Surviving Brokerage's Early Months

Jeffrey Estrada of Marcus & Millichap covers LA multifamily deals, Measure ULA, insurance risk, and why demand in Los Angeles hasn't disappeared.

The Crexi Podcast connects commercial real estate (CRE) professionals with industry insights built for smart decision-making. In each episode, we explore the latest trends, innovations and opportunities shaping commercial real estate, because we believe knowledge should move at the speed of ambition and every conversation should empower professionals to act with greater clarity and confidence.  

Jeffrey Estrada brokers multifamily assets across Central and West LA, a market defined by rent control, regulatory complexity, and disciplined buyers. Before Marcus & Millichap, he worked in production lending and a CRE tech company, where mentors kept telling him the same thing: you think like an owner. Eventually, he listened.

In this episode, Jeffrey joins host Ashley Kobovitch for a candid conversation about what it actually takes to survive the first 16 months in brokerage, how he prepares for every client meeting, what Measure ULA is doing to the development pipeline, and why despite everything, demand in LA multifamily hasn't gone anywhere.

• Welcome to The Crexi Podcast
• Jeffrey Estrada's background and path to Marcus & Millichap
• From production lending to CRE tech to brokerage
• The mentor who said "you think like an owner"
• Betting on yourself with no safety net
• Where the work ethic comes from
• What thinking like an owner actually looks like in practice
• Why sellers need someone they can rely on and trust
• Making the jump: advice for anyone considering brokerage
• 16 months to a first check — and what kept him going
• Brokerage rewards outcomes, not effort
• How Jeffrey structures his week: Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays
• Stacking meetings so prospecting never gets crowded out
• Morning routines and protecting the brain
• Why he exercises to turn his mind on, not his body
• How he preps for every meeting: reading beyond the headline
• Knowing who wrote it, who funded it, and who brokered it
• Never going into a meeting without a clear purpose
• How meetings have evolved: fewer, more strategic, more fruitful
• Why a great database is the unsexy foundation of everything
• One button, twenty tours: what a mature buyer list looks like
• Diving into the LA multifamily market
• Measure ULA: what it is and who it's actually hurting
• The developer math that no longer works in LA
• Insurance: it's not the cost anymore, it's the insurability
• Panel upgrades, fire zones, and the AC mandate
• When a building has problems and a broker has a game plan
• It's never the problem that kills a deal — it's the response
• How to keep clients calm when headlines are scary
• Demand is still there: five and six offers on active listings
• What buyers in LA actually want right now: clarity
• Where Jeffrey is seeing traction: Koreatown, Westwood, Miracle Mile
• Olympic buzz and what it means for the market
• Rapid fire: $50M, the worst advice he gave himself, and LA optimism
• Why opening up and sharing information changed everything
• Real operators are still here — and still buying

For show notes, past guests, and more CRE content, please check out Crexi’s blog.

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Crexi is reimagining commercial real estate with an AI-powered platform built to deliver smarter, more efficient solutions at every stage of the deal lifecycle. From real-time data and market insights with Crexi Intelligence, to targeted property marketing and seamless deal management through Crexi PRO, and a transparent, time-bound bidding experience with Crexi Auction— Crexi enables users to evaluate opportunities, maximize exposure, and close with speed and confidence. To date, Crexi has subsidized over $2.74 trillion in property value, 26 billion square feet listed, and supports a growing community of more than 23 million yearly users.