Twenty-seven-year-old Alex Parker, a native of Cazenovia who currently lives in Tallahassee, Fla., sold more than $22 million in Florida real estate last year. That achievement, among other factors, earned him a place as one of the final 50 candidates in Realtor Magazine’s 30 Under 30 2014 national contest recently. And, while Parker was ultimately not chosen last week to be one of the final 30 honorees, becoming a finalist and earning the experience and exposure of the contest was the achievement of a years-long goal for him.
“To be honest, I am disappointed … but for whatever reason it was just not meant to be,” Parker said. “Asking the question of ‘why’ something happened, or in this case did not, is a slippery slope that often does not lead anywhere productive. … It was a great learning tool for me and I was able to network with people that otherwise would never have happened, so I just try to take those lessons away and use this disappointment as more fuel for my desire to succeed in life.”
Parker grew up in Cazenovia, graduated from Cazenovia High School in 2005 and from Florida State University in Tallahassee in 2009. In December 2007, while he was still in college, he was licensed to sell real estate, which he stayed in Tallahassee to do after receiving his college degree.
He works as a salesperson for Lord & Stanley Realty, Inc. — the company his grandparents founded in 1996 — where he works with many major lending institutions selling properties that have been foreclosed on by local banks.
For nearly eight years, Parker has been committed to excelling at his job, and for the past three years had had a goal to apply to the Realtor Magazine 30 Under 30 contest.
In 2014, Parker sold $22.5 million in real estate, “and I knew that would be my poster child year,” so he began filling out his application for the 30 Under 30 competition.
Each June, Realtor Magazine features 30 rising young stars in the real estate industry from across the U.S., and every year hundreds of real estate practitioners apply to be one of the 30 honorees. Applicants must be age 29 or younger, and applications were due in mid-January.
According to the competition guidelines, several factors were considered in choosing the top 30 applicants, of which business success was just one. Community and professional leadership also were important factors, as were “compelling stories that bring to life innovative business strategies that have worked for you or obstacles you’ve overcome,” according to the magazine.
Parker spent 40 hours completing the application and creating a Youtube video about himself.
The competition closed for entries on Jan. 15, after which the editors of Realtor Magazine winnowed the group down to 75 to 100 semifinalists. A panel of judges then chose the 50 finalists — of which Parker was one.
The magazine then put those 50 finalists on the magazine website and gave viewers one week to vote for the “viewer’s choice” winner. That winner, plus 29 others chosen by the judges, would be the magazine’s 30 Under 30 winners.
The results of the competition were announced on March 30, and Parker did not make the final cut.
“In the end, I think it is important to focus on the fact that the glass is still half full for me. Yes, I am disappointed that after three years of hard work and countless hours completing the application and YouTube video, but if the biggest disappointment for me this week is that I only made it to the final 50 Realtors in America and not the top 30, then life is still good and I need to remember that,” Parker said. “I have come a long ways since roaming the streets of Cazenovia with my high school buddies, and never could have imagined seeing my name alongside others from big cities like Atlanta, Washington D.C. and Miami, so that was very rewarding for me.”
Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached at [email protected].
