Real Estate Pros · April 16, 2026 · 16 min listen

How to Master Real Estate Investment & Increase Your Profit with Doreen Varon

Show summary

In this insightful interview, Doreen Varon shares her journey in real estate, strategies for success, leveraging technology, and her vision for future opportunities. Discover how her focus on relationship-building, continuous learning, and innovative business models drives her success in a competitive market.

Key takeaways

Doreen Varon runs largely as a solo agent, supported by a TC, lending contacts, and an escrow team, rather than building a large agent group, because she believes less experienced agents in big teams can't deliver the same results for clients.
A client who left her for an agent with a large team couldn't get a property sold or leased by that team's newer agents; when the client returned to Doreen, she closed it in about one week at a higher price than the prior listing.
During COVID-era rental rule changes in California, Doreen sold her own new-construction home for $1.9 million in about four days, going under contract despite industry warnings that she wouldn't hit that price; comps confirmed it was the most expensive home in the area.
She holds a general contractor license and has completed her own property projects, which she uses to advise investors on zoning, lot layout, and unit count (properties can go up to four, six, or even eight units on one lot under California's post-2020 residential law changes).
She relies on MLS listings along with major platforms like Zillow and Redfin for exposure, but notes MLS fragmentation across areas can cause listings to be missed by other agents — which worked in her favor once, netting only three offers instead of twenty on a listing others missed.
She emphasizes continuous learning and staying current with shifting rules and technology, including studying AI, since industry changes are now happening every few months rather than yearly.
Her business approach centers on personal relationships: she stays directly involved in client conversations and contract negotiations rather than delegating to other agents, which she says protects her reputation and keeps clients loyal.

In this episode

About the guest

Doreen Varon is a real estate agent with Keller Williams who started in real estate as an investor more than 10 years ago before getting her agent license. She works largely as a solo agent (supported by TC, lending, and escrow partners) focusing on residential properties up to four, six, or eight units, and she also holds a general contractor license, having completed her own renovation/construction projects.

Listen to the audio

“I went there, I'm speaking with a client and I'm just putting them into a contract. I'm not just showing and going and we having conversation. So that's the difference. That's why I don't think I'm gonna have a group.”
Doreen Varon

“Sometimes it's look wow, they have a group and it's big and it's look very, you know, like successful, but you losing a lot in a way.”
Doreen Varon

“I cannot be fooled. I know the numbers. I know how much those cost, how much it will be sold... I'm sharing them. If I have good deals, I'm going to give it to them and I want them to make money.”
Doreen Varon

team structureKeller Williamsreal estate agent productivityCalifornia real estate lawgeneral contractingMLS and Zillowresidential investment propertiesclient relationships

Questions answered in this episode

Why does Doreen Varon choose not to build a large agent team?

She says when agents join a big group, they're often new with one to two years of experience, and clients who get passed to them don't get the same results. She gave an example where a client left her for an agent with a team of new agents who could neither sell nor lease the property; the client came back to her and she closed it in one week at a higher price than the original listing.

How did Doreen Varon sell her own home for $1.9 million when others said it wasn't possible?

During COVID, new rental rules meant a tenant could occupy a property without paying for a limited time before the city would cover rent, which worried her given it was a new, high-rent home. Despite industry advice that she wouldn't get her asking price, her husband challenged her to list at $1.9M; she got it under contract in about four days, and comps showed it was the most expensive home in the area.

What markets and property types does Doreen Varon focus on?

She focuses on residential properties, generally up to four units but sometimes up to six or even eight units on one lot, since California law changes since 2020 allow more density on residential lots, blurring the line between residential and commercial.

How does Doreen's general contractor license help her investor clients?

Because she's a licensed general contractor and has done her own property projects, she studies plans and city requirements and helps investors choose the right property based on zoning and layout to save money and avoid costly mistakes. She shares deal numbers and cost/resale estimates with investors upfront.

What technology platforms does Doreen use and what limitation does she see in them?

She works primarily through MLS listings, noting Zillow is the dominant exposure platform (she compares it to a monopoly) with Redfin also in use. A limitation she flagges is that MLS systems are fragmented by area, so agents can miss listings in their own area that aren't showing up; she used this to her advantage once, finding a listing other agents missed and getting only three offers instead of twenty.

Resources and links

Full transcript

Doreen Varon (00:00)

I went there, I’m speaking with a client and I’m just putting them into a contract. I’m not just showing and going and we having conversation. So that’s the difference. That’s why I don’t think I’m gonna have a group.

Sometimes it’s look wow, they have a group and it’s big and it’s look very, you know, like successful, but you losing a lot in a way. And also you’re making some time less because you put in your time with investing other agent. I don’t have this time. I just rather close it with myself and keep my people with me.

Scott Bursey (02:11)

your host, Scott Bursey. And on today’s show, we’re focusing on strategies for maximizing agent productivity and scaling a real estate business in a competitive market. We’re joined by Doreen Varon of Keller Williams, who brings deep expertise from years of successfully guiding and growing top producing teams across various markets segments. Doreen, thank you for being here.

Doreen Varon (02:36)

Hi, hello, nice day in here.

Scott Bursey (02:39)

It is

awesome, awesome having you here. And for our listeners who may not be familiar with your journey, please tell us, how did your career begin and what’s your focus now?

Doreen Varon (02:51)

career has began ⁓ more than 10 years ago. So I started as an investment and then I did my agent license. And at the beginning I was thinking maybe I’ll just do it for myself. But then I said, no, I think I can do more than that.

and I can use both the investment part, a little bit of lending and just gather all the knowledge that I have and just bring it to the table for other people and my clients.

Scott Bursey (03:34)

and your passion really resonates. That is awesome, Doreen. Doreen, what are a couple of your strengths right now that you’re implementing at Keller Williams?

Doreen Varon (03:46)

So the strange as a market, we’re talking about the if it’s a market was very challenging the past, especially the past five years when COVID started. So all guidelines and so many new rules became, and it was very challenging, but with the COVID actually, it was very good that time. Surprising, but good. So then I had, if I can give you an example,

house that many people in the industry they said no it’s not a good time to sell you’re not going to get 1.5 as you want just wait but then there was another rule with the rental actually this specific one was my home and

with the rent out that if we rent it, I know it like a couple of months before the rule came that the renter is allowed to stay on the property without paying. And then you need to ask a payment for the, from the city, but it’s also limited time. And I got stressed and I said, no,

the house is new. It’s new construction. There’s no way somebody will be living there and I’m not going to get the rent for that. And it’s a high rent.

So I need to sell it, but everyone said, you’re not going to get what you want. I said, it’s impossible. So I consult with my husband and he said, you know what? I want 1.9. And he challenged me. And I said, you know what? No problem. I put it on the market. It took me maybe four days to get into escrow for 1.9.

I got it. Yeah, yeah. And the comps. And I have to say the comps in that area shows it was the most expensive home in the area.

Scott Bursey (06:23)

That is awesome! Wow!

That is outstanding. Thank you for sharing that Doreen. And given your leadership experience at Keller Williams, how did you feel the complexity of building a high performing real estate team, specifically concerning team structure, models, profit sharing and lead generation systems affect the long-term sustainability and scalability of a successful real estate business?

Doreen Varon (07:03)

So you need to, we need to be very creative to renew ourselves. Think about, like now we have the AI. I think we need to study and do a lot of homework with that because this is the new generation and… ⁓

Just to ⁓ study as much as we can and learn new things because things are shifting, changing every year. Now it’s almost every couple of months. So it’s not an easy, it’s very challenging.

Scott Bursey (07:45)

No,

it’s very challenging, the one thing I take away from conversing with you is that you need to continually learn and educate yourself.

Doreen Varon (07:57)

Exactly. Yes, yes. ⁓

Scott Bursey (07:58)

And that is so,

so important, so very, very important. And what do you feel are some unique opportunities that might be at your fingertips here over the next, let’s say two to three years?

Doreen Varon (08:16)

Can you repeat that? missed the question.

Scott Bursey (08:18)

Yes,

as far as opportunities go, ⁓ your vision for something that you might be ready to capitalize on as a company at Keller Williams, something that ⁓ you feel that you might be able to really excel at here over the next, ⁓ let’s say two to three years.

Doreen Varon (08:44)

if you can be more specific because I’m going to a lot of directions.

Scott Bursey (08:50)

absolutely. Yes. Let me ask this. What do you feel are some of your strengths, your team strengths? How big is your team? Let’s, let’s go down that road.

Doreen Varon (09:02)

So I’m most of the time I’m working, it’s me. So everything is me and I have some TC, I have some lending people I’m working with, know, in the escrow company and people that I’m working on every transaction for many years. ⁓ If I need some time associate, but it’s most of it me. And the reason is I was

I put myself in situation that I didn’t want to grow that much because I’m going to lose…

not myself but the way I’m working people come to me and hire me for myself if I’ll give it to somebody else to do it it’s not going to be the same thing and I don’t want to lose my name and my reputation because whoever usually joined to a group is maybe one year two year they don’t have much of experience

and let me let me give you an example so I have that was actually for lease that I

had with my client and I did a purchase with this specific client I brought him the house it actually was very good deal and he then he said you know what let me try I want to

to check out and try with another agent. He tried to sell it and they didn’t, they couldn’t perform, they didn’t sell it. He tried to lease it and it didn’t work. The reason is the other person has a group and he sent a lot of new agent to come. Nobody could close it. And eventually my client came to me and said, Do you know what? I just, know you can do it. I know you.

listed and eventually it took me one week and with a higher price than what it was listed before because I was there and I’m telling you if I would send somebody else the result was totally different he would lose money and probably it was sitting on the market for another month two months or three months and he was upset so you know I earn him

and even more than before because now he knows that he’s gonna be and stay with me no matter what. He’s gonna sell it with me and listen and everybody’s happy. So

Scott Bursey (12:46)

That is an incredible story. It’s all about relationships in this business, isn’t it?

Doreen Varon (12:52)

Yes, definitely.

Scott Bursey (12:54)

What markets are you serving, Doreen?

Doreen Varon (12:58)

So more residential, ⁓ up to four unit can be six units. So the California laws has changed since 2020. And now they providing a lot of new codes, new rules with residential. So it’s not really residential anymore. You can call it, but it’s more becoming commercial.

kind of commercial, but not really, because you have the opportunity to build up to four unit or six unit or even eight unit on one lot.

So it’s very interesting. So this is where I’m adding my other ⁓ profession, which I’m a General B contractor, license. And, ⁓ you know, because I’ve done a few properties myself, I went to the city, I study, I’m working on the plans and everything. ⁓ So now when I’m working with a lot of investors, I’m able to help them to choose the right investor.

property where the house need to be on a specific area, specific zoning sometimes, and some specific layout if you want to save more money. So many details that counts if you want to do the right deal. So you don’t want to make mistake and pay more money. I’m telling them everything in advance.

and I cannot be fooled. I know the numbers. I how much those cost, how much it will be sold, unless the market really changing, you know, I cannot predict that much. But I’m sharing them, you know, I’m sharing them. If I have good deals, I’m going to give it to them and I want them to make money. This is my goal and I’m doing it.

Scott Bursey (15:41)

Absolutely, and some just great, great words there. Let’s discuss operational structure for just a moment here, Doreen. What specific business models or technology platforms are currently proving most effective for optimizing agent productivity when implementing, let’s say, growth strategy in today’s variable economic environment?

Doreen Varon (16:05)

So you’re talking about system or like.

Scott Bursey (16:10)

Yes, if we could focus on the system aspect of things, I think that would be a good direction that our listeners would like to know from you.

Doreen Varon (16:20)

So now ⁓ I’m working with the MLS listing. We have, so I’ll tell you honestly, the most ⁓ exposure platform is Zillow. There is Redfin, Zillow is very, very, very ⁓ big.

I think it’s kind of like Monopole and they taking advantage of it. So it’s becoming also very challenging and…

Also another thing is there is a few MLS. So every area you have a specific MLS. Sometimes you can lose and miss other listings because you cannot see a listing even if it’s in your area. So this is something that I hope in the future we’ll have something better than maybe Zillow or something that gathers all the information.

⁓ to one piece and it’s limited us. So I don’t know if all agents noticed that. For me, I had a few things and actually it was very helping me in this specific situation that I found a list and it doesn’t show all in MLS, so in my area. So other agents missed it. So instead of having…

20 offers. I had three offers so it was a lot easier for me to get this specific listing.

Scott Bursey (17:57)

Well

explained. Thank you for that, Jareen. And Jareen, what message would you like to leave with our listeners today concerning your business at Keller Williams?

Doreen Varon (18:08)

message ⁓ as far as let’s be more specific. I have a lot of things in my mind.

Scott Bursey (18:16)

absolutely. If you could just tell our listeners a couple of things that are on your mind as far as it pertains to what you do in the field each and every day.

Doreen Varon (18:27)

⁓ So I’m like I say, I’m focusing residential and investment. ⁓ I actually very like the investment part. I like to see broken homes and to see the potential and you know, be creative what we can do. How can we do it? Design it until the minute they’re on the market when they’re nice and beautiful and

customer going in and just saying such nice things about the property. really, it’s like a baby. Like something that you kind of being involved in growing and doing. So I’m focusing on that.

Scott Bursey (19:03)

us.

Absolutely.

And, ⁓ you know, that’s so rewarding, helping people and your passion really shows as well. Doreen, this has been just an absolute pleasure speaking with you today. If somebody wanted to reach out and follow your journey, our listeners, ⁓ where can they contact you?

Doreen Varon (19:37)

I have my social media. I have Instagram, Facebook, Google. I have my website, DoreenVaronProperties.com and LinkedIn. So I’m very easy to reach. I’m available, I’m answering, I’m responsive.

Scott Bursey (20:00)

Awesome. Doreen, this has been more than a pleasure. It has been truly an honor to speak with you today and much continued success for you.

Doreen Varon (20:09)

Thank you so much. Thank you.

Scott Bursey (20:13)

And for our audience, our listeners, we appreciate each and every one of you. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you on the next episode, everyone.