A real estate leader must know how to lead their brokerage and possess certain qualities to retain their leadership charisma. In addition, since the real estate market is extremely competitive, leaders must leverage the latest trends and opportunities to stay on top of their game. Influenced by an insatiable drive to help people achieve their goals, Creig Northrop (Founder and CEO of Northrop Realty) built a “care first” full-service brokerage. His knowledge and expertise, along with his academics, solidifies his understanding of what people want and the emotional decisions made based on their needs. In 2018, Creig founded Northrop Realty with his wife, Carla Northrop (CEO) and expanded its footprint in the Mid-Atlantic.
Learning and Pursuing Goals
Creig started in the industry at a young age, working as a courier for his mother, a top agent for Coldwell Banker internationally for three years. He carefully and methodically observed how his mother had mastered the art of sales while providing amazing customer service. Meanwhile, he also discovered his voracious drive to help others achieve their goals. So, in 1986, he earned his real estate license while attending the University of Maryland.
After pursuing a degree in Psychology, Creig cultivated that knowledge to launch a career as an individual real estate agent. Using what he calls the ‘psychology of sales’, Creig earned recognition as one of the youngest agents to achieve a billion dollars in sales volume.
The ‘Northrop Edge’
In 2000, Creig and Carla started The Creig Northrop Team, a top-producing sales team that was known for providing extraordinary service at no extra cost. Their team’s focus was built on building life-long relationships with clients rather than singular transactions.
The Creig Northrop Team earned several accolades between 2000 and 2018, including the title of the #1 Real Estate Team in Maryland by Volume for twelve consecutive years beginning in 2005 and then the unprecedented honor of being named by RealTrends and The Wall Street Journal as the #1 Real Estate Team in the Nation by Volume three times, in 2011, 2012, and 2017.
In 2018, The Creig Northrop Team transitioned to Northrop Realty, a full-service brokerage, expanding and catering to their client’s needs from beginning to end with the best systems, technology, and customer service. Northrop Realty’s approach eases the stress of home buying and selling for their clients through a top-notch in-house marketing agency, licensed client care coordinators, professional home staging consultants, and cutting-edge technology providing a world-class client experience.
In 2020, after achieving over one billion dollars in sales volume, Northrop Realty was named the #1 Specialty Brokerage in the Nation by Real Trends & Tom Ferry. Currently, the brokerage has 300+ agents who close over 3,000 transactions annually.
Dynamic Stewardship
Being at the company’s forefront, Creig leads by example. His focus contributes to the overall success of the brokerage—making top-level decisions by working closely with Carla along with their Executive Leadership Team. “I understand that to scale successfully, the brokerage’s executive infrastructure had to scale,” mentions Creig.
Over time, Creig and Carla have assembled a team of talented individuals for Northrop Realty. Creig asserts that they have hired the best C-Suite with defined lanes and goals, leveraging their collective expertise, and propelling the brokerage to the next growth phase.
State-of-the-art Technology
At the onset of the global pandemic, Northrop Realty did not pause but pivoted. The brokerage was 5-years ahead of its competition with its state-of-the-art technology that enabled their agents and teams to sell 944+ houses within a week since January 2021.
Their offices are where clients and agents alike have all the resources they need at their fingertips. So far this year, Northrop Realty has added more offices serving home buyers and sellers in Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington D.C.
The Three C’s
Northrop Realty is constantly deploying cutting-edge technology, systems, and extraordinary customer service. It has built and continues to grow its innovative brokerage by employing the 3 C’s: Care, Consistency, and Confidence.
• Northrop Realty cares about its clients, the communities it serves, and everyone in the brokerage.
• It is consistent with its messages and level of services.
• The brand is synonymous with the company’s confidence and is very knowledgeable in the areas it serves.
Northrop Realty only has full-time or “all-the-time agents” who are confident in their knowledge of the market. This is due to the brokerage’s robust and ongoing free sales training platform—NorthropU.
An Inspirational Leader
As an inspirational leader, Creig advises his agents and staff never to stop learning. He recommends seeking ways to be on top of the ever-changing market and to never lose your competitive edge because adversity does not build character, it reveals it. It helps everyone to innovate and grow together. He adds, “You always need to have a pulse on the market and lead by example because your character is built when no one is looking. It is the difference between an Agent and a Top Producer.” Citing an example of himself, Creig mentions that if you love what you do, you must be an all-time agent and put your clients’ needs first, and success will be yours.
