In 2020, real estate brokerage Corcoran Platinum Living recorded $737 million in sales, with a significant portion of luxury homebuyers coming from west of the Colorado River.
“42% of our buyers in the last two quarters are from the West Coast, with the majority coming from California. It’s a beautiful, wonderful state, but it’s expensive to live there and difficult to find affordable housing,” said Jay Macklin, co-owner of Corcoran Platinum Living.
Plentiful sunshine, lower taxes, and overall lower cost of living attracts people up and down the income ladder to the Greater Phoenix area. Macklin and his agents at Corcoran Platinum Living lure luxury homebuyers in the Valley and elsewhere with their attention to detail and concierge style service.
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ATTRACTING CLIENTS
In a metropolitan area like Phoenix, there are many real estate agents competing for business. Because Corcoran Platinum Living works with high-end and luxury homebuyers and sellers–meaning a smaller pool of inventory and clients–standing out from the crowd is paramount.
“Real estate is similar to any other commoditized business, like attorneys, tax preparers, or dentists. They all do the same thing, but what makes someone excellent are the two or three things that make them different from their competitors. It’s easy to homogenize and look the same as everyone else,” said Macklin.
Corcoran Platinum Living focuses heavily on marketing and technology to help agents get steady business. Generating consistent leads helps agents avoid a “feast or famine” lifestyle, where deals come in bursts punctuated by long gaps of no sales. Tactics like search engine optimization, targeted ads, and predictive analytics have helped agents secure consistently high sales volume which equates to higher commission.
“On average, we run about $6 million per agent in sales volume. To put that in context, the average in the Valley is about $2.2 – $2.5 million,” said Macklin.
THE WOW FACTOR
Real estate, like anything of value, has different levels of service depending on the quality of the product. One of the ways Macklin and his agents differentiate themselves is through Corcoran Platinum Living’s Wow Program.
The idea is to provide second mile service that attracts luxury clients to the market. It also helps set a more relational tone, as opposed to a transactional one. Some teams within the brokerage have a full-time staff member dedicated to celebrating their clients, friends, and family.
“It can be as simple as a bottle of champagne. The point is to let the client know that with all the noise out there in the world, there are people paying attention to them,” says Macklin.
As the co-owner of the brokerage, Macklin provides the same service to his agents that they provide clients. When an agent posted an announcement that she was becoming an aunt, Macklin sent her and her brother a gift.
“It doesn’t have to be anything other than the recognition that our agents are part of this family, and we’re going to pay attention to the things most companies and brokerages forget. It’s not just the big milestones, it’s the little ones too,” said Macklin.
A GROWING BRAND
Since agreeing to run the Corcoran affiliation in Arizona, Macklin has worked to grow the brand. The brokerage’s success led to the acquisition of Collective Real Estate, founded by Tracy van Ravensway. This announcement marks Corcoran Platinum Living’s arrival into Anthem–an expansion from the Greater Phoenix and Scottsdale regions the firm already served. The brokerage also has plans to service the luxury market in North Peoria.
Macklin also has ventured into a new business: talk radio. Partnering with Corcoran Platinum Living’s team leader Bret Ceren, the duo launched “The Real Estate Blueprint” covering topics like how to win a bidding war, tips for buying and selling property, secrets to marketing success, as well as featured guests sharing their success stories.
“The Real Estate Blueprint” airs Saturdays on KKNT 960 The Patriot on Saturdays from 12p.m. to 1p.m.
