Jay Philip Parker has been the CEO of Douglas Elliman’s Florida region since 2013. As a key figure in the brand’s growth, Jay has successfully increased Douglas Elliman’s presence in Florida to 19 offices with more than 1,100 agents. Lucy Edwards sits down with Jay to learn how Douglas Elliman leverages referrals throughout the brokerage nationwide, what their brand means to them, and how their agents are handling the shortage of inventory.
What does the Douglas Elliman brand mean?
At the core of the Douglas Elliman brand is their people. They have created a culture that is known for providing their agents with the best possible resources to help them deliver excellence to their clients. Through this, they have had record-breaking sales and continue to attract and retain some of the best agents in the industry.
How do Douglas Elliman agents network for referrals in multiple markets?
As a non-franchised organization, Douglas Elliman’s leadership team often directs agents in each market to one another so that they can help clients in a powerful and constructive way. In many cases, relationships between their agents have already been established. And for those that haven’t developed those relationships yet they are using technology and virtual initiatives to introduce agents to one another.
Douglas Elliman has strategically placed themselves in markets where people frequently relocate from one area to another. By being hyper-focused to where they are present and by leveraging relationships with managers in other markets, they’ve had great success to help clients sell in one market and buy in another.
What message would you like to give to today’s agents?
Jay encourages agents to work together irrespective of what brokerage they are with and to find ways to share information. Today’s agents are in a very important place, they need to help their clients make good decisions particularly with those that are relocating.
When it comes to clients, agents need to help them navigate the process with patience and diligence instead of rushing to make money as quickly as possible. Clients that feel that you looked out for their best interest will more than likely work with you for the rest of their lives.
Ultimately, those that really succeed are those that put the client first and through that approach, you’ll solve all your other questions and problems.
How are your agents handling the shortage of inventory?
While some areas may have low inventory, there’s still inventory in certain segments of the market. It’s just a question of price, innovation, and collaboration.
Jay’s advice to realtors is to work hard to keep your client informed. Make sure you are doing all the things necessary to keep that client close. Help find an alternative in the short term as they wait out what may be coming to the market.
He is also empowering their agents to look at new markets within Florida. Although they might not be in Miami or Palm Beach, these other areas still offer a great lifestyle, great tax opportunities, and a great climate.
View Lucy and Jay’s Full Interview Here.
Meet Jay Parker
Real estate industry leader and veteran, Jay Phillip Parker has served as the Chief Executive Officer of Douglas Elliman’s Florida region since 2013. Responsible for the advancement of a leading provider of luxury real estate services across Florida, he has successfully grown Douglas Elliman’s presence in markets from Miami to Jupiter to Palm Beach, St. Petersburg and Ponte Vedra with a total of 19 offices and more than 1,100 agents.
Under Jay’s leadership, Douglas Elliman Florida marked a banner year in 2020 with nearly $7 Billion in total sales volume, which was up 32% over the prior year. Jay has been a key figure in the growth of the brand, which is now represented in luxury real estate markets in 61 countries and six continents through its partnership with London-based Knight-Frank Residential.
