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The Most Important 60 Days of Your Year: Strategic End-of-Year Planning & Budgeting

Shari Pesa

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If you lead a real estate brokerage, the next 60 days will define your next 12 months.

While many in the industry start to slow down, wrapping up closings, attending holiday events, and turning their attention to family time, great leaders do the opposite. They use this window to build clarity, control and confidence heading into the new year.

Strategic end-of-year planning and budgeting aren’t just about spreadsheets; they’re about direction, leadership, forecasting and profitability.

Reflect Before You Forecast: Start by revealing what truly drove results this year. Which initiatives produced measurable ROI and which simply created noise? Dig deeper than volume or headcount. Data doesn’t lie and it gives you the clarity to make confident decisions for next year. Look at the following levers:

  • Profitability per agent

  • Retention ROI (the cost to keep top performers)

  • Recruiting cost per hire 

  • Adoption of your value levers (coaching, tech, leads, culture)

Forecast, Don’t Guess: Build your plan based on real data, not market hopes. Analyze your trailing 12-month production, sides per agent and market absorption. Your recruiting, retention, and expense goals should flex to those realities, not the other way around. 

Next: model three versions of your 2026 plan:

  • Optimistic: if the market expands.

  • Conservative: if the market holds steady.

  • Defensive: if inventory tightens and rates remain high.

Align Spending with Growth, Not Activity: Every dollar should be tied to one of three things: Increasing agent productivity (ppp) Improving retention Recruiting top productive talent

If an expense doesn’t support one of these outcomes, it’s probably not driving growth. Tighten your focus and invest where there’s leverage. 

Reinforce Culture and Communication

Culture is your most powerful retention tool and it deserves a line in the budget. Training, recognition and social events aren’t “nice to have.” They’re essential investments in belonging and performance. When your people feel seen and supported, productivity and loyalty follow. Build your 2026 culture plan now and create the “stickiness” before the year ends.

Start January Already in Motion: Momentum on January 1st isn’t accidental, it’s engineered. Top brokerages don’t start fresh on New Year’s Day; They Start Ready! 

That means by December, they’ve put in place the following:

  • Finalized business plans

  • Set recruiting and retention targets with growth GCI goals

  • Reviewed compensation and fee integrity

  • Built the year’s marketing calendars

  • Scheduled accountability check-ins 

  • Organized who is in charge of what

The Bottom Line: You can’t control the market, but you can control your plan, your people and your execution. Strategic end-of-year planning and budgeting create the clarity and confidence your team needs to thrive no matter what 2026 brings. So as the holidays approach and others begin to coast, lean in.

Finish the year strategically. The plan should be one to three pages and reviewed quarterly, not shelved after January. Your brokerage’s success story for 2026 starts now.