Long before the era of real estate marketplaces like Zillow and Redfin, DreamTown.com was making it possible for Chicago homebuyers to search for properties online.
Today, Dream Town Realty continues to embrace creative, out-of-the-box thinking to transform the home buying and selling experience. What began in 1998 with one small office has grown into a firm with nearly 450 brokers and six offices serving the entire Chicago area.
Dream Town, which earned the No. 1 ranking among midsize employers on the Tribune’s 2023 list of Top Workplaces, as measured by the consultancy Energage in Exton, Pennsylvania, prides itself on being ahead of the curve in adopting and building proprietary technology.
“Our company was one of the first in the country to do an online real estate search,” said Dream Town founder and CEO Yuval Degani. “This was way before the days of Zillow, Redfin and so on.”
The website fueled Dream Town’s growth, and the company evolved as it built a marketing department that functions much like a full-service marketing agency.
“We treat our brokers as clients in an ad agency,” Degani said. “What our brokers really want is help to build their own business because they are the ones who are out there talking to their clients and being in front of their clients, and so they find a lot of value in our marketing agency model.”
Dream Town also employs life coaches who are accessible to brokers and employees. Coaching, Degani said, is different from training.
“Training is showing someone a skill and teaching them how to do it,” Degani said. “Coaching is more a personal question of why. What do I want? How do I do it? How do I approach what I need to do in my life?”
Coaching “makes everybody much happier and more efficient,” Degani said. “It’s a win-win for everyone. I got coached and I think that helped me tremendously in growing the company, and the management received coaching individually and as a group.”
The agency provides opportunities for brokers to conduct group coaching. “We call them Growth Groups,” Degani said. “That’s where 10 brokers will sit together with a coach and meet with the group once a month. And they will bring and share their genius. So there’s a big community feel to Dream Town.”
Dream Town asked its brokers to describe the firm in one word, and the word that came up more than any other was family.
“It’s pretty amazing for a company that has almost 500 people. The No. 2 word is collaborative. And think about it, we’re 500 people. We still use that word family,” Degani said.
Realtor Riz Gilani has been associated with Dream Town for 13 years. For him, it’s the culture that makes his work meaningful. “It’s such a collaborative culture,” he said. “Everybody is just willing to help. At other brokerages it was like others were guarding their information. I will get three or four people offering to help me now and sharing their opinions. It’s just nice to be with people that are so helpful.”
Gilani mentors and coaches his team, especially junior agents, to help them reach their full potential. “I remember that when I was a new agent, a lot of people helped me,” he said. “They were super helpful, super cohesive and super collaborative.”
He added that Dream Town offers corporate events for everyone to enjoy, including casual events like bowling nights and large company events such as annual parties.
Dream Town has also aligned itself with the nonprofit organization Cradles to Crayons, Gilani said.
“I’ve been involved with this charity work for years, previously with Coat Angels and now with Cradles to Crayons,” he said. “During the holiday season I would go to schools where we would outfit the kids with new and gently used winter coats.”
Kristen Vega started working at Dream Town in March 2021 and is approaching two and a half years with the marketing department as a senior graphic designer.
Originally from Charleston, South Carolina, Vega said she had always hoped to one day move to Chicago. “Working for a real estate company in a new city has been a fantastic way to get to know the area, and everyone has been so kind and helpful when it comes to tips on everything from how to make it through the winter to going over tornado protocols,” Vega said.
Not only have people been helpful with general tips for the Midwest, but the collaborative spirit is something Vega said one can find in every aspect of Dream Town.
“If one of our brokers does something that is a success, they share their knowledge with everyone,” she said. “I’ve found the same goes for the marketing department — if one of us does something that proves to be helpful and or successful, we share it with everyone so we can all be successful.”
Vega said that although her team has the option of going into the office, most work remotely.
“It’s refreshing to log in to work every morning and immediately start laughing with co-workers,” Vega said. “When we do get together for a working day in the office or to grab a staff lunch, it’s always a fun time.”
