Gurus Trent and Maggie Whittington with Whittington Co

Rick Ripma: 0:00

Welcome to Indy's Real Estate Gurus. I'm Rick Ripma. Your hard work and mortgage guy and we're recording today from advisors, Mortgage Group studios right here in downtown Carmel. And my team and I believe in custom tailored loans, not a one size fits all approach. We believe there is a right mortgage for you and we are the team to deliver it. And today we have a little difference really excited. We have two, not one but two real estate agents a married couple, Trent and Maggie and I don't want to Whittington Whittington I did it right. Haha, that's like the fourth one in a row. I'm on a roll. Yeah. Awesome. And you guys at you've been working together. It sounds like you've been together for a while. And Maggie's pregnant. Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 0:43

that pretty is Yeah. Things are getting serious. Yeah. Yeah. Thanks so much

Rick Ripma: 0:47

for joining us. We appreciate it. Especially being that you're pretty tuned to deliver. Right? Yeah, yeah. Next month. We were hoping you'd make it without you know. Some people go early. Yeah. Yeah, most people hope they go early. Yes. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. So if somebody was looking to get a home buy a home sell a home. How would they get a hold of you guys?

Trent Whittington: 1:09

Yeah, I'm probably best reached on my with my phone. My cell phone numbers 317-755-7055. Maggie, she's probably better reached via either email or social media.

Maggie Whittington: 1:28

More of a texter. Yeah, okay. Caller Yeah, I'll answer if you call but. Yeah. phone, email, social media. Those are all good ways to get a hold of us. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 1:39

Okay, perfect cell phone. What the phone number you gave was the 317-755-7055. Exactly.

Trent Whittington: 1:47

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. That and then

Rick Ripma: 1:49

obviously if something they can find you on social media. Yeah.

Maggie Whittington: 1:53

So my instagram username is at move with Maggie underscore. So you can find me there trances at Trent the realtor. So we're both on Instagram and then email. Our emails are Maggie at Weddington co.com. And Trent at Weddington Co dot cognitive

Rick Ripma: 2:09

perfect. And we put it underneath if they if somebody had just listening that Yeah, yeah. All that information, put it all there. So how did you guys get into real estate? No, it was he met in real estate. So how did each of you get into the into real estate? And what do you do before you were in the real estate? Yeah.

Trent Whittington: 2:27

So I got into real estate in 2010. I, honestly, a lot of the credit goes to the show Million Dollar Listing, which is really cheesy, but that is true. Sadly. I was at IUPUI. And I guess I'll call myself a sophomore at that point. I don't know, credit wise what I actually was, but technically it was my second year, I think. And I just knew that I was not going to finish school. And so I figured I would go into sales in some capacity. And I thought that real estate was one of the pinnacles of sales really. And so that's what that's what I did. So before it was just school, and I worked part time for my mom at a hospital in Danville. She's she's been a director out there for my whole life actually. And so I worked as ER registration. So I was the guy that came in and, you know, your arms broken, and I'm asking you about anthem or United Healthcare. Yeah. So training for real? Yeah, it was intense. Yeah. So, so that's what I did for about two years, maybe three years. So it was and then I got to a point where that, you know, real estate, replaced that income and never looked back. So you grew up in Danville? I grew up in Pittsboro. Yeah. So okay, so born and raised. Yeah. So Pittsboro. Yeah, I live there most of my life and then lived downtown and Fletcher place briefly. Awesome. Well, for a few years, and then moved back. Yep.

Rick Ripma: 4:08

How about you, Maggie?

Maggie Whittington: 4:09

Yeah, so I feel like I don't have as great have a story. I did high school before I got into real estate. I was in college at IUPUI for I think two weeks, and it just was not a good fit. For me. I didn't have that thing that I cared about whether it was nursing or teaching or something like that. I never had that thing that I wanted to do. So the thought of going to school for four more years and potentially taking on student debt to do something I don't care about did not sound appealing to me. So several people recommended that I should get into real estate, which I don't know why I didn't know any realtors. I didn't know anything about what real estate was. But I saw that it had a short education period there and I thought that sounds good to me. So I can only do two weeks Yeah. Yeah, so that sounds great. So it's not a great story. But that's the true story of how we got here. But I think it was just meant to be because that's how we met. And it's been, you know,

Rick Ripma: 5:11

you're out of high school, two weeks in college, decided you're gonna go into real estate. So when you took your class, how old were you when you took the class for real estate? 1818? And when you started in real estate, were you 18? Yeah. As a real estate agent. Okay, so that's incredible. Because most, that's, I think the youngest that I've run into is somebody who was in there, like maybe 20. And they started in real estate as they were in college. Yeah. So you started you at 18 years old. So how 18 Did you get going,

Maggie Whittington: 5:44

um, a lot of luck and a lot of support and encouragement from my family. I come from a pretty long line of self employed business owners. And so I knew the way that that worked. And I knew kind of the lifestyle that that would be. And I just had a lot of help and support from my parents to get me going and push me through. Both of us actually started off on a team. Well, I guess he didn't until a couple years in, yeah, but I started off on a team and my team leader was really helpful and instrumental and teaching me the foundations of the business and making me feel like it was something I could do, even though I was young, and not many people want an 18 year old to help them buy or sell a home. But they gave me the confidence that if you stick with it, this could really be something great for you. You just have to get through the first few years.

Rick Ripma: 6:32

Yeah, and I can see that, but I don't know, I don't, I don't tend to have a problem with age, because I don't think age is what sets somebody apart, you know, necessarily somebody, some people are very mature and can do things at a much younger age than other people. Right. So I mean, that's never an issue. But so you, you got into the end of the bus, you're 18 years old. So you got these mentors, mentors are obviously very important. And, and they and your parents helped you. But What activities did you do? Because I got a thing, that there were people who said, No, I don't want to work with you. You're too young.

Maggie Whittington: 7:07

Yeah. Yeah. So I really was given a lot of advice to focus on my sphere of influence, and make sure that everybody that I know, they no longer see Me as the high school student or the child, they see me as the real estate resource. So it just for years, I would send postcards, mailers, do open houses, events, where I can meet people, and just do my best to stay in front of everybody that I know. So that way, I will be top of mind whenever they did have a real estate need, or they did you know, have something come up that they would think of me to ask me? Yeah,

Rick Ripma: 7:39

that's kind of the way to do it, isn't it as you become an expert, even at a young age, and when people talk to you they go, oh, this person doesn't know what they're Yeah, and I can work with that. Yeah, right. Yeah, that makes a big difference.

Trent Whittington: 7:48

It's funny, every once in a while we'll stumble across like her old marketing pieces, because she'll keep she kept some of them, you know, just for memories. Memories, I guess. And it's like, adorable, all the little stuff that she used to do. It's so cute. Yeah,

Maggie Whittington: 8:02

my dad owns a printing company. And so I had kind of an unfair advantage of out postcards, just so much print marketing that he would help me with. Yeah. And we just consistently did it every month, every week, for years until it finally worked.

Rick Ripma: 8:17

That's awesome. Yeah, travel. How about you? You were pretty young when you got into real estate also, right?

Trent Whittington: 8:22

Yeah, I was 21. Yeah, yeah. Super young. Yeah. Looks like I was 17. He was like an older afro. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it was a mess when I got it. How did I, how did I get started? Is that question? Yeah. I think I, you know, I really just had, so Okay, so I was from 2010 to 12. I was at Tucker and I was an independent agent. And I really spun my wheels there. You know, I think I don't think I did anything exceptionally well, at that point in time. I think I just was persistent and just kept working. You know, when you're so friendly. Yeah, that's your gift in life. She's like a testament to like being consistent and doing, like the staples that we all think of with marketing. And I'm a testament to just being social and just winging it and still making it I guess. And so now that we're a team, it's, it's kind of the best of both worlds. Right. But, you know, early in my career, it was really just a lot of just a lot of work in in just talking to people. I also have a very successful friend group that was instrumental in you know, sending me early referrals in my career and, and that sort of catapulted me so

Rick Ripma: 9:45

yeah, it doesn't sound like much the difference between 18 and 21. But the difference between 18 and 21 It is your sphere of influence sure is now getting ready to hopefully some of them by car car car. Yeah, real estate. Yeah. They don't care if they buy cars. Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 10:01

don't buy a car. Yeah, buy a house. Yeah,

Maggie Whittington: 10:03

yeah, you're right. It is a big difference. Yeah, that's

Rick Ripma: 10:07

so but it's still very young. And it's still amazing how you you both got in you got going. So, you started at Tucker, you started Keller Williams? And when did you guys end up meeting? Where was that?

Trent Whittington: 10:24

So it was at KW. In 2016. We went to bold which we laugh about it, but do you guys know a bold is now okay. It's a it's a lead gen course that Keller Williams puts on it stands for business, objective Wi Fi design, something like that. And, you know, it's a, it's Kool Aid, right. So you go to and chant Keller Williams for five days or

Maggie Whittington: 10:46

whatever. It's really, really beneficial if you can get yourself to get past it. And I'm really introverted. And one of the first days they make you stand up and say I am Maggie. And I am bowled in. I just was not for me.

Trent Whittington: 10:59

But But I stuck through so she was we were both there in 2016. And I knew of her she actually went to school with my younger brother. Okay, so they're the same age.

Maggie Whittington: 11:11

And yeah, so we went to the same high school. We're from the same Yeah, okay. Yeah. But I'm

Trent Whittington: 11:15

eight and a half years older than she is. So she was there at the same time that my little brother was and so I just started talking to her and planting the seed, then. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 11:26

You're looking to make a team, right? Uh, huh. Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 11:29

yeah. Okay. Yeah.

Maggie Whittington: 11:30

Well, we became friends from there. And, and then he was on a pretty successful real estate team at the time. And I was kind of at a in between place in my career, I was no longer at the team I started on, but I wasn't ready to be on my own. So he had recruited me to join the team that he was on. And that was a really big thing, I think, for both of us in our careers.

Rick Ripma: 11:52

So we've established that you're a very good salesperson.

Trent Whittington: 11:54

I am. That was my best sales job. Yeah. And I also have vision. Yeah. Which is true. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 12:05

So so that so now you're on a team, how important is it for somebody, especially when they're new to be on a success? Not just a team, but a successful team? And what if somebody is new? And they're looking for that? What should they look for in a team?

Trent Whittington: 12:18

Yeah, I think it's the most important thing, really, I guess, if not a team, a close knit group of agents that will support you. Because, you know, you know, nothing when you get into the business. And so and you unfortunately, there isn't a tried and true way to know everything that's going to come up. I mean, this is my 13th year, and I still learn stuff, not in every deal. But several times throughout the year. I'm like, Ah, you know, that was a new underwrite. And so who is going to answer your call when you have that question? And that's ideally a team lead, you know, if not, that a mentor. But you know, I think aligning yourself with somebody that's been in the business a long time and does things the right way is is paramount. I mean, you know, there's not a better way to get started.

Maggie Whittington: 13:08

And I think the thing that a lot of people don't want to admit or accept about real estate is there's only so much you can do to build your business. And it just takes time. It's such a long game, where the and sometimes that time people don't have it, if you have a family, you can't go without an income for 234 years in every situation, to let yourself have that time to build up your career. And so a team can really be instrumental in helping you get started, whether that's with leads, I think that would be something important to look for, if you're a new agent, looking at a team is a team that provides leads structure. And just the pillars you need to be successful. Yeah, it

Rick Ripma: 13:47

really makes a big difference. Even I find that even a lot of the top agents that we talked to, are not not only running a team, but they actually have a group of mentors that they're partnered with. So that because there's always new things that come along. Sure, right. Yeah. Yeah. So it's always totally so if somebody wanted to talk to either one of you about real estate looking to buy sell, how would they how would they get ahold of you? What's the best way?

Trent Whittington: 14:12

Yeah. So the best way for me is gonna be my phone. Yeah, so my cell phone number is 317-755-7055. That's, that's the best way to get ahold of me. So yeah, and

Maggie Whittington: 14:25

then I would say, text me at 317-966-2172 or reach out to me on Instagram or email me.

Trent Whittington: 14:32

What's your Instagram?

Maggie Whittington: 14:33

My Instagram is at move with Maggie underscore

Rick Ripma: 14:37

at move with Maggie underscore Yes. And they just say I'm not somebody who's not really into Instagram. Yeah, that's they they just type that in and it takes them right there

Trent Whittington: 14:46

I am. Yeah, I was at live with Maggie was taken already.

Maggie Whittington: 14:49

Yes. Unfortunately. Yeah, that's not the person who has to score

Rick Ripma: 14:54

better. Yeah, to get a hold of me or Ian or i It's HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com That's HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com Or you can call 317-672-1938. That's 317-672-1938. And we talked about, you know, mentors. And I mean, I know that's a huge piece of the business is, as I said, I've seen, even we had a, we had an agent on he's been in the business for 48 years. And he has a mentor team that he works. We have people. Yeah. And, and it's, as you've been in 13 years, and like you said, there's always something. It's something new, but sometimes things just change. Yeah, I bet you've seen a lot of change here. Especially recently, how have you not? Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 15:40

yeah, I feel like, you know, we, so we got to in 2010. And what 1213? No, yeah, no, you were fixed. 16? Yeah. So we've really written the wave up the whole time. You know? I mean, when I got in, it was absolutely terrible. You remember 2010? I mean, it was yeah, I remember telling people, six months on the market was normal. Right. And so we really rode the wave up the whole time. So it's been interesting to see a little bit of a backtrack, you know, not necessarily in prices, but I suppose in activity. And so that's been really kind of refreshing. I guess, you know, I don't, we don't necessarily look at the, the change, as is a bad thing. You know, one of the things we say a lot is that gives us job security, right? Because if everything was always the same in real estate, then why do you need a realtor? Right, you know, so. But yeah, yeah. Interesting.

Rick Ripma: 16:41

Yeah. Well, I can list a whole bunch of reasons why you need a real estate agent? Sure.

Trent Whittington: 16:45

Well, yeah, me too, right. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 16:48

I've seen Yeah, I've seen it happen. So many ways. Yeah. So many different situations. Yeah. So maybe what would you say your superpower or superpowers are?

Maggie Whittington: 16:57

Yeah, so I would say for me, personally, the marketing aspect of the business and the client care, organization, and structure is more so my strong suit. And so I handle all of our client outreach, we host a lot of client events throughout the year just to show our appreciation for our clients. And so that's a fun part of the job that I get to do. Marketing on social media, creating content that makes buying or selling or building or whatever it is simple for the client is really enjoyable for me. And it's something that I feel like I've gotten decent at over the years. And that's helped in our business quite

Trent Whittington: 17:38

a bit. You want to talk about how that just got you a referral? Oh, yeah. So

Maggie Whittington: 17:44

one of the things that we've found recently is as the market has shifted, people can now make a first right offer on a home again, where they say, Hey, I want to buy your home, but I need to sell mine first. And mine's maybe not listed, it's not ready yet. And we call that a chicken or egg dynamic, it's really hard for the client to know what comes first because no one wants to be homeless. But not many people are comfortable with two mortgages at one time. So we've found that that's a really tough thing to kind of talk through with the client. And so I created a guide about buying and selling at the same time that kind of walks you through the steps of how important it is to talk to a lender and find out can you qualify for both? If not, how do you need to make that work in order to get your down payment for your next home? And so I had sent that guide out to everyone in our sphere and our email list and one of my clients forwarded that email on to a friend of hers and that friend reached out and said, Hey, I'm getting ready to sell my home I would love to have you come out and help me so yeah,

Trent Whittington: 18:43

yeah, that's fantastic. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 18:46

So there are ways obviously to be able to buy without selling your house yeah and so there are also I don't know if you see we haven't seen much of this recently but we you know, we we do have you know your blanket and bridge loans to that that that's another way for somebody if they were sure if they were going to do that where they don't have to have to I always think it's better not to do that if you can avoid it sure, but it is what some people that's their their preferred way I find most people call about it they end up just having two mortgages for a short period of time plus even though today you can you know somehow you make offers like that homes are still selling very very quickly. Oh yeah. So quickly it's not as it's not as big a deal right? Just get qualified right? Sell Your House Exactly. Probably never gonna be Yeah, that you have to do that right? Yeah. Yep. How about how about you track what's your superpower superpowers?

Trent Whittington: 19:44

I'm a one trick pony mice. My superpower is just I you know, I love people and talking to people and I I'm comfortable pretty much in any social situation. I've just, I don't know, I have the gift of gab. I guess you know, I Mmm,

Maggie Whittington: 20:00

he makes a friend everywhere. Yeah, that's, that's,

Trent Whittington: 20:03

that's my power everything else. Um, weekend. Yeah,

Maggie Whittington: 20:08

he's also he's truly I mean, I know I'm super biased, but he's one of the smartest Realtors I've ever met where he knows so much more than just your basic how to get through a transaction. He knows the contracts inside and out. And even when it comes down to inspection repairs, the way those should be done the stuff that he knows and like how, I mean, this is eight years for me, and I still don't know some of that stuff. So it's not obvious. And I think that really sets him apart.

Rick Ripma: 20:34

You're saying he has more superpowers that he definitely loves? Yeah, maybe?

Maggie Whittington: 20:37

Yeah. Yeah. And he's an idea, man, we work well together, because I can create the things but he has a lot of the ideas for it. He just doesn't. The follow through is not always his skill set. But we're a good team.

Rick Ripma: 20:52

I want to know, is he faster than a speeding bullet? Or can we fly or leap tall buildings in a single? No,

Trent Whittington: 20:58

no. And I'm not strong. That's for sure. There's a funny? Yeah, yeah, definitely not strong. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 21:06

So how do you guys work? i It sounds to me like you both do very specific. As a team, you have your, what you do, and he has what he does. So if I'm a client, and I'm talking to you, who's the face of it? Are both of you are?

Trent Whittington: 21:25

Yeah, good question. So depending on the client, both of us, and really, the way it's trending is, is both of us on on most transactions. So, you know, a lot of them, a lot of people that we work with are referrals in, you know, people from church, etc, etc. And so it just makes sense to, to work them together. And, and we both have our strong suits at different points in the transaction. And so if it's

Maggie Whittington: 21:52

a past client of, you know, since we both read in the industry separate from each other, if it's a past client of mine, I pretty much handle them. And if it's a past client of his he pretty much handles them, because that's who the client is comfortable with that point. But yeah, the longer we're married, the more becomes become merging of Yeah, we kind of handle everything together. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 22:11

I just wondered, because if somebody's listening, and they're going, Well, who am I going to talk to? Yeah, they can talk to you. Yeah, it's a great question. Yep. But it sounds like, like, when you plan events and things, you're the back end planning at all. And he's the guy out front.

Maggie Whittington: 22:26

He's the talent. Yeah.

Trent Whittington: 22:28

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, she's obviously there work in the room, too, on those days. But yeah, she's definitely the one planning it.

Rick Ripma: 22:35

I worked at a place that had had two owners. And one of the owners was like, you know, outgoing, the other one was more reserved, and very, very detailed type guy. But they both worked the room. Sure. But the guy you know, the guy like you was out there. I mean, he was enjoying himself. Yeah. The other the other one. It was a lot more work for ya. Right, you know? Yeah. But that's just how it is. Yep. So what do you think some of the misconceptions are about? Somebody as they look at maybe becoming a real estate agent? Or maybe people have of what a real estate agent does?

Trent Whittington: 23:10

Yeah. Oh, there's so many. Yes, she could go on and on. How long is this podcast? Yeah, I think, I think the biggest misconception is that it's easy, you know, or that you get your license and in the referral, start pouring in. And, you know, you see all this glamour, you know, everybody's driving nice cars, and making all this money and blah, blah, blah, million dollar houses. I think that that's the biggest misconception. And you know, the stark reality is that you get your license, and nothing happens until you, you do it, you know, until you make it happen. And so I just think there's a, there's a false narrative based around that, you know, that you make your own schedule, which in reality, it's like your clients make your schedule for you if you're busy. And then you can do things to set boundaries to try and make your own schedule. But you know, some of that is, I would say the bigger false.

Maggie Whittington: 24:10

Yeah, yeah, we feel like a lot of agents don't like to talk about maybe the negative side of it, you would say, where we sometimes refer to it as a battle. You know, it's a battle to learn everything you need to learn and be the good agent that can truly serve a client. Well, it's a battle to get the clients to trust you to pick you as their agent because the average person knows 10 Plus realtors. So there's an abundance of options for them, and how do you make sure that you're the one? It can just be a battle sometimes, and it takes time, and I think people get frustrated and disappointed when it doesn't come as quickly or maybe ever to what they think it would be

Rick Ripma: 24:48

to that point. How should somebody then if they're looking to hire a real estate agent, what should they look for what maybe even what kind of questions should they ask this person? So If they know they're hiring the right person, yeah.

Trent Whittington: 25:04

If I were to hire an agent today, I would be asking them, you know, how long have you been in the business? How many houses? Have you sold? You know, which full time? Are you a full time agent? You know? You know, just just qualifying credentials in those areas, you know?

Maggie Whittington: 25:23

And do they know the area that you're writing in? A lot of realtors want to say that, you know, we're licensed in the whole state of Indiana, so we can sell in the whole state of Indiana. Do we know the whole state of Indiana? Absolutely not. So no, no, Gary? No, we

Trent Whittington: 25:37

don't. Yeah, we wave to Chicago. Yeah. And the

Maggie Whittington: 25:41

longer we've been in the business, it gets easier to tell somebody, like it's really not in your best interest to have me help you in that area. Because I don't know it. And I can't get there as quick. If I have to drive two hours to show you a house, you're being done it and we

Trent Whittington: 25:54

can't even get the data. You know, I mean, if we're not in, say, I RMLs. I mean, we can't get the data to properly advise somebody you know, and so we're like, sorry, you know, we just can't help you. Yeah, you know, so yeah, it's we tell people, it's hyperlocal. I mean, there's a difference between Pittsboro real estate and fishers real estate. Right. So finding

Maggie Whittington: 26:11

an agent that knows that that sells in the area that you were in and knows how the market is in your area, I think is key.

Rick Ripma: 26:19

Is that why people farm an area so they become an expert in a specific area or areas?

Trent Whittington: 26:26

I think people farm at least we farm the area that we feel like that is going to be effective, or that we already have some form of face and name recognition. In other words, I don't think it would do us any good to send a monthly newsletter or a monthly mailer to somewhere in Greenwood, for instance, you know, in Pittsboro, we send one out every month. Question mark. Yeah. Yeah, right. So we basically canvass the whole town every month. And we get stuff out of that, because they they see our signs and our faces, they just know us, you know,

Maggie Whittington: 27:07

well, that's, you know, it's a small town. That's where we both went to high school. So, you know, a lot of people know us just from being in a small high school and watching us grow up. And so that's been effective for us. Yep.

Rick Ripma: 27:19

So what is again, the best way to get a hold of you, if anybody has any real estate needs?

Maggie Whittington: 27:26

I would say call text email, Instagram. My phone number is 317-966-2172. I'm probably more likely to answer a text than a call for being honest.

Trent Whittington: 27:39

Yeah, best way for me is my cell phone 317-755-7055 I would say call or text, or Instagram. I'm at

Rick Ripma: 27:49

And to get a hold of Ian or I, it's Trent, the realtor. HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com. That's HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com. Or you can call 317-672-1938. That's 317-672-1938. And now we get to go to Question of the week. And it's two questions that week, same question, but we always ask the same question. Awesome. And it is, what was your first car? So Trent, let's start with you.

Trent Whittington: 28:14

My first car was called her the blue pearl. It was a GMC Jimmy two door navy blue. It was a beautiful car that I systematically destroyed over several years. Might so my stepdad. He worked he was the general manager of Pedigo Chevrolet for a long time. And this you know, so he would see cars come in on trades. And this car came in it had it was a it was a 99 I don't even remember what year I started driving, but it was like oh, five, something like that. And it had 9000 miles. It was literally perfect. Yeah. And he was like Trent we got we got to get this car for you. So it was a GMC Jimmy two door. Yeah, that's a great. I loved it. It was immaculate. Yeah. Great. First car.

Maggie Whittington: 29:02

Yep. Mine was a Jeep Liberty. I don't know the year. But it was cute. And I liked it. And it was light blue. It had 200,000 miles on it when we bought it, but I really wanted it so my dad got it for me. Yeah. 200,000 Yeah, it lasted I think at least a year, maybe two years for me.

Rick Ripma: 29:23

Wow. That's That's good. I mean, you both had good cars. And here's a little high miles on it. Yeah, but it's weird in today's world miles don't matter. Like they did back in 1990. Yeah, it just, it just doesn't make the same difference. So do you have real fond memories? Sounds like you both have fond memories of those cars. You can I do

Trent Whittington: 29:43

for oil? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So that was back in the Pirates of the Caribbean days when those were coming out on the ship was called the Black Pearl. So I still Yeah, why I don't know. But yeah, nine didn't we do have fun? I only started it was just a All right. Yeah,

Rick Ripma: 30:00

I never had. I had a friend who called his truck, Buford. I don't know why but he sold his truck. Yeah. Big old brown Ford four wheel drive sitting up on the you know in the air. Yeah, that was Buford. That's cool. So but but I love cars I love hearing about. Yeah, yeah. What somebody was somebody's car was. So what about as we look at your your all your deals all the the files that you've done? What's the most memorable file or deal that you've ever worked on? Or done? Oh boy, that's a big

Trent Whittington: 30:35

first. Yeah, mine is it's the biggest deal ever closed. It closed it last year as well. $1.6 million listing that I got, which it's an Avon, which those are, you know, one every 10 years, will sell like that out there. Maybe not 10 years, maybe one a year. It was a zillo lead that I got in like 2019. And just just nurtured and really got close with these folks. This incredible property and ended up selling it more or less off market. We had taken it off. And the agent that had showed it previously came back and brought another buyer and and so we close to more or less off market. But yeah, it was just wild, you know, I was driving down the road one day and got a call. And actually, she wasn't even looking. She was looking for a specific agent that she had met at an open house. And she just randomly clicked on Zillow. And it got sent to me. And I said, God, I'll make you a deal. I'm going to tell you who that agent is. I'll go back to my desk, I'll look up who the listing agent was on that house. But I also want a listing appointment with you. If I if I do that, will you give me an appointment? And she was like, Sure, you know, and now we're I mean, now we're like super close with, you know, friends, whatever. Yeah, right. Yeah, this is like a step above. And so they're basically like family at this point. So pretty cool. That's awesome. Yeah.

Maggie Whittington: 32:16

Yeah, mine. It was probably one from this past fall, actually, it was clients that are just really great. I really enjoy working with them. And they were first time buyers a few years ago, and they were looking to move up. And it was in the fall when the rates had just kind of skyrocketed for the second time. So it was a really unsure place in the market of is this really going to slow things down? Are we still gonna, you know, experience a lot of activity, nobody really knew. And so we listed their house and made an offer on a new home for them. And just the way that the timeline all worked out. And the way that everything came together was I don't think it could ever be done the same way twice. It was just a crazy situation. And the house that they got is really great. And we it needed some updates to it. And that was the first time I was able to get I think we got $20,000 from the seller, to the buyer to replace the floors, all of that. And so have getting that done documented in a legal way for the lender. All of that was a big learning curve. But it was just really cool. Because it made it possible for those people to want to buy that home. And yeah, it was just a really cool experience.

Trent Whittington: 33:33

The cool thing to me about that was it so it's in our neighborhood. And so we would go on walks past that house, and she was like, I'm going to sell that house, I'm gonna sell that house and you know, and she just kept saying, I kind of believe in, you speak something into existence, you know. And so just watching her speak it into existence is cool, because she said it 10 times, and it was just a cool house.

Maggie Whittington: 33:56

It just needed a facelift. And I knew it was gonna take the right buyer to get to it. And I'm like, That's a great house. You know, I know we have someone in our sphere of people who could be a good fit for that. And yeah, it was cool when that worked out. Yep.

Rick Ripma: 34:09

Well, I'm guessing the fact that you live in the neighborhood, and that you have a vision for the house had to help you immensely.

Maggie Whittington: 34:15

Yeah, yeah. And we had we had just bought our home in the neighborhood a few months prior. And we had read on everything, our selves as well. So we were able to share you know, here's what we did to our house you can make this house so great with just flooring and paint and all of that and it would really transform it.

Rick Ripma: 34:32

It's amazing how much just paint how much Oh my god. Yeah. And on the outside. This may not have had that but just getting rid of bushes and yes,

Maggie Whittington: 34:42

I mean, it's Oh, it had that. Yeah, yeah, it just,

Rick Ripma: 34:46

it's not That's not much work and it changes the house completely. Yeah, yep. Absolutely. It's amazing. So one of the things you said and I think we should talk about is when I asked about, you know being what's Somebody should look for when they're looking for an agent. And that you said on this last one, you became very good friends. How important is it that when somebody is looking to hire a real estate agent that they that they get along? That's probably not the right word. They resonate. They click

Trent Whittington: 35:15

Yeah, there. Yeah, I think it's super important. I think the communication, I mean, that's the biggest piece of the the client agent relationship, right. So it should be somebody that you get along with,

Maggie Whittington: 35:29

well, you talk to him every day for months, or sometimes years, and that story he was talking about was yours. So it'd be pretty miserable. If you didn't enjoy talking to you, or at

Trent Whittington: 35:39

least respect what they say, you know, bare minimum, you know, sometimes not as much anymore. But you know, early on, it's like, you have a client and it just would appear that they don't trust anything that you say, right. And it's like, maybe they should have just gone with somebody that they believe that's when they speak right, but I don't really deal with that as much anymore. But

Maggie Whittington: 36:03

he always says the gray hairs help. That's what gives him the credibility.

Rick Ripma: 36:07

Yeah, always have here, but when you have no

Trent Whittington: 36:09

hair, yeah, yeah, I think I'm gonna have a lot but it's gonna be all gray pretty soon. Yeah, yeah. No, no, no.

Maggie Whittington: 36:16

Inspiration is Ryan serhant. From the Dollar Listing. Have you seen him?

Rick Ripma: 36:20

No, I don't watch that show. But that's yeah, it reminded me of a question. I want to ask about that. Yeah. So he that's he's got

Trent Whittington: 36:27

gray hairs. Yeah, he's 30. Yeah, he's like, six, four and strapping so I don't really have that. Like, yeah, five, seven, and yeah, whatever. But yeah, no, I'm not gonna dye my hair. Yeah,

Rick Ripma: 36:41

I don't know back when back when? I never did either. Because it might kind of went from, from blonde to gone. Yeah. Yeah. But I don't think I would have ever I like my son. He says, Oh, I'm gonna, I'm gonna make sure if I grow hair. If he can't grow his hair. He's gonna go to all these things and get his hair to grow. But yeah, yeah, I never did that. Yeah. So on the Million Dollar Listing? Yes. How you know, that's why you originally said you thought real estate and you got into real estate. How much different is real estate than what you see on the Million Dollar Listing?

Trent Whittington: 37:16

incredibly different? Yeah, yeah. I think our average sales price is like 350. So that's for starters. But yeah, it's just not all going to cocktail parties and schmoozing and living it up. I mean, it's that one of the things you had asked earlier was, you know, to a new agent, like what is what is real estate? And, you know, a lot a lot of agents will say, I love houses. And, you know, it's, it's actually not as much about the house as it is the people, you know. And, you know, it's you get this sense sometimes that people think that being a realtor is like staging a house is like staging homes are designing homes, which those are great careers, but they think that that's a large portion of the job. And will we say is, you're more like, an attorney almost, than a than a stager? You know, I mean, that's a very small portion of what a realtor does. It's more about protection, and advice, you know, from a financial and a legal standpoint than it is, you know, put that couch there, right. So, it's very different from Million Dollar Listing, not just the price point, but the actual scope of work is not, not what they show, you know,

Maggie Whittington: 38:38

I do think Million Dollar Listing is one of the more realistic ones. There are several moments in those episodes where it will show I mean, these are like the top agents in New York, and it will show them crying because they are so stressed about, you know, clients need X, Y, and Z from them. There's only so much time in the day, this person's impossible to please. And that is a reality. But yeah, the vast majority of those shows are not the same as Indiana real estate,

Rick Ripma: 39:05

is I found it funny, because I've talked to several of the people who have been on those shows. And of the two people that I can remember one of them, the client wasn't even in the market for a house at all. They were just somebody that they interviewed, said, Okay, this is somebody that will be interesting. The other one had already bought the house and was living in it for three or four months. Yeah, you know, so it's, it's not even real, right? It's entertaining. I think that's what people have to remember, check. Don't make your don't make your career choice. off of what you see. Now. You can see it and then you should go interview and, you know, as real estate, because don't you normally a lot of real estate agents before they become agents interview even before they take the test. Right that the class is that I think a

Trent Whittington: 39:50

lot of them do. Yeah, yeah, I think that's

Maggie Whittington: 39:53

exactly yeah, that's the hard thing is I feel like most agents are not super honest about the realities of it. They Do you say like, Oh, it's great. It's a great career. And it is a great career. But I mean, all the things we've already talked about, it's, there's just a lot more that goes into it than people think. And we're not always as transparent about that, as I think we should be with new agents.

Rick Ripma: 40:13

It's a great career. But it's not an easy career. It takes a lot of effort. And I think it's like, that's one of the things I really want people to understand if they're, if they're listening, and they aren't in real estate. I think it's important that person listening to their home or buying home understands what a real estate agent goes through for them. Yeah, but I also think it's important. If somebody's listening, they go, I want to, I think I want to be a real estate agent. They need to know the realities of it. Because you want them to make a proper decision. And if they get into it, because many of many people, you guys seem to be the same way you get into it, and you love it. Okay, yes, there's hard things. Yes, there's days that you probably don't like it. But all in all, you love what you do. And that's what I find all the top agents, all the guru agents, they all love it. They love what they do. Yeah, but it's not what they see on TV. It's a lot of effort. A lot of work. Yeah. So what is your team look like? Is it just the two of you? Or is there more to your team?

Trent Whittington: 41:08

So there's five of us. So us two leads. And then yeah, we have. We have Catherine, Lauren, and Drake that work with us? Yep.

Maggie Whittington: 41:17

And then we have Patti, who's our transaction coordinator. And she's incredible. Yeah. So

Trent Whittington: 41:21

we love Patti keeps us in order.

Rick Ripma: 41:23

Yeah, you got to have that, don't you? Yeah. All the, again, most of we I talked to people who are all by them single agents, and people who have a big team. Right. Yeah. And it seems like it's always the same. That the number one thing people want to add as a transaction coordinator, that's really good. I talked to somebody is His person has been with him. 26 years, the guy that was in in the business 40 years?

Maggie Whittington: 41:49

Six or 28? Year? That's, that's awesome. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 41:51

Huge. Yeah. Huge to have that, because that back end. There's the face that everybody sees, right. And then there's the back end that you got to have somebody back there making sure everything runs. Sure. I know that because I have I have people that do that i I'm out doing the sales part, talking to people, you know, explaining things making sure they understand making, and you make sure that things go smoothly share that the better that back end person is the less of that you have to dis super valuable. Yeah, it's I think it's, it's critical. And so you have three real estate agents additional. So you have a total of five agents on your team plus your transaction. Yes. And what company are you with? Just so everybody knows?

Trent Whittington: 42:31

Yeah, so we're with that properties? Yep. Newer company. Indeed. We're actually partner part owner of that properties. And yeah, so it's a company based out of Chicago. So they just started franchising in 2001. So newer to Indy, but But yeah, big company. Yeah,

Rick Ripma: 42:51

I've heard great things about him. And most of the agents will all the agents I've talked to, from there have been phenomenal agents. Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 42:58

yep. Yeah, actually. So it's kind of a running joke within the company. We don't know the numbers anymore, because the new BLC has made it so hard to figure any number out. But as of last year, our median agent was the highest producing median agent of any brokerage in Indianapolis. So that's something we're super proud of. You know, there's not you know, there's not a bunch of dabblers at AB Yeah. Yep.

Rick Ripma: 43:28

So if they hire an ad agent at properties agent, they're

Trent Whittington: 43:32

probably thinking they're getting a high producing because that's the other thing. I

Rick Ripma: 43:36

think that I think that the brokerage not that it doesn't matter. But what matters the most is the actual person you're working with here, and you're gonna get a great one and you can get a bad one or you can just get it's not even their bad. You can get people that you resonate with and work well with and people you don't work well. Right. Yeah. And so you have to make sure you get the right person. If so, what would you what is your favorite part of the job?

Maggie Whittington: 44:00

Um, I think it's really rewarding for me to take something that's complex. And break it down in a simple way. I'm a checklist organized kind of person. And so if I can create something like that, to help someone with one of the most stressful parts of their lives, that's really enjoyable for me. And seeing and hearing from them, you know, Wow, that really took away off my shoulders that made it so much easier. You made this feel achievable, whether they're a first time buyer or a third time seller and homebuyer. I feel like there's always something intimidating about the moving process, partially because the market changes so often. So breaking that down and making that feel achievable to clients I think is my favorite part.

Rick Ripma: 44:40

I would agree there's it's always intimate. I don't care because they don't do it every day. Yeah. And having somebody on your side that can it can walk you through it, and having a checklist for many people that that changes. I mean, that's really good. Does the Trent use your your checklist or is

Trent Whittington: 44:56

he does occasionally yeah, I've started on And yeah,

Maggie Whittington: 45:01

he fought it for a long time. And then he used my I have email templates and checklists. And he used them a few times. And he said, You know what? Those were pretty great. Yeah. And I said, I've been telling you, they would be yes. He's really made a lot of progress in adopting some of the organizational systems to help him serve his clients better.

Rick Ripma: 45:21

You really need that. To be successful. You need some organization.

Trent Whittington: 45:25

Yeah. To scale for sure. Yes. Yeah, absolutely.

Maggie Whittington: 45:29

Well, then I feel like because Trump cares so much about his job and his clients, then it's, you're up all night thinking, Did I tell that client this about the inspection did I make sure they knew this, because if there's no system or organization to how you make sure everyone is told what they need to know, then inevitably you're going to forget to tell them something that's really important, and then that's on you. And that's a horrible feeling.

Rick Ripma: 45:50

So that always bite you. Yes. You could set you could tell 99 people and nobody ever never came up, that was an issue. And then you forget, yeah, it comes up every single time. I don't know why the world does that. But that's how about your favorite part of the job track?

Trent Whittington: 46:07

Yeah, my favorite is helping people when, you know, I mean, these are, these are important things that we're helping people do and, and helping them win in those situations. And, you know, when they when I when I like to compete. And so, you know, it's like, I have 50 different job interviews every year, right with all these transactions. And so that's fun for me, also just, we help people make good decisions. And so, you know, there, I believe there are some people that don't in this in this business. And so that's something that I feel really good about, that at the end of the day, when they buy a home, that it's a sound choice for them, you know, and that feels good. So

Maggie Whittington: 46:52

I think something we both really appreciate about the business is, it sounds kind of cheesy to say, but real estate is life changing, and can really catapult you financially and build wealth for you. And it's so awesome to see. Like, the other day, my brother sold the house that they bought as their first home, and they had a lot of equity. And they were able to take that and move up into a much bigger and better home for their family. And that just is so exciting to see them win like that, because they bought a home at a young age, because they invested in were smart. Now they can afford something much bigger and better for their family. And that is just awesome to see the clients be able to win and change their lives that they wouldn't have been able to do. Had they not invested in real estate earlier on. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 47:38

The average the numbers are if a rent a homeowner has $500,000 more wealth than a renter share, which is credible. On your website. I believe it's your website, it says that your interest rate on a rental. If you're renting is 100%. Yeah,

Trent Whittington: 47:57

right. Yeah,

Rick Ripma: 47:58

yeah. Explain that.

Trent Whittington: 48:01

Well, yeah, I mean, nothing's going to the Yeah, nothing's paying off any while you're paying off principal, but you're paying off their the landlord's principal. Right. So I mean, yeah, your your balances,

Maggie Whittington: 48:11

and it's gonna get higher every year, you know, your rent. And we certainly we try really hard. We don't want to shame renters in any way. Because there's a time and a place where renting makes sense for you in your life. And there's nothing to be embarrassed about, if that's the stage you're at. But we're really passionate about as soon as you can comfortably and in a smart way afford to buy a home, it will change your life if you can do that. Yes.

Rick Ripma: 48:34

And sometimes it's a matter of just calling you and talking to you sure and fight because really, one of the biggest things that people do is they think they can't do something you but you alluded to that. They think they can't do it. So they don't do anything about it. But they need to call right they need to talk to you. They need to know right. For them to do that. What how should they get a hold of you?

Trent Whittington: 48:53

Yeah, so the best way for me is, is my cell phone 317-755-7055 or Instagram? I'm at Trent the realtor.

Maggie Whittington: 49:04

Yeah, and I would say for me text me on my cell phone at 317-966-2172 or on Instagram at move with Maggie underscore

Rick Ripma: 49:12

their text. Texting is the big thing. I think I'm an email guy. Yeah, texting is.

Trent Whittington: 49:18

It's pretty great.

Maggie Whittington: 49:19

It makes fun of me because I'm not a millennial. I'm Gen Z technically. And he's like, that's you and your Gen Z ways not wanting to talk on the phone and yeah, but it is efficient. It's great.

Rick Ripma: 49:30

Well, it's probably your sphere of influence. And it's a lot of the clients you work with, but not everybody and yeah, I'm guessing you're like everybody else both of you are is that we adjust to what our clients want. Yeah, if somebody says listen, I'm gonna call you you're gonna go Okay, call Trent. No, you're

Trent Whittington: 49:45

right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wastes 40 minutes of his time. Yeah.

Rick Ripma: 49:50

You're gonna you're gonna take care of it. Yeah. Yeah. of our clients, whatever we absolutely, yeah. Thank you guys so much for joining us. Really appreciate it. Yeah. Extra. Thank you for the phenomenal job and to get a hold of Ian or I, it's HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com That's HardWorkingMortgageGuys.com Or you can call 317-672-1938. That's 317-672-1938 and please follow us for more indies real estate gurus, Branch. NMLS number 33041 MLS NUMBER 6645899 Arnold's NMLS number is 195469 equal housing opportunity some restrictions apply