El Dorado Hills Real Estate Team Built On Strengths

By Jon Yoffie, DRE# 02030510 | Last updated October 28, 2026

A real estate team built on strengths hands off the work that doesn't pay and coaches every agent through what that agent already does well. That's the case I made on Brivity's Do This podcast with host Chad Hyams, and it's how Shannon and I run Yoffie Real Estate Group in El Dorado Hills, CA, about 30 miles east of Sacramento on the road to South Lake Tahoe.

I came to real estate in 2017 after 30 years in sales, marketing and media, 11 of them in homebuilding. My first team meeting showed me the problem. Our broker, Beverly Steiner, filled a whiteboard with everything we wanted to get better at the next year. Where I came from, that list was 5 to 8 different jobs, and I wondered how anyone could be good at all of them.

If you're an agent thinking about what a team would change for you, talk to our team about how we build each role around the person in it.

Do This - Advice from Top Agents, Episode 92 (29 min). Also on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Key moments from the episode

Jon Yoffie's own words from Episode 92. Each timestamp opens the video at that moment.

177 agent tasks, and 10 that pay

Only 10 of 177 tasks on an agent's plate directly generate revenue, according to an exercise I ran with ChatGPT. I asked it to list everything an individual agent needs to do to succeed. Then I asked which of those tasks produce revenue on their own.

Most of the 177 do need to happen. The trouble is that the other 167 keep us busy, and busy feels productive. As I told Chad, those tasks "allow me to hide from the work, the hard work," meaning the calls and meetings that grow a business.

So the first question is why you'd hand anything off. Some agents are happy selling 3 homes a year for vacation money, and that's a fair choice. I've told my own kids the difference: "If you want a job, you can work from home. If you want a career, you better be in the office." A career means being seen and being part of something bigger than yourself.

What should an agent hand off first?

Start with the transaction coordinator you already have, add an assistant next, and add a showing agent once revenue supports it.

Almost every agent already pays a transaction coordinator to chase documents and signatures, often in direct contact with clients, and nobody worries about it. Most agents stop there. The next hire coordinates the calendar: someone who can call the inspector and get the appointment booked. That can be an assistant or a part-time virtual assistant. It can also be an AI tool you text with instructions.

A showing agent comes later and costs a percentage of the commission. Treat every one of these as an investment, and track whether it pays a return. When Chad asked how long a showing takes me, my answer was 30 phone calls. That's the trade a showing agent buys back.

Clients are comfortable working with a team

Clients already work with teams everywhere else in their lives. Agents hold on to tasks because "my clients expect me to do it": open the door and be there for the inspection and the signing. Your CPA rarely calls to ask for your documents, though. Someone in the office does, and the CPA reviews the return with you at the end.

What clients value is a consistent experience at every step. For a family selling in Serrano or buying in Blackstone, that means the person booking the inspection and the person running the pricing analysis each spend their day on the job they do best.

Leaders tend to hand agents their own strengths

The most common coaching mistake is teaching your own strengths to an agent who is built differently. "If you're king of the cold call, you want your team making cold calls," I said on the show. An introvert who loves coffee with their sphere will break under that plan.

There are multiple ways to grow a business, and each agent can grow it a different way. The leader's job is to help agents recognize their own strengths and build on them. Everybody wants to learn and grow, and agents who can't do that on your team will find a team where they can.

Shannon and I built our business on relationships over 20-plus years in El Dorado Hills, where we raised our kids and stayed involved in the community and its El Dorado Hills schools. Neither of us loves cold calling. We'd rather grab lunch or play pickleball with friends. When Shannon starts with a new client, she tells them, "When we're done, we're going to be friends." It proves true more than 90% of the time.

That trust is earned. How many of your friends' closets have you seen? Sellers let us into the middle of their finances and their next move, and I consider that an honor.

Agents show you their strengths if you pay attention

Agents self-identify their strengths when a leader watches closely. One agent on our team drives her business through open houses. Another will make 1,000 dials in a day and gets steady business from the phone. Neither path is mine, and I'm impressed by both.

The coaching tool is the same for each of them: ask questions. It's the same advice I give for a listing appointment. Empty your brain. You don't know anything about this person, their life or their house until they tell you.

Jon Yoffie leads Yoffie Real Estate Group in El Dorado Hills with Shannon Yoffie: 4 agents and a director of operations, powered by PLACE and ranked a RealTrends Verified 2026 Top 5 Small Team for El Dorado Hills and Folsom. The same evidence-first habit runs our El Dorado Hills market report live data and the October 2026 El Dorado Hills market report. If you're an agent who wants a career built on what you do well, or a client who wants that kind of team behind your move, we'd like to hear from you.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Jon Yoffie?

Jon Yoffie, DRE# 02030510, is co-founder and lead agent of Yoffie Real Estate Group in El Dorado Hills, California, which he runs with his wife, Shannon Yoffie. He joined real estate in 2017 after a 30-year career in sales, marketing and media management, including 11 years in homebuilding. The team is powered by PLACE and was ranked a RealTrends Verified 2026 Top 5 Small Team for El Dorado Hills and Folsom.

What should a real estate agent delegate first?

Start with work that doesn't generate revenue. In an exercise Jon Yoffie ran with ChatGPT, 10 of the 177 tasks an agent needs done directly produced revenue. Most agents already use a transaction coordinator. The next step is an assistant, virtual assistant or AI tool for scheduling and coordination, then a showing agent once revenue supports it. Treat each hire as an investment and track whether it pays a return.

How should a real estate team leader coach agents with different strengths?

Coach each agent through that agent's own strengths. Leaders tend to teach what they do well, so a top cold caller pushes cold calls on an introvert who builds business over coffee with their sphere. Agents usually show where they're comfortable, whether that's open houses or a 1,000-dial day on the phone. The leader's tool is asking questions and building each plan around what already works for that agent.

Will clients work with more than one person on a real estate team?

Yes. Clients already work with teams in the rest of their lives. At a CPA's office, staff collect documents and may prepare the return, and the CPA reviews it with the client at the end. What clients value is a consistent experience at every step, from booking the inspection to the final signing.

Where can I listen to Jon Yoffie on the Do This podcast?

Jon Yoffie is the guest on Episode 92 of Do This - Advice from Top Agents, Brivity's podcast hosted by Chad Hyams, released October 23, 2026. The 30-minute episode, titled "Jon Yoffie - Building a Team Around Individual Strengths," is on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts as part of the Win Make Give Podcast Network.

Source note: Episode details come from the Apple Podcasts and Spotify listings for Do This Episode 92 (October 23, 2026). Quotes come from the episode recording, edited only to remove filler words. The 177 and 10 task counts come from Jon Yoffie's own ChatGPT exercise and are illustrative.