McDowell Real Estate hits $400 million in home sales, thanks to positive culture: 2024 Top Workplaces

MENTOR, OHIO — At McDowell Real Estate, the goal is about creating a positive culture and teamwork.

The privately owned brokerage is the brainchild of Kayleen and Chaz McDowell, who founded the firm in 2015 and took a four-person start-up to a juggernaut with 38 teams. And while each team is independent, they don’t compete, and they all work with the same support staff.

McDowell Real Estate ranked No. 1 among mid-sized companies in Top Workplaces this year, just like last year.

For the 2024 Top Workplaces list, cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer compiled more than 200 stand-out Northeast Ohio employers based on employee surveys. Find the full list and stories on the top three winners in each of four categories at cleveland.com/top-workplaces.

Kayleen McDowell had been working with other brokerages and found it wasn’t the culture or atmosphere she wanted. She interviewed with other brokerages, and they all seemed the same, agents that competed against each other. “I would ask them about their culture and they would look back at me like I had three eyes. I found that the type of real estate firm I was looking for simply didn’t exist. So, I had to build it.

She wanted to build a brokerage focused on positivity, a group of professionals who would build each other and the practice up.

“We have a team of very carefully selected agents whose ethics and vision align,” she said. “We strive for quality over quantity, and that culture of positivity and a good atmosphere is a big reason why we’ve grown and why we have so many top producing agents.”

She calls the organization a family.

The team of highly talented professionals share a passion to help make their clients’ vision and dreams come true. Realtors are continually trained to apply the best of the best marketing plans, advertising materials and cutting edge technology to ensure the home buying or selling experience is a success.

“Our mission is that we believe excellent service leads to excellent results,” Kayleen McDowell said.

To that end, clients receive a personal orientation, a free market analysis and resources for a smooth buying or selling experience.

At first, hiring at McDowell was a unanimous decision — which meant 10 or 15 other agents had to say yes before you got in.

Now that they’re much larger, new hires don’t need to get a yes from every single team member. But McDowell still says no much more than she says yes. That means only hiring the right people, and occasionally letting go of the wrong people.

“If you do not maintain a positive and humble attitude than you’re just not the right fit here,” Kayleen McDowell said. “Communication is key here, and in the event we have to mediate an issue, we communicate and we resolve the issue and focus on solutions. After all, we have a big job to do and folks trust us to do our job well.”

The company has an in-house nonprofit called McD Cares to focus on helping the communities they serve and also offer “McDo Well Days,” where agents provide help and support for different organizations. This year, they’re focusing on helping with landscaping and yardwork for local veterans.

The brokerage also has specialists in certain areas, such as senior buyers. And, even with higher interest rates on mortgages, the housing market remains hot, McDowell said. A third of the homes they sell receive multiple offers, and there are many more buyers than sellers.

The company invests in marketing, with radio and print ads, state-of-the-art photography and three-dimensional presentations. That, McDowell said, brings “more buyers to your doorstep and we secure a higher price for your home.”

The brokerage has done more than $2 billion in sales volume since 2015 and last year hit their goal of $400 million in total home sales.

McDowell Real Estate now has five physical offices in Northeast Ohio. The company has a commercial real estate division and a property management company, which works with real estate investors and helps them manage their properties.

The brokerage recently started a team of agents in Florida and was recently licensed in Pennsylvania and are beginning their expansion there. Even though the brokerage has grown tremendously, McDowell said they still work to keep the tight-knit, team atmosphere.

“We focus on each individual’s unique strengths and help build on those,” she said. “So many agents are not educated and are just running around, or chasing clients with promises of low commissions.”