Alright ladies and gentlemen welcome back to another episode to meet up your host Alvaro for another interesting and special conversation flying to Austin, Texas because we have with us today Michael Reiser, he's a luxury real estate expert with Eklund Gomistim and Dr. Saldeman Hello, how are you? What's happening Michael? How you doing?
I'm good, I'm live from the car, I mean you know just running around, it's really good though, it's beautiful, it's beautiful here It's been like the most amazing few days we just had freezing weather but it's great, it's been to be with you Thank you, thank you for being with us, I know it's busy already in Austin I mean the market is on fire, you're definitely leading the pack and I'm happy that we have you here with us today because I'm so curious and excited at the same time to know all about what is going on in Austin because I thought Miami wasn't fire but Austin also seems to be leading the pack up when it comes to real estate transactions So tell us what's happening? Yeah, I mean it's definitely we are, you know it's been a big wave in Austin for a number of years now but I feel like this is truly the most exciting time and the biggest time that we've had We've gotten so much press, I mean it's all the press wants to talk about is what's happening in Austin and all eyes are really on it It's kind of a perfect storm where we've developed such a huge depth in the tech ecosystem but also we're having now manufacturing with Tesla with Samsung and announcing huge facilities and headquarters So along with it's just a great place to live, it's a great place to be, you know, called home base so we're seeing the market like never before and it's moving at a rapid pace but at the same time I feel that Austin is better than ever You just mentioned a few minutes ago, you are originally from Austin, Texas and you're part of the Echo and Gomistin How has been your career so far when it comes to real estate? It's been an incredible journey, you know, I mean I've been in different industries before, I was a lobbyist and kind of the tech sector and a different state before, I was in luxury retail and then you know I've always wanted to be in real estate, it's been a number of years now Being in real estate, I was with Sutterby's prior which is a great shop and you know led by a great broker here but I actually met Julius Filman who the CEO of the Efland Gomistin I'm actually the real talk in the society group in LA, the representatives, they're the most amazing Alexander in that team but anyways we kind of started talking and all of that through some interesting stories led me to really help start the EG team here in Austin and you know they really came at the perfect time and what we're doing here is really the super prime, the prime plus market in Austin is the wave is just kind of swelling in the ocean for that right now and it's breaking and some of the just we're breaking records really every day in all parts of the city and We keep raising a ceiling for what is possible and I think that that's the most exciting thing is that's awesome. Now when he comes to super prime or super luxury properties, what are we talking about?
Well now we're talking about properties that are higher on bar with LA and Miami, you know, which is you know regularly things trade on Lake Austin which you know however familiar people are on this with the geography here but we have a huge body of a regulated like constant level body of water called Lake that's kind of in the middle of the city that's really some prime real estate because you can that's water you can swim and you vote in, you wake surf everything and it's super close to the city relatively so prices there are trading like you know waterfront in Miami and you know waterfront in LA even you know Malibu pricing I mean there's things are regularly trading there that are state like properties north of 40 million. So for you that have been raised in in Austin and you've seen this transition. What's your favorite thing about it? That's a good question.
I mean I think that my favorite thing is probably seeing more kind of breadth and what's offered as far as like dining and entertaining and lifestyle. I think that as you get more people from different places where they're part of a different restaurant group from New York and they're coming into the city or they have a rock climbing gym that they're bringing here or just kind of different different mindsets. It's always been one of the most amazing things about this place is that people here are always wanting to create and do different things and I feel that now more than ever I feel like we almost lost a little bit of it five years ago or so that it kind of just like a hot real estate city. But now like there's so much attention and there's so many wonderful creatives and business that's going to be a little bit different.
And so many different creatives and business people and so much investment doing cool things here that that's why it's fun to be because I get to see okay these same neighborhoods the same areas having the feeling of a big city. We have a Chicago of New York where there's all these groups from those places doing restaurants and nightlife for example and cocktail bars. It's it's neat to see and still such an outdoor lifestyle here. You know being able to be on the water.
You can go for a run and have a view of the city and then the next moment be swimming in a natural spring or going and wake surfing or playing in the water. I mean it's it's pretty special. So I guess that your approach is right there. You know sell the lifestyle right there the whole right right I mean sell the lifestyle which is really because I mean why people want to be here.
I mean it's look right now it's 80 degrees. It's breezy. It's beautiful. We have an amazing accessible airport international airport.
We're so close to so many wonderful things. You know it's we're a you know it's like a hundred bucks for an economy flight to Northern California or to LA. I mean that's kind of ridiculous. I mean it's so easy to get around to other cool places but it's also a great place to start your business.
It's a great place to be employed by you know Amazon Google and Facebook all have well over a million plus square feet here in Austin commercial space. I mean that's pretty pretty unbelievable. You know meta just signed the largest lease ever done in Texas at over 800,000 square feet in a building that isn't even completed yet. And they already have about that amount of square footage in Austin and they're still holding that.
So the commercial growth is crazy. And of course I know that we all get asked every market. I know that you talked to people like when is it when is the crash is this a bubble. There's far far too much commercial growth and employment growth going on here in the city for that to go anywhere anytime in the near term.
It might be any I mean it's it just can also arise. You know something to really affect it. So it's an exciting it's an exciting time. I mean it comes you know at a cost but it's it's cool to see.
No great great. I'm thank you for sharing that. Now I'm sure that like in any other industry but specifically in real estate. I mean they'll actually market.
There's a lot of competition. So what's in your opinion one of the most difficult things that you are facing as a luxury real estate expert in Austin. Good question. I would say that it's mobilizing inventory for people and setting expectations.
I think that although we're in the setting records on prices. There's a lot of people that you know the market's kind of price sensitive in a way. You know you can't just put a price tag of anything on whatever you want. You do have to communicate value.
You do you need to show why that special. I think one of the challenging things is you know I know that for example at Eklund Bones will begin to do for sellers and that in my opinion of using anybody else you're leaving money on the table just because of how much press we get and having the best PR firm. On retainer is a big part of that but the buyers are coming from elsewhere so it's communicating to sellers. We have to market your property to the right people or you're literally leaving hundreds of thousands on the table and we're charging the same because everybody else so it's kind of a no brainer but I know that I'm biased but it's communicating that value and informing your buyers and sellers that weren't a changing world as far as real estate goes in a city like Austin and that how you have to navigate it is important.
No great great insights. Thanks for sharing that. Now when it comes to PR because you were talking about PR. How important it is personal branding.
Personal branding is super important. I think that you know I have my own kind of established branded Sotheby's before I came over to EG and I think that the biggest thing in personal branding is you have to authentically communicate what you really care about who you are. It's not about having a glitzy logo. It's about communicating your ethos to the people that you're working with and that's the branding to me is about how you how people feel when they're around you.
It's not so much about like oh yeah the great logo. So I think within I think within the Oakland both team for example like it's such an amazing strong brand and Frederick John Julia. I mean everybody who's there has created something so special so it's how do I communicate who I am within that. And that's just what I want to do by just being around people right and I think that that's not a unique thing to anybody.
It's for your brokerage. You know are you with compass are you with color are you with cold well or you know whoever you still have to communicate okay who am I versus under this umbrella of something else I have to show my value. I have to show how I'm different than anybody so I think it's finding out what's important to you and then expressing that and just totally yeah totally and in fact talking about Julia she was saying here Michael is the best if you need to announce the equivalent is your guy. And lovely to me very sweet and very true because look I agree with what you were just saying a minute ago it's all about the values that the team represents and then expressing them with your own terms and you can have your own personality your own your own approach but as long as you maintain the consistency and the values that the team represents it creates a whole spectrum of professionalism and trust that I don't think that one individual person can counter you know so in this case all of you have that tremendous job in fact as I was telling you before Dan here in Miami he's the man you know I call him and because he's such a guy and I really don't the energy that you guys bring to the table.
No he's he's a really special guy and I talked to him before even joined EGT and that's the thing it's it's it's um it really is such a special collection of people and you know just there's Brad about the team for a second I mean it's um I remember when I talked to Sean Lander who's our agent in Malibu is unbelievable. He's like I never had an intention of joining a team kind of as I did you know he's like but if I'm going to I have to join the very best in the world and that's truly it's because what we want for ourselves but what you want for the clients to and it has to be a benefit and Julia John and for all of just created a group of people that because I love to work with every day. No great and if you have to share out of your entire career one of the golden maggots or takeaways for the audience what would it be. I think that it's kind of what I said just to harp on it a little bit earlier is you have to find out what's important to you and what would make you do business with someone who's an agent and then just express that because we're in an industry that's very robust with a lot of people in a lot of opinions and a lot of ways and doing things.
Find out what you care about and what is genuinely you and then just do that and with that and I was talking about on a call we have the other day internally with the VG is just just do it ask for what you want and then just actually execute and do the things there's no secret there's no secrets are knocking on doors to talking to people. You just do it and you'll get the results that you want don't talk about it don't you don't need to buy a bunch of stuff to make it happen just actually put your thoughts and words to option. Love that love that. Thank you Michael.
I listen I know you're in the car I know you're having a very hectic day so I really appreciate you taking the time to talk to us today. I want to make sure that everybody that is tuning in right now or even later when we post this episode that please follow Michael he's a great guy amazing insights when it comes to real estate in Austin anything that you need please reach out to him. I'm not sure if you have any other last thoughts or comments that you would like to share. No I mean thank you so much I really appreciate you inviting me on it means a lot and I love doing stuff like this and I would just say come visit Austin go explore come see what it's all about because it's a great place.
Well listen I'll take you on that myself you know I like to travel I haven't been really in Austin yet so it's on my list and I'll definitely hit you up once I'm there but if you come to my army as well let us know we have a bunch of things to do here and you have down to me. I love you. Thank you so much Michael thank you I really appreciate it have a good day I thank you everybody for tuning in. And thanks again for everybody tuning in today we hope you enjoyed it and remember embrace it's beautiful success in life.
My name is Alvaro and I'll see you next time.