The Neighborhood Real Estate Agent

Most real estate agents build their business the same way: cold calls, open houses every weekend, door knocking, lead buying, and hoping something sticks. Jessie Vukobratovich decided to build something different. She came from owning two gyms with her husband and knew she didn't want a business that required constant grinding or kept her away from her family on weekends. So she designed a real estate business around what she actually wanted her life to look like.

The result: a consistent pipeline of organic leads from social media, no cold calling required, and a reputation as the go-to expert for her entire market. Here's how she did it.

Jessie picked a geographic bubble in Southeast Valley Arizona where she lives, works, and plays. That meant Gilbert, Queen Creek, Chandler, and Mesa. She got obsessed with what's actually happening in those neighborhoods: who owns the land, who's building, what permits were pulled, where development is going. Then she started sharing that intelligence on social media, but with a twist. She didn't just post that a new Mormon temple was coming to Queen Creek. She explained what that means for home values, why major investors were betting on that corner, and when people should buy if they want to get ahead of the appreciation. She interpreted the information instead of just reporting it.

The DM-based prospecting that followed became her primary source of leads. People started sliding into her inbox with questions about specific neighborhoods, development timelines, and investment opportunities. She followed up relentlessly, treated every conversation as gold, and built a business through genuine connections instead of aggressive sales tactics.

Inside this episode:

• Why narrowing your target geographic area actually expands your market
• The difference between being a news anchor and being a local expert
• What real estate-specific research actually converts into leads
• How to interpret local development data so people reach out to you
• The DM prospecting strategy that works better than cold calling
• Engagement metrics to track so you know what content moves the needle
• How to recycle winning content across platforms and formats
• What's next for Jessie: building a national marketing group for agents in other cities

Connect with Jessie:
Follow her on Instagram to see the local authority strategy in action
DM her about Southeast Valley or ask how to build this in your market

This is the proof that you don't have to hate your job to be successful in real estate. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

In a market flooded with AI tools and information overload, one Beverly Hills agent just hit 980 million in annual sales without a massive team, mega-marketing budget, or shortcuts. James Harris built a lean operation of 13 people, closed 100 to 250 transactions per year, and created a software tool that's changing how agents compete against ChatGPT and each other.

James Harris is the founder of Breezy, a real estate software platform designed to solve the problem agents refuse to acknowledge: most of us are still running our businesses off iPhone notes and Excel spreadsheets. His software powers over 14,000 downloads in six weeks and includes a proprietary feature called Underbuilt Radar that shows agents, investors, and developers exactly what a property can become based on zoning, setbacks, and city code.

In this conversation, we break down how James went from agent to software founder without abandoning his real estate business, why information has become the only sustainable competitive advantage, and how agents at any production level can use Breezy to show up as an expert, not just another salesperson.

Inside this episode:

• How a lean team structure lets you scale to nearly a billion without burning out
• What Underbuilt Radar does and why it's worth the entire subscription
• The comp-pulling strategy that shaves hours off your week
• Why your clients are already testing you against ChatGPT
• Breezy pricing, free trial access, and which plan makes sense for your business
• The single mindset shift that unlocked James's path to top 0.01% production

Find Breezy:
Download at the App Store: Search "Breezy Real Estate"
Two-week free trial, then $39.99/month essential or $69.99/month elite
Scale your edge and stay ahead of the algorithm. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

What if the deal you just walked away from was actually winnable? In this episode I sit down with Chris Watters, founder of Watters International Realty in Austin, Texas, to unpack the specific tools and tactics his team uses to convert more leads, win more listings, and build a business that runs without the owner doing everything.

Chris built an enterprise-level real estate operation in one of the most competitive and volatile markets in the country. When Austin's transaction volume dropped 50% from its peak, his team doubled revenue in a single month, without spending a single additional dollar on lead generation. This episode is full of the kind of specifics you can actually do something with.

Inside this episode:

• The $50,000 make-ready fund that removes the objection most agents never get past, and the partner that makes it available to any agent in the country
• How to build a Black Book of high-quality buyers using cash transaction data hiding in plain sight inside the MLS
• The AI coaching tool that took his listing conversion rate from 40% to 53% and his lead-to-appointment ratio from 15-to-1 to 10-to-1 in 90 days
• The enterprise model that reduces a listing agent's job to exactly three activities, and hands everything else to someone or something else
• The anonymous traffic tool that grew his monthly database additions by 15x and why it costs less than a single Zillow lead

Want to connect with Chris?
Follow Chris on Instagram: @christopherwatters
Visit his website: https://christopherwatters.com

If you are leaving leads on the table, losing listings to friction, or just grinding harder than your results justify, this episode will show you what a different model looks like. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

Most realtors hand you the keys and disappear. Susan Bermudez stocks the fridge, sets out the juice boxes, lines the counter with toilet paper and paper towels, and has your favorite drink waiting when you walk in the door. That is not an accident. It is a system, and it is why 85% of her business comes from repeat clients and referrals.

Susan Bermudez is a managing broker, relocation specialist, and top 2% producer in the Arizona market with lpt Realty. Based in Gilbert, she leads the SB Property Team and has built a business that runs on relationships, not transactions, across buyers, sellers, investors, and relocating families moving to the Phoenix metro area from across the country.

In this episode Susan breaks down the exact systems, habits, and mindset shifts that separate agents who grind forever from agents who build something that feeds itself.

Inside this episode:

• How Susan turned her family network of auto, insurance, HVAC, and contractor connections into a one-stop shop for every client, and why being the source of the source is the most underrated strategy in real estate
• The tag-based Follow Up Boss workflow she built from scratch and is willing to share directly with other FUB users, covering every stage from first contact to close and beyond
• Why she has never walked out of a listing appointment without the listing, and the coffee conversation she has before she ever steps foot in the house
• The relocation experience she creates for out-of-state buyers, from Arizona-specific social content that attracts them to the stocked fridge and custom water bottles waiting when they arrive
• Why she invites the builders, project managers, and tradespeople to every new construction closing, and how that one move keeps turning into referrals from people who have never bought or sold a home with her

Want to connect with Susan?
Follow Susan on Instagram: @susanbermudezrealtor
Visit her website: https://azrealestategal.com

If you are building a real estate business that actually feels like a business, this episode will show you what that looks like in practice. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

The Neighborhood Realtor is proudly sponsored by Treadstone Funding and Neighborhood Loans. For more tangible tips in real estate marketing, check out Matt's book, The Tangible Action Guide for Real Estate Marketing available on Amazon.
🔑 Treadstone Funding: https://www.treadstonemortgage.com/
🔑 Neighborhood Loans:https://neighborhoodloans.com
🔑 Real Estate Marketing Guide: https://www.amazon.com/TAG-Tangible-Action-Guide-Marketing/dp/1698339747
📲 Learned something new, or have a suggestion? Message Matt Muscat on Instagram!

🏛️ Treadstone Funding propelled by Neighborhood Loans NMLS 222982 “Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee No. MB.6759826. neighborhoodloans.com/licensing For licensing information, go to www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org

What if the thing you lead with at every listing appointment is actually the thing costing you the deal? In this episode I sit down with Matt Williams, a serial entrepreneur and business coach who built a top 1% real estate business from scratch in under two years in a mid-size market, doing it without paid ads, without a big following, and without relying on leading with “numbers”.

Matt breaks down the exact principles he used to scale fast, why culture always beats strategy in the early stages of building a business, and how the way you tell stories could be the single biggest unlock in your sales process.

Inside this episode:

• Why a strong culture with a weak strategy will outperform a strong strategy with a weak culture every time
• The simple Instagram approach that costs nothing and helped Matt become the most recognized name in his market
• What you are actually selling versus what you think you are selling
• How to build signature stories for buyers, sellers, and investors that make people choose you without feeling sold to
• Why tracking the wrong numbers at the wrong time can actually slow your growth

Want to connect with Matt? Follow Matt on Instagram: @the.matthew.williams

Whether you are a new agent trying to break through a crowded market or a seasoned pro looking to sharpen your pitch, this episode will change the way you think about culture, connection, and what it actually takes to close. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

The Neighborhood Real Estate Agent is proudly sponsored by Treadstone Funding and Neighborhood Loans. For more tangible tips in real estate marketing, check out Matt's book, The Tangible Action Guide for Real Estate Marketing available on Amazon. 
🔑 Treadstone Funding: https://www.treadstonemortgage.com/
🔑 Neighborhood Loans: https://neighborhoodloans.com
🔑 Real Estate Marketing Guide: https://www.amazon.com/TAG-Tangible-Action-Guide-Marketing/dp/1698339747

📲 Learned something new, or have a suggestion? Message Matt Muscat on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/mattmuscat88/

🏛️ Treadstone Funding propelled by Neighborhood Loans NMLS 222982 “Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee No. MB.6759826. neighborhoodloans.com/licensing/  For licensing information, go to www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org”

Most agents can sell a house. Far fewer can tell you whether the numbers actually work. In this episode I sit down with Rachel Kokosenski, an investor-focused agent with the Smallegan Real Estate team in Grand Rapids, Michigan, who has built a business where 90% of her clients are investors, and she did it by learning to speak their language fluently.

Rachel breaks down the exact math behind short-term rentals, long-term rentals, and flips, and explains why agents who don't understand investor math are leaving deals on the table, pricing properties wrong, and losing clients they never even knew they had. She also shares a contractor partnership strategy that lets her package and pitch deals to investors before a single offer is written.

Inside this episode:

• The ARV formula flippers actually use and why most listing agents are pricing renovation properties way too high
• How to analyze short-term rentals like a business, including the 60% occupancy rule Rachel uses for seasonal Michigan markets
• Why multifamily properties should never be priced like single-family homes and what happens when they are
• The Tuesday Zoom and contractor walkthrough system Rachel built to source, evaluate, and pitch deals to her investor clients
• How joining a free local investor group and showing up consistently became her primary source of new business

Want to connect with Rachel?

Follow Rachel on Instagram: @rachel_kokosenski Email: [email protected] Website: smalleganrealestate.com

If you want to future-proof your business by learning how the biggest buyer segment in today's market actually thinks, this episode is required listening. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

The Neighborhood Realtor is proudly sponsored by Treadstone Funding and Neighborhood Loans. For more tangible tips in real estate marketing, check out Matt's book, The Tangible Action Guide for Real Estate Marketing available on Amazon.
🔑 Treadstone Funding: https://www.treadstonemortgage.com/
🔑 Neighborhood Loans:https://neighborhoodloans.com
🔑 Real Estate Marketing Guide: https://www.amazon.com/TAG-Tangible-Action-Guide-Marketing/dp/1698339747
📲 Learned something new, or have a suggestion? Message Matt Muscat on Instagram!

🏛️ Treadstone Funding propelled by Neighborhood Loans NMLS 222982 “Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee No. MB.6759826. neighborhoodloans.com/licensing For licensing information, go to www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org

What if the worst time to sell your home is actually when everyone tells you to list it? In this episode I sit down with Ryan Bruen, a third-generation agent with Coldwell Banker in New Jersey whose data-driven approach to real estate has helped him close over 31 transactions in 2025 at price points ranging from $600K to $2M – all in his local market.

Ryan breaks down why most sellers are asking the wrong questions, how to read market data that is always 30 to 90 days behind reality, and why the in-person connection still drives more business than every digital lead source combined.

Inside this episode:

• Why listing in spring when buyers are plentiful can actually hurt your sale
• How to spot the real question hiding behind what your client is actually asking
• Why most publicly available market data is already outdated by the time you see it
• The two-column spreadsheet Ryan uses to trace every deal back to its true origin
• How shadowing experienced agents turned transaction exposure into a 31-deal business
•  

Want to connect with Ryan? Follow Ryan on Instagram: @bruenrealestate Visit Ryan's website: bruenrealestate.com

Whether you are a new agent trying to learn fast or a seasoned pro looking to sharpen your client consultations, this episode will change the way you think about timing, data, and where your next deal is really coming from. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

 The Neighborhood Realtor is proudly sponsored by Treadstone Funding and Neighborhood Loans. For more tangible tips in real estate marketing, check out Matt's book, The Tangible Action Guide for Real Estate Marketing available on Amazon.
🔑 Treadstone Funding: https://www.treadstonemortgage.com/
🔑 Neighborhood Loans:https://neighborhoodloans.com
🔑 Real Estate Marketing Guide: https://www.amazon.com/TAG-Tangible-Action-Guide-Marketing/dp/1698339747
📲 Learned something new, or have a suggestion? Message Matt Muscat on Instagram!

🏛️ Treadstone Funding propelled by Neighborhood Loans NMLS 222982 “Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee No. MB.6759826. neighborhoodloans.com/licensing For licensing information, go to www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org

They were closing deals, winning brokerage awards, and looked like top producers on paper. But the morning after the award ceremony, Josh Ries looked at his bank account and realized the numbers told a completely different story. After expenses, lead generation bills, and a stack of software subscriptions he wasn't even using, there was almost nothing left. Within about two years of rebuilding their system from the ground up, Josh and his wife cut their cost per acquisition by nearly 80% and finally built a business that actually paid them.

Josh Ries is a managing broker in South Dakota, a lead generation consultant, and a weekly contributor to Inman Magazine. With a background in digital marketing and law enforcement, Josh brings a data-driven, no-nonsense lens to the real estate business that most agents never get exposed to.

In this episode we get into the math that most brokerages never teach, how Josh rebuilt his entire lead generation system after firing every third-party lead vendor, and why the busiest agents in your office might also be the most broke.

Inside this episode:

• The award ceremony wake-up call: closing deals, getting recognized, and barely covering next month's lead gen bills
• Why there is no such thing as a free lead, and how to calculate what you are actually paying
• How Josh cut his cost per acquisition by nearly 80% using his own Google and Meta systems
• The relevance and continuity framework that increased his conversion rate without spending more
• What a pipe bomb, a traumatic brain injury, and a near-death experience taught him about building an efficient, profitable business

Want to connect with Josh? Follow Josh on Instagram: @realestatebrokerjosh Read his weekly column on Inman: www.inman.com Visit his website: www.myrealestateco.com

If you are grinding through closings and wondering where the money went, this episode will change the way you look at your business. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

What if the biggest lie in real estate is the one your clients walk in believing? In this episode I sit down with Karina Chavez, an immigrant who moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico at 12 years old speaking no English, and went on to close 97 homes in 2025 serving the community that once welcomed her family with open arms.

Karina breaks down why chasing the dream home is the fastest way to kill a client's financial future, and how redirecting that conversation toward smart, affordable first purchases has built her a nearly 100-transaction-a-year business fueled almost entirely by her community.

Inside this episode:

• Why Karina FaceTimes every client before they sign a single document, and why you should too
• How she turns a $250,000 starter home into a multi-property portfolio before the couple even gets married
• The community event strategy that brought over 100 people to her office and converted four of them on the spot
• How she compared apartment rent to mortgage payments and made the decision a no-brainer
• Why she buys her kids a flip house every summer to pay their private school tuition
• How she is converting abandoned Route 66 motels into affordable housing and a full community food hall
•  

Want to send Karina a referral or connect? Instagram: @chavezteamrealtors Phone: 505-220-7781

Whether you are a new agent trying to find your niche or a seasoned producer looking to deepen your community roots, Karina's story will change the way you think about who you serve and how you serve them. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.

What if the skills that made you great in another career were exactly what you needed to dominate in real estate? In this episode I sit down with Evan Crawford, former pro baseball player turned team leader in Auburn, Alabama, whose team is doing $50 million in sales in a market most people have never heard of.

Evan breaks down how he started from zero, no local network, no name recognition, and no warm leads, and built one of the top teams in the Auburn-Opelika area through old-school relationship building, market knowledge, and a willingness to look dumb and ask questions anyway.

Inside this episode:

• How Evan used his baseball network to generate his first referrals before he had a single local client
• The A-to-Z phone strategy that helped him rebuild his sphere from scratch
• Why knowing your market stats cold is the only credibility tool a new agent needs
• How to actually use your chamber membership instead of letting it collect dust
• The handwritten card habit that turned strangers into clients and clients into a recruit
• Why making people want to buy again is the real job of every real estate agent

Want to send Evan a referral or connect? Website: www.crawfordwillisgroup.com Instagram: @CrawfordWillisGroup Phone: 334-558-8700

Whether you are brand new to real estate or rebuilding your pipeline in a new market, Evan's story is proof that relationships, repetition, and a willingness to fail forward will always win. Subscribe, share, and follow for more interviews like this.