To large franchise brokers, the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex represents the promised land. One of the top two relocation destinations in the nation, DFW, as residents fondly call it, offers a diversified, recession-resistant economy, build-ready land as far as the eye can see (making it the second largest new home market in the U.S.,) and a progressive leads-friendly MLS service shared by 17 local associations.

Such promise has attracted the interest of major franchises and spurred consolidations. NRT Inc., for example, has strengthened its position in the DFW area with the acquisition of the Dallas operations of Henry S. Miller Realtors, one of Texas' largest independents. This year, Century 21 Judge Fite Co. purchased three firms, growing its brand among several DFW bedroom communities.

Leap-frogging over several states, are Ed Krafchow and partner Dave Cobo, owners of Prudential California and Prudential Nevada Realty companies, and they also see DFW as the land of opportunity. They are taking over the franchise for Prudential Texas Properties, which has been managed for over a year by Prudential Real Estate Affiliates (PREA.).

Prudential Texas Properties has five offices, 150 agents and about 280 million in annual sales putting it in 14th place in the Dallas market area. But that's not where the story is - it's how Krafchow and company plan to build up the brand.

"In our other markets, we are either number one or two," says Krafchow. "We are planning for a lot of growth - 1000 agents within five years." Krafchow says the company has three advantages - recruitment, technology, and relocation.

"For a lot of people, this business isn't fun anymore," explains Krafchow. "When you feel that way, it's hard to get excited about new ways to do things - we want to bring in people who are going to be excited about what we have to offer."

One of the big spenders in automated lead management technologies, Krafchow oversaw the installation of a $3 million leads generation/capture/management system called WebTop, through which Internet leads are routed directly to salespeople. Agents can order services and track all the activities of their clients who can look at direct feed MLS listings on the intranet. This gives agents an advantage in anticipating and serving the needs and wishes of the Internet-able consumer.

Company-generated leads come with a referral fee, but Krafchow maintains that the agents who are participating aren't complaining. Lead generation is one of the highest costs of doing business, and with company referred leads, agents don't have to put as much into their personal advertising.

"They are so busy they are leaving leads behind," he says.

But Krafchow is not one to leave anything on the table. Lead recovery is the next step.

"Out of about 159 million hits we get on our Web site, we have figured that only 5 percent of leads that come in through the Internet are "present" buyers,"" explains Krafchow. "And that's why some leads are being left on the floor. The agents don't know how to work the leads that are 180 days out. In Dallas, they say they want the training, because that is the market we are headed into. They want the leads. "

Krafchow's got the figures to back it up. According to a news report, since joining the Prudential Real Estate Network in 1997, Cobo’s and Krafchow’s WebTop-driven operation has grown at such a rate that they are ranked third among the 1,500 PREA affiliates in the nation, with a transaction and sales volume that has tripled. In 2000, Prudential California Realty affiliates did 29,000 transactions, reaching $9.1 billion in annual sales. With the acquisition of Texas properties, the company will have 120 offices in northern California and Nevada, and in central Texas, with more than 3,400 sales associates.

Relocation is the third element. Agents will also have a strong relocation department backing and an active in-house referral network, says Krafchow. According to a 2000 study conducted by the American Moving and Storage Association, the number one migration route in the U.S. is from California to Texas, and from Texas to California.

"We know we have some work to build the brand," says Krafchow. "We have the people, but anytime you don't have local ownership that is really involved in the day to day operations, then you're going to have a problem. We think this area is about growth."

"We've got a piece of technology that is extensible, our investment in the Webtop will be extended at no cost to the agents in Texas," says Krafchow. "and we don't have to redevelop it and redeploy it. The ability to bring these tools in to the area will enable the Texas Prudential agents to be very competitive."

But tech-unready agents don't have to run for the hills just yet.

"We are still a family business," says Krafchow. "and we are agent-centric. Our managers are fully empowered to make decisions at the local level, and we plan to support our managers and agents. We sold real estate ourselves, and we know how important it is that good people get acknowledged."

Published: October 4, 2001

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