Mark Spain Real Estate Goes on Hiring Surge in 2020 Second Quarter


Posted July 24, 2020 by TCMcClenning

This independent real estate firm, based in the Southeast, is actively hiring at a time when many businesses and industries have a hiring freeze or are downsizing.

 
The residential real estate industry has not been traditionally known for being selective when it comes to hiring real estate agents. An agent must be licensed and in good standing with its state real estate board. Beyond that, there are generally no hard and fast requirements or guidelines. These agents, being independent contractors, can also pack up and change firm affiliations whenever they wish.

So what do you call a real estate company that only hires one in 10 applicants? Mark Spain Real Estate.

This independent real estate firm, based in the Southeast, is also actively hiring at a time when many businesses have a hiring freeze or are downsizing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate soared to 14.7 % in April and by the end of June, had only decreased to 11.1%. Many states reported the highest unemployment rates in nearly 100 years, since the Great Depression. In Georgia, the February unemployment rate was just 3.1. However, the rated peaked at 12.6% in April, and now has settled at 7.6% for June.

Mark Spain Real Estate’s Director of Talent Acquisition, Maria Perry, says the company speaks to 100-125 candidates a week. In May, the firm hired 27 and, in June, 29 real estate professionals. With five offices in Georgia, as well as locations in Raleigh, Charlotte—both of which just moved to much larger locations earlier this year—and Nashville, Perry has a lot of opportunity to add to Mark Spain Real Estate’s team.

“We are looking for the right fit—for all roles at Mark Spain Real Estate including our exclusive listing and buyers agents. We want it to be a win-win situation for everyone,” explains Maria Perry. “We provide a very supportive and collaborative culture, and we require full-time commitment to the profession. There is a lot of opportunity for an agent to grow their business with the marketing support and year-round training our company provides.”

One of the ways Mark Spain Real Estate narrows the field is leveraging behavioral assessments for each candidate. According to Perry, this gives the company information on the candidate’s natural behaviors, work ethic, and a host of other factors that are excellent predictive indicators as to whether the candidate will be a good fit for the team. In addition, having a positive attitude, a firm desire to place clients’ needs above their own, and being solution-minded are qualities the most successful team members all possess.

“We look for people who desire a long-term career with Mark Spain Real Estate. Establish your foundation, build your career with us, and grow your business to reach your personal and professional goals.”

Perry added that they get about an equal mix of newly licensed and experienced real estate agents inquiring about careers at Mark Spain Real Estate. She shared that Mark Spain Real Estate is adding listing agents in all offices, including their five metro Atlanta area locations and also in Raleigh, Charlotte and Nashville.

Mark Spain Real Estate is a multiple time recipient of the Top 150 Workplaces by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as well as the Best Places to Work by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

“Since creating this Director of Talent Acquisitions position at the end of 2019, our hiring has really expanded. In just May and June, we hired nearly 60 real estate professionals,” says company president John Makarewicz. “It’s part of the reason we increased the amount of office space at both of our North Carolina locations and our Stockbridge office, and we are currently expanding to more office space in northern metro Atlanta as well.”

New candidates originate from a variety of places and Mark Spain Real Estate never stopped its hiring efforts throughout the employment downturn in the first half of 2020. So how does hiring compare to last year at this time? New hires at the Charlotte location have doubled and Raleigh’s has slightly more than doubled. Nashville will soon be outpacing last year’s numbers.

In April, Mark Spain Real Estate made its inaugural appearance on the REAL Trends 500—an annual ranking of the top-producing residential real estate firms in the United States—breaking into the top 200 for most closed transaction sides for 2019. The firm was also the 71st highest-producing, independent real estate brokerage on this list.

Consistently outperforming each of its previous year’s sales totals, Mark Spain Real Estate achieved 4,200 transaction sides in 2019, crossing the annual gross sales benchmark of $1 billion for the first time. Gross sales in 2019 increased by more than $300 million over the previous year. On average, Mark Spain Real Estate closed 81 homes a week in 2019.

Perry elaborated on the company’s unique culture. “Training, goal-setting, accountability and personal coaching and development are ongoing. For example, agents are encouraged to read at least 10 business books a year, with suggested lists available from Mark Spain, John Makarewicz and each location’s director of sales. Mark Spain Real Estate books your appointments, covers all advertising expenses, provides professional photography and videography, and assists each agent with a full-time client concierge.”

The firm has established a list of 35 fundamentals, or ideas and best practices, for its team members. These include motivational principles such as “Be the agent you would want to work with” and “Always go the extra mile.” A detailed video about these fundamentals is available on the firm’s career site.

To learn more about selling real estate with Mark Spain Real Estate, visit https://markspain.com/careers or call toll free at 1-855-299-SOLD.

About Mark Spain Real Estate
Mark Spain Real Estate is the most trusted name in real estate, earning more 5-star reviews than any other real estate company in the United States. It has earned the No. 1 real estate team in America honor for closed transactions the last three consecutive years, and the company has been named to the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in America for four years straight. Mark Spain Real Estate’s mobile site design took top honors in 2019, being named the No. 1 Mobile Website in real estate by REAL Trends. MarkSpain.com also earned the No. 8 spot in the Top 10 Overall Websites. The company was honored in 2017, 2018 and 2020 as one of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Top Places to Work. It has earned the Atlanta Business Chronicle Pacesetter Award the last three years, for being one of 100 metro Atlanta’s top, fastest-growing, privately held companies. Mark Spain Real Estate recently made its third appearance on Atlanta’s Top 25 Real Estate Companies annual list in 2020 and debuted on similar lists for Charlotte and Raleigh.

As the leader of such a productive team with cutting edge ideas like its innovative website, Guaranteed Offer program and extensive marketing, Mark Spain was named to the inaugural list of 2019 REAL Trends Game Changers. This list of 50 people who have the potential to change the game of real estate in the coming year, included such honorees as: Gary Keller, co-founder and CEO of Keller Williams International, as well as the CEOs of RE/MAX International, Zillow, Coldwell Banker and HomeServices of America.
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Last Updated July 24, 2020