AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sophie made herself a fluffy coffee from the Nespresso machine and a few minutes before eight, she went into the conference room and sat next to Caroline at the long oval table. At eight sharp, Rick breezed into the room, sat at the head of the table and looked around the room. “Okay, what updates do you all have for me?”
Sophie clicked on her phone to record the meeting and opened a notebook as well to jot notes as people talked.
“I signed a new listing end of day yesterday,” Troy said. He was one of the more senior agents. Sophie guessed he was close to Rick’s age. “It’s a three-bedroom condo in Murray Hill. Monthly fees aren’t too bad, just five. They want three point five million for the unit.”
Rick nodded. “Good job. What kind of condition is it in?”
“Excellent. It was renovated a year or so ago, but the owner got transferred to the West Coast, so they need to move. It has a small room that could either be an office or a den and some nice distant views of the Hudson. And a balcony off one of the bedrooms, decent size too. You can fit king-size beds in the bedrooms and they’re all similar size. Hardwood floors.”
“That should go fast,” Rick said. “Does anyone have a buyer for it?”
“I might,” Caroline said. “I’ll call her right after the meeting.”
Troy nodded her way appreciatively. “They’re on the West Coast this week. If anyone wants to look at it today, we can run over.”
“Good job, Troy,” Rick said. He glanced at Sophie. “I have some news to announce, too. In case you’re wondering why Sophie is here today, she’s going to move into a sales role as soon as we can find a replacement for the front desk. I know you’ll all help to encourage her and show her the ropes. I told her we’ll have her take turns shadowing different people.”
There was a chorus of congratulations and more than a few surprised looks as the dozen or so realtors turned their attention Sophie’s way. She smiled and somewhat nervously said, “Thanks everyone. I’m excited to join you.” It was a little intimidating to join a group of mostly experienced realtors. She hoped that they wouldn’t mind a newbie and her questions. She knew she had a lot to learn.
There were two more new listings from two different agents and Sophie paid close attention as they described the units and the neighborhoods and amenities. Rick then asked for progress updates.
“My client is seeing a condo this afternoon and is going to make a decision and hopefully an offer later today,” Caroline said.
“Good, go get ‘em Caroline. Who else?” Rick said.
“I had an accepted offer last night, on the Simon property,” Tessa said proudly. Sophie was excited for her. Tessa had told Sophie and Caroline about the offer which had been a tough negotiation. They’d gone back and forth, and Tessa hadn’t been sure they’d actually come to an agreement, but they had.
Rick looked impressed. “That’s fantastic, Tessa. Is that your biggest sale so far?”
She smiled. “It is. The final offer was twenty-one million.”
“Someone needs to ring the bell! Well done!” Rick said.
Tessa got up and walked to a large bell that hung on the wall and she pulled the leather strap hard, and the clang of the bell rang out. Everyone in the room clapped and cheered.
“Okay, anyone else have an update?” Rick looked around the room.
They were all quiet. “All right, let’s have a great day everyone!”
Sophie went to the front desk and turned the phones on to start the day. She had taken good notes, so she didn’t need the recording after all. She typed her notes up quickly and mailed them off to Rick. It had been exciting to sit in that morning meeting. The energy was high, and it was so interesting to hear about the new listings and activity. And Tessa’s sale. Sophie mentally did the math and worked out that the commission on that sale was just over two hundred and fifty thousand for Tessa. The full commission was just over a million at five percent and that was split between Tessa and the listing broker and then Tessa’s share was split again with the office.
It was hard for Sophie to fathom making that much commission on a single sale. She knew though that most of Caroline’s and Tessa’s other sales were much lower, more in the two to five million range. But still, on a two million sale, that meant her share would be about twenty-five thousand. Unless of course she was also the listing agent and found the buyer too, which was unusual, but if so, then she would make double her normal commission as she would get both sides.
It sounded like Monopoly money to Sophie. She liked Caroline’s suggestion to start out focusing on rentals. The total commission was much lower, but the transactions went faster and the money came in sooner. There was a lot to it, and she was excited to learn as much as possible and do both rentals and sales. First though, she had to pass the real estate exam to get her license.
Andrea came out to the front desk a few minutes before noon to cover for Sophie’s lunch.
“Congrats on your new role! Rick filled me in. I called the agency and they just got back to me to let me know they’ve found someone that can start tomorrow. So, you can head right into the back tomorrow and I’ll have a desk set up for you. Good luck!”
“Thank you.” Sophie was a little dazed by how fast things were moving.
Caroline, Tessa, Troy, and a few others walked toward the front desk.
“We’re going to look at Troy’s new listing. Do you want to come?” Caroline asked.
Sophie did. But she wasn’t sure she’d make it back in an hour. She glanced at Andrea, who nodded. “Go ahead. If you’re a few minutes late, I can handle it.”
“Thank you!”
