Five Questions With: Richard Epstein

Richard Epstein recently was named 2016 Realtor of the Year by the Greater Providence Board of Realtors. / COURTESY RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES LTD.
Richard Epstein recently was named 2016 Realtor of the Year by the Greater Providence Board of Realtors. / COURTESY RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES LTD.

Richard Epstein recently was selected as the 2016 Realtor of the Year by the Greater Providence Board of Realtors. Epstein, who is a broker associate and corporate trainer with Residential Properties Ltd. in Providence, has been a Realtor for 17 years. He is also a director of the Greater Providence Board of Realtors CARE committee, a public charity that is managed by the board and contributes to Rhode Island nonprofits.

PBN: What was one of the first things you learned as a new Realtor?
EPSTEIN:
The immense amount of trust and responsibility that people put in you. While it’s a business, it’s very much a person-to-person business. I love the technology, and all that, but nothing takes the place of sitting across the dining room table and talking to someone about their needs and wants. This is someone’s largest asset and they’re trusting you to either sell it or help them find another one. They’re looking to you to guide them in the largest financial transaction of their life.

PBN: You’ve held a variety of leadership posts in the real estate industry. How do you balance that with the demands of representing clients?
EPSTEIN:
I don’t think anyone should get involved until they have systems in place because it can overtax you. Time management is still my greatest struggle. I’m constantly working on it. I work off systems, and models. It means getting up a little earlier and staying up a little later, but if I stay true to my systems I’m not going to drop any balls because you can’t. The involvement in the board is voluntary. It’s really being on top of time management.

PBN: You have taken a leadership role in the Greater Providence Board of Realtors CARE organization. What are some of the charitable efforts Realtors are involved in?
EPSTEIN:
We’ve raised money, starting with the Gloria Gemma Foundation. Boys and Girls Club of Providence, Ronald McDonald House, House of Hope in Warwick. An offshoot, that’s not associated with the CARE committee, is our golf outing. This year was our 20th anniversary. The Elizabeth Buffum Chace Center was [a recipient] and the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. We really do quite a bit.

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PBN: What characterizes the Greater Providence real estate market? What makes it special?
EPSTEIN:
It’s such a microcosm of Rhode Island, where the uniqueness and the diversity of each area is incredible. You have the entire city of Providence, where houses sell for between $20,000 to almost $5 million. Rhode Island is less made up of cities and towns than it is neighborhoods. We’re very neighborhood oriented. We have a tight, community feel. I’m from Cranston. But you don’t say you’re from Cranston, you say you’re from Garden City, or Woodridge, for example.

PBN: What advice do you give Realtors just starting in the business?
EPSTEIN:
It’s about systems and consistency. They already know who their first batch of clients are. It’s growing your sphere of influence. It’s about reaching out, with an electronic newsletter, for example. It keeps you in the front of mind with people that you know. In Rhode Island, more than any other place, people do business with two kinds of people. The people they know and the people who are like-thinkers. Be consistent with it.

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