June 22, 2025 • 11 mins
Brooke Kromer is a former sports broadcaster from Los Angeles. Today she makes the Florida Panhandle between Destin and Panama City her home. On today's show we are talking about the luxury segment along this stretch of beach.
To connect with Brooke visit https://www.compass.com/agents/brooke-kromer/?referrer=omnibox
You can also visit her Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/brookekromer/?hl=en
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:02):
Welcome to the Real Estate Espresso podcast, your morning
shot of what's new in the world of real estate investing.
I'm your host, Victor Minash. This is the WEEKEND edition
where we interview notable people from the world of real
estate investing. Today is no exception.
We have a great guest all the way from the Florida Panhandle.
Welcome to the show, Brooke Cromer.
Thanks for having me. Well, great to have you here
now, Brooke. You're in a unique part of the
(00:23):
world. It's got some of the nicest sand
beaches and some people call it the Redneck Riviera
affectionately, but it's a it's a beautiful area and I'm excited
to have this conversation because it's an area that's
going through a lot of transition, especially since
Hurricane Michael five years ago.
Maybe before we dive into the details, perhaps give a little
bit of your back story and how you got to this point in your
(00:44):
journey. Absolutely.
Well, my story's a little different than most Realtors.
I guess not so much because I feel like real estate is always
the sometimes a second career for most Realtors.
I was a sports broadcaster for years in Los Angeles and made
the move during Covad to the 30 a Florida area.
(01:06):
It was the best move of my life.We always had vacation homes
here, rental properties. So during COVID I came here
because it was open and free andso much fun.
Started shadowing my friend in real estate, fell in absolute
love with it and then realized that I could take my sports
background and apply it here. So I sell to a lot of athletes,
(01:27):
coaches, and then a lot of business CEOs, owners.
We get a widespread of buyers here and investors.
The market segments and you know, often we talk to a realtor
and ask the question, what do you specialize in?
And they'll say, well, I'll do everything and that doesn't
work. It doesn't work for me.
But you're focused in a luxury segment, a lot of it waterfront
(01:51):
or near waterfront. And it's an area that is in high
demand specifically in that luxury segment.
What is it about that area that has attracted that audience?
I would say first and foremost is the beaches.
They are white powdery sand and it feels amazing on your feet
(02:11):
when you're walking through. It doesn't burn because it's so
I mean, it's, it's pure, it's beautiful.
And then our water is just crystal clear.
We get the most beautiful sea life going by with the dolphins
and sea turtles. That first and foremost is
obviously the most beautiful part of 30A.
And then the homes are just stunning.
(02:32):
Alice Beach, it looks like you just transported to Greece and
Rosemary Beach looks like a New Orleans European style.
And then you have seaside, whichis like the original urban area
down. I mean, in America.
It's it's so cool that this is all right on here on the
coastline. It's 21 miles of beach.
(02:53):
And then we have Panama City andDestin on each side.
So easy to get to a Target or anything like that that you
need, but also in your own little bubble where we only have
mom and pop restaurants and shops and no chain restaurants.
So it's this little slice of paradise and everyone just
flocks to it because second, we have airports on both sides of
(03:14):
us, so it's only you can fly in.We have private airports, great
ones, and also commercial airports about 20 minutes away.
So it's the perfect getaway for someone that wants to get off
the map, but also very easy to get to where you need to be.
Absolutely. And I've spent considerable time
in that area in Sandestin and various places all around there
(03:37):
have been to Seaside. So know the area well.
If we segment the market in terms of owner occupied versus
investment property, how does that market segment in your
mind? I'd say there's about 10% of
people that live here full time.It's it might be a little higher
now after COVID. COVID brought a lot of people
that could work remote here because why not live at the
(03:59):
beach if you can work remote? Most of it is going to be
investment properties. So people that are coming down
to purchase the lifestyle but also want to make money off of
it when they're not here. And someone has to run the water
in the house and everything anyways.
So why not rent it out and keep everything moving and then a few
second homes. But I would say the majority of
(04:21):
our area and of my buyers are investment property owners.
Real estate is often talked about as a as a passive
investment when in reality there's no such thing as passive
business ever. Even if you have a property that
is attracting clients, tenants, but you know, to make a property
rent ready for maybe it's a bachelor party or whatever it
(04:44):
might be, could be a luxury property.
There's work to be done, there'schecklists to be completed and
quality assurance to make sure the towels are in all the right
place and all of that sort of thing.
Talk about the management infrastructure in the
marketplace. How mature is it?
Is it mom and pops? Where do they live?
All of that stuff. Yeah.
(05:05):
It's, it's kind of a mix of all of it.
So we have our major property management companies like 360
Blue 38 Exclusive, a lot of themthat are connected to national
brand or even international brands that will rent out the
properties and manage the properties.
And then you have the mom and pop ones, which are actually my
favorite to go to down here because I feel like they have
(05:29):
more attention on the propertiesat a given like every given day.
So I, I love when a property manager has maybe 80 or less
homes on their management company and then they can really
dial in the marketing. They can really dial in making
sure that everything is just perfect for the guests when they
show up. And it's a little more concierge
(05:50):
style where if the guest is having a Bachelorette party, you
go in and you set it up for them.
You have, you know, a banner. Just make them feel special.
Have those little touches that just add that little bit of,
wow, I'm on vacation. It started right when I walked
in the door. The bigger companies sometimes
don't have the capacity to do that, which is why I love those
(06:13):
mom and pop ones. And they take anywhere between
10 percent, that's really rare. Up to 20 to 25% is more typical
for the property management fee.And then in communities like
Kaya and Alice Beach, they're just a little more resort style.
And they're not trying to deter you renting, but they want to
(06:35):
make sure that if they're going to get renters in that
community, they're going to be top notch and they're going to
be really hands on with the management.
And those are taking 40% for rental management fees.
So all of my buyers that come down here, I really make sure
they're in the right spot. The rental numbers are going to
make sense for them. I dial all of that into my
(06:58):
search when I'm working with a client and an investor.
What would you say the mix is between short term residents
versus maybe some of those more medium term leases?
I would say more more short term.
We have a lot of week to week. So Saturday to Saturday,
Saturday is our typical turn day, which also for real estate
that means you have to make surethat you're going to get here
(07:19):
early enough on a Saturday to golook at property before you
check into your property. So it, it kind of makes real
estate showing properties a little more challenging, but
it's great because that means that your house is rented out
and that you're making money while you're either trying to
sell the house or when you're looking at a property, you're
like, wow, this is a great rental.
People are actually coming in and renting the property next
(07:41):
week and they just got out last week.
So our, our community is very strong and rentals, it will
always rent very well. And typically you can offset all
of your mortgage, sometimes yourmaintenance costs.
So I think it's a great option for people purchasing in the
area. If I consider the short term
rental business, it's kind of like the gig economy, no
(08:02):
different than Uber or Lyft. And the barrier to entry to
adding another another vehicle to the Uber fleet is extremely
low. So at a certain point, what
happens is the market saturates to the point where everyone's
suffering A tolerable level of pain and nobody's making any
money. That can happen in short term
(08:22):
rentals as well. And we see it in many, many
markets, especially post COVID, where yes, the demand was white
hot during the pandemic and thenthings started to normalize.
People are traveling more internationally and so that
demand has fallen. I think the unique markets that
are waterfront, those ones have been a little bit more
(08:43):
resilient. What?
What's your perspective? We've definitely, as you said,
come back down to a normal rental market.
Obviously in COVID it was crazy and we're such a drivable market
for those southeastern states. So we had everyone flood 30 A.
It was so vibrant and fun. And now that it's kind of
getting back to normal, people are kind of freaking out.
(09:05):
They're like, why are my numbersnot the same as they were?
Well, people are just, like you said, going international
because they can. So we're just trying to paint
that realistic picture for our buyers that look, don't look at
those numbers from those couple of years, look at the numbers
before that and look at the numbers right after.
We did have a little bit of a dip sense.
(09:26):
We, you know, it's just it was adifferent market for a little
bit right after COVID. I think COVID really threw
things for a loop and everyone had to readjust their sales
pitches, but also their education for buyers because you
really want to make sure that they're getting into what they
can handle on the investment side of things.
(09:46):
So it's exactly what you said. We're definitely a normalized
rental market again, but it's picking back up to where it's,
it's even higher than what it used to be back in let's say
2019 is what the year that we like to compare it to because
that was the last year of kind of normalcy, if you can say
that. So we definitely had a a huge
(10:08):
dip after COVID and now it's even better than a normal
normalcy for us. So it's a great time.
Love it. Well, Brooke, if folks want to
connect, if they want to learn more, what's the best way?
Absolutely. You can e-mail me
brooke.kromerkromerwithak@compass.com.If you would like to look at
property, have me set it you up on a search.
(10:30):
We'll show you just about everything you need to know.
It's the most stunning place in America, so those are probably
the best. Check me out there and we'll
connect. I would love to show off my
beautiful stretch of 38 beaches.Awesome.
Well, Brooke, great to connect with you.
And for the listeners at home, definitely connect with Brooke
Kromer at at brooke@compass.com and on her Instagram.
(10:53):
The links will be in the show notes.
And in the meantime, have an awesome rest of your weekend.
Go, go make some great things happen and we'll talk to you
again tomorrow.
Welcome to the Real Estate Espresso podcast, your morning
shot of what's new in the world of real estate investing.
I'm your host, Victor Minash. This is the WEEKEND edition
where we interview notable people from the world of real
estate investing. Today is no exception.
We have a great guest all the way from the Florida Panhandle.
Welcome to the show, Brooke Cromer.
Thanks for having me. Well, great to have you here
now, Brooke. You're in a unique part of the
(00:23):
world. It's got some of the nicest sand
beaches and some people call it the Redneck Riviera
affectionately, but it's a it's a beautiful area and I'm excited
to have this conversation because it's an area that's
going through a lot of transition, especially since
Hurricane Michael five years ago.
Maybe before we dive into the details, perhaps give a little
bit of your back story and how you got to this point in your
(00:44):
journey. Absolutely.
Well, my story's a little different than most Realtors.
I guess not so much because I feel like real estate is always
the sometimes a second career for most Realtors.
I was a sports broadcaster for years in Los Angeles and made
the move during Covad to the 30 a Florida area.
(01:06):
It was the best move of my life.We always had vacation homes
here, rental properties. So during COVID I came here
because it was open and free andso much fun.
Started shadowing my friend in real estate, fell in absolute
love with it and then realized that I could take my sports
background and apply it here. So I sell to a lot of athletes,
(01:27):
coaches, and then a lot of business CEOs, owners.
We get a widespread of buyers here and investors.
The market segments and you know, often we talk to a realtor
and ask the question, what do you specialize in?
And they'll say, well, I'll do everything and that doesn't
work. It doesn't work for me.
But you're focused in a luxury segment, a lot of it waterfront
(01:51):
or near waterfront. And it's an area that is in high
demand specifically in that luxury segment.
What is it about that area that has attracted that audience?
I would say first and foremost is the beaches.
They are white powdery sand and it feels amazing on your feet
(02:11):
when you're walking through. It doesn't burn because it's so
I mean, it's, it's pure, it's beautiful.
And then our water is just crystal clear.
We get the most beautiful sea life going by with the dolphins
and sea turtles. That first and foremost is
obviously the most beautiful part of 30A.
And then the homes are just stunning.
(02:32):
Alice Beach, it looks like you just transported to Greece and
Rosemary Beach looks like a New Orleans European style.
And then you have seaside, whichis like the original urban area
down. I mean, in America.
It's it's so cool that this is all right on here on the
coastline. It's 21 miles of beach.
(02:53):
And then we have Panama City andDestin on each side.
So easy to get to a Target or anything like that that you
need, but also in your own little bubble where we only have
mom and pop restaurants and shops and no chain restaurants.
So it's this little slice of paradise and everyone just
flocks to it because second, we have airports on both sides of
(03:14):
us, so it's only you can fly in.We have private airports, great
ones, and also commercial airports about 20 minutes away.
So it's the perfect getaway for someone that wants to get off
the map, but also very easy to get to where you need to be.
Absolutely. And I've spent considerable time
in that area in Sandestin and various places all around there
(03:37):
have been to Seaside. So know the area well.
If we segment the market in terms of owner occupied versus
investment property, how does that market segment in your
mind? I'd say there's about 10% of
people that live here full time.It's it might be a little higher
now after COVID. COVID brought a lot of people
that could work remote here because why not live at the
(03:59):
beach if you can work remote? Most of it is going to be
investment properties. So people that are coming down
to purchase the lifestyle but also want to make money off of
it when they're not here. And someone has to run the water
in the house and everything anyways.
So why not rent it out and keep everything moving and then a few
second homes. But I would say the majority of
(04:21):
our area and of my buyers are investment property owners.
Real estate is often talked about as a as a passive
investment when in reality there's no such thing as passive
business ever. Even if you have a property that
is attracting clients, tenants, but you know, to make a property
rent ready for maybe it's a bachelor party or whatever it
(04:44):
might be, could be a luxury property.
There's work to be done, there'schecklists to be completed and
quality assurance to make sure the towels are in all the right
place and all of that sort of thing.
Talk about the management infrastructure in the
marketplace. How mature is it?
Is it mom and pops? Where do they live?
All of that stuff. Yeah.
(05:05):
It's, it's kind of a mix of all of it.
So we have our major property management companies like 360
Blue 38 Exclusive, a lot of themthat are connected to national
brand or even international brands that will rent out the
properties and manage the properties.
And then you have the mom and pop ones, which are actually my
favorite to go to down here because I feel like they have
(05:29):
more attention on the propertiesat a given like every given day.
So I, I love when a property manager has maybe 80 or less
homes on their management company and then they can really
dial in the marketing. They can really dial in making
sure that everything is just perfect for the guests when they
show up. And it's a little more concierge
(05:50):
style where if the guest is having a Bachelorette party, you
go in and you set it up for them.
You have, you know, a banner. Just make them feel special.
Have those little touches that just add that little bit of,
wow, I'm on vacation. It started right when I walked
in the door. The bigger companies sometimes
don't have the capacity to do that, which is why I love those
(06:13):
mom and pop ones. And they take anywhere between
10 percent, that's really rare. Up to 20 to 25% is more typical
for the property management fee.And then in communities like
Kaya and Alice Beach, they're just a little more resort style.
And they're not trying to deter you renting, but they want to
(06:35):
make sure that if they're going to get renters in that
community, they're going to be top notch and they're going to
be really hands on with the management.
And those are taking 40% for rental management fees.
So all of my buyers that come down here, I really make sure
they're in the right spot. The rental numbers are going to
make sense for them. I dial all of that into my
(06:58):
search when I'm working with a client and an investor.
What would you say the mix is between short term residents
versus maybe some of those more medium term leases?
I would say more more short term.
We have a lot of week to week. So Saturday to Saturday,
Saturday is our typical turn day, which also for real estate
that means you have to make surethat you're going to get here
(07:19):
early enough on a Saturday to golook at property before you
check into your property. So it, it kind of makes real
estate showing properties a little more challenging, but
it's great because that means that your house is rented out
and that you're making money while you're either trying to
sell the house or when you're looking at a property, you're
like, wow, this is a great rental.
People are actually coming in and renting the property next
(07:41):
week and they just got out last week.
So our, our community is very strong and rentals, it will
always rent very well. And typically you can offset all
of your mortgage, sometimes yourmaintenance costs.
So I think it's a great option for people purchasing in the
area. If I consider the short term
rental business, it's kind of like the gig economy, no
(08:02):
different than Uber or Lyft. And the barrier to entry to
adding another another vehicle to the Uber fleet is extremely
low. So at a certain point, what
happens is the market saturates to the point where everyone's
suffering A tolerable level of pain and nobody's making any
money. That can happen in short term
(08:22):
rentals as well. And we see it in many, many
markets, especially post COVID, where yes, the demand was white
hot during the pandemic and thenthings started to normalize.
People are traveling more internationally and so that
demand has fallen. I think the unique markets that
are waterfront, those ones have been a little bit more
(08:43):
resilient. What?
What's your perspective? We've definitely, as you said,
come back down to a normal rental market.
Obviously in COVID it was crazy and we're such a drivable market
for those southeastern states. So we had everyone flood 30 A.
It was so vibrant and fun. And now that it's kind of
getting back to normal, people are kind of freaking out.
(09:05):
They're like, why are my numbersnot the same as they were?
Well, people are just, like you said, going international
because they can. So we're just trying to paint
that realistic picture for our buyers that look, don't look at
those numbers from those couple of years, look at the numbers
before that and look at the numbers right after.
We did have a little bit of a dip sense.
(09:26):
We, you know, it's just it was adifferent market for a little
bit right after COVID. I think COVID really threw
things for a loop and everyone had to readjust their sales
pitches, but also their education for buyers because you
really want to make sure that they're getting into what they
can handle on the investment side of things.
(09:46):
So it's exactly what you said. We're definitely a normalized
rental market again, but it's picking back up to where it's,
it's even higher than what it used to be back in let's say
2019 is what the year that we like to compare it to because
that was the last year of kind of normalcy, if you can say
that. So we definitely had a a huge
(10:08):
dip after COVID and now it's even better than a normal
normalcy for us. So it's a great time.
Love it. Well, Brooke, if folks want to
connect, if they want to learn more, what's the best way?
Absolutely. You can e-mail me
brooke.kromerkromerwithak@compass.com.If you would like to look at
property, have me set it you up on a search.
(10:30):
We'll show you just about everything you need to know.
It's the most stunning place in America, so those are probably
the best. Check me out there and we'll
connect. I would love to show off my
beautiful stretch of 38 beaches.Awesome.
Well, Brooke, great to connect with you.
And for the listeners at home, definitely connect with Brooke
Kromer at at brooke@compass.com and on her Instagram.
(10:53):
The links will be in the show notes.
And in the meantime, have an awesome rest of your weekend.
Go, go make some great things happen and we'll talk to you
again tomorrow.
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