Cope is reaching for economies of scale to keep No. 8–ranked Arvida Realty Services thriving. This comes at a time when brokerage profits are under increasing pressure from rising costs and discounted services.

Gay Pinson used to display her grandchildren’s pictures on her office desk. Her awards used to hang on the wall behind her. Today she can still put up those photos and awards, only it’s in her home office.

Frustrated by shriveling profits, Chuck Padgett, broker-president of Coldwell Banker–Buckner Real Estate, set about reinventing himself and his company. Seeing his bottom line attacked by escalating overhead and salespeople who didn’t pull their weight, Padgett whittled down his sales staff and threw his own hat into the ring.

In the seven years since Frank D'Ostilio, president and broker in charge of William Orange Realty Inc., bought his company, he's increased sales eightfold. D'Ostilio's experience has made him a strong proponent of buying used--companies, that is.

When Ed Willer, president of York Residential in Raleigh, N.C., signed up at North Carolina State University for workshops on quality control, he quickly realized he was the only real estate practitioner in the classes. As a result, Willer developed his own program.