Earl Endrich got his real estate license in 2007. He was 24, working construction and at a vitamin shop, still figuring out what he wanted to do with his life. His mother had been in the business for 30 years and kept encouraging him to join.
"I had that mindset," Earl said on a recent episode of The Foraker Realty Podcast. "I figured my mom was in the business, so it was going to be easy. She'd hand off transactions, and everything would be awesome."
Then 2008 happened. The economy collapsed. His mother told him she couldn't give him anything—she had to save herself. And Earl was left to figure it out on his own, in one of the worst real estate markets in modern history.
Looking back, he says it was the best thing that could have happened.
The Rude Awakening: Real Estate Isn't Easy
"A lot of people get into real estate thinking it's going to be easy," Earl said. "Show a couple houses, get a couple contracts signed, get paid. But it's a rude awakening once you get involved."
Earl didn't have a safety net. No inherited client list. No deals handed to him. He had to go find business himself—cold-calling expireds, driving neighborhoods looking for for-sale-by-owner signs (they weren't on Zillow yet), and reaching out to everyone he knew to let them know he was in the business.
"I did okay with all that," he said. But the real turning point came when his brokerage introduced him to the Buffini program—a relationship-based marketing system focused on past clients, sphere of influence, and referrals.
"It felt weird at first," Earl admitted. "You're reaching out to your friends, letting them know what you do. You don't want to be a secret agent, but it feels awkward because you've never done that before."
Still, he stuck with it. He called ten people a day. He had a little Easy Button on his desk—after each call, he'd push it and move on. He gamified the process to make it less intimidating.
And slowly, it worked.
Why Starting in a Down Market Was an Advantage
Most people would say 2007 was one of the worst times to get into real estate. Earl sees it differently.
"I didn't know what I didn't know," he said. "So I kind of learned the right way to do things. I learned that you can't just rely on market momentum or someone handing you business. You have to build relationships. You have to provide value. You have to earn every single deal."
Because the market was so difficult, Earl had no choice but to focus on fundamentals: showing up, staying in touch, following through, and treating every client like they mattered. Those habits became the foundation of his business.
Today, 87% of his transactions come from past clients and referrals. He doesn't chase internet leads. He doesn't spend money on paid advertising. He built a referral engine—one phone call, one relationship, one client at a time.
The One Thing His Mom Did Give Him
Earl's mother couldn't give him deals. But she gave him something more valuable: experience.
"She told me, 'Anything you get, I'll help you with,'" Earl said. "And that was huge. Because you can go sell a house or get a listing, but if you don't know what to do from there, it can cost you a lot of money."
That's the part of real estate no one talks about when they're recruiting new agents. Mistakes happen in the field. There's no practice round. If you don't have someone guiding you through your first few transactions, you're learning by losing money—or worse, losing clients.
At Foraker, that's part of the model. New agents don't just get leads—they get a licensed transaction coordinator with 26 years of experience who walks them through every deal for $300 at closing (and $0 if the deal falls through). They get Tuesday trainings led by agents who are actively selling. They get accountability pods and personalized business plans on day one.
"Having someone with experience help you through the transaction is the most valuable part," Earl said. "That's how we've built our team. It's not about volume—it's about making sure people know what they're doing."
The Lesson: Build the Right Habits Early
If Earl had started in 2012, when the market was recovering and deals were easier to come by, he might have built his business differently. He might have relied on market momentum. He might have skipped the relationship-building and gone straight to chasing leads online.
But because he started during the Great Recession, he had no choice but to build the right habits from the beginning. And those habits—calling his database, following up with clients, working by referral, leading with service—are what carried him through every market cycle since.
"It only got better after that," Earl said. "Because I learned to work five times as hard just to get clients. Once the market improved, I already had the foundation in place."
For new agents today, the lesson is the same: don't wait for the market to hand you business. Build the habits now that will carry you through any market.
FAQ
Is relationship marketing still effective in 2025, with so many online leads available?
Yes. Earl's business is 87% referral-based, and he's been in the industry since 2007. Online leads can supplement your business, but referrals from past clients and your sphere are still the most reliable and cost-effective source of transactions.
What if I don't have a mentor like Earl's mom to help me through deals?
Find a brokerage that provides transaction support. At Foraker, every agent has access to a licensed transaction coordinator and active agents who train and mentor. You shouldn't have to figure out every deal on your own.
How long does it take to build a referral-based business?
It depends on how consistent you are. Earl started reaching out to his sphere in 2007 and built his system over the next few years. If you commit to calling your database regularly and providing value, you'll start seeing referrals within six to twelve months.
