instagram @olegbortman
Oleg Bortman is co-founder of The Brokery residential real estate brokerage.
Born in Ukraine, Oleg moved to the United States in 1979 as his family sought the American Dream. Oleg studied biology at York College and upon graduation began working in Pharmaceutical sales, and was a Regional Sales Director for a fortune 100 Pharmaceutical Company for several years.
However, deep down, Oleg knew his true passion was and is real estate. He bought his first investment property in 1999 and quickly became captivated with the entire real estate market. He expanded his portfolio from New Jersey to Nevada and then on to Arizona, quickly seeing his return on investments.
When Oleg moved out West, he realized he didn’t just want to be an investor, he wanted to give other people the same opportunity he has had. He loves working not only with buyers, but sellers and investors as well. Oleg has been in real estate for over ten years as it continues to be his dream career.
Notes
The Brokery - Oleg Bortman
Seg 1
Oleg has a Pharma sales background, what he did for 15 years in New Jersey and then in Nevada.
He met his real estate partner Tucker in Phoenix about 2010, and they started a real estate firm called Suits with an office in the Arizona Biltmore Hotel. Since then they’ve grown over 10+ years with four total offices. Their main office is now on 40th St. They are soon to open an office in Scottsdale, with a goal to open 8 or 9 offices total.
They have 60 agents that work at the brokerage, 1099 tax set up who hang their license there. They also have 4 full-time employees. They did a total of $350 million in sales in 2022, residential real estate, with the two partners doing $100 million of that.
Phoenix market is very desirable for people to live in. Always good to be working, and living in a community and city that is growing. In the winter months and early spring January through May - Phoenix is very crowded and exciting place. The housing market is seasonal, with the summer being very slow.
Snowbirds will make plans to get a rental five or 6 months in advance. Typically these are people from the Midwest where taxes and property taxes are high. East Coast, New York or New Jersey have very high property taxes.
If you own a $1.5 million dollar house in New York, your property taxes could be $50,000 a year. If you own a $1.5 million dollar home in Phoenix, your property taxes could be $6 to 12K. Property taxes are five times more expensive on the East Coast. Somebody owning a home on the East Coast, could buy a home in Phoenix at a substantial discount.
The Brokery deals in residential sales and re-sales. And then they also have a sister company that deals in rentals.
Oleg is originally from Ukraine and was living in New Jersey. He did Pharma sales B2B, selling to doctors office. He worked with the company Abbot and eventually was transferred to the West Coast in Las Vegas, and then move to Phoenix.
He highly recommends the book, Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, learning the key concept - having money working for you, not the other way around.
Initially invested in real estate in Las Vegas. He bought multiple condos with a cost of $70 K to 100 K. During the financial crisis of 2008 he watch those condos lose 50% of their value.
Seg 2
Tucker Blaylock is his partner, a native of Arizona and an ex-Marine. He is highly organized and very good at marketing for a business. Oleg does the sales. They started the real estate firm called - The Suits in an office at the Arizona Biltmore hotel lobby.
The second office is on 40th St. in the Arcadia area near LGO. 2019 they got their 3rd office near North Central and Bethany area. They owned the buildings of all their offices. Their next and 4th office will be opening in Scottsdale soon.
They teach all their brokers how to own and run a business. This involves, how to read and set up a profit and loss, P&L.
Their brokers are all 1099 reps. Each time they recruit a new broker they set them up with a seasoned broker as a mentor. They teach them how to build their own brand and become a listing agent. There are listing agents and buyers agents.
You learn to create a business model, and also build your image with business attire. Then you invest back in yourself doing advertising and marketing. Their clients could be spending $3 or 5 or even $15 million on a property so they have an expectation of what their agent is. The Brokery is a boutique real estate firm.
Realtors can get their license in 2 weeks, but need to go back to school for 90 hours to get a broker license.
Seg 3
They recently were selling a housing complex called karma which was created by Boyer Vertical architecture firm, run by Jason Boyer. Karma is located 13th St. and Bethany, has 11 homes.
It is a sustainable build with careful attention to detail and design with window locations and the layout. They also have clean tech, like span electrical panels. Boyer also created Our House development, in midtown Phoenix.
Other builders they work with are, Jason Kush, with a development in North Scottsdale on Jomax.
Branding and marketing are the key to any business. You want to attract like-minded people, employees, partners, and clients. Then repel people that do not fit with your brand. The Brokery brand is ‘relentlessly local’.
Mini builders have a style to how they do it, an example is Trent Hancock of Camelot, they built Ranch Mine.
Seg 4
Book recommendations, Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, Tipping Point, and Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. One of the main themes of Outliers, is you have to practice for 10,000 hours to become an expert.
Geographic Farming - marketing, where a real estate broker or agent mails postcards to an area on a consistent basis. Relentlessly local, know the neighborhood.
They do an analysis of an area, and determine the ROI for that area. Then you do research and scout the area with every day direct mailers and MLS direct mail route. They know the ROI of mailers. Agents need consistent mailing month by month for the whole year - 12 months.
You mail postcards (best value) 2x / month for 6 months, then 1x / month for life. In the first 6 months you’ve created a brand as potential clients see your face 2x a month.
They also use print magazine ads also, it is very visual. Overall this is a shotgun approach, where 3% will transact, and 3% will buy.
Real estate agents are their own CEO, and it takes 3 to 5 years to really build your business. You have carrying cost of mailers which could go from 6 to 9 months before you’re getting good returns on your money.
In the interim real estate agents need to do other things to develop deals. One thing is to have a listing, do an open house and have people see the house. This can equate to free leads.
You also do as many face-to-face meetings with the network you already have. You call everybody you know to let them know that you’re in real estate, and have listings in the neighborhood you work in.
You work one neighborhood and you dominate it. You know the neighborhood - this is sales and marketing. Then when a prospect asks you about a supermarket, school location or a good restaurant, you know it all.
Real Estate Topic:
https://brt-show.libsyn.com/category/Real+Estate-Construction-Land-Farming
Investing Topic: https://brt-show.libsyn.com/category/investing
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