First Team Real Estate

A private business-growth briefing for Bryce Gharring

This is not a brokerage pitch. It is a useful comparison.

Bryce, when your current brokerage is working,the bar for change should be high.

You were refreshingly direct with me: you are not unhappy, you are not out looking for another place to land, and you finally have the kind of responsive management you value. I respect that. So tomorrow is not about convincing you that something is wrong. It is about seeing whether First Team and I can add enough leverage around the business you and Leslie are already building to make the comparison worth your time.

Let's map out the planReview the business briefing
Golden-hour South Orange County residence with rolling hills beyond

20+ Years

Licensed real estate experience

Since 1969

Gharring Tax Service

$4.68M

Trailing 12-month sales volume

South Orange County

Rancho Mission Viejo home base

02 — The business behind the numbers

You have built a career around trust, analysis, and longevity.That combination has unusual value in South Orange County.

Twenty-plus years in residential real estate only tells part of the story.

Your professional foundation reaches much further back: a Business Administration degree from the University of La Verne, 25 years as an Agency Field Executive with State Farm, and Gharring Tax Service — a business you founded in 1969 and continue to operate today.

That financial and advisory background changes the way you can serve a real estate client. You are not simply approaching a house as an isolated transaction. You understand equity, taxes, long-held assets, family decisions, timing, negotiation, and the financial consequences that often sit behind a move.

The Gharring Group adds another layer. Your partnership with your daughter, Leslie Clarke, combines your strengths in valuation, financial analysis, negotiation, and long-standing relationships with her strengths in digital marketing, social media, logistics, and transaction execution.

And now the geography is changing. After Del Mar and Temecula, Rancho Mission Viejo puts you directly inside one of the most compelling residential corridors in South Orange County.

The same patience and long-horizon thinking that show up in Ponderosa Avocados also show up in the way you have built professional relationships across decades.

Two generations. Decades of relationships. Financial fluency. A new South Orange County home base.

03 — Business snapshot

The current numbers show real momentum.The bigger question is how repeatable it can become.

Two Decades+

Licensed real estate experience

$4.68M

Trailing 12-month sales volume

+74%

Sales-volume growth

$1.34M

Average closed sales price

99%

Closed-to-list price ratio

6 Days

Average days on market

The Gharring Group

Bryce Gharring + Leslie Clarke

Coldwell Banker Realty

Current brokerage

Production figures are directional, based on public production research and MLS data — not a complete private business record.

Recent production trajectory

2022

≈ $4.39M

Established multi-market production

2023

≈ $2.69M

Mixed buyer and seller activity

2024

≈ $2.71M

Consistent transaction base

2025

≈ $1.00M

Lower-volume year

2026 YTD

≈ $4.68M

Strong rebound

The visible pipeline currently includes a pending $679K co-list and no active listing inventory in the production report. In the context of a business that has rebounded sharply this year, that is less about fixing performance and more about creating a more repeatable seller-side pipeline as Bryce establishes deeper roots in South Orange County.

Recent business already reaches Carlsbad, Rancho Mission Viejo, Coto de Caza, Anaheim, Upland, and Chino. That breadth proves adaptability. It also raises a useful strategic question: how much of the next chapter should become intentionally concentrated around Rancho Mission Viejo, Coto de Caza, Ladera Ranch, Mission Viejo, Laguna Niguel, and the surrounding South Orange County communities?

04 — Core diagnosis

Nothing you told me sounds broken.The question is where more leverage could actually matter.

You have already done the hard part: built judgment, relationships, credibility, and a business model that has survived multiple market cycles. The value of tomorrow's conversation is identifying where institutional leverage could make an experienced business easier to operate, more locally concentrated, and more valuable over time.

01

Localize the next chapter

You now live in Rancho Mission Viejo, while a meaningful portion of your professional history and relationships stretches through Southwest Riverside County and beyond. The opportunity is not to abandon a regional business. It is to deliberately deepen the South Orange County side of it.

02

Connect the tax practice to more real estate moments

More than five decades of tax-advisory relationships put you close to homeowners, investors, trustees, families, and long-term property owners facing decisions around appreciated assets, downsizing, estate transitions, and tax-deferred exchanges. The opportunity is to build a systematic bridge between those conversations and the real estate resources that can help clients act when the timing is right.

03

Protect the capacity of the family team

Bryce and Leslie bring complementary skills. Brokerage-provided marketing, CRM, transaction, compliance, reporting, and technology support can protect both of you from spending high-value advisory time on work that can be systematized.

04

Turn a large geographic footprint into an advantage

A client base that reaches across Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties creates opportunity, but it also creates logistical complexity. A broad physical office network, local agent relationships, legal support, and shared infrastructure can make that reach easier to manage.

05

Add modern leverage without discarding proven principles

Twenty years of real estate experience does not need a beginner's playbook. It benefits from selective modern leverage: better database mining, AI-assisted follow-up, internal buyer matching, stronger seller reporting, polished digital infrastructure, and a manager who helps turn those tools into habits.

Let's map out the plan

05 — The opportunity

Your strongest niche may already be hiding in plain sight.Real estate for financially complex life transitions.

Most real estate agents can talk about bedrooms, square footage, and comparable sales.

Far fewer can sit comfortably with a client whose real question is:

  • Should I sell a highly appreciated property?
  • How do I move without creating unnecessary financial disruption?
  • What do I do with an inherited or trust-held home?
  • How should I think about real estate inside a larger financial decision?
  • How do I make the logistics of downsizing manageable?
  • Where does a 1031 exchange fit into the conversation?

That is where Bryce's background becomes difficult to replicate.

Equity-rich long-term owners

Create a high-trust advisory lane for longtime South Orange County homeowners evaluating their next move.

Trust + estate transitions

Pair Bryce's financial fluency and negotiation experience with brokerage infrastructure that can make complicated property transitions easier to execute.

Downsizing + move-down clients

Use renovation, staging, equity-unlock, vendor, and transaction resources to reduce the practical friction that causes homeowners to delay.

Investors + 1031 conversations

Build a stronger real estate execution layer around relationships that already begin with sophisticated financial questions.

Rancho Mission Viejo + Coto de Caza

Turn Bryce's new home base and recent transaction history into deeper neighborhood authority across the surrounding South Orange County corridor.

The Gharring Group

Position Bryce and Leslie as an intergenerational advisory team: seasoned financial judgment paired with modern marketing and execution.

Your effort deserves better leverage.

06 — First Team + Jacob

You already have a brokerage you respect.So First Team has to earn relevance by being additive.

The comparison tomorrow should not be "good brokerage versus bad brokerage." That is not your situation.

The useful comparison is simpler:

What already works today — and what would First Team + Jacob have to add for a change to be worth the inconvenience?

What already works

Responsive management you value

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

Direct strategic access to Jacob, local problem-solving, business planning, and a leadership relationship that respects the standard you already expect.

What already works

Two decades of experience

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

Peer-to-peer strategy focused on leverage, positioning, execution, and the next stage of the business — not basic real estate training.

What already works

Gharring Tax Service relationships

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

First Team Forward, First Impressions Concierge, seller resources, internal buyer demand, and structured systems that can help more clients act when a real estate need emerges.

What already works

Bryce + Leslie family-team model

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

Broker-paid CRM, digital marketing, social support, transaction infrastructure, compliance, legal support, and automated reporting that protect team capacity.

What already works

Broad Southern California footprint

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

48+ First Team offices, 2,200+ agents, regional relationships, and physical infrastructure throughout Southern California.

What already works

Growing South Orange County activity

What First Team + Jacob would have to add

SneakPreview, Buyer Pipeline, deep local agent density, seller-facing systems, luxury reach, and a brokerage network already familiar from transactions in markets like Coto de Caza.

#1

Southern California · 15 years

48+

Office locations

2,200+

Sales associates

250K+

Properties represented

550 Firms · 70 Countries

LeadingRE network

3M+

Affluent LuxuryPortfolio.com visitors annually

07 — The proof

Different careers. Different circumstances.The same principle: add the right leverage to talent that already exists.

Bryce does not need a story about someone learning how to sell real estate. The useful parallels are experienced professionals who already had skill, judgment, relationships, or production — and used the right strategy to create a different result.

The experienced-professional parallel

Decades of experience. A new reason to use it at a higher level.

Darlene had spent her entire professional career across multiple sides of the real estate industry. She did not need fundamentals. She needed an environment that made her experience feel useful again and leadership worth engaging with. After reconnecting with a bigger purpose and the right partnership, her production changed dramatically.

Decades

Of industry experience

+720%

One-year volume growth

$32M+

Team volume after the shift

"The meetings are always informative, relevant, and valuable. In an industry where time is precious, I intentionally make the effort to attend because I know I will walk away having learned something meaningful that will help me professionally."

— Darlene Jamroz

The analytical-leverage parallel

A strong producer did not need reinvention. She needed modern leverage.

Sharon was already a respected South Orange County producer doing approximately $24 million in annual volume. By layering AI strategy, smarter network mining, and more intentional business systems onto relationships she already had, she uncovered valuable opportunities that had been sitting inside her network.

≈ $24M

Annual volume

2

$10M+ buyers found in her network

+76%

Increase in average sales price

"Jacob truly knows real estate inside and out, and what sets him apart is his genuine commitment to helping his agents grow and succeed."

— Sharon Custer

The strategy-unlock parallel

Twenty years licensed. Plenty of ability. The right strategy changed the trajectory.

Preston brought nearly two decades of real estate experience plus a strong background in medical-device sales and spec building. The issue was never talent. Once the business strategy became aligned with his actual strengths and he had the structure to execute it consistently, his production changed shape in a single year.

≈ 20 Years

Real estate experience

$1.5M → ≈ $12M

Volume in one year

+640%

One-year growth

"Sometimes the agent already has the talent. What they are missing is the right strategy to unlock it."

— The Preston Wilson story

Experience is not something to replace. It is something to leverage.

08 — Tools that fit the business

Not more tools for the sake of tools.A smaller set mapped to the business you actually run.

First Team Forward / Cash Offer+

Particularly relevant to longtime homeowners with substantial equity who want to buy before selling or avoid a difficult contingent transition. This can become a practical extension of conversations Bryce is already having with financially sophisticated clients.

First Impressions Concierge

Repairs, improvements, staging, moving, and preparation support can remove the practical obstacles that keep downsizing, estate, and long-term-owner clients from bringing a property to market.

SneakPreview + Buyer Pipeline

Give The Gharring Group a stronger internal-demand story before a property reaches the broader market and create an additional source of buyer matches across First Team's agent base.

Luxury Presence + CRM + AI

Unify website, IDX search, lead capture, CRM, automation, and AI-assisted response so Bryce and Leslie can build a more organized digital pipeline without creating more manual work.

Market Trends + Market Edge + Branded CMA

Support Bryce's naturally analytical style with stronger pricing data, market visuals, comparison statistics, and polished seller-facing analysis.

Listing Activity + Syndication Reporting

Give sellers consistent, automated visibility into marketing activity and exposure — especially useful with financially analytical clients who appreciate evidence rather than vague updates.

MAXA + Social Media Concierge

Give Leslie a faster way to maintain consistent professional marketing while preserving more of her time for client communication, transaction work, and growth.

In-house Legal + SkySlope + File Auditors + TCs

Add institutional support behind complex transactions, disclosures, compliance, and contract questions — particularly valuable when trust, estate, investment, or tax-related circumstances add complexity.

The goal is not more software. The goal is more capacity.

09 — Jacob Lawlor partnership

You told me exactly what good management looks like.That is the standard I would expect you to hold me to.

On our call, you described what you value about your current manager very clearly:

"He's there. If there's an issue or a problem, he fixes it. He has meetings that last 1 hour. They do not go over."

I heard you.

Dutch is someone I know and respect personally. I am not interested in tearing down a relationship that is working for you.

My responsibility tomorrow is different: show you how I lead, show you where I could be directly useful, and let you decide whether the First Team platform adds enough around that leadership to make another conversation worthwhile.

Jacob Lawlor, First Team Real Estate
Jacob Lawlor · First Team Real Estate

Pillar 01

Strategy

Business planning, South Orange County positioning, database opportunities, seller strategy, team structure, and a clear plan built around Bryce's actual strengths.

Pillar 02

Access + Execution

Direct availability when a deal, client, negotiation, or business issue needs attention — paired with accountability that turns ideas into implementation.

Pillar 03

Modern Leverage

AI, automation, database segmentation, performance analysis, marketing systems, and brokerage tools used as force multipliers rather than distractions.

First Team provides the platform. Jacob helps you decide what matters, implement it, and turn access into execution.

Let's map out the planGet to know Jacob Lawlor

10 — What this could look like

If there were a fit, it should feel like addition — not disruption.More leverage around what already works.

What you already have

A manager you trust

What an additive model could layer on

Another highly accessible leadership relationship plus direct business-growth strategy.

What you already have

The Gharring Group's family partnership

What an additive model could layer on

More broker-paid marketing, CRM, compliance, transaction, and digital infrastructure protecting Bryce and Leslie's time.

What you already have

A decades-old tax-client network

What an additive model could layer on

A systematic real estate opportunity map around equity, estates, downsizing, investment, and transition decisions.

What you already have

Multi-county relationships

What an additive model could layer on

A 48+ office physical network and 2,200+ agent ecosystem throughout Southern California.

What you already have

Recent South Orange County momentum

What an additive model could layer on

Deeper local agent density, internal buyer matching, pre-market exposure, and a more deliberate Rancho Mission Viejo / Coto / Ladera / Mission Viejo strategy.

What you already have

Proven professional judgment

What an additive model could layer on

Modern AI, automation, digital marketing, and database leverage without sacrificing a relationship-first approach.

The purpose is not to rebuild a 20-year career from scratch.

It is to ask a much better question:

What could happen if the experience, relationships, financial fluency, and family-team model you already have were given more leverage around the edges?

Keep the wisdom. Upgrade the leverage.

Map the plan

11 — The conversation

Tomorrow's goal is simple.Compare notes and see whether anything is worth exploring.

No canned brokerage PowerPoint. No assumption that you need to move. No need to spend an hour telling you things you already know after two decades in the business.

These are the questions that would make the meeting useful.

  1. 01

    What would actually have to be materially better for changing brokerages to be worth the inconvenience?

  2. 02

    Now that you live in Rancho Mission Viejo, how much of the next three to five years do you want intentionally concentrated in South Orange County?

  3. 03

    As The Gharring Group evolves, what work should remain uniquely Bryce's, what should remain Leslie's, and what should neither of you still be doing yourselves?

  4. 04

    How many relationships inside Gharring Tax Service involve a real estate decision that never becomes an actual transaction?

  5. 05

    With longtime owners, estate clients, investors, and downsizers, where do you see people hesitate or get stuck most often?

  6. 06

    Which parts of marketing, transaction management, compliance, technology, and seller communication currently consume time that you would rather spend advising clients?

  7. 07

    Once we compare the economics, support, tools, and local market leverage, what would make you say, 'That is different enough to keep discussing'?

Confirm or reschedule

Our meeting is set for Tuesday, September 29 at 3:00 PM at the First Team Mission Viejo office, 27451 Los Altos #100, Mission Viejo, CA 92691. If you would like to confirm, reschedule, switch to Zoom, or send me a question beforehand, the fastest path is below.

Text JacobEmail Jacob

Jacob Lawlor · 949-201-0899 · JacobLawlor@FirstTeam.com

First Team Real Estate · Mission Viejo Office

12 — Before tomorrow

No pressure. No brokerage theater.Just a useful conversation between two experienced professionals.

You were clear with me: you are not unhappy, and you are not out shopping for another brokerage.

That is exactly why this meeting can be useful.

We can compare economics. We can compare support. We can look at the South Orange County opportunity, the tax-advisory side of your business, the way you and Leslie work together, and the systems that could create more capacity.

If there is nothing meaningfully additive, we will know.

If there is, we can map out what it could look like.

Either way, the hour should be worth your time.

Let's map out the plan

See you Tuesday at 3:00 PM.