Highlighting Promising Real Estate Professionals Under 40

promising agents under 40

While there are many notable titans in the industry, there’s also a long list of rising stars. Those who are paving the path for the next generation of agents. There are many who deserve to be highlighted for their phenomenal work, so we’re celebrating these hard-working professionals.

Through the years, they’ve become top producers, listers, and sellers. They’re all masters at client communication and relationship building. Their futures are bright, and there are many successes still to come as they keep climbing their way to the top.

Kimberly Zeidner

Prior to getting into real estate, Kimberly Zeidner was a professional ballroom dancer. She took her love of teaching and watching her students succeed and applied it to her real estate career.

Kimberly says, “Ballroom dancing is all about working with a partner and communicating with one another. When teaching these skills, you have to truly understand the student and the way that they learn so that you can get through to them. The same goes for real estate. Most people I work with have never bought or sold a home before, so I need to take complex processes and be able to explain to my clients (my new partners) what is going on and how to move forward to get the desired result in a way that makes sense to them.”

In addition to being a realtor with Real Living Real Estate Solutions, Kimberly is an active member of the Orlando community and enjoys getting involved with Champions for Children and AdventHealth for Children. She is also an advocate of small businesses and has created a support group for small business owners in the community.

Talia McKinney

A licensed Real Estate Salesperson and a top agent on The Serhant Team of Nest Seekers International, Talia McKinney believes that success is built upon the strength of the relationship. It is this belief that guides Talia in every interaction she has with her clients, and it is her innate ability to form these connections that allows both her and her clients to succeed in an oftentimes capricious New York real estate market.

Born and raised in Pennsylvania, Talia was recruited to run track at a state college and went on to help her team become state champions. After graduating she moved to New York City. Along with her remarkable athletic background, she brought with her a degree in Communications and Public Relations, and during her first few years in the city she explored careers in fashion public relations, event planning, and hospitality. Yet, despite her time in those industries, real estate was something that had always drawn her in.

Today, having already spent years compiling a long record of listings and sales, Talia continues to be excited by the challenges and relationships that real estate has to offer. She has used her experience from previous jobs to connect with her clients on a personal level that puts them at ease throughout the entire process of buying, selling, or investing in a home. Her thoroughness, attentiveness, and commitment distinguish her from typical agents. The relationship is what matters most to her, because she knows that the relationship is the bellwether for overall success and satisfaction.

When she isn’t running around Manhattan selling condos and co-ops, or dashing to an afternoon townhouse showing in Brooklyn, Talia can be found volunteering at Achilles International, NY Cares, or the Boys and Girls Club. She competes in triathlons and marathons—what better way to train for the next sprint to an open house?—and is also an avid world traveler, having been to over 35 countries.

Alex Young

Having just celebrated three years in the business, and one full year as a solo agent, Alex won his area’s readers choice award for Best Real Estate Agent for 2020.

Since entering the business, he’s made it his goal to always grow year-over-year, with this year pacing to hit that goal with 45 total transactions.

Over 95% of Alex’s business comes from sphere of influence or referrals.

He has spent less than $150 on any external marketing or advertising in the 3+ years of the business.

As it relates to business, he runs everything on his own except for a professional photographer for listings and a per-deal transaction coordinator; this, in combination with his low expenses, allows his business to run near or above 85% profitability.

Alex’s mission statement for The Bow Tie Group:

“My philosophy is simple: your dream, made simply for you. By combining clear communication and modern technology, my goal is to bring your dream to you, simply. Whether it’s buying a first home or investing in alternate revenue streams, I’m here to help realize those dreams simply and easily.”

Julianne Holt

Julianne Holt is fairly new to the industry as she’s just in her 4th year of sales. At the completion of her 3rd year, she was ranked in the top 5 of her brokerage for the most transactions closed that year and has been among the top 5% of producers out of 120 agents at her firm, every year, for the last 4 years. She attributes her success thus far to simply creating relationships. Every client, every deal, every person is a chance to build trust and rapport. For her, these are the foundations of any transaction.

She also prioritizes personal growth. She currently has her designations and certifications as a SRS, ABR, SRES, and Negotiation Expert. She tries to read one business related book each month and has set goals for future seminars or events that she thinks she will benefit from. She is currently in the process of obtaining her broker salesperson license. Most recently, she was nominated for a position with Nevada Real Estate Division’s work group to help reform aspects of their continued education. The continued learning drives her to always know more, and Julianne says “when she knows more, she can do more.”

Kelsey Martin

Kelsey prides herself on being more than a broker. She is a real go-getter and will work tirelessly to find a deal for a friend, a pied a terre for a New York-enthusiast or a 20 mm townhouse for a client with a high budget.

As one of the founders of the Davidson Martin Team, Kelsey has been featured in many articles as an expert and authority on different aspects of the industry, most recently offering advice on the rental market, how to score a deal in this climate and how to navigate these market waters. Kelsey has a knack for staying calm and persevering. During the pandemic, she returned to her hometown of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where she expanded her business and is now able to transact in Michigan. The sky is the limit for Kelsey especially considering she is in her early 30s and already so successful!

Kelsey is the epitome of a “boots on the ground” broker. Her clients can trust that she will be handling ALL aspects of the sale – not a rookie agent who may not be qualified to represent the transaction properly. Bottom line, every moment is critical to a successful sale, and she ensures it is handled seamlessly.

Nikki Sun

Nikki came to America after the 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, she had to make a career choice: either stay and wait for the re-build or take a chance and move to another market. After a short visit to New York City, she made her decision to take a chance and risk everything to move to New York.

She started to sell real estate beginning in 2013 and started approaching FSBO – For Sale By Owner listings. After four months of pitching FSBOs, she had five listings. Unbelievably, her first signed deal was $2.9M.

She gave herself two years to make it, because of how expensive it is to live in Manhattan. If she didn’t make it in the first two years then she would have to go back home to New Zealand. In 2013, seven months after Nikki started NYC real estate sales, she moved to brokerage Douglas Elliman, and by the end of 2014, she ranked as a Top 10 agent in transactions out of thousands of others.

Her goal is always to start with the basics. She started by selling smaller apartments in the half million dollar range, but since these apartments are in prime locations, and so affordable for the Manhattan market, she was selling them like hot cakes. She would list them and within a week, and all cash offers, they were sold.

It has been eight years now since Nikki started in NYC. She is currently a Licensed Real Estate Salesperson with Compass, so her clients are growing with her and needing bigger and more expensive homes. The half million dollar ones back then became $1M, and what was $1M client became $2M, and so on and so on. So right now, she is doing between $12-$20M volume in sales in a year.

She’s not just an agent who can sell. She also started to build her own real estate portfolio, so she understands from a landlord perspective what kind of service her clients need.

Brittnie Douglas

As the Chief Operating Officer and Managing Broker, Brittnie oversees the day-to-day operations at Platinum Living Realty (PLR) as well as being the main point of contact for all Broker-related questions. Brittnie also coordinates the Company Expansion, Staff relations, Agent trainings, Mentorship programs, and Corporate events to cultivate a strong and encouraging culture for PLR’s Agents.

With over 15 years of experience in Arizona’s real estate Industry, Brittnie has been instrumental in the success and growth of PLR. Through her constant hard work, dedication, leadership, and creativity, Brittnie has created an inviting and warm culture at PLR by always going above and beyond for agents, staff, and clients.

As the Lead Transaction Coordinator, she oversees the TC department and supports PLR’s agents by creating a remarkable closing experience for their clients. Brittnie has helped agents close over 2000transactions. Brittnie has received the esteemed honor of being awarded the 2017and 2018 TC of the Year Award as well as the 2018 Leadership award.

Outside of real estate, she enjoys spending time with her husband and three children as well as rooting for the Arizona Coyotes at most of their home games.