Realtor Marty Rodriguez Team Ranked No. 1 in Century National Network

Marty Rodriguez

The Century 21 Marty Rodriguez real estate team in Glendora, Calif. ranked No. 1 in the entire Century 21 real estate network, closing $3.6 million in actual gross commissions. The total was more than double the production of the second-ranked team, based out of San Antonio, Texas.

In terms of unit volume, the Century 21 Marty Rodriguez team sold 363 units, equivalent to selling about a home a day.

“Marty Rodriguez, CENTURY 21 Marty Rodriguez continues to be a top-performer within the CENTURY 21® System,” said Tom Kunz, CEO of Century 21, with global headquarters based in Parsippany, N.J. “Her dedication and commitment to providing the highest level of customer service have enabled her to achieve the No. 1 team ranking for sales production within the United States. Her team’s consistent performance year after year truly represents ‘The Gold Standard.’

“I am very proud of all that Marty and her team have been able to accomplish.”

The team’s 2009 sales production was especially impressive, given the year’s challenging economic environment, marked by rising numbers of short sales and foreclosures and Los Angeles County unemployment that ended the year at 12.4%, with even higher jobless rates in the San Gabriel Valley.

“To achieve the results we did in such a tough market really made a big statement,” said Rodriguez, the Citrus Valley Board of Realtors’ 2008 Realtor of the Year. “We went back to basics and rededicated ourselves to bringing buyers and sellers together.”

Rodriguez said it’s the challenge of overcoming obstacles and putting transactions together that she finds most rewarding in her more than three decades’-long real estate career.

“We honestly believe that were it not for our team’s skill, persistence and professionalism, many of these sales would never have happened,” Rodriguez said.

To those qualities, Rodriguez could well have added adaptability. In 2009, her agents deepened their knowledge of short sales and REOs. Although REO sales in 2009 represented about 12% of her office’s sales volume, the total was significant for underscoring her team’s versatility in responding to ever-changing marketing conditions.

Century 21 Marty Rodriguez headquarters in Glendora, Calif.

 “We’ve had to become real true salespeople,” said Ed Rodriguez, Sales Manager. “Studying the market, examining how conditions affect our clients, developing our sales skills, asking the right qualifying questions and filtering out the people who aren’t motivated to act, I think all of these factors contributed to our success.

“All the work we’ve put in over the last two years,” Ed added, “has brought us up to the performance level we’re at now.”

Moreover, despite the recent economic downturn and the era of corporate downsizing, Century 21 Marty Rodriguez actually increased staff.

“Service is what built our reputation,” Ed said. “Marty made it clear that we weren’t going to cut service; we were going to strengthen it. We weren’t going to place profits in front of relationships. By providing ultimate service to our clients, they are always going to come back because of the great job we did for them.”

To the Century 21 Marty Rodriguez team’s credit, it has always had a rainy day fund, setting aside profits from outstanding years to cover leaner ones. “Again, that goes back to our core philosophy,” Ed said. “We take a long-term perspective of our business and industry. Many of the clients we’re serving now are children and grandchildren of past clients. We have experienced and been successful in every real estate cycle.”

Altogether, the Century 21 Marty Rodriguez team comprises Marty, 13 agents, 14 staff members and three managers.

“Every person on our team fills a key position,” Marty said. “They have tenacity and staying power, and I think our clients see that commitment every day.”

In real estate, building and maintaining outstanding personal relationships with clients and colleagues is the hallmark of a winning company. Jim Martindale, owner and broker of Martindale Commercial Real Estate, Inc., in Glendora, has had many successful transactions as both a broker and a buyer with Marty over the years, and wasn’t surprised to learn she and her team were once again No. 1 in the Century 21 network.

“The one thing I like about Marty is that she is a pro,” Martindale said. “She has a department and a team to pretty much cover everything, from negotiations through the final inspection. In the last few years, there’s been a deterioration of professionalism in our industry, but with Marty I always know things will be done right and with the highest integrity.

“We may not always see eye to eye, and we’ll bump heads occasionally, and that’s okay. I want to work with somebody who is honest, smart and professional, and that’s Marty and her team.”