Jarrod Lewis, owner of J. Christopher Real Estate Group at Keller Williams Realty in North Providence, was recently recognized among Keller Williams agents for being fifth in New England for closings in the month of October. After finishing 2017 with 72 closed units, totaling $16.7 million in sales volume, he spoke with the Providence Business News about his business.
PBN: How do you manage to keep all of the transactions moving toward a close?
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LEWIS: I delegate specific duties to individuals that work on my team. For example, one person handles all of the appointments and scheduling while the other will handle all contracts to close paperwork. By putting these systems in place and following a strict business model, I am able to give each and every client the personal attention to detail that made me successful in the first place all while operating at a much higher volume.
PBN: What attracted you to real estate?
LEWIS: I wanted to do something important. I was a barber for 18 years and made a fantastic living but the day-to-day monotony and maxed-out earning potential wasn’t where I wanted myself. I told my wife that I was interested in getting into real estate and had a few friends in the business that were encouraging me. She was completely supportive, so I took the classes and got my license in August 2014, and started part time.
PBN: When did you open your own company and what prompted this decision?
LEWIS: I brought the J. Christopher Group to light in 2016, the year I joined Keller Williams Realty. They allowed me to operate my own team as an affiliate and I was excited to execute the systems I had put in place for myself but now on a much larger scale.
PBN: Where do you see the residential market in Rhode Island heading in 2018?
LEWIS: I feel that the residential market is going to thrive in 2018 on both buyer and seller sides. There are so many new grant programs and tax credits available, it’s creating the ideal situations for purchasers, thus creating the need for more inventory.
PBN: What is a memorable sale you’ve had recently? Describe the transaction.
LEWIS: Most memorable sale as of late was a listing I had in Exeter. A day before the inspection the builder next door dropped boulders in the backyard claiming that the land was his, and the buyer backed out. My sellers were at the same time purchasing their dream home, which was contingent upon the sale of their current house. Everybody on the team, including our title attorney, worked together tirelessly to get this property right back under contract, the dispute resolved and all necessary deadlines met to get it closed on the contractual dates. The ability to perform under extreme pressure is what makes this job so exciting and rewarding at the same time.
Mary MacDonald is a staff writer for the PBN. Contact her at macdonald@PBN.com.
