The beginning of the year has brought major changes to Standard Real Estate. For starters, the company tweaked its branding and marketing material, including dropping “the” from the beginning of its name. More significantly, it restructured its agent commission plan.
According to founder and CEO Zach De Bernardi, the moves come as part of a plan to reorient the Standard brand from a boutique presence to one that is more synonymous with national goals and national brands.
“Our overarching strategy is to set the Standard as the world’s most customer-focused real estate company,” he says. “We believe that that starts with agents.”
In order to meet those goals, the company is moving towards becoming a 100 percent commission real estate brokerage. This means that Realtors pay monthly dues and a small fee for every transaction. After that, they are free to keep all of the commission that they make on a transaction. Agents who joined Standard prior to Jan. 1 had the option to remain on the old commission plan or transition to the new model. Going forward, all new agents will be on the new pan.
According to Chief Operations Officer and Managing Partner Logan Nichols, the firm’s long-term strategy is to be an agent-centered, agent-focused, and agent-driven company. The philosophy comes from the belief that when agents take home more of their commission, they’re going to be happier and better able to serve clients.
Nichols has also spearheaded Standards efforts to expand its footprint in East Texas. The company has a hub in Tyler and plans to add two additional East Texas branches soon. There are also plans to expand into other markets in the not-so-distant future.
“We’re really adamant about not growing to grow,” Nichols said. “We’re growing to serve.”
Standard now boasts more than 40 agents and recently expanded its support staff. As the firm grows De Bernardi expects the firm’s auxiliary services to generate a greater percentage of profits. The ultimate goal is to be a one-stop-shop for everything from landscaping, cleaning, and construction, to title and mortgage.
“I’m really excited about what the future holds,” he said.
