The Power Broker

Christina Pappas, President of The Keyes Company, one of the largest independent brokers in Florida, shares in this interview with RG her strategies for being one of the most accomplished real estate agents in the United States, how she sees the market in 2024 and why it is impossible to accomplish anything without teamwork.

You had an excellent 2023: you were promoted to president of The Keyes Company, and you were also recognized as “Realtor of the Year” by Florida Realtors. What makes one a “power broker”?

Christina Pappas: When a power broker is recognized – I believe it is not the power broker (or me in this instance) who is being recognized, but it is my team. Alone, I cannot accomplish what we accomplish together. As a broker and President of Keyes, I don’t sell houses, my incredible agents do. And if I have any success, it is due to theirs. A power broker is one who realizes that to be successful you need to surround yourself with successful people and that is what we do. We partner with agents, invest in their success, and therefore we all rise together.

As an industry leader, do you have a forecast of the market for the first quarter of 2024?

C.P.: I believe that the first quarter of the year may be similar to the last quarter of 2023. As you know, there are cycles in the industry and if you go back 30 - 40 years, every year the first quarter is the slowest, second quarter picks up a little more, it peaks in the third and comes back down in the fourth. With that, I do believe we will continue to see foreign investment into the United States. While South American countries continue to face political challenges, the U.S. becomes a safe location for many South Americans to place their money in real estate.

Do you expect Miami to become an established city where people want to really live, and not only a second home market?

C.P.: Overall yes, we are bullish on Miami and South Florida markets. Covid simply sped up what was eventually going to happen. There is a huge demand and movement to the South Florida area with large companies making big bets on the financial and political climate.

Recently, Bloomberg published an article establishing that Madrid is becoming the “new Miami” due to the large number of wealthy Latin-American investors buying properties in the Spanish capital. You lived in Madrid before, so what are the main similarities of the real estate market in both cities?

C.P.: Madrid is one of my favorite cities! It is very similar to Miami in the market, one of the similarities is the makeup of the property types, because Miami and Madrid have an abundance of condos. In Miami there are more condo sales than there are single family home sales and while I don’t know if that’s the case for Madrid, I would think it is close. Madrid is known for its art, culture, nightlife, and food scene along with its great sports. Miami was put on the map in the art world hosting the first art Basel outside of Europe. It is also well known for its nightlife, culture (thanks in part to many of our investors from Latin America) and now our food scene is soaring with chefs relocating from major cities to open their Michelin star restaurants. Both cities are running out of land, so it’s a supply and demand issue and you will continue to see the cities go vertical and make up for the lack of housing necessary.

What would be your advice for an American investor considering buying property in the Iberian Peninsula?

C.P.: Go for it! Well, only after investing in Miami first (laughs). I believe you are seeing a renewed energy and life in the Iberian Peninsula that will continue due to many reasons, including the financial and political capital and the investment Madrid makes into its infrastructure and history.

The work environment for agents all over the world changed profoundly in the past decade. They have many more digital tools to help them sell properties, and many are working hard to become their own brands. How do you see the “brokers of the future”?

C.P.: Technology will continue to be a great tool with the human touch being the greatest tool. Deals are very complex, with many parties involved from underwriters and processors at both a title company and a mortgage company, to the other agents involved and both parties. At any given time , 10 or 15 people can be “involved” in a deal and no two deals are the same – even in pre-construction! I believe agents and brokers will have to leverage technology to become incredibly efficient and to have the highest level of customer service to compete.

You were a mentor to Ricardo Garcia, and you will always remain someone that he looks up to. I am sure you were also a mentor to many other brokers. How does it feel to see them evolve in their careers?

C.P.: It’s the best part of leading. I went to a leadership course, and I had to do a core value exercise for myself. The leader took us through 50 words and definitions, you slowly had to choose 10 words that were your values, then five, then down to three and then down to one. He described this last word as something, if eliminated, would make you feel devastated, like less of a person. When I got down to my final word, I hated it and cried, because the word seemed so distasteful and opposite of the humility that I was raised and hopefully show every day. But what drew me to the word was the definition: I knew it was who I am because of the definition. The word was and is still “power”, and the definition is influencing others. To this day, I believe that is what I’m here to do. To help influence, invest, and guide others to achieve what they don´t even believe they can. It is the best gift to watch others grow and succeed and it’s why I wake up every morning.