Top Agent Magazine Nick Verdi

Coming in as an experienced property preservation contractor with two GSEs gave Nick a good head-start before landing his real estate license twenty-five years ago. Now he runs a team that still deals in default and bank owned property, but has diversified to the more traditional residential marketplace. A lot of agents have come to him over the years for help in navigating the foreclosure and preservation business. Currently his team works throughout northern and central New Jersey, treating clients exactly the way they would want to be treated during the entire transaction process. He wouldn’t be where he was and able to accomplish all he does without the support of that team, and he realizes how lucky he is to have them.

He teaches his agents how to care for each client, ensuring every interaction is 100% upfront and transparent. Sometimes you need to tell a client some bad news that you know they’re not going to be happy with, but the only way to handle those situations and keep their trust is to just come out and say it. There’s no candy coating the occasional bad news. The way to stay at the forefront of the business is make sure you don’t over promise and under deliver. This no-nonsense attitude is working for the team, bringing in a 70% repeat and referral rate. While he works with a fairly aggressive CRM system, Nick is aware that the new wave of agents coning in is far more dialed in to technology and he’s eager to learn from them. Texts, emails and client calls keep him on everyone’s radar and works as a simple reminder that he’s still in business and always available. For marketing, he uses social media and contact to the over 6,000 people in the database he has accumulated since his time in property preservation. When new listings go up, he hits that database as well as MLS and his social media network to a very good success rate that brings in between $15 and $20 million a year.

Helping people by being a resource keeps Nick going. When a transaction is over, he makes sure everyone is aware that he is still available for answers. If he doesn’t have the answer, or the answer requires a specialist like a lawyer, he will put the client in contact with the right parties. He doesn’t disappear once the last line is signed, and assures clients they can always count on him.

Nick works actively as a volunteer on realtor grievance board, the political action committee and the diversity, equality and inclusion board. Aside from that, he gets involved in a few fundraisers and the cancer foundation, helping a lot of people who really need a hand. When those responsibilities are wrapped, Nick will head to a golf course or down to the beach to take in the Jersey shore. Then, it’s back to work. He’ll help anyone on his team get up to speed in the default business, but make sure they learn from his lessons and stay diversified. After the many years in the business, he’s seen cycles come and go, but the current market is a weird one. He’ll stay up to the challenge, keeping up to date and knowledgeable on the changes that the market, new technology and today’s changing world bring.