What does it take for an American to buy in France? How does one even begin the search? For this episode, I interview Gonzague Le Nail, a top broker in France who explains the process to us.

Gonzague is the president of Cabinet Le Nail, a leading brokerage in France, focused on selling prestige properties for over 50 years. Along with his partner Hervé de Maleissye he runs a team of over 20 associates, and they currently have over 250 listings on their website, including 80 castles!

In this episode we learn:

• What you can do in advance of a viewing trip

• Who a notaire is, and how to pick one

• The differences in taxes between France and the USA

• What a Compromise de Vente is, and when it comes into play

• A surprising fact about Title Insurance in France

• Financing in France

• What closing day looks like in France

• Has demand been increasing from USA in light of the upcoming election?

• Gonzague’s view on dual agency and an ethical sales process

• And much more!

I had the pleasure of meeting Gonzague recently in the Indre department at a chateau near the geographic center of France. You can find a video of us touring the grounds of that chateau on my YouTube page.

Cabinet Le Nail's website:

www.cabinetlenail.com⁠

The castle that we were discussing:

https://www.cabinetlenail.com/en/annonces/ref-na4-1319/castle-for-sale-15th-century-architectural-gem-romorantin-lanthenay/

In this episode, Emily Epple explains how likely office-to-residential conversions are, as well as shares some fun facts about the Flatiron Building and some tales from her time as an architect.

Let me know if you enjoyed this episode and we can bring Emily back on to hear about the recent state budget and the extension of 421-A into 485X and what that will mean for the city.

https://www.globest.com/2024/04/16/ny-gov-announces-sweeping-housing-initiative/?slreturn=20240319212616

In this episode, Tyler tells us his amazing story. In two short years he went from riding his bike in the rain to film property tours-- to creating a 12-person team and growing a media empire (with over 10 million views per month!) on his various platforms.

Tyler was very generous with his time and knowledge. He was willing to share everything about how he built his business in such a short amount of time. In this episode we discuss:

• Tyler's origin, from "bike in the rain" to contracts with builders and gaining thousands of followers per day

• The 75 Hard challenge and how it inspired him to commit to short for video for a set amount of time -- No Matter What

• The importance of cashflow in the early stages of any business venture

• How creators should think about analytics: Use them to guide your content but don't get obsessed with them!

• How lower-end properties surprisingly have a better chance of going viral compared to luxury properties

• Advice for newer agents, even if they don't want to start shooting video

• How to think about TikTok vs Instagram vs Youtube Shorts.

And much more.

Tyler has offered listeners of the Top Broker Podcast a bit of free advice on their short form videos. This is extraordinarily valuable -- he has one condition though: the video must be posted first! Listen to the full episode to hear his offer. Follow Tyler on TikTok, Instagram, Youtube and at his website below.

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@tylerhassman?lang=en

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/tylerhassman/

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyokivlQ3YvZdXXjD2yOdxw

Website:

https://tylerhassman.com/

Email:

Tyler@tylerhassman.com

Short Form Video Course:

https://www.shortformvideoforagents.com/

In this episode, Brooks Landry explains the how and why of videos for real estate agents. He credits video as the biggest differentiator for his $500,000,000 in career sales as a solo agent in the East Bay area, serving San Ramon, Danville, and Dublin California.

In this episode we learn Brooks' fascinating history, starting out as a mortgage broker (in a call center!) and then rising in the ranks there, finally transitining to real estate sales where he has been recognized for being a top broker in the state of California many times.

Brooks is a pleasure to talk to, and I had a hard time editing this podcast down, so forgive if it went longer than usual.

In this episode we discuss:

• The three types of videos that all real estate agents should be making in this market

• The types of videos that agents SHOULDN'T be making anymore

• Agent Collaboration vs Agent Competition

• Brooks' advice to newer agents

• Air Rights and development in New York City

• The current market in the East Bay

• Personalized video for clients

If you have a client looking to buy in the east bay area, or want to talk to an experienced agent at Real Brokerage, Brooks is happy to chat with you. Send him a DM on Instagram or email him below.

Website:

https://brookslandryhomes.com/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/brookslandrygroup/

Email:

Brooks@brookslandry.com

In this episode, Jacob teaches a masterclass on how to cold call developers, even giving up his secrets on how to find their contact information from public permit records. His technical background as an electrical engineer has taught him to think creatively and systematically, and he is very open with his journey to where he is today, leading a team of 9 and representing some of the nicest property in Bellevue, Seattle and Kirkland. With his partner Brandon Byrne, he now represents many of the new luxury single-family homes in the Seattle/Bellevue area, and has built a team to handle the retail business that has resulted from those beautiful listings. Jacob is a wellspring of creativity, and he can often find a way to structure a deal to make it win/win, even when it might seem hopeless to other brokers.

In this episode we discuss:

• Jacob's start in real estate, including his "lightbulb" moment that led to a career switch

• How owner financing and creative deal structures can be a big opportunity in a changing market

• How to cold call developers -- including an impromptu role-playing session

• The current market in Seattle and Bellevue, and how it's changing

• "Pick up your damn phone" -- how a personal touch can lead to better relationships with other brokers, and your clients

• Advice for newer agents from a market-leading agent

And much more.

If you have a client looking to buy in Bellevue, Seattle or Kirkland, or want to talk about structuring a difficult deal, Jacob is happy to talk to you.

Website:

https://weaverbyrnegroup.com/

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/@theweaverbyrnegroup

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/jacob.weaver.realtor/

Email:

Jacob.Weaver@exprealty.com

Malone Hodges of the Carmel Realty Company is a wealth of information and an absolute joy to talk to. He specializes in Carmel, Pebble Beach, Carmel Valley, and Pacific Grove in the Monterey Peninsula. He was the founding broker of the Carmel Realty Company, the premier luxury real estate brokerage in the area, now with over 60 agents and $600,000,000 in annual sales. He has served twice as the president of the Monterey County Association of Realtors. Malone has refreshing attitude towards real estate, keeping his business personal and professional as a trusted fiduciary to his clients.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why talking clients out of a property might ultimately result in them deciding that they have to work with you

• Being authentically yourself can drastically grow your business
• The 100+ year history of the Carmel Realty Company and his role in rebuilding the sales department, into a 30+ agent brokerage with over $600,000,000 of annual sales
• How to equip a luxury rental when details really matter
• Historic homes in Carmel-by-the-sea, with their pros and cons
• How there is a large and growing Texas population in the Monterey Peninsula, driven by weather patterns and direct flights
• How the market is doing on the Monterey Peninsula
• Advice for newer agents from a market-leading agent

And much more.

If you have a client looking to buy in Carmel-by-the-Sea or the Monterey Peninsula, Malone is happy to talk to you.

Website:

www.malonehodges.com.

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/c/MaloneHodges

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/malonehodges/

Jim Toth of Western Ranch Brokers has been selling ranchland in Montana for 22 years. He’s not just a salesperson – he’s a matchmaker between generational owners of ranches (sometimes the original homesteading family) and the modern ranch buyer.

Jim has over $50,000,000 of listings spanning more than 70,000 acres, and a team that specializes in selling ranches, hunting retreats, equestrian estates and other trophy properties in Montana. He has deep roots in Montana, moving out west after graduating college at the University of Missouri and never looking back.

With a passion for the outdoors, Jim started his career in Agribusiness working for Monsanto in the Missoula, Montana area, and then starting a fly fishing outfitting and touring company. After his satisfied clients kept asking, "Jim, do you know any good real estate agents around here?" He knew there was a big opportunity, and was smart enough to seize it. Jim took his hospitality background and started selling ranches, hunting retreats and cabins to his fly fishing clients, and farm land to his old Agribusiness connections, and after partnering with a few other ranch brokers (Bill Boyce and Caleb Campbell) he became one of the biggest ranch brokers in the nation.

Make sure you listen to the end, because Jim is a wonderful storyteller who is extremely open with his knowledge of the ranch business, which isn’t something that you can just look up online. 

We also discuss:

• How to value a ranch, especially since Montana is a non-disclosure state

• How showings are conducted on such a large property (many of these ranches are 2,000 acres+)

• The types of buyers who are interested in ranches

• How ranches are named, and how to craft a new name to draw in the most people to a new listing

• How his fly fishing business was a great feeder business to his real estate career

• The history of speed limits in Montana

• How the ranch broker business has changed in his 22 year career

• And much, much more

Jim’s website is www.westernranchbrokers.com and he can be reached at jim@westernranchbrokers.com. 

Take a look at a few of his fabulous listings (and youtube videos) below. 

https://westernranchbrokers.com/listings/snowshoe-creek-homestead/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myYn8ScjRNU

Bitterroot Overlook on Eight Mile Creek

https://westernranchbrokers.com/listings/the-retreat-on-eight-mile-creek-road/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErMqP-66yJQ

Half of Courtney Hatfield's business comes from her social media, primarily Facebook and Instagram. It wasn't overnight success, though. In her words: "You don't get water the day you dig the well." In this episode we'll learn how she dug that well -- day by day, post by post, until eventually, water started to trickle in. Now she is on the path to running one of the largest teams in Ohio. 

In 2020 she did 30 transactions as a solo agent, 2021: 70 transactions with a few new team members, and 2022 157 transactions, more than doubling her transaction count each subsequent year. She has grown her team from herself to 8, and is in the top 2% of all realtors in the MLS only a few years into her career. She won the pinnacle of performance award with her brokerage in 2022. Courtney runsYour Homecourt Team in Akron Ohio, working for the brokerage McDowell Homes.

In this episode we discuss:

• How she got her start in real estate, including navigating an unexpected bump in the road after the first year
• How she got her first clients, and how she built her team
• Her social media strategy, including Facebook, Instagram and Tiktok, and how authenticity and personal life is key
• Creative marketing ideas -- and how to get over the fear of being different
• Her Social Media Content Calendar (email her for a free copy: courtneyhatfield@mcdhomes.com) 
• Why having your face is critical in social media posts, even if you don't look perfect
• The importance of "Sphere Day" and not being afraid to reach out to literally everyone
• Her approach to closing/moving gifts
• Her expansion plans
• What she looks for in a team member

And much, much more. This episode is packed with Courtney's infectious energy and enthusiasm, and it's clear why she has been so successful in such a short time.