Pleasanton, CA— January 5, 2016 — NextHome is proud to announce our newest addition to the franchise, NextHome Antonelli Realty. This is the franchise’s ninth brokerage in the state of Florida.
Owned and operated by top producing real estate broker, Paul Antonelli, the office will provide residential real estate sales to St. Cloud, Lake Nona, Hunters Creek, Celebration, Davenport, Clermont, and the remainder of the greater Orlando area.
As a retail business owner since 1979, Antonelli has been working with customers for over 35 years. Originally from the Boston area, Antonelli relocated to Orlando, Florida in 2002 with his wife of 37 years, Sandy.
In 2003, Antonelli continued in retail under the management division of Wal-Mart. At the time of his employment, the Orlando store location was ranked #4 busiest Wal-Mart location in the world. Antonelli was in charge of nearly 1,000 associates who reported directly to him. His division also saw the least amount of employee turnover during his tenure there.
It was during his time at Wal-Mart that he sharpened his skills of delegation, accountability, and the highest and best use of his time.
In 2005, looking for a new challenge, Antonelli took his skills learned in decades of retail and converted those over to a career in real estate.
Antonelli started his career with a local Coldwell Banker brokerage in Kissimmee, FL and grew his business quickly.
By 2008, just three years into his career, Antonelli was ranked as the #12 listing agent for the entire Coldwell Banker franchise across the United States. As the economy changed, so did his business.
With a significant uptick in distressed properties, Antonelli focused on changing his listing model to help those who were having trouble paying their mortgage. In 2009, Antonelli was recognized as the #1 short sale listing agent in Osceola County.
While Antonelli did well in his business, he noticed that nearly all of his marketing was done via his own personal efforts. That being said, Antonelli made the decision to go independent and open his own brokerage in 2011, Antonelli Realty.
As the real estate landscape in the Orlando area continued to see more and more homeowners in financial distress, Antonelli and his brokerage became the “go-to” company to help these struggling homeowners. He became known as “that short sale guy” to many in his community. The unofficial name became such a familiar moniker, Antonelli embraced the name and bought the website ThatShortsSaleGuy.com.
In addition to selling real estate, running a brokerage, and heading up marketing for his agents, Antonelli gave back to the real estate community. He earned his credentials as a National Association of REALTORS® E-Pro certified trainer. The E-Pro designation provides REALTORS® an official NAR designation as an electronic and technology specialist in the field of real estate.
As the needs for consumers continue to change, Antonelli realized he needed assistance in providing programs and tools of value for both his agents and consumers.
It was during the Florida REALTORS® Convention in August 2015 where he was introduced to NextHome.
“One of the top agents at my brokerage, Tony, saw (NextHome’s VP of Business Development) Imran Poladi as a speaker at our conference,” recalled Antonelli. “He showed me the tools that NextHome had to offer and Imran met with me later that same day. After seeing what the company could do to help my brokerage, I knew it was a really good fit with my company.”
But it was his visit to California with Sandy that solidified the bond with NextHome.
“When we came out to California to NextHome Corporate Headquarters, we met the team in person and it could not have gone any better,” said Sandy Antonelli. “From the moment we got to the office, to the training, to the evening we spent having dinner with the team, it was a family atmosphere that just doesn’t exist in today’s real estate world.”
“At NextHome, it isn’t about just making a sale and adding another office to the franchise,” said NextHome’s Vice President of Sales, Charis Moreno. “It’s about really listening to the brokerage owner and seeing if we can genuinely help them. Paul wanted to create a company that could provide tools and services to his agents not offered in his market, and provide resources to recruit top talent to the company. NextHome made sense for him and his firm and we are happy to have Paul and his team represent NextHome in the St. Cloud market.”
When not selling real estate, the Antonellis love to travel and have made a commitment to spending a few weeks a year to travel the world and explore new cities. In the coming months, the couple will be helping plan the wedding of their son, Paul Jr.
Please join us in welcoming Paul, Sandy, and the rest of the team at NextHome Antonelli Realty to the NextHome family!
Interested in being a part of the NextHome Real Estate Franchise? Contact VP of Sales Charis Moreno at Charis@NextHome.com.
Each office is an independently owned and operated business.