PDX Real Estate 138: Celebrating 10 Years of Masters in Real Estate

In January of 2012, as we made our way out of the Great Recession, ethics in real estate was at an all-time low. And Joe Fustolo asked himself, 'How can I fix this?' He created the Masters in Real Estate Facebook Group to foster professionalism and cooperation among real estate professionals in the Portland tri-county area. Ten years later, Masters is nearly 8,000 members strong, and Joe's commitment to the integrity of the group sets it apart from other real estate related communities on Facebook. On this episode of the Portland Real Estate Podcast, Joe and cohost Steve Nassar celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Masters in Real Estate, discussing what the group looked like in its early days and how the community grew over time. Joe shares the mandatory questions prospective members must answer to be approved, reviewing what's okay to post (and what's not) and explaining why members who break the rules are blocked.  Listen in for insight on asking for vendor recommendations on the platform and find out how staying relatively small and local differentiates Masters from other real estate communities on Facebook. Key Takeaways What inspired Joe to start Masters in Real Estate in January of 2012 Who Joe invited to join the Facebook group early on and how it grew over time The mandatory questions prospective members must answer to be approved and why members who break the rules are blocked from the group Why Joe encourages Masters members to self-moderate When to go to your principal broker with a question rather than the Facebook group What to do if you're unsure whether a post breaks the rules How Joe feels about posts featuring kudos and shout outs How to ask for vendor recommendations on the Masters platform and why you need to be careful about posting negative reviews Why it's important to Joe to keep the Facebook group small and local The benefit of using the Masters group to address safety concerns Connect with Joe Soldera Properties Joe on LinkedIn Connect with Steve Steve's Team at Premiere Property Group Steve on LinkedIn Resources Masters in Real Estate Facebook Group