Today we’d like to introduce you to Hillary Birch.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was a graduate of the University of Vermont and living out in Colorado when I decided to move back to the East Coast. I began working at a small apartment rental office as something to do while I figured out what my “real job” was going to be. I rented my first apartment and was HOOKED. I had always loved homes and interior design and as a kid was always grabbing those free real estate books to look at while at dinner or in the car, so once I got into the Real Estate industry I pretty clearly had found my calling. I exclusively rented apartments for about 3 years and then went to sit for my Brokers test when I was 25. After I passed I decided I wanted to transition into a sales market as well so I opened my own office in Quincy Center and have been handling both sales and leasing out of my Quincy Center office for 6 years. Just last year I completed a 5 year lease and was able to purchase a commercial space on Hancock St. in Quincy center that I now own and operate 3A Realty Group out of, I did a complete renovation of the space and LOVE our new storefront location. As time progressed more agents have come on board to work with me and we have a wonderful team of people that make up 3A Realty Group.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
When I started in real estate the economy had just tanked, so I really was starting at the bottom of the bottom of the market – historic lows. Fortunately, I didn’t really know any better so I was able to have the optimism and energy to get clients on board with my sheer determination and willingness to get it done. It was a struggle to find clients willing to trust such a young broker initially. When you are competing against people who have been in the industry for 50 years, it is difficult to substantiate your abilities as a 26, 27 year old (at the time), as time progressed my clients saw that I could separate myself in unique ways and that I had a fresh approach to marketing that some of the better known agents didn’t have – but being a young broker was very difficult in the beginning. I find that letting my work and results speak for themselves tends to bring clients to me and then they refer my to their friends but the first 5 years were HARD!
Please tell us about 3A Realty Group.
We are an independently owned boutique shop. Meaning, we can get creative! I opened with the dream of creating an individualized service that provides each of its clients with a tailored approach to their real estate goal. There is no – one-size-fits-all plan that we have. Because we aren’t corporate or a franchise we can be flexible and creative with our plans. We specialize in both leasing and Sales, we focus on first time home buyers and income property sellers. I sell a lot of multi families and I have a unique ability in that niche market having been leasing property in the area for so long. It takes someone who understands the investor mindset to sell multi-family properties because it is a different price analysis based on rent rolls, which not all agents/brokers understand. We set ourselves apart with our intimate understanding of the leasing market, which helps us be the best at selling multi families and income properties. Aside from that I work with a lot of first time buyers. Buying your first home can be extremely stressful and I make sure to walk my clients through the process with patience and understanding, I always tell my clients “there is NO SUCH THING as too many questions.” Bring em!
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
That’s a tricky one! I think if I had to start all over I would have gotten my systems and protocol in place sooner. Being a new entrepreneur and having never worked at another company that did sales I didn’t have a cohesive plan or system in place so I was kind of all over the place running around and trying to keep it all together. Now, after years of stress and practice we have systems and protocol in place to handle each situation, I wish I had known how important that was sooner, I would have saved myself a lot of stress. Its hard being a young boss and I have since learned you need to have a system and plan in place, I learned that very quickly during our break-out year, and got it together so that we could handle the high volume we were doing.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1147 Hancock St. Quincy, MA 02169
- Website: www.3ARealtyGroup.com
- Phone: 781.608.1425
- Email: Hillary3a@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/3arealtygroup/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/3ARealtyGroup/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/3a-realty-group-quincy
- Other: www.houseofbirch.com
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