Three wise men: Mark McLeod, Matt Lahood and Chris Hanley, on the lessons of 2023, telling the truth with empathy and how to make 2024 a great year in real estate

Is 2023 the year you change the trajectory of your real estate career?

The past few years have brought unprecedented change and challenges to the real estate industry. Interest rates are rising, home prices are fluctuating, and uncertainty is always certain. As we enter 2024, you may be wondering how to navigate the year ahead and set your business up for success.

That’s where wisdom and experience can help you with both.

In this special extended episode of the Elevate Real Estate Podcast, recorded in front of a live audience, Elite Agent Editor Samantha McLean brings together three of the wisest minds in Australian real estate—dubbed the “Three Wise Men” of the industry—for an insightful discussion about the outlook for 2023 and expert advice for agents and agency leaders.

With over 100 years of collective experience spanning decades in the real estate business, guests Mark McLeod, Chris Hanley, and Matt Lahoud deliver a masterclass in adapting your mindset, strategies, and operations for the years ahead. You’ll come away with an actionable blueprint to transform your business in 2023, including:

• Key indicators and market factors to watch
• The #1 focus area for driving profitability
• Critical changes to your listing and sales processes
• Rethinking your communication and language with vendors and buyers
• Tweaks to your schedule, prospecting, and goals setting

“The industry seems to want to talk about the market all the time, but it’s actually the only thing we can’t control. Let’s talk about how you can operate and actually control the things that control the destiny, no matter what happens in the market.” – Matt Lahood

Time stamps:

• 8:05 – How you can still have your best year ever in a slow market.
• 12:23 – Why sentiment trumps interest rates and why one segment of the market is struggling and others are still booming.
• 15:12 – How to learn the new language of real estate by listening and asking questions.
• 17:00 – The importance of empathy when market conditions slow down.
• 22:45 – How to avoid hard conversations with vendors by setting up their expectations early on.
• 25:00 – Why agents need to prepare for Easter right now, to beat the potential influx of listings.
• 30:35 – The one thing you need to do to boost your clearance rate by 31 per cent.
• 37:57 – Why 2024 is going to be the year of “hyper vendor management”.
• 39:57 Why you need to grow in real estate in 2024 and the map to boosting your profitability.
• 43:37 – The best way to avoid hitting a plateau after 4-5 years by focusing on the number 50.
• 47:37 – The one metric you should never look at if you want your business to be profitable in 2024 and beyond.
• 50:49 – The reason agents are going to have to go back to the future and start becoming “analogue” in an era of technology.
• 53:33 Why agents need to sit at as many dining room tables as they can if they want to grow in 2024.