Episode 76: Building A Successful Real Estate Business In A Small Town, with Andy Alger

Today on the podcast, Jerry and Jacobe welcome a guest who has been at the top of their list to interview, Andy Alger. He is from a small town in Michigan and has been in real estate for 27 years. He has experienced the evolution of the real estate industry and stood the test of time; He shares wisdom from decades in the business. Don’t miss out on his interview!

Episode Highlights:

• Jerry introduces Andy Alger. Jerry has followed him and has a lot of respect for how he handles himself in the industry.
• Andy has been in real estate for 27 years. He got started in his career in real estate because he felt that it lined up well with who he was as a person. He is from a small hometown and likes that he has stayed local.
• Andy is in Southeastern Michigan. He has about 4,000 people in the small town of Linden. 
• He has a real estate team consisting of himself, a director of operations, a TC, his wife as the finance manager, and two full time sales people other than himself, as well as his daughter who does small admin work.
• When Andy started in real estate the market was not bad. He was with a small town brokerage and recounts his first “walk-in” sale.
• Andy remembers pre-email and pre-pager days and the different landscape that actually in his opinion made it more fun because it was truly all about relationships and you had to physically go out and talk to people.
• Can you imagine the public not having access to the ‘book’ of listings? Andy remembers those days.
• How did leads work back in the day?
• What does floor time mean in real estate? Jacobe asks Andy to talk about what that means and how it worked in the past.
• Andy talks about how business comes full circle when you take care of people. 
• Jacobe asks Andy what his family and life circumstances were like. Andy shares how he served in the army  and then how he and his wife adjusted into real estate together as well.  
• What about giving back to the community? Andy talks about how they have gotten intentional about giving back to the community.
• Jacobe asks Andy what his transition phase was like when he started the team.
• Andy talks about the crash that happened in most of the county in 2008 but it started in 2006. You and your weaknesses will be exposed when events and things like that happen. You have to get started with how you structure things and when you adjust and how.
• How do you leverage your business? 
• Andy talks about how he has prepared to weather storms and give himself padding for leveraging when he needs to.
• Jerry asks Andy how his clientele has shifted over the years.
• Andy talks about the average sale price in downtown Linden. 
• Jerry asks Andy to share the biggest piece of advice he would give to a younger version of himself after knowing and experiencing what he has.
• Do you have a coach? Andy talks about the value.
• How do you learn to pour into a team?
• Andy advises to d o business that is true to who you are. Don’t get distracted in comparison…know who God created to be and how it is best for you to do so, find contentment in that and you will thrive.
• Show up everyday and take care of people. 
• Andy shares how the reviews of his business actually reflect the core of who they are.
• Are you completely passionate about helping people? You can be passionate about how you do something, who you’re doing it for and how you do it even if it's not the exact what in the mundane.
• Jerry asks Andy to share how his faith in God has played out in his life. He believes his purpose is to wake up everyday and care for people the best he possibly can.

3 Key Points:

1. Andy recounts some of the ‘glory’ of  real estate in the past that he thought made it more fun. He has always built a long term approach rooted in relationships.
2. How can you give back to the community? Andy discusses the importance of taking care of people and the money will follow but even beyond that giving focus to meaning and not just ambition.
3. How do you know when to transition to a team? An