Redfin

I was an Associate Agent for a few months before I decided to dive into traditional real estate. The support you receive from management/lead agents/coordinators is almost nonexistent. There’s no sense of community or culture at all.
I was going to interview to be a lead agent, but I decided to run the other way. Any time I’ve needed help with anything I’ve had to search for the answer on my own 80 percent of the time , or contact several people to get some kind of help. I truly don’t know what the management team does. I can’t even imagine how difficult the lead agent position would be with such an unorganized and unsupportive business model.
You do not get paid well at all as an AA, and I’ve heard from a lead agent that their pay is nothing to be excited about, especially for the amount of work you do. They got rid of the weekend incentive right after I got hired and I felt so duped. They sent two contract provisions while I was there for 6 months. Please run the other way as this model is so impersonal and clients are left frustrated and unmotivated.

I thought that this was just maybe here in Austin, but the reviews about the pay is the truth. Redfin does not pay agents enough to work the amount you have to in order to see real money. The contract workers like the associate agents and partner agents make a lot more than the direct agents. I am assuming all of the people that work there are just really in love with the benefits. I could never figure it out. Most clients assume the agents make at least 1 percent, but agents don’t even make half of that for each transaction. Its a great place to learn if you are new to real estate and still live at home with parents with little to no bills. It’s also a lot of support. The people are nice and friendly. Not sure how these people can live off of the pay. I recommend people that want to work there have another job to help take care of bills. They won’t tell you this, but the turn over is the highest I have ever seen. They keep making changes to the pay to make it more sustainable, and it’s still too low. If you are an existing agent I do not recommend you make the switch. Once you put your clients into their system they belong to them. Once you leave and sell those clients they will come for 50% of the commission even though they were your clients to begin with. They are entitled to 50% off of anything you sell for 12 months after you leave. Trust me. Hugest mistake was switching from real real estate to this discount firm. The $12,000/yr salary is an absolute joke. My teenager makes that working part-time after school.

Redfin is an awesome company that sticks to its values and mission statement and has served as a disruptive force in the real estate industry. I read the reviews of the pitfalls with work-life balance and that is a tough one as real estate is a 24/7 business, it just is. So trying to mix corporate with real estate is a complex proposition and Redfin is still working out the kinks in that. But they do listen and try to work them out. I find it an excellent workplace for women for pay and advancement – especially women in the more mature years. And that says a lot. There is much respect for experience and skill in this group. But you do have to be willing to work hard, and must be tech-savvy and organized or will fail miserably. So it is not a fit for all but for those it is a fit for, it’s like your favorite sport mitt and you can’t wait to use it and get your game on!

I was an associate agent at Redfin for almost two years. There was opportunity within for advancement, however, training needed to be in Seattle for 2 week period. For those of us who are caretakers, it was not possible.
There were many deal agents that were appreciative of the associate agents, and the efforts set forth to represent well as a team. I left Redfin as I was reprimanded for ‘doing too good of a job”,as the sellers for the listing deal agent, praised me to the ‘deal agent’. Rather than to be appreciative in having an agent who gave 100% in an effort to sell the home, I was dumbfounded by the reprimand..
Associate agents work hard, get paid per ‘event’ and are classified as self-employed, paying the LIBOR dues, all expenses, and no benefits vs. the deal agents who are paid employees. We, as associates, felt very unappreciated by the corporate, including glen and we were not ever mentioned as part of their success. Many of the deal agents did appreciate our efforts. Could not make a living as an associate, as the coordinators scheduled us for events, and there existed alot of nepotism and favoritism.
To this day, not being with redfin, but back to traditional real estate, I am friendly with many of the deal agents and team leads, and held the highest regard and respect for them. One of my favorites, Mario Urratia. he appreciated the associates and knew our value.
If only Glen Kelman would have acknowledged and appreciated the associate agents, who were always on call, even when blocked out, who gave it their all in a team effort, and unfortunately received no credit, and none of the perks we all , should have been afforded.
On the other hand, the deal agents and team leads great opportunityas full time employment with no prospecting needed, and steady buyers and sellers and a great team of associates helping them to close the deals.

I started with Redfin in 2011, worked more than one position and in two states. If you don’t get a good manager it can be quite a challenge getting anything done. Each state has a different culture even though it’s the same company. Boundaries in any position are key, otherwise they will take and take. You can advance if you are friends with upper management, it’s all in who you know, which was disappointing. Most of my co-workers (non-management) were friendly and easy to work with. Good benefit package and vacation time. Would I work for them again? Probably not.

I started at Redfin just after I found out that I was pregnant. I had every intention of staying with the company, except that 6 months after I started my husband got a new job at 1.5x the pay and within 2 months his pay was double what it used to be – so I didnt’ need to keep the job. And I could stay home with my 2 babies (one was almost 2, the other a newborn). When I left, the owner came up to be personally and said, “You played us for the benefits. Nice play.” It was super rude and unnecessary. It was unbelievable. The whole company wants to be fun, but they are a little bit in your business and seem to micromanage – at least in my opinion. I had no pay and saw no promotional issues. The only reason I gave it 2 stars for family friendly is because they do have fantastic insurance. Cool business concept, but I’ll pass on that kind of a crappy culture where you’re considered wrong for deciding to quit and stay home with your kids. I’m happy to anonymously post this for other women. I had another friend who also felt she was singled out as an agent and let go for being a woman who also might have a child. Pretty messed up.

Redfin’s business model is unique and current for today’s real estate market…great for buyers and sellers! In Florida agents receive very little support and minimum training, especially with their dashboard. Seek, hunt and find was the only way I could get an answer for my questions, which is time consuming and ineffective. Agent pay is extremely low for the amount of hours required to complete transactions. . If you make commission plus your salary expect only approximately $40,000 per year. In many cases, I would figure out my hours per transaction and would make less than the national minimum wage rate. The manager viewed agents like a disposable piece of property. Again, Redfin business model is great if you are a BUYER or SELLER! Agents, if you are about making money Redfin is NOT the employer for you.

The app is the first experience many home seekers may have with Redfin. It’s the best! Then they learn that we are not just a searching app/tool, but Redfin is a nationwide real estate brokerage with local teams of Redfin listing agents and buyer’s agents ready to help. Together we have the synergy of a full real estate solution. Nine years in and I would choose Redfin all over again. Thankfully I don’t have to choose. Redfin is a merit-based company, we work hard, we play hard. If you want to do real estate this is it. This is not for the faint of heart. A busy real estate agent is busy. Busy is good. Redfin has allowed me, as a buyer’s agent to be my client’s advocate, sell homes, list homes, and be supported by a team and to raise a family. The support, the website and the app all help me be the best Redfin Real Estate Agent possible. Thanks Redfin!

I was an agent with Redfin for many years and like other reviews say, they treat the agents as disposable commodities. You are not valued unless you kill yourself to be a top producer. They constantly stress work life balance however, in practice they don’t want you to have any. They promote managers based on cliques, like the movie mean girls. The managers have no clue what they are doing. They are puppets who just do what they are told from higher management. Glenn has a great vision and his hear is in the right place however, the translation down the pipeline has been greatly altered. When I started at Redfin they really cared about their employees and their clients. Now, everyone is but a number.

I was bullied by a manager, of the same sex and not supported properly by HR. I love Refin and what it models, however, the bullying was even noticed by employees and told me they felt I was treated unfairly.

I seriously love Redfin, I work hard and I am compensated accordingly. That is how it should be.
Redfin hierarchy listens too. No idea is spurned. In this company individuals truly make a difference.
Motivated individuals can earn great money and enjoy fantastic benefits.
I am a bona fide fan…

I was an agent at Redfin. I felt Redfin treated man and women equally. If that is your only curiosity, you can stop reading now. However, if you are wondering about the culture for an agent, read on. While I very much enjoyed my peers and direct management, I felt the company overall did not value the agents- it felt like agents were a commodity. To make a reasonable living, agents have to do a crazy amount of transactions and run themselves ragged. Real estate is a “Belly to Belly” career and most clients require plenty of hand-holding during the biggest purchase (or sale) of their life – so that means late night calls, texts, scrambling to write offers, etc. To be honest – I felt that upper management did not have their finger on the pulse of what it is like to be “boots on the ground”. As a tech company, Redfin is excellent; as a real estate brokerage providing excellent care to their agents and clients, not so much.

Fantastic company to work for. I feel completely supported here to do my best. When I fall short, my co-workers always step up to help.

The culture is overall egalitarian between men & women there. Very intense hours & expectations as an agent though – so hard to achieve work life balance. They are tend to promote managers from within, people who don’t have experience or training as managers, so though they may be good agents that doesn’t necessarily translate to good management. Often don’t listen to feedback from the field either about their management choices. Also though the tech used to support agents is excellent, policies etc are constantly changing so be prepared for that.

Redfin is not a company that values its employees. They overwork you for relatively little pay and don’t have any respect for work life balance.

I worked at Redfin for several years. As a woman in tech, I felt respected by my peers, empowered by my bosses, and encouraged to grow in my career. I also saw other women (and men!) consistently supported in similar ways. I was a big fan of the work culture and would recommend it highly.

Redfin is an awesome company to work for. The employees are all intelligent, friendly and professional. You have the opportunity to share your ideas and present opportunities to help with your career and progression. I built a family that will prolong for years!

Love the concept, the support and the values

I wrote honest reviews on local real estate listings that described a property from a potential buyer’s point of view. I described how I felt about the listing. Was it quaint? Good vibes? Bad vibes? Would I be comfortable living there? What caught my attention in a good or bad way. Was it ready to move in as is or did it need some work and TLC. What was the neighborhood like? I went beyond just describing each listing by it’s size and price. I became the eyes and ears of potential buyers. I truly enjoyed utilizing my 25 years of writing skills as a tech writer with a pinch of personality. Fun stuff! Too bad the top Real Estate moguls felt intimidated by my honesty. Redfin was super supportive of me and made sure that I would not be held liable. Plus, I enjoyed being part of a movement to burst the ‘monopoly’ like bubble that the Real Estate industry has in this country. But alas, the Real Estate industry did not like the perceived threat of Redfin and so the writers were told that we would have to be held liable for whatever we write about listings. So that ended my gig with them.