Pleasanton, CA — March 19, 2021 —NextHome is pleased to announce the newest addition to the franchise, NextHome The Palmetto State, based in Little River, South Carolina. The brokerage represents the 12th office location opened in South Carolina for the NextHome franchise and the 552nd NextHome office opened nationally.
NextHome The Palmetto State will serve buyers and sellers across South Carolina’s entire Grand Strand area, including Longs, North Myrtle Beach, Myrtle Beach, and Loris.
Located just 30 minutes north of Myrtle Beach, Little River is one of the oldest – and most charming – towns along the Grand Strand. The area is known for its world-class seafood, its fishing charters, and the stunning rows of mature oak trees that line its quaint streets.
The area’s appeal is no surprise to NextHome The Palmetto State owner Sandra Cribb, who is a lifelong local.
Before becoming a REALTOR®, Sandra spent many years operating a vacation rental concierge company, while also working alongside her husband in his marine sales and service business.
Sandra’s natural ability to build relationships and put people first caught the attention of a local broker, who convinced Sandra that she would excel in real estate.
“She encouraged me to get my license and come work for her,” Sandra said.
In 2005, Sandra joined The Beach Company, the largest independent in the region at the time. While there, Sandra built a reputation for kindhearted service where each client felt as if they were her only priority.
“I’m proud of being able to nurture relationships from the very beginning,” Sandra said. “I love that my clients stay in touch and most have become lifelong friends. My client relationships remain strong because no matter how busy I get, I’ve always taken time out for them.”
Sandra continued to provide exceptional service with the same brokerage for the next 10 years – despite the business changing hands, and moving in and out of franchised status, several times.
In 2015, Sandra joined another large local independent, also becoming a licensed real estate instructor in the same year. That brokerage also moved to a franchise, just a short while later.
Throughout her years in the real estate business, she would watch companies grow their agents in numbers, yet many seemed to lose their client focus while growing.
“It seemed like the goal was how many agents the company could recruit, rather than how many clients they could help,” Sandra said. “I felt I had to get back to the basic principles of being customer-focused.”
In 2019, she finally opened her own brokerage. As the owner of Compass Realty, Sandra focused her business on being a nimble resource for her clients that built on her greatest strength – people-first service. In addition, Sandra started teaching at a real estate school during this time.
“I wanted to be small and more nurturing,” Sandra said. “I am, by nature, a relationship builder.”
As Sandra was attending a broker’s class, she started talking with Tammi Pierce, the owner of NextHome Seekers.
“The first time she mentioned NextHome to me, she was so excited,” Sandra recalled. “But I just politely listened because in my experience, I thought franchises just weren’t for me.”
Eventually, some of Sandra’s students in her real estate classes began asking if they could come and work for her. Sandra soon realized that she could better nurture young talent, and her client base, if someone else was taking care of the busywork.
“I realized that trying to recruit and train new agents, maintain my connection with my clients, while still trying to run all other aspects of a business were really draining me,” Sandra said. “Frankly, I just needed help in every area of the business because I was wearing all of the hats. So, I started researching more into the benefits of franchises.”
As Sandra started researching franchises, NextHome kept reappearing. With a little more research, she knew that she found what she had been looking for; a big company with a small company feel.
“I loved the culture,” Sandra said. “I loved the individual attention to detail, and their customer service was above and beyond anything I had seen.”
Today, Sandra is combining her in-depth knowledge of the area and customer service skills with NextHome’s industry-leading technology and back-end support.
“I never had a desire to build a gigantic real estate company. Instead, I wanted one that would provide a friendly and nurturing atmosphere with unparalleled customer service,” Sandra said. “With NextHome, I can continue that culture and have access to world-class support as well.”
Sandra is now welcoming quality agents who have her same nurturing spirit and dedication to client success.
Outside of the office Sandra enjoys building her community through service. She donates to area youth and homeless shelters and has always had a special spot in her heart for people who’ve been displaced from their homes. In addition, Sandra supports the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and various other local and national organizations. Sandra is proud to partner with other NextHome offices as a supporter of Canine Companions for Independence.
Sandra has been married to her husband Dwayne since 1988 and is the mother of two children, Nick (31) and Kindall (24). Nick will soon be joining NextHome The Palmetto State as a sales associate.
Please join us in congratulating Sandra on the opening of NextHome The Palmetto State in Little River, South Carolina!
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.