Lunch with Harald Grant and Beate Moore

There are many who think that real estate is a shark-infested industry filled with ruthless and notorious agents pushing for the hard sell. But refreshingly, Harald Grant and Beate Moore are not only two of the most successful real estate agents in the country, they might also be two of the nicest people in the business.

Mr. Grant, a senior vice president and associate broker at Sotheby’s International Realty in Southampton, and Ms. Moore, a senior vice president at Sotheby’s in Bridgehampton, were recently ranked the number five and six top-selling agents, respectively, in the United States by the Wall Street Journal in the “Top 400 Agents” list for 2008.

The pair of uber-achievers sat down for BLTs and iced teas at Silver’s Restaurant in Southampton last week to share the secrets of their success.

Q: Let’s start with the most basic question. How did you get to this level of achievement?

Mr. Grant: I started in Sotheby’s in 1988. I was one of the original brokers. It’s lots of hard work and knowing your product. The harder you work, the more successful you become, the more business you do. A lot of the people I started out working with in the late ’80s started up investment companies, hedge funds, investment banking, et cetera, and these are people who have stayed with me over the years. And when they started making large salaries, they started buying bigger houses. That basically became my customer base. And if you do a nice job, a successful job, establish your credibility and they trust your judgement and you’re honest, what happens, they refer friends to you. It just keeps multiplying.

Ms. Moore: I started in 1996 at Sotheby’s. I agree 100 percent with Harald. Work hard, know the business and treat people right. That’s what matters, and that’s what brings people to you again and again.

Q: Now, you are two of the most successful agents in the country. Starting out, were you struggling like everyone else or did you have immediate success?

Ms. Moore: My first year was really tough. In the beginning, you’re not even prepared. So you take the smallest transactions in the beginning, the stuff the more established agents don’t want to do and you just do it. You learn more each time. And a two-day transaction for a rental could then later turn into they want to buy something. As you gain experience, you gain knowledge and that is what contributes to being successful.

Mr. Grant: Everybody struggled. It’s funny how we could live on little income, compared to what the income is today. You learn to accommodate your lifestyle with the amount of success, or lack of success, you have at the time. My first year was maybe $20,000, $25,000. But you know, guess what? You live on it.

Q: This is a tough market and people are very, very hungry. How are you managing to be the tops in the business now?

Ms. Moore: The market is drastically different right now, but you have to stay busy. You have to work harder.

Mr. Grant: The market is off 20, 25 percent. There are less buyers than what there were, but there are still buyers and there are still sellers. The brokers who have been successful and have worked hard to become established are still successful—to less of a degree, but they are still successful. You have to work that much harder, be that much smarter, and you still have to have the deals. The media reports say it’s doom and gloom out here. That’s not necessarily true. We’re at the prices of 2003, 2004. You aren’t going to sell a house for millions of dollars more than you paid for it. Also, there’s a certain conservatism set in. Even if you have the money, no one’s going to show it. They might want to buy something smaller and not as grand.

Ms. Moore: There was real spending freeze for a time, but there’s still plenty of money. But everybody wants to get a good deal.

Mr. Grant: Back when times were better, you might have shown somebody five houses to fit their needs. Today, you should be showing them 20 houses—because they’re there, and you want to show them the range of what’s available. You’re really covering all your bases.

Q: Do you only work in the super high-end properties at this point in your careers?

Mr. Grant: We’re doing all types of deals, always have.

Q: So you both still handle rentals?

Mr. Grant: I’ve been doing rentals for 22 years.

Ms. Moore: Rentals are the bread and butter of the business.

Q: If you’re going to give advice to somebody who is considering a career in real estate, what would it be?

Mr. Grant: Actually, in a way, right now is a good time to learn because you do have to work that much harder. You start off learning the basic ingredients for success right out of the gate. Also, share a desk with an established broker. Learn everything you can.

Ms. Moore: Every agent, new and old, needs to take the time to learn about their client, know about their lifestyle, what their needs are. And it’s up to you to educate the buyer to what’s available to them. But you first need to know what they want. Don’t waste their time showing them things that won’t work. Pay attention to what your client likes and wants.

Mr. Grant: You have to listen to your client. A lot of brokers will say, ‘Oh, I have a great house,’ and then show it to everybody because they like it. But you need to show what the client likes, not what you like. If you don’t establish credibility in the first five minutes … People don’t have time to waste. They don’t have time to look at houses for a couple of hours. Pinpoint what they want and get to it. And you better know answers to the specifics about the properties, otherwise you’re done.

Q: What do you do when you have a listing that’s just sitting on the market like so many properties are now?

Ms. Moore: You have a choice. You need to make sure the seller knows what the price for the market should be. If I don’t believe in the house at that price, I tell the seller. But if I think it’s still too highly priced but I believe in the house, I’ll tell the seller, ‘This is ambitious and it’s going to take a while. Don’t expect it to sell overnight.’

Q: What about the mega properties? What do you do with those listings now?

Mr. Grant: A $60 million house still brings in business, even if it doesn’t sell right away. That will bring in customers. Sure, it costs to advertise, but that type of premier property is always an asset.

Q: Sotheby’s is a very distinct high-end brand. How important was that reputation to getting you to where you are today?

Mr. Grant: We are known as the upper-crust caliber. Nobody sells more waterfront out here. We control that market. There are about a dozen brokers at Sotheby’s who really monopolize the high end. We’re lucky that way, that our brand means the best and the most established. But the reputation is there for a reason. It’s earned by hard work and knowledge.

Ms. Moore: We have wonderful managers too. And that always helps.

Q: With this glut of houses available—and more agents than ever in real estate—isn’t it much harder to make a living for the average agent?

Mr. Grant: For the people who do this part-time it is. Today, there are more brokers and the business is spread out more, but the ones who are successful have the same principles of hard work and establishing credibility and they’re going to make money. But the business still requires 24/7, no matter where you are. People think when you become successful and make more money, you can take time off. But you can’t. Every restaurant, every cocktail party, every function is an opportunity or a conversation about what’s happening in real estate. If you don’t get that information, you’re out of the loop.

Q: Do you ever take time off, take a vacation?

Mr. Grant: I take the week around Christmas, but other than that, I’m here working. You have to be available, and you can’t afford to miss anything, no matter how successful you are.

Ms. Moore: That week around Christmas is the only time when nothing’s really happening. This is the time when you work hard and lay the groundwork for the future. Afterward, some might say, ‘You’re so lucky.’ Luck does sometimes play a role, but successful people are successful because they work hard.