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As a featured real estate expert on both local New York City TV and national platforms, including Good Morning America and The Today Show, luxury real estate team lead Lisa Simonsen and her team serve clients in New York, Florida and California. “We joke that we work eight days a week, and we wear many different hats: We are brokers, psychiatrists, designers and friends to our clients,” she said.

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She loves social media for keeping in touch with past and present clients as well as other members of her sphere of influence and leverages her networking prowess to get deals done. Simonsen recently closed the off-market sale of a luxury rental building for $150 million, forming a relationship with the buyer through her personal marketing and locating the off-market opportunity through her commercial contacts.

“Our exclusive new development, Abi Chelsea Penthouse, sold for the highest price per square foot for a downtown boutique condominium in the past five years. We continue to break records with residential resales in premier Park and Fifth Avenue Cooperatives and hold sales records in many of the top Fifth Avenue buildings on the Upper East Side,” Simonsen said.

Find out how this luxury broker and her team continue to set records in some of the country’s most exclusive markets.

Name: Lisa Simonsen

Title: Licensed associate real estate broker

Experience: 20+ years

Location: New York, Florida, California

Team Name: The Simonsen Team

Rankings: Top .5 percent of all real estate brokers nationwide

Team size: 3

Sales volume: $206 million sales volume in 2024

Awards:

How did you get your start in real estate?

I started in real estate over 20 years ago, following a career as a celebrity fitness trainer. A client suggested that I consider getting my license. I initially planned to pursue real estate as a side career; however, I quickly landed an $18 million sale during my first week as an agent, and my career took off from there.

How did you choose your brokerage?

Brown Harris Stevens is the No. 1 privately held real estate firm in New York City, with a 150-year legacy of white glove luxury service. BHS agents sell more homes per agent than any other firm, with the highest average sale price achieved per agent nationwide.

The brokerage is renowned for providing innovative tools and resources to its agents, and in turn, the high-net-worth buyers and sellers they represent. My domestic and international clients benefit from this ingenuity and from the firm’s sophisticated brand.

What do you wish more people knew about working in real estate?

This is not a part-time job, and the day-to-day life is far removed from what is portrayed on television shows focused on the brokerage industry.

What’s something you know now that you wish you knew when you started?

The importance of follow-up. I once lost a listing because I did not provide my client with regular, timely follow-ups. I quickly learned this golden rule and will never make that mistake again!

What are 5 things you’d like readers to know about you and your brokerage?

1. I am licensed in New York, Florida and California and sell properties in major markets in all three states.
2. In 2024, we closed a $150 million deal and a $500,000 deal, both in the same week. The Simonsen Team provides the same level of service to our clients across all price points.
3. Brown Harris Stevens has the highest average sale price achieved per agent nationwide.
4. Brown Harris Stevens agents sell more homes per agent than any other firm in New York City.
5. Over 25 percent of The Simonsen Team’s major sales are of properties that are not actively on the market. It is key for buyers and sellers to align themselves with a proactive broker who can actively identify and secure opportunities that may not be available online.

What’s your top prediction for 2025?

There is a wealth of opportunity for smart buyers (and their brokers) at the moment. Buyers willing to tackle a project should seize the opportunity to purchase value-add properties, as there is currently less competition for properties that need work. (To that point, owners of turnkey properties who may wish to sell should certainly consider listing now, as buyers will pay a premium for turnkey inventory.)

First-time buyers who plan to finance should consider buying now and refinancing as interest rates continue to drop.

What’s your top tip for newly formed teams?

Grow your team (and your career) slowly and with intention. Coaching and mentorship are key, even for team leaders!

What makes a good leader?

A good leader and mentor is generous with their time, provides constructive feedback, and genuinely wants to see those around them grow and flourish.

What’s one thing you wish every agent knew?

There is always an opportunity to expand your skillset, to learn a new skill and to grow your business. Never become complacent!

Email Christy Murdock

Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!

Each week on The Download, Inman’s Christy Murdock takes a deeper look at the top-read stories of the week to give you what you’ll need to meet Monday head-on. This week: As investors see local markets and rental prices soften, they’ve started to unload underperforming inventory at a record pace.

Not long ago, real estate looked like a one-way bet. Prices were climbing, inventory was tight, and rental demand seemed bottomless. Investors banked on the idea that the market would keep delivering year after year.

Now, it seems, the tide is turning. Interest rates, economic pressure and shifting supply dynamics are starting to reshape the landscape, and even large investor-adjacent companies are struggling to regroup.

READ: Opendoor sheds more employees amid Nasdaq delisting threat

At the same time, however, there are bright spots and opportunities that make this the time to take a long, hard look at your holdings and find out what else is out there. If you’re working with investors, reach out and see what they’re looking for on both the buy- and sell-sides.

Real estate investors are selling off portions of their portfolios at a record pace, hoping to stem losses as the housing market cools and rental prices soften, a new report from Realtor.com has found.

Investors in the Midwest and South — two of the country’s most affordable regions — are seeing the most offloads. The top five investor seller states were Missouri (16.7 percent), Oklahoma (16.7 percent), Georgia (15.9 percent), Kansas (14.3 percent) and Utah (14.3 percent).

Despite the sell-off, there are still deals to be had. Purchases by investors ticked up slightly last year, with 13 percent of all 2024 home purchases made by investors, up from 12.7 percent in 2023.

Whether you’re holding investment property, working with investors or trying to plan ahead for a potential portfolio of your own, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.

Inman contributors regularly write about all things investment and business building, so that you’re always armed with the knowledge and insights you need to make the smartest decisions.

READ: 25 accelerators, podcasts and courses for agent entrepreneurs

Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!

For co-founder and managing broker Holly Brink, innovation is an essential element in providing exceptional service to both clients and stakeholders. An innovator and systems architect at heart, she personally designed and launched her brokerage’s AI-powered agent assistant, MyCortex, and builds tech solutions like automated drip campaigns and Slack workflows to help her team “focus on people, not paperwork.”

“We’re relentlessly agent-first,” Brink said. “Every tool, process and perk is built to make agents more efficient and less stressed. We love pushing the tech envelope.”

The new woman-led, agent-driven brokerage with two founders — one a Marine Corps vet turned Realtor and a 15-year agent in her seventh year as managing broker — prides itself on the fact that “solutions come from lived experience and actual agent feedback.”

Find out how this broker across four states has launched and where she and her agents are headed as they embrace the future.

Name: Holly Brink
Title: Co-founder and COO, managing broker
Experience: Over 15 years in residential real estate, including six-plus years as managing broker at two national brokerages and two months steering operations at My Real Estate Company
Location: Spencer, Iowa (managing broker in Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois and Nebraska)
Brokerage name: My Real Estate Company
Rankings: We just launched in March 2025
Team size: Currently 15 licensees across four states

How did you get your start in real estate?

I got my license in 2008 in Arizona to continue my career in property management. I fell in love with helping families find homes — and after moving to Iowa, discovered my true passion was mentoring and coaching agents. I also quickly realized that the real magic lies in building systems that let agents focus on that human connection.

What’s something you know now that you wish you knew when you started?

Automation and systems aren’t optional — they’re your sanity savers. And just as crucial: Track your clients and reach out regularly. Building genuine relationships is the real cornerstone of longevity in this business — something I didn’t fully grasp on Day 1.

Tell us about a high point in your brokerage career.

I’m living it right now. After six years as a managing broker with two national brands, I knew it was time to do things differently. In my first 30 days as COO at MyRECo, I led our switch to a mobile-first model — and 11 agents joined under that new vision almost immediately. That early traction showed that transparency, smart tech and an agent-first culture create unstoppable momentum.

What’s your top prediction for next year?

Agents who integrate AI assistants into their business will outpace peers by at least 20 percent in lead conversions — the tech is ready; it’s simply a race of who adapts fastest. I also predict email itself will feel as archaic as fax machines … though that evolution might take more than one year.

What’s your top tip for freshly licensed brokers?

Don’t chase every shiny lead — focus on mastering a handful of reliable sources (sphere, referrals, hyperlocal advertising). Pair that with rock-solid follow-up systems and genuine check-ins. Consistency and relationships will build your reputation far faster than sporadic big splashes.

Email Christy Murdock

Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!

Each week on The Download, Inman’s Christy Murdock takes a deeper look at the top-read stories of the week to give you what you’ll need to meet Monday head-on. This week: Get all caught up on the National Association of Realtors Legislative Meetings, including Thursday’s votes on the no-commingling and hate speech policies.

After an eventful year in the real estate industry and amid ongoing concerns about government scrutiny, the rise of AI, and political and economic upheaval, the National Association of Realtors held its midyear Legislative Meetings in Washington, D.C., this past week. On the agenda were issues related to speech, fair housing, technology, commissions and affordability.

Inman’s Andrea V. Brambila had boots on the ground during the meetings, offering unparalleled insights and asking the tough questions during a jam-packed week for the real estate industry.

In response to a question from a broker, NAR President Kevin Sears talked about NAR’s historically “rocky relationship” with the Department of Justice, driven, in part, by the trade group’s recent lawsuit over a settlement agreement from which the DOJ withdrew.

After meeting with the DOJ twice in recent months, Sears said that “there was a clear lack of understanding of how [Realtors] do business,” with the DOJ believing that agents “take advantage of” consumers. “We protect the consumer,” Sears countered, adding that he explained that to the department.

When asked what the DOJ’s “issue” was with NAR, Sears’ response was succinct and to the point: “They think we make too much money,” Sears said.

“We make too much money. That’s it. I said I represent 1.5 million entrepreneurs who choose to wake up unemployed every day. But it’s through their hard work, by representing their clients and consumers, that they can earn a living.”

Sears went on to say that this year he is “cautiously optimistic” about forging a better relationship with the DOJ.

NAR board approves hate speech policy changes in decisive vote

The changes, which are effective immediately, remove references to hate speech, add a definition of harassment and make the policy no longer applicable to all of a Realtor’s activities.

EXTRA: NAR President Kevin Sears: Hate speech change unrelated to Trump

NAR overturns ‘no-commingling’ rule in Executive Committee vote

The committee opted to rescind the controversial “no-commingling” policy on Wednesday, one day after NAR’s Multiple Listing Issues and Policies Committee voted to scrap it amid DOJ scrutiny, Jim Dalrymple II reports.

From concerns about changes to the NAR Code of Ethics to resources for catching up with everything that’s new and effective right now, Inman contributors provided opinions, options and support for real estate professionals looking to rethink the way they do business.

Real Talk: Thoughts and prayers for those fighting 10-5

Has NAR leadership learned anything about consumers in the past 25 years? As they prepare to vote on changes, housing counselor Rachael Hite thinks they haven’t.

25 accelerators, podcasts and courses for agent entrepreneurs

You are your business’s most important asset. Don’t you deserve an upgrade? Drew Thompson shares educational and inspirational resources that will give you the boost you need now.

The power of control: 8 ways to dominate in a challenging market

There are plenty of factors you can’t control in the broader economy, Amy Corr writes, but there are ways to implement more control and consistency in your business.

Christy Murdock is a writer, coach and consultant and the owner of Writing Real Estate. Connect with Writing Real Estate on Instagram and subscribe to the weekly roundup, The Ketchup.