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n this week's episode of the RealTrending podcast, host Tracey Velt sits down with Paul Carlson, president of Five Star Real Estate. Carlson shares his journey from early career days to growing the brokerage and offers valuable insights on leadership, management, and succession planning.

    Carlson began his career in 2006 before joining Five Star in 2012. However, he faced adversity during the 2008 recession when his father, Greg Carlson, was struggling to keep the company afloat. This experience forced him to learn and grow as a real estate professional and photographer. Today, Five Star has around 740 agents, 22 offices, and closed over 8,000 transactions in 2024.

    Carlson's transition into the president's role was not straightforward. The company had an anti-nepotism clause, which meant he had to work his way up the ranks. He credits his father with giving him opportunities to learn and grow, but also emphasizes the importance of establishing a unique leadership style rather than trying to imitate a predecessor.

    Carlson shares that he focused on rebranding Five Star and building a strong culture, rather than relying on widely available technology. He also implemented strategies to drive growth, including lowering costs for agents, offering centralized brokerage support, and creating personal branding managed by a dedicated team. This approach helped establish Five Star as more of a consulting firm than a traditional brokerage.

    When discussing succession planning, Carlson stresses the importance of finding internal motivation before taking over a business. He believes that companies should be transformed into something new through hard work and visionary thinking, rather than simply being passed down from one generation to the next.