Welcome to another episode of celebrating small family businesses.

Today, we are celebrating Allen and Barbara Doeringer of Whippet

Properties and maybe something else.

So Hi guys.

How are you?

Good morning.

Great.

How are you doing?

Wonderful.

Wonderful.

Well, I recall that we talked a little bit and you guys have

actually been working in real estate together for something like 25 years.

So.

Tell us a little bit about your, you know, your, how you met and your, your

history together and what it's like working with each other for that long.

I, I don't know that I want Alan to tell his side of the story because,

uh, it's, it starts with a phone call.

I was still in Pennsylvania and, uh, I called down, there was a sales position

open at a manufactured home community.

I had never done real estate.

I was working in banking for 17 years, but I was trying to move down to Florida.

My son and daughter had already moved here.

Do you want to tell your story about the phone

No, you go ahead.

Yeah.

I'll, I'll add my two cents worth if I need to.

anyway, um, I did take the position.

Our house in Pennsylvania hadn't sold yet.

So my late husband at the time, he, uh, he stayed behind for about six weeks

till we finally did get our home sold.

But the very first day that I set foot in this sales office, I met

Alan and he was assigned to train me.

Yeah.

And she's been training me ever since.

And has she, has she accomplished anything?

Not much.

Now I'm, I'm a slow learner.

Sounds about right.

Sounds about normal.

Yeah, exactly.

Me too.

Anyway, he says I was not very.

Nice on the phone call.

And I find that hard to believe because, you know, I'm always

nice when I talk on the phone.

But, uh, the story is I had called the manager at least three times

and she had never returned my call.

So what did I say, Ellen, according to you

Well, you just told her that, um, or you told me to tell her that, uh, if she's

not interested, just forget about it.

And you kind of, you just hung up.

So I thought, well, that was kind of rude, but.

As it turned out, she's not rude at all.

She's very nice lady,

as

some boundaries.

as he was trained.

All right.

So that was, uh, you said a manufactured home.

So here in Florida, that was, um, I 90s, right?

So

the homes were on leased land.

So we both worked together as a team there, um, until the owner sold out

of new manufactured homes and then he.

Paid to have all of us get our real estate licenses so that we

could all stay together as a team.

He formed a small real estate company at the time.

Now, during all of this, um, my husband was diagnosed with, uh, terminal

cancer and Alan was going through a terrible divorce, so we were kind of

leaning on each other going through traumatic experiences at the same time.

So we became the best of friends.

And as, uh, the story goes, my husband passed away not too long after that.

And Alan got his divorce.

And then we ended up starting to date a while later.

What a great way to start a relationship as

good friends.

That's, uh,

Yeah, we were

really good

make me wait a year.

She made me wait a year before, before she accepted my proposal to marriage.

Well, I had to check them out a little further.

See how much more trainable you are there.

Yeah,

Exactly.

Exactly.

I thought you were going to say,

go ahead, John.

Allen, I thought you were going to say she made you wait a year

before she'd go out on a date.

And I remember, I can't remember what the, the name of the

doctor, somebody, she was a radio personality, but she was, she had a

show about dating and that was one of her, Right.

Primary rules.

If you're, especially if you're leaving a difficult relationship or whatever,

and you know, wait a year before you get into another relationship.

Because so many times people jump, you know, they rebound right into, you

know, from, from one situation into a mirrored situation that they just don't

recognize the familiarity, the similarity.

Right.

Mm-Hmm.

Well, it helps when you work together and you're, you're friends

for a couple of years before that.

So you pretty much get to know each other well.

I would think so.

Yeah.

And you've seen each other in this case, you've seen each other under all sorts of

stress and which a lot of relationships don't, they don't have that experience.

They don't have that to draw on.

You know, they're everybody's got their happy face on and

they're putting for the best foot

forward.

And then, And then, all of a sudden they get the, Oh, I didn't realize,

And

the ironic part was, uh, both of us were married, uh, to our

other spouses exactly 32 years,

Wow.

Ah, also very, very supportive of moving forward together because

you had a very similar amount of experience with those relationships.

right

So now we've been married together 22 years,

um, this

week.

And so we always tell people that we've been married 54 years.

You

have

not to each other.

There you go.

That's a great conversation starter right there.

Yeah, we decided to celebrate 50 years of marriage four years ago on a

cruise because we said well We're not gonna live long enough to hit 50 years

together, but we've been married that long just not to each other So we did it.

Who cares?

What a great reframing too.

Awesome.

So, um, what was the transition, I guess, when, you know, you, you're

currently in a, you, you have your own brokerage, you have your own business.

So when did, when did that start?

Well not not soon enough Actually, we we lived in Davenport.

We worked for a builder after we left the of the community

that had the manufactured homes.

His, uh, real estate company really didn't take off, but we ended up

working as a team, uh, for a builder in Davenport, which is near Disney.

And, um, we actually built our own home.

There in the same community.

So once they were sold out, then Alan took off with all the resales.

Cause we knew all of our neighbors.

We know most, most of the people in there.

And, uh, he shifted me off.

We were, we were married now.

So he shifted me off to work.

Back with a real estate company as a transaction coordinator, so that

we had a stable income coming in.

Because of course, when you're working in construction, you know,

or resales, you know, you don't get any money until that closes.

So there were months that might go by that we weren't, no income was coming in.

So I, I went and got a stable income while, um, he, his, um, Line up of

homes were getting ready to close,

I see.

Okay.

So the transaction coordinator is, was more of a salaried

position than I, than depending on

those commissions.

Okay.

But anyway, do you remember what happened Allen as to why I got my broker's license?

no, but I'm sure you'll remind me.

Well, we were working for this small company, the small real estate

company, um, a husband and wife.

They were both British.

And um, we had one instance where we were on vacation and there was going

to be a closing and our broker only had to get a couple of papers signed.

Well, I mean, we had done.

Everything, you know, for the transaction, but she decided that she was going to

take half of my commission simply because she had to get a couple of papers signed.

And it really, really upset us.

And I said to Ellen, I said, you know what?

It's time for me to go get my broker's license.

So that this never happens again.

But unfortunately we lived in a 55 plus community where you could not

have a business out of your own home.

There was a lot of restrictions through the HOA.

So I did get my broker's license, but I stayed with the company

because I got that, we kind of came to a better agreement because

she knew I could leave at any time

and, uh, so she was a lot more fair with commissions after that.

But I didn't want to go out and have to spend all this money, you know, with, uh,

an office and, you know, all the overhead and everything I really didn't need.

okay.

So the strategy of getting your broker's license and setting yourself

up to open a business was enough to accomplish your task without

actually opening the business.

Right.

Pretty cool.

Pretty cool.

But then we moved to Tampa and, um, decided that, uh, now's the

time to start our own business or Barbara's own business.

And, and we did.

Yeah.

But what happened when we moved to Tampa?

Oh, COVID hit and

everything shut down.

Yeah, it was within a week.

Um, we had this new real estate company.

Nobody was looking at homes.

Nobody was going out of their home.

No one was going to restaurants to eat.

Nothing, nothing was happening.

So it was very stagnant for the first

year.

The first couple of years, it was very slow.

It's really only now starting to pick up for us.

Okay.

And so how did you manage through COVID if it's alright to ask?

Well, it wasn't easy.

I mean, we did a lot of networking with people that we knew from

over in the Davenport area because we were there 20 years.

Now, what you didn't ask me was why we named our company Whippet

Properties, which a lot of

people, that's the first thing they ask.

that's

I was supposed to be the broker of record for a friend over in Davenport who

was from England and all of her niche.

Were British buyers and sellers, and she was going to form her own company and

just have me as the broker to help run it.

And then COVID hit and I was actually all the paperwork was

done with the state of Florida.

Everything was handled.

Everything was ready to go.

And we were, um, you know, on our way 4 weeks in, she, she closed.

She resolved after just 4 weeks because of COVID because nobody

could come over from England.

Nobody could go over there, you know, to England.

I mean, everything was shut down and she knew she couldn't make it because

that was her only, you know, niche.

That was her only sales area.

So there I was again, you know, well, I either go back to another franchise,

which I was with or start my own.

And, uh, this friend was well known to another friend of mine

who owned two Webbett dogs.

And we sat in her living room, uh, Alan and I and, and she and her

husband and the two Whippet dogs.

And we were trying to figure out, okay, now do, cause she was

going to be one of my agents.

Do we go back or do I form whatever?

We were trying to come up with a name.

And Alan says, well, here's the dogs.

He says, what about Whippet properties?

And I loved it because I thought, okay, I can do a lot with that.

That's catchy.

You know, we can use Devo's theme song and whip it good.

And, you know, come up with all kinds of cute taglines and, um,

giveaways and marketing materials.

So that's how it came about.

I

see.

Very cool.

Well, yeah, that's, and that's a, like you say, it's a much catchier name

than say, you know, A and B properties.

I think a lot of people, you know, Alan and Barbara would just go right

to A and B because the old, uh, yellow pages, you know, you want to

be in the, in the AAA and the, so you get the first listing and all that.

But, but,

Right.

And who's going to remember a Doeringer Realty, you know,

nobody cares, but everywhere I go, they go, Oh, you're whip it.

There you go.

So

we used to go to chamber of commerce meetings and they would always call us Mr.

and Mrs., Mr.

and Mrs.

Whippet.

Great branding.

I mean, you

couldn't pay for that.

I know.

Yeah.

Wow.

No.

And the logo that I had created, you know, I, I wanted them to have, you

know, just a tiny little piece of a Whippet dog on the end of a home.

And, and, uh, they did a great job and yeah, we've had a lot of fun with it.

We really have.

Oh,

In some of her marketing brochures, she has herself cracking a whip.

So

And that goes back to the training, you know, trying to train you for 25 years.

Yeah, You beat me to saying that.

Yeah.

That's what

I

need.

Well, what do you, what do you find most gratifying or most enjoyable

about working together as, you know, as, as family, as spouses?

you want to answer that Ellen?

Well, yeah, the one thing I've always said about working from

home is that you're always working.

Which is kind of true because, you know, at the drop of a hat, you can get

a phone call and have to do something.

But when there's two of you together working, um, you can share tasks.

Um, actually recently I've put my real estate license as inactive

and I'm now handling more.

of the marketing and administrative tasks for Barbara.

So that gives her more time to concentrate on, on sales and grooming customers.

So that's worked out very well for us, but it's good to have your right hand man,

more or less, and she's my right hand man.

I'm her right hand man.

So

Yeah,

We've always worked together great as a team.

Um, and I know some husband and wives, you know, they go, they love being out at work

because they get away from each other, you know, but I have my little office set

up downstairs, you know, off the kitchen.

He's got his office upstairs in our den.

And so it works out because we're, we're separated that way, but we have, uh,

each other to lean on, you know, if, if I've got paperwork that needs done, or

I need photos that put in a listing or, you know, I need marketing materials.

Print it out, whatever it is, you know, Alan's right there to help me do it.

So it's worked out so well because i'm the organized person.

He's really good, you know with handling stressful situations Um, i've never

met anybody that has more patience than alan does and me, you know, i'm like You

know, and he's like, oh, it's it's okay, you know So So he's always handled, um,

customers well that way too, if we have a volatile situation with a customer.

So our personalities, um, that are so different have really,

um, made this teamwork work.

Cool.

Excellent.

That, that just leads right into the next question.

I pretty well answered it actually, because it was about like, how do

you guys defy, divide the, the work?

How do you, you know, did you identify your individual strengths early on

and, and, and, you know, work to those strengths and, and separate,

like I'm, you know, I'm a tech geek.

You know, I do all the tech and Connie computer, Connie and computers,

they have a very uneasy piece.

So we, you know, it kind of naturally falls that way.

But for you guys, it sounds sort of similar.

Um,

yeah,

sounds, sounds like If I heard right, Alan, you're, you're the, not only

the, the calm, uh, anchor, I guess there, but a calming force, but also it

sounds like maybe on the creative side or, or, or do you share that equally?

I kind of tend to think that Barbara is a little bit more creative than me,

but I can take her creative creativity and, and put it into practice.

Okay.

Okay.

something physical.

Yeah.

And he's better with the technology than I am.

Okay.

Okay.

When I have a computer problem, it's, uh, I'm calling that one.

yeah,

Speed dial

or speed yell.

yeah,

Yes.

I can really relate to what you said about having the, you know, the separate spaces.

And, you know, we, even when we had a physical office, we were at opposite

ends of a building that had once housed many more people than just the two of us.

So we were, uh, you know, we, we get together for lunch and

say, well, how's your morning?

But now we're right there.

Yeah, now we're six

feet apart.

If we're in the same office, I don't think it's six feet.

Not even

Yeah.

And I know there's, there's a lot of, um, you know, family teams or husband

and wife teams that, that don't work out.

So you, you really have to have that right personality combination

or, you know, different skills and strengths that compliment each other.

And, and that's what is with us.

You know, I'm very, very organized, not so much Alan, but he knows where

everything is and he can get it done.

I make a list of things that need done.

Um, so we, we know how to, to work well together.

I mean, it's, uh, it's pretty much been a blessing.

Outstanding.

worked well for 20 plus years.

go.

Yeah.

We're going on 20, 22 years married, but we're going on 25 years.

We've actually worked together.

Right.

were, you know, you were the broker working with the other lady and Alan,

you were working in the construction.

Was there any overlap between your work at that point?

Were you like working together separately or really just

Well, we had, we worked in the same building, the sales office.

Um, we had separate offices.

Um, my, my office was much nicer.

Because I gave it to him.

As you gave it to me.

Yes.

Oh, um, but anyway, yes, we had separate offices.

We were two separate employees for, for this company.

And, um, but we still bounce things off of each other and, and helped each other.

When the situation called for it.

Um, but I think he meant when I went to work for the other company.

Um, and as a transaction coordinator, but we still worked

well together then as well, because,

you know, he would be busy maybe with a new construction home and need

help with, you know, Something on that, as far as paperwork and things

of sort, which I'm really good at.

Um, I would have, you know, a full time job and I ended up

training new agents as well.

I got my certification to do that when I was a transaction coordinator.

So he would come up with ideas, you know, that I could help

in training programs as well.

So we, yeah, we still kind of ran ideas by each other and, and, uh, pretty

much worked together that way too.

And I was actually only there.

Uh, a couple of years because once all of the new construction ended up paying

out and now we were just on resales, I actually went out into the resale market

too, and, uh, worked with people from, uh, the England, the United Kingdom, because

that was a very hot market at the time.

So Alan stayed in our community and sold a lot of resales there while

I was out working in, uh, outside communities that had a lot of

British buyers coming over to buy.

Okay.

two different niches going on at the same time.

So we had a different British invasion.

he was, he came over a couple of times and, and he was looking at property

and he said he knew several people who owned property in the Davenport area.

And I always wondered what it was about Davenport that just became this

little, you know, collection point, but,

uh, I never, it

was Disney.

it was a bedroom community for Disney World.

And for, uh, most of the British buyers who were buying homes for

investment, uh, they would buy them, maybe use them as a home.

themselves for a couple of weeks a year, but the rest of the time they

were being rented out to other Brits that were coming over to visit.

And, um, it was quite lucrative for them.

Uh, but then it became oversaturated and, and I think it still is today.

But one, one nice thing that happened from that and me having the British

mortgages, you know, went belly up and it was a really bad time.

Um, I contacted a lot of my British.

Owners, homeowners, and they were doing short term rentals,

you know, in the Disney area.

And I said, you know, I said, they're not, they weren't going to get many people

renting their homes because of the market.

And people had lost so much money.

So I said, how about if we turn those into long term rentals and that way, you know,

you will have a solid, uh, steady income.

The renters will pay for all the utilities and, you know, you'll have,

uh, you know, something to work with.

with until the market turns around again, which would probably be a couple of years.

So that was when, you know, I had the creative idea to pivot, you

know, to keep ourselves in business.

And at one time I actually had 30 long term rental listings.

Wow.

And it wasn't the same, you know, amount of commission income you get from a

sale, but it was still money coming in that we wouldn't have had otherwise.

So Allen and I were always good that way too.

And you know, when a, when a situation would come about, we would, you

know, figure out, you know, together.

How do we change this?

You know, how do we pivot to make it work?

So,

That's so important to business.

And, and, you know, even though, Well, yeah, you own your own brokerage,

but whether you're working for somebody else or a combination, it's

Being able to adjust quickly and so what you did you got curious and

that's you know, that's so powerful.

I really respect that

yeah.

And, uh, he really helped me on that as well, you know, because there were things

that would come up with tenants, you know, that the owners were in England.

So if they needed something immediately, you know, they didn't really have property

managers looking after a lot of their homes, but Alan would drop everything

and run and look, you know, if a water pipe, you know, was leaking or whatever.

So, um, you know, there, there was a lot of things we did

together, even on the rentals.

Cool

Mr.

Fix it.

It's just that simple.

Yeah.

yeah Value added.

Wonderful.

Is there a particular, I would say challenge, you know, you guys have

got a kind of a unique perspective and being together so long and working,

you know, together and separately.

Is there a challenge as a, as a, you know, couple in business

that you've overcome that, that others could learn a lesson from?

Oh, boy.

Um, the only challenge that I can think of is, uh, being able

to diversify your strengths.

Um, you know, of course, we all have strengths.

We all have weaknesses.

And when we were working in the same community, you know, with seniors,

um, The challenge for me was my lack of patience because, uh, you know,

a lot of people that are, you know, elderly and have specific situations

come up where they're, they can be very testy is a good word to put it.

And, uh, and Ellen always had the most.

patience for that.

As far as challenges for each other, I really can't think of any because

we've always worked so well together.

But I will say that when you are a couple or a family, you have to figure

out those strengths and weaknesses and try and pass on whatever you're weak at.

To another person so that, you know, you all work together to make it happen and to

And the job gets done.

right,

Okay.

Okay.

So,

there were certain people that I just could not work with, you know,

like I, I just, Oh man, I've had enough, you know, but he would take

over and make it work because he had the patience and the personality.

That he could, you know, smooth everything over and get the job done.

And by focusing on those strengths, did you find that in each working to their

strengths, did that make it better for the relationship, stronger, strengthening

the relationship by doing that?

I believe so.

Yeah.

Yeah, I think so because I think we really, um, admire

each other and understand what each of us can or can't do.

And, you know, I think when you give each other credit, you know,

cause I would admit, Hey, you know, I, I can't handle this person.

I can't do this, you know, but I knew he could.

So I think if you give each other the credit, For what you are good at,

you know, that that's a bonus because you, you can't, you don't working as

a family or a couple, you don't have the time to be jealous, you know,

because they can do something you can't, or, you know, to be wishing

you were more like them or whatever.

You just have to understand everybody's different and everybody has a different

way of working with challenges and you, you just toss it over to the person

that's going to get it done the best.

And flexibility.

Right.

And you, both of you have shown a lot of flexibility with pivoting.

I mean, you've pivoted how many times now?

Oh yeah.

Quite a few,

And that's admirable!

Because especially as we get a little older, we don't like to do that as much.

But we actually have to do it more, I think, older than what

we did when we were younger.

I agree.

and even now, you know, even now with the market, the way it

is, it's been very difficult.

I mean, we know how difficult real estate is right now.

Um, it's just been, uh, especially at, since moving to Tampa, which we did

for our daughter and granddaughters, you know, that was the main reason.

And family is everything to us as it should be.

But it's been an uphill battle because, you know, you come into a new area, a new

market, you know, that is saturated with realtors that have been here for decades.

And so naturally, you know, you're an unknown, you know, you're in a

new place and you're unknown and you've started a new company and

people don't know your experience.

Um, and some don't care, but.

But, um, we've, we've really been fortunate and blessed to have picked

up business over here now too.

In fact, I'm on my way over to Davenport this afternoon because we

still get occasional listings over there, which we have an agent over

there who handles everything for us.

And, uh, you know, she gets a good split for doing that.

Um, but I've just picked up, um, a listing in Lutes this year and I'm

getting another one in the Tampa area.

And we just traveled all the way to Bonita Springs to help out a friend,

uh, with her parents home.

So you never know where you're going to end up, but.

Um, we're starting to be more known, and I think networking for that, because

unless you're out there networking, and that's how I met the two of you,

um, people really don't know you,

and they don't know your personality, and they don't know if they can trust you.

Um, and, and, you know, it's the old saying, Pete, whoever,

you know, like, and trust.

So that's starting to finally come back to us where we're getting referral business.

And, uh, it's, it's enough, you know, I didn't come over here to try and be,

you know, a six figure income realtor.

I just wanted to have enough business to see us through for a few more years.

And it's, it's happening.

and to pay for those cruises.

Yeah.

Which of course, Alan is wanting another one for his birthday in July.

So

that's booked.

Have you been a good boy?

So that's what's next.

I think I have.

Good.

Well if it's booked, I

whip, that whip works good.

it does.

Yeah.

That

Oh goodness, so much wisdom in all of this.

I think the lesson I want to tease out of that last little part you were

talking about is that it does take time.

We live in these times of, of, you know, fame and instant fame and appear,

appearance of instant fame and then social media and big splashes and, you

know, hey, look at me kind of stuff.

But, but the real, The real guts of it is it takes time to get to know people

and, and, and they become familiar and that trust is built over time.

It doesn't, it doesn't, it has to be earned.

It's

It's absolutely right.

Because I'm, I'm just into my fourth year as my own company.

And the first year we lost because of COVID.

So you're talking maybe three years, but, uh, going into this year, I'm just now

seeing, I mean, we had a little bit of business, but not, not enough, but this

year I'm just now seeing a turnaround.

So yes, it does take time.

Wonderful.

Wonderful.

And the other thing I really wanted to come back to and call

out was the, uh, you were talking about, you know, giving credit.

I think especially in families There's a tendency in families to, to

take each other for granted, right?

They've, they've always been there and they always will be.

And, And, and we don't always give our families our best, right?

We, we save our best for the outside world and the people we're trying to impress.

And we feel like we don't have to impress our families

because they're stuck with us.

And so there's a tendency not to do those things that say thank you

and, and give credit and, and edify each other and, and really, you

know, And credit or recognition.

I learned in my short corporate career that recognition matters, and

it goes so far, just a little bit.

And it's really important.

So kudos for that.

It absolutely does.

And, and, and I know Alan is.

to.

I mean, we always tell each other, you know, thank you.

Thank you for helping me with this.

Thank you for doing that for me.

Um, you know, and always support each other, you know, and what

we're trying to do, you know, I'm proud of you, you know, good job.

Um, so even if it's family, those things need to be said,

I'm proud of you is something I don't think we could ever hear enough.

Yeah.

That's just a perfect place to wrap.

Thank you so much for spending this time with us and sharing

your story and your journey.

And we, , we wish you the very best.

I want to make sure I get, , connection points in the, , show

notes to how to reach you.

So I know, , you have a website.

What is the website?

That is whippetproperties.

com.

No, it's whippet properties florida dot com.

There's no of in there, but it's whippet properties florida dot com.

Excellent.

We'll get that in there and any social media links that you want to put in

there, we'll put those in as well.

Okay.

It was great.

Absolutely.

And tell Polk County hello for us.

Thank you for having us.

We will see you soon.

Thank

Thank you.

Enjoyed it.