How Toni Gage listed a $3.9 million expired two weeks after starting on the phones

Ren Jones00:04

It’s that time. Welcome to ROADMAP; how to take three listings a week until you’re ready for more. Each week we interview a great agent taking several listings each week, and we have an exciting guest today. We encourage you to take notes and apply as much of the knowledge as quickly as you can, and then use the copycat principle. Let me introduce my co-host from San Diego, Carley Hathaway. That’s carleyhathaway.com. Hi Carley, how’s the real estate business?

Carley Hathaway00:39

Hi Ren, hi everybody. Real estate is great. It’s a really good time to be calling those expireds. I feel like a good time to be a listing agent. I’m very excited.

Ren Jones00:49

I think so too. It’s a good market out there. There is a lot of money in the market and people are doing a lot of transactions.

Carley Hathaway00:57

Yes, definitely.

Ren Jones01:01

Before I introduce our guest today, I want to remind everybody, we’re also simulcasting the show on the private Lead Gen Facebook group. They have over 50,000 members, so we have a large audience there today as well. We will be pausing for our commercial message during the show as a thank you to the Lead Gen folks. So let’s welcome our guest today from the D.C. Area, Potomac, Maryland, if I understand correctly, Toni Gage.

Toni Gage01:30

Hi there.

Ren Jones01:31

Welcome Toni.

Carley Hathaway01:33

Yeah. Hi Toni. Thanks for joining us.

Toni Gage01:34

Thank you for having me.

Ren Jones01:36

Glad to have you here. And if I understand correctly, we’ve only spoken briefly that you’ve been selling real estate for a while. You’re newer to Vulcan7 and having some great early success with it, but you’ve been selling for a while now, is that right?

Toni Gage01:49

Since I was 19, and I’m 54 now.

Ren Jones01:52

You started when you were 19?

Carley Hathaway01:53

What?

Toni Gage01:55

19, and I’m going to be 54, April 27th.

Carley Hathaway01:58

Wow.

Ren Jones01:58

My goodness, so you have been doing it for a little while, there we go.

Carley Hathaway02:01

Love it.

Toni Gage02:02

Easier back then, less competitive.

Ren Jones02:04

You sell those little houses, is that right?

Toni Gage02:07

Well, years ago I started out in Westchester, which is right outside of Manhattan. That’s when I used to sell the little $238,000 houses. But my sphere of influence and my personal residences have changed, and so that contributes to the situation.

Ren Jones02:26

It’s a pleasant problem, Toni.

Toni Gage02:28

Yeah.

Ren Jones02:29

It’s a pleasant problem.

Carley Hathaway02:31

So Toni, what’s your average price point now?

Toni Gage02:35

I think the least expensive home I sold this year was 780.

Carley Hathaway02:39

Nice. Good for you.

Toni Gage02:40

But the average, now my listings, I have a 4 million, a 1.6, I’m getting a 1.4. These were all expireds. I sold a 1.2 and that was in expired also.

Ren Jones02:54

Okay. So you started using Vulcan7 and you started calling people, they answered the phone, you talked to them, and you’ve been listing a lot of this property. I mean, tell me what that looks like. You were describing it the other day. If you’ll share with our audience

Toni Gage03:09

Well, mostly in the past, I’ve been a buyer’s agent. When I was younger, I was a listing agent, but when I relocated to Maryland 23 years ago, I stopped and I was in the financial services business, but now I’m back in real estate. For the last, say, 10 years I’ve been licensed. I was doing Tom Ferry coaching. I started that in August, but no one mentioned Vulcan7. They were saying just call the expired and call the FSBOs, and I wasn’t having much success. Then I signed up for Vulcan7, I’d say in the middle of December. Within two weeks I had two or three appointments. I got the $3.9 million listing, which was sort of, it was a warm lead, but because I had sold a $3 million house on that street.

Carley Hathaway03:54

You could use that as leverage a little bit. Yeah.

Toni Gage03:55

So they had heard about me, and my secretary’s husband knew the seller, and he said, “Tell her I want to speak to her.” And so I went in with my girlfriend and we just signed it up. It had been on the market for seven years at 7.5, 5.9, 4.5, 4.25, and so now it’s getting a lot more exposure and we have different ways of marketing it with RE/MAX, and so they’re really happy. So we’re doing a lot of social media with it.

04:32Then there was one gentleman, I hate to digress, but he lives on the West Coast, Pebble Beach, and his house has been vacant for two or three years. When I called him the first time, he hung up the phone on me. So I kept calling him, I kept on, kept on him. I kept sending him videos. Then he replied back to me at 10 o’clock at night, I guess at seven o’clock West Coast time, and he says, “I guess I have no choice but to list with you.”

Carley Hathaway05:00

Wow.

Toni Gage05:04

He said, “You’re so persistent.” He said, “You’re so persistent.”

Carley Hathaway05:06

And he was an expired that you called.

Toni Gage05:08

He was an expired. I had shown the house six times. And it’s funny because I had made videos to my client saying how great I think that house was, what a great value I thought it was when it was listed with another broker. I actually got fired for my other RE/MAX because they didn’t like that I was promoting another listing. So that’s okay, god had better plans for me. I love my RE/MAX office now. So I said to him, I said, “I know the code to your front door.” And I told him, and he’s like, “You really do know the code.” I said, “I know the code of the front door, I show it all the time. I don’t even make appointments.”

Ren Jones05:40

There we go.

Toni Gage05:42

Yeah. I said, “I’ve shown your house so often, I know the code to your front door. I don’t even make an appointment anymore because I know it’s vacant.” And I kept sending videos every time I was about to show it and whatever. I had another one, I had a client, we had 12 inches of snow in the beginning of January, first week in January. They came into my open house. They were very hot and heavy to buy in a certain neighborhood. And I said, “Have you seen everything?” And they said, “Yeah.” And I said, “Well, have you seen this house? It was an expired.” And they said, “No.” I said, “Well, this is your lucky day. We’ve got 12 inches of snow. My fiancé is going to plow the driveway and the walkway and we’re going to go see it.” And they came out in 12 inches of snow, it was still snowing, and it was 1250 and they paid 1180 for it.

Carley Hathaway06:31

Nice. Good work.

Ren Jones06:32

Good job. So people watching this show, they’re trying to get where you are. I hear two fundamental things that you do that they can do. One is energy and enthusiasm. And number two, you’re sending out, you’re persistent-

Carley Hathaway06:51

Yeah, your lead follow-up is on point.

Ren Jones06:55

… in a different way and your lead follow up. You’re sending out videos, you’re being persistent in your follow-up and you’re being strong and you’re being energy, energy is attractive.

Toni Gage07:03

Yeah. Well, sometimes. Sometimes I get these exhausted sellers, they’re just so monotone. And I’m like, “Good morning, how are you?”

Carley Hathaway07:13

Yeah,

Toni Gage07:13

Good morning, and they’re like, “Who is this agent?”

Ren Jones07:18

So one of the things, because a lot of people, it’s not their natural inclination. Now, I’m starting to get the idea that it is your natural inclination, and it can be a learned style. We call it it’s showtime, where the moment somebody says hello, you start marry and matching them, and then you start leading with enthusiasm and you have a great call. So I mean, if they learn anything from you, they’re bound to be feeling right now the energy that comes off of this conversation from you. If they will just emulate that when they are working with people, when they’re reaching out to people in sales, energy is attractive.

Toni Gage07:55

Absolutely, and that’s very kind of you to say that. Thank you. But I think that the … I don’t always have this level of energy. I have a crazy morning routine. I’m not sure if anyone’s interested in it.

Ren Jones08:06

Yes.

Carley Hathaway08:06

We would love to hear your morning routine.

Ren Jones08:08

We want to hear the morning routine.

Toni Gage08:10

Okay. This is the Toni Gage, Tom Ferry morning routine. I wake up at 5:00 AM or 5:15, 5:30 the latest. Sometimes I’m up at a quarter to five. I wake up, go down, have a few sips of coffee at the gym. I have a community center. I belong to a fancy gym, but I go to my community center because I don’t want anyone to see me in the morning. I don’t look like this. So I go to the gym for 30 or 45 minutes, elliptical or treadmill. And that gives you, that’s the mental advantage that I have over every other agent here that’s exhausted, hates calling. That’s the only way I can pick up the phone and get rejected about 30 times without killing myself. I told my broker I have very low self-esteem, but thank God I run and I buy myself lots of flowers.

Carley Hathaway09:02

Good for you. Good for you.

Ren Jones09:03

I love it.

Toni Gage09:03

So I come home. After that, I come home and I do a shower, quickly, quick shower. Then I sit in stillness and quiet and I read my, this might not appeal to everyone, I read my Jesus calling book. It’s about like a little paragraph. It’s just like a spiritual thing to kind of let you know the universe has got your back. Then I do a gratitude journal. I know that’s like something for people in rehab, but I do a gratitude journal and it always changes my perspective. If you are ever feeling bad, or down, or negative, you just turn it to a positive. Just turn it into I’m happy and grateful that the universe is bringing me so many opportunities today. I’m happy and grateful that I’m signing three contracts today. I’m happy and grateful that I … It always has to be I am. I am.

Ren Jones09:56

Right, it has to be present tense.

Toni Gage09:58

Yes, I am.

Ren Jones09:59

It can’t be negated. You can’t say I won’t, I don’t.

Toni Gage10:03

No.

Ren Jones10:04

Perfect, wonderful.

Toni Gage10:05

I’m happy and grateful that I am getting 10 appointments this week. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. I’m happy and grateful that … So after I do that, then it’s a whole two hour routine. Then I listen to Quantum Success, Christie Whitman.

Ren Jones10:24

Okay.

Toni Gage10:24

Have you ever heard of her? I listen to her meditation. I pay, I spend a lot of money, but I get lots of great results. So I don’t mind spending money.

Ren Jones10:31

This is wonderful.

Toni Gage10:32

250 a week, I mean, 250 a month, and her meditations are so grounding. It’s not Headspace, it’s not garbage. It’s you really feel that there’s like this light coming through your head and grounding you. She just gives you this feeling that you have light emitting from your body. If I wasn’t getting great results, and then she sends you a replay so you can keep it. I’m still doing November, it’s peace. So if you have peace within you, then everyone you encounter, you’ll give them some peace or some kind of joy. That’s what I feel, that everyone that lays eyes on me is going to have joy in their life and peace in their life. That’s what I say.

Ren Jones11:12

This is huge. Now, I mean, because let’s pretend. Let’s say you didn’t go to the gym, you didn’t read your inspirational book, you didn’t do all the other pieces of that, and then you called expireds. How would that work if you just did it without any of that? No exercise, no inspiration.

Toni Gage11:32

You would call five, and then you’d hang up and go get your nails done, your hair done, you’d go grocery shopping, you’d go to Costco.

Carley Hathaway11:38

So true.

Toni Gage11:39

Everything but call. So when you have that, the gym, and I tell my fiancé that it’s kind of gives me the crazy juice, the crazy juice to just keep going.

Ren Jones11:51

I love it. You keep that crazy juice going because in the … And if people will get this, you guys are watching this, and you have to understand that calling is simple, but it’s not easy. By all her preparation, physically, mentally, and emotionally, and now she makes her calls and then she rewards herself after and gets her nails done or whatever she wants to do. Then a reward at the end. If you guys use that format, you’ll win like Toni.

Carley Hathaway12:21

Yeah, definitely. And Toni, once you get through your morning rituals and your positive affirmations, how long are you on the phones for?

Toni Gage12:31

Well, I stay on the phones. I stay on the phones till I get two appointments a day. So sometimes it’s two hours, sometimes it’s six hours. So I can break it up, I can do two … Definitely it’s two hours in the morning and two hours sometimes in the afternoon from 3:00 to 5:00. So I do 8:00 to 10:00 or sometimes 8:30 to 10:30. And Monday is not such a good day to call in the morning. That’s why I find that I get better results Monday afternoon after 3:00 because they’ve gotten their stuff out of the way.

Ren Jones13:01

So you have quite a work ethic. What inspires you to be so successful? I mean, is there a why here or something? What drives you, or is poverty not something you’re interested in?

Toni Gage13:16

That’s definitely a driving factor because I did my profit and loss for my coach this week, and I spend a lot of money on my business. I spend about 13,000 a month on my business.

Carley Hathaway13:26

But that’s a good thing.

Ren Jones13:27

Yeah.

Toni Gage13:28

That’s a good thing, but-

Ren Jones13:29

Because she can.

Carley Hathaway13:31

Yeah, my coach is always trying to get me to spend more money and I’m always like, “Ah.” She’s like, “You better be spending more money. You better raise your budget.”

Toni Gage13:39

Yeah. Well, I just … No, I’ll tell you what drives me. I got divorced about seven years ago, and I was in the financial services business with my ex-husband. We grew a business like a mom-and-pop business that was acquired by a publicly traded company, City National Bank. I have a non-disclosure, non-compete, so I can’t be in financial services. So I love proving that I can make my own money, and it’s been wonderful because I have been making my own money and his alimony is just like gravy.

Carley Hathaway14:16

That’s a great one.

Toni Gage14:16

It’s just gravy. I hope he sees this video.

Ren Jones14:16

I love it.

Toni Gage14:18

Thank you, darling.

Carley Hathaway14:20

That is such a great why. I love it.

Toni Gage14:22

That is a great why.

Carley Hathaway14:24

And making your own money and not needing anyone else is the best feeling ever.

Toni Gage14:27

Well, because we had a very high lifestyle with private jets. So my sphere of influence knows my background, pretty much it’s common knowledge. It’s a pretty yucky story. It’s not so great, but it’s kind of I’m going to be the heroine of my own story. I don’t need to be the victim. I’m not the victim. She actually did me a favor by taking him off my hands. So we can focus on my real estate. I really focus on my real estate and it’s my life and I love it.

14:54I think people know that wherever I am, if they see me in the supermarket, in the nail salon, the hair salon, and that’s where I do get people, I get business there. Wherever I am, I’ll be waiting on line in Whole Foods and people say, “Where do I know you from?” I’ll be like, “Oh, from Facebook.” Because I do these live Facebook stories saying I’m doing an open house at 111 or 877 Belmar Road in Potomac, Maryland. It’s a great house. It’s steps away from the CNO canal, steps away from the capitol. If you’re into hiking, biking, or jogging, you need to come out and see this fabulous house. It’s the best value in Potomac. So I do, I go live a lot. So it’s a combination. It’s not just the running, it’s not the gratitude, it’s not the meditation, it’s not the calling. It’s a whole …

Ren Jones15:43

You’re putting yourself out there in a big way.

Carley Hathaway15:45

Yeah.

Toni Gage15:46

Yeah.

Ren Jones15:46

And with a lot of energy.

Carley Hathaway15:47

Toni, I’m guessing …

Ren Jones15:48

Pardon?

Carley Hathaway15:49

I’m guessing, Toni, when you’re going out, getting your nails done, going to the store, doing whatever, you’re wearing sweats and a t-shirt and flip flops, right?

Toni Gage15:55

Absolutely not, nope. Nope. I will never give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me looking like hell, maybe at 5:00 in the morning at the community center when there are three old men there, that’s fine, that don’t even have a computer. It’s fine. But I just never leave the house without my diamonds, or my nails, or my hair and I’ve got my boss bitch pumps on and there’s an attitude that goes with it. It just works. It’s just the whole package.

Carley Hathaway16:27

Yeah, because you’re on display all the time. You are your brand.

Toni Gage16:30

That’s my brand, and my-

Ren Jones16:32

You are the brand. Yeah, you are.

Toni Gage16:33

Yep. I get out of my Jaguar and I say, “How can I help you today? How can I help you today?” Let’s make it happen.

Carley Hathaway16:38

Good for you. Good for you.

Ren Jones16:42

There are a lot of people watching that the energy is attractive and they would love to send you a referral. And you’re in a market where people move in and out of a lot.

Toni Gage16:50

Very transient.

Ren Jones16:52

Can you cover all the areas you serve and then how they should reach you when they have a referral?

Toni Gage16:57

You can call. Here’s my phone number, (301) 919-1886. But it’s very easy to find my website, it’s dcsbestagent.com.

Ren Jones17:12

I love.

Carley Hathaway17:12

Love the website.

Toni Gage17:14

Dcsbestagent.com. I have someone else working on a different website for my Potomac Prestige, for my mansions, but DC’s best agent. I do Montgomery County, Northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., Georgetown. But I seem to have gotten into a little niche with the 1 million and above, and I sort of like it.

Carley Hathaway17:34

Yeah, I think so.

Toni Gage17:36

Right in my own backyard, I don’t need to take a metro. I don’t need to take Uber. I don’t need to get stressed. I just leave my house. I meet a client. I could tell that my kids went to this elementary school and I’ve been to a party on every street in this community. My kids are 26 and 20. I’ve been to a party on every street in this neighborhood, and I can tell you who lives here. We have in our little billionaire quadrant, I think we’ve got six billionaires in a two-mile radius. So it’s a very desirable neighborhood, and so people are buying a $1 million house or a 1.2, and they know that Mitch Rails lives right down the street. It gives them bragging rights and they love that. We’ve got lots of celebrities that live here. It’s not Hollywood by any stretch.

Ren Jones18:27

What a lot of fun. And folks, if you’re watching, notice that she has a keen knowledge of her market. So she’s indispensable. And there her phone call, there’s somebody calling.

Toni Gage18:38

Nope. Money never sleeps.

Ren Jones18:41

Right. So she knows her market so well backwards and forwards. And if you know your market that well, you become indispensable.

Toni Gage18:49

That’s the value that I bring. That’s my value.

Ren Jones18:51

And that is huge value.

Toni Gage18:52

And no one can ever, my husband, my ex-boyfriend, no one could ever take that from me. That’s in my brain. That’s my personality. Those are my experiences, and no one can ever take that. I want to be an inspiration to other women who are going through a difficult transition in their lives. You can turn your life around and you can make yourself fabulous.

Carley Hathaway19:10

Yeah.

Toni Gage19:11

I wasn’t always this fabulous. You can turn around, turn your life around. And you know what? People will regret the day that they left you.

Carley Hathaway19:21

I love that.

Toni Gage19:22

Every day that I put my feet on the ground, the devil says, “Damn, she’s up again.” I say, “Thank you, Jesus. Thank you.”

Ren Jones19:30

I love it. I love it. Last thing, I forgot to bring it up. I noticed it. Horses.

Toni Gage19:36

Oh yeah. We spend a lot of money on horses out here.

Ren Jones19:39

Okay. It just says you are passionate about all things equestrian.

Toni Gage19:43

All things equestrian. Well, that was. My daughter went to a boarding school here in McClain, the Madeira School, which is very prestigious, and now she’s down in South Carolina. But when my husband left and I got custody of my daughter, I thought this is an opportunity for her to go off the crazy train. All of my other friends that were in the psychiatric or therapeutic industry said, “You need to do something for her to focus her energy.” So I put real estate on hold for a little while, and I took her out to the barn every single day. I’d pick her up from school at 2:15 and we’d be at the barn, she’d be mucking on 80 acres, and then she’d go to her … I bought her a horse, we made a deal. I bought her a horse, and she went from being a B student to a 4.6 student.

Ren Jones20:30

Whoa.

Carley Hathaway20:31

Wow.

Toni Gage20:33

So, I said to her, “You are not going to be a failure. You’re not going to be another Potomac casualty, so you are going to be out there.” I took her to Poolesville. I’d drive 15 miles one way, 15 miles another way, and it changed her life.

Ren Jones20:44

Nice.

Toni Gage20:44

She realized that whatever she put her mind to, if she really focused on it, and it applies to competition, it applies to everything. Actually her focus and her tunnel vision, it was very encouraging for me. I learned a little something from that experience myself. I thought, you know what? If she can regain composure after having her dad walk out of the house, and sit herself on that horse and have three or four judges looking at her and judging her, and she can remain totally calm on this 1200 pound beast, I can do it too. I can do it with a billionaire or a hockey player or a basketball player.

Ren Jones21:24

There you go.

Carley Hathaway21:25

Love it.

Toni Gage21:26

Yep.

Ren Jones21:26

Wonderful. This has been a real treat, Toni.

Carley Hathaway21:29

Yeah. Thank you so much.

Ren Jones21:30

And you’ve shared some information that can help people, because the mental side of it, knowing your neighborhood, energy and enthusiasm, the mental side of preparation before you make your calls, rewarding yourself afterward. There’s so many, and powerful, powerful, powerful, persistent lead follow up. I mean, you’ve got all the ingredients

Toni Gage21:50

Do you want another little tip?

Ren Jones21:52

Yes.

Carley Hathaway21:52

Yes.

Toni Gage21:53

Another little tip. Okay. I keep a legal pad, I’m old school. I keep a legal pad right by my computer. So on this side I have easy text. So these are the numbers that are going to get easy text, that’s group texting. Then these are the people that my secretary’s going to follow up with with a series of three or four letters.

Ren Jones22:11

Great.

Toni Gage22:12

So if they want the letters, just reach out to me. It’s dcsbestagent@gmail.com. Just send me say, “I saw the podcast, and can you send me your PDFs of your follow-up and the text messages?” I’ll send you the script for the follow-up. My secretary types it in, so it saves you time. So have you ever heard of EZ Texting?

Ren Jones22:38

No, but I know, I understand ABC, which is always be closing, and you are closing for future deals right now.

Toni Gage22:45

Yes, I am.

Carley Hathaway22:46

Follow up, follow up, follow up. I love it.

Ren Jones22:48

I love it.

Carley Hathaway22:49

Thank you so much.

Ren Jones22:49

You’re good.

Carley Hathaway22:51

You know what? I think my favorite takeaway was I’m going to start wearing my diamonds to the grocery store.

Toni Gage22:54

Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely. Living well is the best revenge, baby.

Ren Jones22:59

That’s it. That’s it.

Carley Hathaway23:00

Love it.

Toni Gage23:01

Be a money magnet. Money magnet.

Ren Jones23:04

I want to thank everybody. I want to thank you, Toni.

Toni Gage23:06

My please.

Ren Jones23:07

Thank everybody for being here. We’ll see everybody next week when we … Every week we bring someone who is powerfully listing a lot of property every month. Toni, this is a wonderful, wonderful.

Toni Gage23:18

Thank you. My pleasure. Hope to see you guys soon. God bless.

Ren Jones23:22

Well, let’s sell some spots here. If you’re watching on Vulcan7 and you want to get involved with the Lead Gen Facebook group, and some of you are watching on there as we simulcast, they are at facebook.com/groups/gotobjections. And I want to thank Aaron Wittenstein who runs the group. He’s a real giver he’s got a program called trajectorynow.com.

23:48And finally, if you’re watching on Facebook and you’re not yet involved with Vulcan7, make sure to sign up at Vulcan7.com/leadgen for a special deal. Some of you are wanting where Toni gets all her energy, and enthusiasm, and power, and her ability to close. She goes at the end, just before she goes and has her nails done, she goes and gets out of her freezer some delicious Graeter’s mint chocolate chip. This is the one for listings taking. You want the mint chocolate chip. Go to Graeters.com. You can find it, and they’ll tell you where you can find it anywhere in North America. And if the listing doesn’t sell right away, dig a hole in the front yard, bury it upside down, and that listing will sell just like that. They have other flavors, but those flavors are for working with buyers. But if you’re listing a lot of property, you want the mint chocolate chip. We’ll see everybody next week. Appreciate it. It was a lot of fun, Carley. And we had a great guest, didn’t we?

Carley Hathaway24:48

Yes. Toni’s amazing. And thank you so much, Ren, for having me, and thanks everyone for watching.

Ren Jones24:54

All right, go take three more listings this week, Carley.

Carley Hathaway24:56

I will. I will.

24:56