Today we’d like to introduce you to Sean and Gina McCarthy.
Sean and Gina, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Established in 2015, Sonnet Realty was birthed out of a desire and a vision to impact our community and change the way real estate is practiced. As founders, my wife Gina & I wanted to be on the front lines and in tune with our clients. We have found that taking a personal one on one needs-based approach has given our clients a more fulfilling experience.
At an early age I found myself was drawn to the real estate industry and after years of working in car sales and financial services, I launched my real estate career by working with a local home builder. A few years later I was licensed and signed on with a broker in the spring the area. Prior to being licensed Gina came from a background in financial services and worked in accounting for an oil & gas firm in the Houston area. Although she never saw herself as a “salesperson”, with a passion to help people, she found herself drawn to a career in real estate.
We have worked with and serviced a vast array of clientele however where we both got our start was working with first time home buyers. It has been such a blessing to see families fulfilling their lifelong dream of homeownership. Over the years Gina and I have been able to see our client’s stories unfold, circumstances change, families grow and many have gone on to purchase their second homes. Some have even started new business ventures and contacted us for a commercial space for their new business. It is truly amazing for us to be a part of so many lives in this way.
As a company, we feel it is important to serve our community in different ways. We participate in several charity runs each year, sponsor charity events through our business, volunteer for special events and support animal rescue monetarily and through adoption.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Our very first obstacle or challenge was choosing a name. In looking at the vast landscape of different real estate companies we wanted a name that would stand out and be memorable, but at the same time speak to who we are and tell our clients story. We chose the name Sonnet partly because the name has nothing to do with real estate and secondly, the meaning of the name.
The next challenge was a business plan and execution. This was especially challenging because when we decided to open the company, we were seeing so many changes in our industry not to mention more competition. Add to that ever-changing state and federal guidelines, a plethora of marketing gimmicks & home search engines, the latest and greatest real estate tech and did we mention fierce competition. As with many other businesses, there was no linear approach to opening a brand-new brokerage.
We didn’t have the huge budget, we were truly a startup. To be quite honest, we were flat broke, so every move that we made and every decision large and small had major implications both good and bad. From the pens and paperclips to hiring key people, there were some tough lessons we had to learn our first 2 years in business.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Sonnet Realty International – what should we know?
“Leading you home, your Realtors for life”
We are a full-service real estate company working with clients that are looking to buy, sell, or lease Residential or Commercial Real Estate in the Houston and surrounding areas. The best way to describe our company is this, just as you would consult either a Doctor or a Financial planner when discussing a plan for treatment or a plan to build wealth, we take a similar approach to work with our clients…
We walk our clients through the process step by step. We first start with a face to face consultation where we discuss their wants and needs. After listening to our client, we’ll create a strategy and a detailed plan of action. Part of what has led to our success is our team approach to what we do. We work with a team of industry partners that assist us with lending, title, insurance and home inspection, we have you covered.
We specialize in: As a company, we have divisions that specialize in different areas of the industry. Residential, Commercial and Luxury Real Estate. Since inception Residential Real Estate has been the majority of our clientele, however in 2017 & 2018 our commercial and luxury divisions have shown exponential growth.
We are Known for: Our unique and unconventional approach to doing business. This is business but it is very personal, our business is very much relationship based. Our clients really become part of the Sonnet Family.
Personally, we have attended not only housewarming parties but weddings, birthday parties, family barbeques. Each agent on our team follows suit with this dynamic. We’re all a little quirky, we’re all a little weird and we’re just genuine people.
On a business level our company is known for our agent’s diligence, skill and knowledge, also, for our diversity and outside of the box thinking.
What we are most proud of: Is being able to serve those who have served so many others. We have so many clients that are educators, doctors, nurses, firefighters, peace officers, active military and veterans. We consider it an honor to be able to assist them.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
-Focus – Develop a system and a process to what you do.
-Knowing your worth- If you don’t know what you bring to the table, your clients won’t. Build value in what you do.
-Valuing your team- Take the time to build your team and know their strengths. Utilize them when possible and be willing to pour into them when needed. Reciprocity is an effective but underused tool. When you are willing to assist your team when need, they will assist you.
-Strong Work Ethic- This can’t be understated. You must be willing to outwork people that are more talented and have more recourses than you. Follow a plan and work it consistently
-Getting use to rejection and conquering it- Rejection is a part of our business, what defines us is our ability to get back up over & over again despite the no’s. Go for no and the yes’s will come, eventually. Failure can be more instructive that victory
-Feed the dream- Do small things each day to work towards your dream. By making 1-degree changes, you will eventually get there
Our agent and clients are #1:
-Develop a Corp Culture – Our culture is the heartbeat of who we are and resonates with our team
Contact Info:
- Address: 1095 Evergreen Circle #200 The Woodlands TX 77380
- Website: har.com/sonnetrealty or sonnetrealtyint.com
- Phone: 832-791-4706
- Email: clientservice@sonnetrealtygroup.com or Sean@mccarthyteamtx.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sonnetrealty/
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
