As real estate professionals across Dallas-Fort Worth brace for a slower stretch, Justin Nimergood, who leads the Top Gun Team at Epique Realty, is taking a contrarian approach. Rather than cutting back, he is doubling down on his team and infrastructure over the next year. “It’s our belief that the next 12 to 24 months in the real estate market is going to be tough,” Nimergood said. His strategy echoes Warren Buffett’s long-held approach of investing when others retreat. “While everyone else is pulling back, I’m actually going to be doubling down on our team,” he said.
The decision to invest during a downturn is rooted in timing. Agents who stop building during a slowdown often have little in place when the market turns. “We’re not going to sit back and just grind it out for the next 12 months,” Nimergood said. The goal is to emerge from the downturn better positioned than competitors who spent the year in survival mode. This approach could reshape how real estate teams operate in the Dallas-Fort Worth market, setting a benchmark for resilience and strategic growth.
A key part of the plan is changing how clients meet the team. Many agents focus almost entirely on production, but Nimergood sees a slower market as the right time to focus on connection. The team is launching a new website with individual agent pages, a mortgage calculator, and an AI-based home valuation tool. Combined with the team’s YouTube channel and social media accounts, the idea is to give buyers and sellers a reason to engage with the team before they ever pick up the phone. “We want them to know us almost before we even have that first conversation with them,” Nimergood said. For homeowners seeking a low-pressure starting point, the team’s property valuation tool exemplifies that approach.
Nimergood also anticipates burnout as a major challenge in a slow market. “I think a lot of people are going to face burnout next year,” he said. His team is structured so agents can cover for one another. One agent will spend most of November in India, and the team will keep her clients moving while she is away. Nimergood has a cruise planned for next May and is confident about stepping away. For any agent, the lesson is to establish a support system now—a trusted colleague, a team, or a clear handoff plan—to rest without letting clients down.
For buyers and sellers, a tougher market doesn’t eliminate the need to move. Job changes, growing families, and downsizing still occur. What changes is the value of an agent who is steady, informed, and still investing in the work. Nimergood’s first priority is to survive the next 12 months; the bigger one is to use that time well enough to come out ahead when the market turns. As the real estate landscape evolves, this strategy could influence how other agents and teams navigate the downturn, ultimately affecting service quality for consumers. Nimergood is the founder of Top Gun Team at Epique Realty and principal of Nimergood Real Estate, specializing in residential real estate across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and California. Learn more at TheTopGunTeam.com.
