In real estate, we spend a lot of time talking about performance. Listings, growth, market share and GCI tend to dominate the conversation. Or in property management world, we hear a lot about the people churn, pressure on fees and CX shortcomings.
But behind every high performing (or low performing) business is something far less visible yet far more powerful – culture. Culture should support diversity, inclusion and respect.
The challenge is that culture is often misunderstood. It gets described as good or bad, but rarely defined in a way that is practical or actionable.
Culture is not a statement – it’s the feeling when you walk into an office, it’s the vibe of a team, it’s the way people talk to one another and how we rally through tough times.
Culture is reflected in the behaviours that are rewarded, the ones that are tolerated, and just as importantly, the ones that are ignored. A safe culture should encourage and reward innovation and encourage ideas outside of the box!
This is where many businesses lose clarity. It’s easy to articulate values when things are going well, but culture is ultimately measured in the day to day: how people show up, how decisions are made under pressure, and how individuals are treated when outcomes don’t go to plan.
Culture is not what the business says it stands for – it’s what you experience every day.
Early in my career, I didn’t consciously think about culture. Like many in this industry, I fell into real estate and focused on learning quickly and performing well.
Over time, a pattern became clear. Some environments consistently brought out the best in people, while others created friction, disengagement and turnover.
The difference was rarely structure, technology or systems. It was culture.
I liken culture not to family values, but rather a sporting team. Family values have a place of course, but to refer to a team as family in my opinion, is misguided. We don’t choose our family – relationships can be fraught and sometimes completely dysfunctional.
In a sporting team however, success is built on clarity of roles, accountability, performance and trust. Everyone understands their responsibilities and there is a shared commitment to the outcome.
When pressure increases, strong teams don’t fracture, they band together and step up. Ego takes a back seat to collective performance and that alignment creates consistency and dependability.
The same principle applies in business, yet in real estate we still see a sink or swim approach far too often.
New team members are given tools and a title, but very little structure or support. When they struggle or leave, the assumption is that they weren’t the right fit. Rarely do we ask whether we created the right environment for them to succeed.
High turnover is not just an operational issue. It’s a cultural one. When expectations are unclear, support is inconsistent and values are optional, disengagement follows quickly. That disengagement doesn’t stay contained, it impacts client experience, team morale and the overall reputation of the business.
This is why culture should be viewed as a commercial strategy, not a nice to have. Strong cultures are not built through grand gestures, but through consistent, everyday actions.
The conversations you choose to have, the behaviours you reinforce and the standards you hold all contribute to the environment you create.
And guess what leaders? We don’t sit outside of these standards. In fact, it’s non-negotiable that we uphold them and deliver.
Culture doesn’t unravel overnight. It shifts gradually, through small moments that go unchecked – a conversation avoided, a value compromised, a standard lowered because it feels easier in the moment. Over time, those decisions compound.
On the flip side, high performing cultures are intentional. They are clear on what matters and consistent in how those standards are upheld. They define success beyond numbers and recognise the behaviours that contribute to long term performance, not just short term wins. They create environments where accountability is fair and consistent, rather than reactive, individual or situational.
This matters now more than ever in our industry. Our clients are more informed, expectations are higher, and competition is tighter.
The agencies that stand out are not just those with scale, but those with alignment. Teams that communicate well, operate consistently and genuinely support one another create a different experience, both internally and externally.
Culture is not separate from performance, it underpins it. When people feel clear, supported and connected to something bigger than themselves, they don’t just meet expectations, they exceed them. They stay longer, contribute more and help elevate those around them.
Real estate has always been a people business; the question is whether we are treating it that way. I’ll say it again – good culture is not a nice to have, it’s essential to our success. And for businesses willing to be intentional about it, I guarantee it becomes a genuine competitive advantage.