Start small — in the beginning, don’t try to cover too much ground. My advice is that you know a small area very well and be an expert in that location versus trying to know a little bit about a lot of areas. Be the expert, even if it consists of one building, one development or just one street — know everything you can about it — and then expand.
Kori Sassower is a duly licensed associate real estate broker in New York and Connecticut. By combining a dedicated, results-oriented approach with deep local experience and strong technical knowledge, Kori serves as an expert advisor and trusted fiduciary to real estate buyers, sellers and developers across Westchester and Fairfield County. Her broad experience encompasses residential sales, ground up new construction and commercial sales. Kori’s ability to connect buyers and sellers is what makes her unique and she is equally a buyer and seller’s agent. She takes a broad view and takes the time to educate her buyers and sellers on the process, the market and the areas. Her patience in developing these long-lasting relationships is what makes her stand out and is responsible for her great success.
Moving to the city at age 12 and now raising her family in Westchester, Kori understands the progression from Urban to Suburban life and has helped many buyers successfully make that transition.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to the Real Estate industry?
I worked in ad sales at Sony Pictures Entertainment for 15 years and loved it. After I had my third child, I realized I needed a career change — I didn’t want to sit at a desk anymore because I needed to have more flexibility.
My family is in commercial real estate and they encouraged me to get my real estate license. From the very first day, it resonated with me and I immediately loved everything about it. My experience with sales, marketing and negotiation was the perfect liaison to real estate. I was able to successfully take that expertise, combined with my local knowledge and connections and segway into a very lucrative and successful real estate career.
One of the things I love the most about this career is getting to know people while helping them make one of the biggest financial investments of their life. A person’s home is the one place they will spend the most amount of time in and helping them find that perfect fit is very satisfying.
Can you share with our readers the most interesting or amusing story that occured to you in your career so far? Can you share the lesson or take away you took out of that story?
In real estate, every day is an amusing story, because the people I meet and the situations I have been put in not only make me laugh, but have taught me a lot about life. One example is when I was showing a family around the neighborhood, and they asked if I could ride in their car so that we could talk, which I agreed to do. Instead of having me sit in the front, they sandwiched me in between the two car seats in the back. About halfway through the tour, one of their children got sick all over me, and I knew it was time to end our tour! We’ve all laughed about that story many times since then.
Another funny experience was when I was conducting a walk-through with my father’s client. We were in a small bathroom and while I was testing the sink he must have decided to run the shower, but unbeknownst to us, the handheld shower nozzle was turned sideways and when he turned it on, it soaked me. Unfortunately, he was unable to turn it off right away, and because the bathroom was so small, I couldn’t escape the spray. As I looked at myself dripping wet in that bathroom mirror, all I could do was laugh. My biggest take away from that was to always expect the unexpected, because not everything goes according to plan.
Do you have a favorite “life lesson quote”? Can you share a story or example of how that was relevant to you in your life?
My favorite life lesson is actually by Dr Seuss; “Life’s too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right, forgive the ones who don’t and believe that everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said it would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.”
I’m so grateful to have found real estate as a career. Very few people can say they love their job but real estate truly has changed my life and taught me so much about myself. It has also taught me so much about people and how they act when they are happy, scared, or angry. Learning about the different dynamics of couples, families and friends has made me a better person both personally and professionally.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people? Most of my sales are residential homes and the last year and a half have been exciting with the growth of the market in Westchester. A typical scenario is millennials buying the homes of empty nesters, people moving to larger homes within their town, or families who are downsizing. I recently took on a rental development project, a fabulous studio and one-bedroom lofts. It was the first development project for me and I loved all the innovative marketing that went into promoting the project. Being involved in these projects has allowed me to meet so many interesting people.
What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
Compass has eight entrepreneurship principles; Dream Big, Move Fast, Learn from Reality, Be Solutions-Driven, Obsess about Opportunity, Collaborate without Ego, Maximize your Strengths and Bounce Back with Passion. Robert Refkin, Founder and CEO of Compass, asks his agents to live by these principles. These principles have not only been the foundation of who I am as an agent, but who I am as a person as well. Compass wants you to be the best version of yourself and it is a large reason why Compass and its agents have become so successful.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
The support of my family has made it possible for me to have this career. It’s a 24/7 job and I could not have done it without my husband and my children’s endorsement. I would say my main motivator is my middle daughter Emma. She has special needs and I see how hard she has to fight every day to do what most people find routine. Her strength is what keeps me going.
Ok. Thank you for all that. Let’s now jump to the main core of our interview. Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the Real Estate industry? If you can please share a story or example.
I am a tech lover and watching how technology is improving the real estate industry excites me the most. Matterport Tours allow buyers to walk through properties from the comfort of their home, Geo-fencing allows us to target our advertising to the right audience, drone photography allows us to capture the perfect angles of a seller’s home and lifestyle videos allow us to show buyers what their life would be like if they lived in that town. As agents, we don’t just sell homes, we sell lifestyles, My team has curated fantastic lifestyle videos that have proven to be invaluable to our clients.
Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest? Please share stories or examples if possible.
I really only have two overall industry concerns.
One is that the home improvements and real estate reality shows have empowered buyers and sellers to think they can do home construction or sell their homes by owner. You wouldn’t fill your own cavity, you pay a dentist to do that, so I really try and encourage homeowners to rely on the experts to help them. There are so many intricacies involved, and a trusted real agent will bring expertise and industry knowledge to the process, which makes it well worth making the investment.
Third party paid sites. The MLS is the only site that is governed and forces accurate information. Third- party sites give misinformation that can lead a buyer or seller to make uninformed bad decisions. Rely on an agent to fact check all the information at the local town hall so that you can make smart informed decision.
What advice would you give to other real estate leaders to help their teams to thrive and to create a really fantastic work culture?
Know who you are, be confident and be your organic self. The 8 Compass Principles I shared should really be the foundation for any real estate leader.
Ok, here is the main question of our interview. You are a “Real Estate Insider”. If you had to advise someone about 5 non intuitive things one should know to succeed in the Real Estate industry, what would you say? Can you please give a story or an example for each?
The Dynamics of People — I enjoy how quickly I get to know people and their family dynamics. We are close friends for a short period of time, and then we both move on until they need me again. Knowing and understanding people is essential.
Logistics — Sometimes I’ll show 15 homes in 5 different towns in one day. Being prepared, knowing where I am going and having a full tank of gas is essential. Pro Tip: save all the addresses of the homes you are going to in Google Maps under a list. This way as you go from house to house you can just click the tour and you don’t need to scramble to figure out where you are going.
Relationships with other agents — it is really important to have a great collaborative working relationship with other agents. Deals are complicated and having mutual respect between agents is essential.
Power of social media — social media can be a huge asset or it could hurt your business. Your voice on social media channels is powerful, so be aware of that and know the right way to navigate it.
Start small — in the beginning, don’t try to cover too much ground. My advice is that you know a small area very well and be an expert in that location versus trying to know a little bit about a lot of areas. Be the expert, even if it consists of one building, one development or just one street — know everything you can about it — and then expand.
Because of your position, you are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-).
It is simple, be kind to one another, treat others how you would want to be treated. In residential real estate, each community is small in it’s own way. The people that sit on the board of education, or who work at your local bank could also be your child’s coaches or local tutor, so treat people with kindness. There is nothing better than being a part of a community that works together.
I have seen communities come together to search for a local lost dog, help families in need after a fire or flood or even help search for a child’s lost blanket. Being a part of a community that rallies together like that is a very powerful thing.
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