Thousands of real estate agents canvas New York City, trying to break big into one of the most coveted and crowded markets in the world. Many do not climb to the zenith of success, but those who do possess an innate talent for real estate, encyclopedic knowledge of their city, an unflinching commitment to hard work and the rare resolve to pursue deals while forming fruitful relationships.
All these describe Benjamin Dixon and Matthew Mackay, who formed The Mackay | Dixon Team a little over a year ago. In this short time span, they have blended their real estate, customer service, finance and management skills to become #7 in New York City at Douglas Elliman.
Dixon and Mackay shared their success with Haute Residece.
You are celebrating one year as a team. How did you partner up?
Dixon: We have known each other over a decade. Matthew helped me find my first apartment (and every one since) in Manhattan in 2005.
Mackay: After nearly 20 great years in Manhattan real estate, I was looking to take things to the next level. When Ben said he was ready to take the plunge and leave a successful career in Finance, it all fell into place.
What are some of the challenges of transitioning from being a solo real estate agent to a team?
Mackay: I used to do it all myself. Incorporating another person into my decision-making process initially took a lot of effort. But it is worth it. While we had to invest time and energy to create communication and coordination systems, we are reaping the benefits, and so are our clients. Our marketing is stronger, our analysis more refined and our clients’ satisfaction, evidenced by a steady stream of referrals, is proof that it is all working.
What is the dynamic when working together? Do you split responsibilities?
Mackay: We collaborate on all of our deals so that our clients reap the benefits of each of our 20 years of experience. However, we do tend to split responsibilities according to our skillset. I often take the lead on buyer searches as I have been in almost every building in the city and have a photographic memory.
Dixon: And I tend to handle all of our operations, marketing and analysis.
Manhattan is a tough market to crack, yet you are among the top teams at Douglas Elliman – and in such a short time. What do you attribute your success to?
Dixon: Hard work. Hard work. Hard work. This is a competitive business. Without tenacity and determination, you won’t last long. We are also laser-focused on our clients’ experience. It isn’t enough to just get the deal done. Buying and selling in Manhattan is complex and can easily turn into a negative experience. While we can’t always remove every stress from a transaction, our goal is always to have our clients look back on the experience favorably and know without a doubt who they will call for their next real estate deal.
What have you learned in the year since becoming a team? What have you learned from each other?
Dixon: I learn from Matthew every day. He has done so many deals in this city. Having that wealth of knowledge available to me 24 hours a day has helped me come up the experience curve so much faster than I ever could have on my own.
Mackay: Ben looks at data differently than any broker I have met. While nothing can replace experience and instinct, being able to analyze the ever expanding amount of the data we have available to us today certainly provides us and our clients a competitive advantage.
What challenges do you see in the current state of the NYC real estate and what are the ways to overcome them?
Dixon: The current challenge is plain and simple – bridging the gap. We are seeing plenty of deals being done; but often the expectation gap has to be closed to get there. We do this head on with data and analysis.
What is your vision for the future?
Mackay: We finished out our first year together with two new team members and ranked #7 in New York City at Douglas Elliman. We plan to grow strategically and continually focus on improving our clients’ experience.
Matthew Mackay and Benjamin Dixon – The Mackay | Dixon Team – are the real estate agents who exclusively represent the Chelsea, New York market as a part of the Haute Residence real estate network. View all of their listings here.
Images and video courtesy of The Mackay | Dixon Team
