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Jonathan Radford
Jonathan Radford
Title: Premier Associate, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage
Age: 52
Experience: 26 years
Jonathan Radford is the top Coldwell Banker sale associate in New England. By focusing on the very high end of the market, he closed more than $107 million in sales last year without a team, a partner or even an assistant. Originally from England, Radford began selling real estate in France and joined Coldwell Banker when he came to Boston in 1998. Radford received the Society of Excellence Award last year, which only 40 Coldwell Banker agents out of more than 88,000 have received.
Q: How did you get your start in real estate?
A: My career started on the London Stock Exchange at the age of 19. I worked on the floor of the exchange (when it existed). After around five years, the company I had worked for was taken over by an American company and I was one of the fortunate people who had a one-year contract with the option to have that paid off or the option to continue working for the new company. I elected to take the money and travel a little bit and move to France to learn French. At the time I spoke Spanish and English and thought the extra language would be helpful because of the European Union coming to fruition. My initial intention was to return to London to do something with international financial markets, but once I made it to France I found I quite liked it there.
I worked on the Paris stock exchange for a year and stayed in the south of France where I learned French and worked in real estate, starting in 1991. From the beginning, my focus was on the luxury end of the market because most of my clients were coming from other European cities to buy second homes like chateaus and vineyards. I moved to Boston in 1998 and have been involved in real estate in and around here ever since then.
Q: How did you break into Boston’s luxury market?
A: I did it in a very traditional way – through marketing. When I worked for the corporate side of the company initially, we produced a lot of marketing material. When I became an agent, one of the first things I did was begin to build a database. I have a database of close to 5,000 people across Massachusetts who own the luxury real estate that I’m interested in. I do a lot of direct mail to those people.
One of the things that guides me is that you can’t be good at everything. I chose to be good at the luxury end of the market, so I tend to know a lot about that market. I write a lot of market research, which is helpful for both me and my clients. I also have a great story to tell because of the company I’m with. As a company, we sell about $130 million of luxury homes a day around the world. We have 88,000 agents, which provides a phenomenal network. I was in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago to meet a group of the top 50 of those agents and those contacts are very helpful for the sort of properties I list and sell. Collectively, we closed $4 billion in business last year. It’s a powerful group of people.
And undoubtedly, your business gets developed by your clients. A satisfied client is going to share your contact information with their friends. Ultimately, my success has been down to my clients and them promoting me to their contacts.
Q: You do a lot of business for one person. Have you considered developing a team?
A: I understand the concept of team and how they grow the team leader’s business. In the high end of the market, I feel that I have a personal responsibility to every client. There is not one part of the real estate transaction that I feel is a small part. I’ve made a conscious decision not to build a team, but to be personally responsible for everything that I do. I design all my own marketing. I write all the descriptions. I manage all the photography. I direct the movies that I make. And ultimately, the client has just one person to keep in touch with. That’s how I think I can deliver the level of service I’m trying to provide.
Q: Do people who can’t afford them, but are simply curious, ask to see your listings?
A: We generally ask for a letter of qualification before showing these homes. The vetting process is fairly vigorous because we’re not there to show the property; we’re there to sell it. We like to know that the person coming has the financially ability to purchase.
What is extraordinary about the high end of the market is the higher the price, the crazier the calls you get. I have seen it all. There are people who are very professional in their approach to try to see these homes. Normally, these people will say something that sets the alarm bells ringing in my mind. One person told me he was traveling with two bodyguards. Nobody says that. I’ve had plenty of clients who travel with security, but they always introduce them as the decorator or their assistant. You have to be really careful who you show these homes to. That’s why we always ask – very nicely – for a letter of financial qualification. And as soon as that question is asked, the real client will be extremely cooperative. The other 90 percent, you never hear from again.
Q: What do you like to do when you’re not working?
A: I work a lot. To achieve the turnover that I achieve, I work extremely efficiently because I can’t afford not to. I have two young daughters, who are 6 and 8, and my wife and I like to spend any down time we have with them. We have a home in Vermont and they’re learning to ski, which is great fun. We like to travel. We’ve been to Paris a number of times.
Radford’s Five Favorite Activities
- Spending time with his family
- Traveling
- Skiing
- Dinner at L’Espalier
- Getting two clients to “yes”
