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THE REAL ESTATE SESSIONS PODCAST
Episode 89:
Host: BILL RISSER
Guest: KENDYL YOUNG
Episode Summary:
Meet today's guest, Kendyl Young, the owner/broker of Diggs, based out of Glendale, California.
In this episode, I sit with Kendyl, born and raised in Los Angeles, California, as she shares insights from the history behind her Real Estate brand and discusses major flaws with current general practices in Real Estate.
Top Takeaways:
"A brand is not a logo; it's not a name, a brand is a promise of what you're going to experience when you do business with that company."
- [Kendyl Young]
"We work hard, we play hard, enjoy life, and we do some kickass real estate; we're a small office and likely to stay that way, but we need a few good people to come play with us."
- [Kendyl Young]
"Part of this itch that I need to scratch is my distress over the decades-long trends in our Real Estate industry, of moving towards volume rather than quality."
- [Kendyl Young]
"I believe that what I, and many thought leaders across the country, are trying to accomplish is figuring out how to raise the standards of everything that touches our brand…. Everything that touches your brand has to be of a certain culture and quality."
- [Kendyl Young]
"Real estate is easy, it's not rocket science, but the business of real estate is terribly complex."
- [Kendyl Young]
Episode Highlights:
[01:08] Intro
[01:30] Introducing our guest today, Kendyl Young.
[02:44] What is one misconception people have about California?
[05:15] How Kendyl got into Real Estate.
[10:18] What are the ways Cobalt Banker helped you grow in Real Estate?
[12:45] Starting the "Diggs" brand and getting her broker's license.
[16:27] Describe the process you go through when bringing an agent on board your company.
[22:05] The importance of connecting with like minds, like at the Inman events?
[25:35] Where did you get the inspiration for the unique "Diggs" website?
[31:01] Kendyl's advice to new agents
[33:22] How to contact Kendyl
Episode Notes:
Kendyl shares that she agrees with the general belief that Los Angeles natives are crazy, especially after visiting the Bay Area. Glendale is at the border between the San Fernando Valley and San Gabriel Valley, which explains why the breeze and weather are much better than in the other two regions.
Discussing her entry into real estate, even though now a second-generation Real Estate agent, Kendyl didn't initially expect to go into it. She had laid out plans to fully establish an advertising business which she started in high school with her friend. However, while schooling at UCLA, an irresistible offer from Procter & Gamble closed the advertising chapter. Later on, Kendyl considered that she might not be bad at real estate, especially since her mum was already quite established in the business. This was how she started her career in Real Estate, first with Cobalt Banker Real Estate, which had bought the company she was previously working for.
After almost 26 years in Real Estate, Kendyl had no plans to become a broker or get a license until 2012, when she launched the "DIGGS" brand under Dilbeck's Real Estate brokerage license. Her goal was to create a brand that could achieve a level of trust with the local population. After the partnership with Dilbeck, which is a regional family-owned business, did not work out, Kendyl finally decided to get her broker's license. Kendyl shares that the company is growing so well, there are plans to have a second location.
Kendyl is intentional about working with people aligned with her goal and vision for her company, which shows in her process of onboarding new agents. Her practice is in stark contrast with the current trend in real estate of volume being preferred at the expense of quality; an example of this is how offices keep large numbers of workers who may not necessarily offer much quality to train them. Unfortunately, this racks up collateral damage on the consumer since most agents may not close deals often enough. Another reason for this volume of workers is the business model that involves payment of high commission splits. The model may not be efficient since the high commissions paid to the few successful agents would limit the resources available to train the many agents that are still learning correctly. Another problem with this model is that consumers can now identify reliable agents and work with them. Back in the dark ages, with the absence of social media and a review culture, consumers would do business with people they knew, liked, and trusted regardless of actual skill; nowadays, the consumer is also interested in past performance reviews.
The benefits of sharing ideas with other minds like at Inman events and Facebook groups have been enormous. One of these meetings helped her realize she wasn't alone in her belief that the company is meant to serve a client's needs; hence, a level of decorum is required when dealing with a client.
Discussing the inspiration for her "Diggs" website, Kendyl explains that it is pivotal always to see everything from the eyes of adding value and helping the consumer. Her website offers three types of information; the expected IDX information using "RealScout" for the presentation, a lot of "hyper-local" information for people to get the flavors of what Glendale has to offer in its variety, and lastly, educational content aimed at consumer empowerment by telling stories of people who have gone through the same phase.
Kendyl's advice to new agents: Just Do it; it is normal to have a lot of fear and considerations, but if you've done your analysis and you believe that Real Estate is a vocation that you genuinely think you would be successful at, then do it. Secondly, either join a team or find a fantastic mentor to get the proper guidance to do real estate the right way, rather than just assume it is easy. You owe it to yourself and your potential clients to find out what you need to do to earn the commission you will be paid because it's a handsome amount of money.
Resources Mentioned:
Connect:
Find | THE REAL ESTATE SESSIONS
Find | Bill Risser
At bill.risser@ratemyagent.com
On Twitter
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On Youtube
Find | Kendyl Young
At kendyl@kendylyoung.com / kendyl@glendalediggs.com
On LinkedIn
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