New: 🧠 Market Minds Issue #065

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The Market Is Slowing—But Don’t Let That Fool You

If you’re waiting for the perfect time to jump back in, you may already be too late.

Homes Are Sitting Longer, But That Window Won’t Stay Open Forever

A typical listing is taking 54 days to sell, the longest timeframe since the early days of the pandemic. Inventory has stacked up to 5.2 months of supply, the highest level in nearly five years. By definition, this is a buyer’s market. But here’s the catch—buyers aren’t exactly diving in.

Why? Because affordability is still a pain point. Mortgage rates remain around 7%, and home prices are up 4.8% year over year. The median mortgage payment is brushing against an all-time high of $2,753 per month. And when buyers feel squeezed, they hesitate.

The result? More homes sitting. More sellers feeling the pressure. More negotiating power—if you know how to use it.

Why the “Wait and See” Crowd Is About to Miss the Boat

There’s a misconception that waiting will lead to significantly better deals. But here’s the problem: Sellers aren’t slashing prices. And while rates might soften, there’s no major collapse on the horizon.

Buyers who’ve been sitting on the sidelines are starting to realize two things:
1️⃣ The market isn’t about to crash.
2️⃣ The “perfect timing” they’ve been waiting for doesn’t exist.

That shift in mindset matters because demand isn’t gone—it’s delayed. And once the logjam breaks, competition will spike. That means sellers regain leverage, price reductions disappear, and those sitting on the fence get left behind.

The Move Now: What Smart Players Are Doing Today

✔ For Buyers: Use this slow market to negotiate aggressively. Sellers with properties lingering past 60+ days are in prime deal-making mode. Lock in a home before spring demand picks up, and refinance later when rates improve.

✔ For Sellers: Pricing strategy is everything. Properties sitting too long are getting lowball offers, while well-positioned homes—priced correctly with standout marketing—are still moving. If selling is the goal, the time to act is now, before sidelined buyers flood back in.

✔ For Investors: This is the market for value plays. High interest rates have cooled competition, but price growth is still happening. Identifying undervalued properties now means locking in assets before the next demand wave.

Final Thought: The Best Moves Aren’t Made in Hindsight

The people who win in real estate aren’t the ones who wait for headlines to tell them it’s time to move. They recognize opportunity before the crowd sees it.

Right now, that opportunity is staring you in the face. The only question is whether you’ll take it.

How to Build a Billion-Dollar Real Estate Business (and Why Most Never Will)

There’s no such thing as accidental success in real estate. No one just stumbles into a billion-dollar portfolio. Behind every major real estate empire is a structured approach—one that prioritizes systems, scale, and a team that’s built for more than just making sales.

Here’s what separates the heavyweights from everyone else.

Real Estate Is No Longer a Solo Sport

Once upon a time, an ambitious agent could carve out a solid career working independently. Those days are over. The best in the business aren’t lone wolves—they’re building teams with shared accountability, collaborative culture, and systems that remove friction from every part of the process.

The Vesta Preferred team, for example, built a billion-dollar business by embracing a “win-together” mentality. It’s not about who has the biggest individual numbers—it’s about how the whole operation scales.

For you, that means thinking bigger:

• Is your team incentivized to work as a unit rather than as competing individuals?

• Have you built a system that rewards long-term growth, not just this quarter’s commissions?

• Are you hiring for hunger and coachability rather than just past sales numbers?

If the answer to any of these is “no,” you’ve already capped your growth potential.

Your Agents Should Be Making More With You Than Without You

The biggest lie in team building? Thinking that just giving people your logo and CRM is enough. If your agents aren’t making significantly more money with you than they would on their own, they won’t stick around.

What does over-delivering look like?
✅ More leads than they could generate themselves – Think 50–100 fresh leads per day, not just some old, recycled database.
✅ Automated, bulletproof lead nurturing – A CRM like Follow Up Boss that ensures no lead slips through the cracks.
✅ Access to exclusive tools that create an edge – High-level seller platforms like Fello and exclusive buyer resources like Zenlist.
✅ One-on-one coaching every week – Not just group trainings, but tailored sessions focused on money-making activities and mental resilience.

A top agent should be looking at your team and thinking: I’d be an idiot to leave this setup. If they aren’t, you have a problem.

The Secret to Hiring Agents Who Actually Perform

Real estate isn’t hard to teach. Negotiation skills? Market analysis? CRM management? All learnable.

What you can’t teach is drive. The ability to push through setbacks and stay disciplined when the market gets tough—that’s what determines an agent’s long-term success.

Take Youssra, an agent who spent a year in the industry without closing a single deal. After joining Vesta Preferred, she closed 13 homes in just five months. Her success wasn’t about experience—it was about being in the right system with the right mindset.

When hiring, look beyond past deals and ask:

• Does this person have an obsessive work ethic?

• Are they humble enough to be coached?

• Do they think long-term, or are they looking for quick wins?

A team of agents with those qualities will outproduce a team of “top producers” every time.

Ignore Tech at Your Own Risk

If you’re not using data and automation to streamline your business, you’re already losing.

The best real estate teams aren’t just working hard—they’re working smart:

• AI-powered follow-up that ensures leads never go cold.

• Predictive analytics to identify sellers before they even decide to list.

• Virtual experiences that make transactions seamless for clients.

The question isn’t whether tech is changing the industry—it already has. The only question is whether you’re capitalizing on it or watching from the sidelines.

Growth Is a Daily Habit, Not a One-Time Event

Billion-dollar businesses don’t just invest in real estate. They invest in learning.

What’s your growth plan this year?

• Are you attending high-level industry events, or just relying on what worked last year?

• Are you reading, networking, and pushing your team to evolve?

• Do you actively seek out the best in the business and model what they do?

The top players never stop learning. They’re obsessed with staying ahead, adapting to market shifts, and refining their strategy.

Final Thought: The Billion-Dollar Mindset

The same principles that get you to the top will keep you there—if you stay consistent. Ask yourself:

• Is my business structured for scale, or am I just running faster on a treadmill?

• Are my agents thriving in my system, or would they do just as well on their own?

• Am I actively investing in the next level of my growth?

If you’re not building towards something bigger, you’re stagnating. And in this market, stagnation is just a slow death.

The blueprint for billion-dollar success isn’t a secret. It’s just a matter of execution.

Telemarketing Rule Changes on Hold

A legal pause button has been hit on new telemarketing restrictions, but ignoring the bigger picture would be a costly mistake.

The Rule That Almost Changed the Game

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had planned to enforce a stricter one-to-one consent rule starting this year. Under the revised Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), businesses wouldn’t have been able to rely on broad consent from lead generators. Instead, they would have needed prior express written consent—one agreement per company, per consumer. That rule was struck down on January 24 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.

Now, the FCC is delaying the rollout to January 2026, but make no mistake: This isn’t going away.

Why This Matters (Even If Nothing Changes Today)

Right now, business as usual continues, meaning outreach strategies don’t need immediate adjustments. But this legal battle is a flashing warning light for anyone relying on cold calls, texts, or lead aggregators.

Courts are tightening the screws on consumer protections, and the trend is clear: Lead generation loopholes are closing. Even without the new rule in place, companies like Keller Williams are still getting sued for TCPA violations—$40 million last year alone.

The Smart Move: Get Ahead of This Before It’s Too Late

This delay is not a free pass. It’s an opportunity to get compliant before the crackdown comes. Here’s what’s happening behind the scenes:
✔ Litigation is ramping up – More class-action lawsuits are emerging, even under the current laws.
✔ The FCC is determined – This isn’t a dead issue; it’s a delayed one. Expect tighter rules in 2026, if not sooner.
✔ Lead generation is evolving – Relying on third-party consent lists is getting riskier. Future-proofing means building direct, high-quality engagement with prospects.

The Wrong Time to Act Is When You Have No Choice

The real mistake is waiting until 2026 to address this. A business model that depends on legally vulnerable marketing tactics is a ticking time bomb.

The best time to adjust? Before regulators force your hand. The companies that stay ahead of these changes will be the ones that thrive when the new rules inevitably arrive.

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TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read)

The housing market is slowing, with homes sitting longer and inventory rising, but affordability challenges keep buyers hesitant. Building a billion-dollar real estate business requires scalable systems, team collaboration, and technology-driven efficiency. Meanwhile, delayed telemarketing regulations signal a coming crackdown, making it essential for businesses to shift toward compliant, high-quality lead generation before stricter rules take effect.

Have a great weekend - we’ll see you next Saturday.

Cheers 🍻

-Market Minds Team