We Thought It Was Gonna Be a Bad Year. It's Been Phenomenal. | Michael J. Franco | Talking Manhattan
Episode Description
Everyone in NYC real estate spent the back half of last year bracing for a brutal 2026. New mayor. New policy. Bad press. Pied-à-terre tax. Then spring hit and the deals just kept signing.
"The memo is out. If you're renovated within the last five years and priced well, you're getting multiple bids. The rest of the market is a different story."
Noah Rosenblatt and John Walkup sit down with Michael J. Franco, founder and team leader of the Michael J. Franco Group at Compass. He runs one of the top-ranked small teams in the country (#3 at Compass, #21 in Manhattan, #151 nationally per Real Trends), does roughly $150M in annual sales, and has over $1.5B in career production. A former attorney, Michael runs his team like a Navy SEAL unit: two senior agents who've been with him for 11 and 14 years, no big-team bloat, all production-focused.
What you'll learn:
What's actually selling versus what's actually sitting. Renovated within five years and priced well equals multiple bids. Unrenovated, uptown, high maintenance, aspirational pricing equals months on the market. The memo is out, and Michael is direct about both sides.
The diminishing returns of an expensive renovation. Sellers fall in love with their renovation cost and anchor to it. Buyers see a sponsor-level fit-out as roughly equivalent. The gap between "I spent a fortune" and "the market will pay for that" is one of the hardest conversations in real estate.
Why low inventory is actually keeping buyers home. Counter-intuitive but real. Less inventory creates buyer fatigue. There's nothing to see, so they stop looking. The exception: buyers who stay flexible on neighborhood unlock the whole city.
Why radio silence is the worst sin in this business. The number one complaint Michael hears from expired-listing sellers is that they never heard from their agent. Over-communicate. Always.
The empathy-vs-fiduciary tension. Telling a seller to lower their price is Michael's least favorite thing to do. But not doing it is worse. If you're a seller, this is the conversation you should want your agent to be willing to have.
How to actually build a team that lasts. Let the business grow the team, not the other way around. First hire: an assistant. Second: a buyer's agent who can absorb overflow. Why Michael's two senior agents have been with him for over a decade, and why he stays in production instead of stepping out.
The post-COVID pivot away from public open houses. Now appointment-only. Better for sellers, more efficient for agents, and the buildings prefer it.
The single lesson Michael would give his younger self: get a hold of your database from day one. Even if it's only 50 people. That's where the gold is. Consistent relationships compound. Everything else gets easier when the database is built.
For independent pricing intelligence on any specific NYC deal you're working on, including listing pitches and pricing strategy, UrbanDigs Advisor gives you the data and the read with no broker incentives in the way. Visit urbandigs.co.
For the live Manhattan and Brooklyn dashboards Noah, John, and brokers like Michael use to read the market in real time, visit urbandigs.com.
Subscribe so you never miss a Talking Manhattan or a Macro Monday.
#NYCRealEstate #TalkingManhattan #ManhattanRealEstate #UrbanDigs #NYCBroker #MichaelJFranco #Compass #RealEstateAdvice
"The memo is out. If you're renovated within the last five years and priced well, you're getting multiple bids. The rest of the market is a different story."
Noah Rosenblatt and John Walkup sit down with Michael J. Franco, founder and team leader of the Michael J. Franco Group at Compass. He runs one of the top-ranked small teams in the country (#3 at Compass, #21 in Manhattan, #151 nationally per Real Trends), does roughly $150M in annual sales, and has over $1.5B in career production. A former attorney, Michael runs his team like a Navy SEAL unit: two senior agents who've been with him for 11 and 14 years, no big-team bloat, all production-focused.
What you'll learn:
What's actually selling versus what's actually sitting. Renovated within five years and priced well equals multiple bids. Unrenovated, uptown, high maintenance, aspirational pricing equals months on the market. The memo is out, and Michael is direct about both sides.
The diminishing returns of an expensive renovation. Sellers fall in love with their renovation cost and anchor to it. Buyers see a sponsor-level fit-out as roughly equivalent. The gap between "I spent a fortune" and "the market will pay for that" is one of the hardest conversations in real estate.
Why low inventory is actually keeping buyers home. Counter-intuitive but real. Less inventory creates buyer fatigue. There's nothing to see, so they stop looking. The exception: buyers who stay flexible on neighborhood unlock the whole city.
Why radio silence is the worst sin in this business. The number one complaint Michael hears from expired-listing sellers is that they never heard from their agent. Over-communicate. Always.
The empathy-vs-fiduciary tension. Telling a seller to lower their price is Michael's least favorite thing to do. But not doing it is worse. If you're a seller, this is the conversation you should want your agent to be willing to have.
How to actually build a team that lasts. Let the business grow the team, not the other way around. First hire: an assistant. Second: a buyer's agent who can absorb overflow. Why Michael's two senior agents have been with him for over a decade, and why he stays in production instead of stepping out.
The post-COVID pivot away from public open houses. Now appointment-only. Better for sellers, more efficient for agents, and the buildings prefer it.
The single lesson Michael would give his younger self: get a hold of your database from day one. Even if it's only 50 people. That's where the gold is. Consistent relationships compound. Everything else gets easier when the database is built.
For independent pricing intelligence on any specific NYC deal you're working on, including listing pitches and pricing strategy, UrbanDigs Advisor gives you the data and the read with no broker incentives in the way. Visit urbandigs.co.
For the live Manhattan and Brooklyn dashboards Noah, John, and brokers like Michael use to read the market in real time, visit urbandigs.com.
Subscribe so you never miss a Talking Manhattan or a Macro Monday.
#NYCRealEstate #TalkingManhattan #ManhattanRealEstate #UrbanDigs #NYCBroker #MichaelJFranco #Compass #RealEstateAdvice