Franchise expansion credited to company culture, training EXIT Realty Consultants has officially opened a new branch in Merced, located at 1822 W. Olive Avenue, in the Walmart Shopping Center. This becomes the 8th location in California’s Central Valley for the expanding firm. Broker/Owner Kris Klair, who started the franchise in 2005 in Turlock, now also owns offices in Fresno, Ceres, Manteca and Tracy, with two more in Modesto.

Last month, during EXIT Realty Corp’s 2022 annual convention in Fernandina Beach, Florida, Klair was presented with the “Expertise Award of the Year” for continuous business growth in location, agent count and revenue stream. His brokerage also received third place nationwide for EXIT.

A long way from his humble beginnings in 1997, with $1,100 in his pocket, Klair stepped into running his father’s wholesale business after his father suffered a stroke and became paralyzed. In 2005, Klair decided to jump into real estate. Within a year, he ditched his wholesale business and boughtinto the EXIT name. Since then he hasn’t looked back.

“I’ve always been a risk-taker. When a door opens I don’t want to lose an opportunity especially when I know the time is right,” said Klair about his growth plan. Klair credits the EXIT growth to the company’s culture, technology and training.“ Steve Morris, EXIT’s founder, is a genius for building a company on the foundation that puts its agents and their families first. Contrary to what most other companies do, which is focus on top administration and then work your way down, EXIT Realty knows that if you prioritize your agents, their families and their future, you’re establishing a relational foundation built on loyalty and trust and, in turn, a culture the agents have no desire to leave.“ Couple that with our residual program and you have, hands down, the most advantageous system inreal estate. A system that provides seemingly perpetual bonus, retirement and death benefits to ouragents and their families,” said Klair.

He also believes that the technology and training he offers his agents contributes to their success.“Our goal is to have the best-trained agents in the industry so we offer extensive, weekly training customized for new agents as well as veterans.” Olivia Lopez started her career as a part-time Realtor® with EXIT Realty three years ago. When the pandemic hit she was skeptical about becoming a full-time agent, but this year she made the leap.When asked what made her pull the trigger, she also credited the training. “I came to EXIT because I heard they were very good at training new agents the proper way. The training really prepares you tobe professional and confident, so it’s not scary to face more experienced agents in transactions.” She added it’s the family environment that keeps her at EXIT. “They really care about you. They also care about your family. Everyone wants to help you. They motivate you and challenge you at the same time.”

“I want to see us continue to grow. But it’s not about quantity, it’s about quality. I want 1,000 respectful agents that think about their families, their health, and the way they are going to succeed for their families,” Klair recently told his agents during his annual business planning presentation. Currently EXIT has approximately 280 agents across all offices.“ We are going to be the only brokerage where 50% or more of our agents are producing, not just the top 20% as most agencies. I’m putting it out there in the universe,” he said.