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Every once in a while, you meet someone whose story reminds you what courage really looks like. Not the kind of courage that lives on a motivational poster, but the kind that crosses borders, starts over, works seven days a week, invests in training when money is tight, and refuses to let fear become an excuse. My recent conversation with my great friend Magda Esola was one of those interviews.
“There is no time to be afraid. We’re almost home.”
Magda’s Mother
Magda’s journey began in Nicaragua during a dangerous and uncertain time. She came to the United States at the age of 18 with her family, searching for two things: safety and financial freedom. Like so many immigrants, she came in pursuit of the American Dream. She did not know the language, the culture, or exactly what the future would look like. What she did have was hope, determination, and a lesson from her mother that would shape the rest of her life.
As her family crossed the Rio Grande, Magda’s older brother began to panic. Her mother shook him by the shoulders and said words that Magda has never forgotten: “There is no time to be afraid. We’re almost home.” That one sentence became more than a memory. It became a philosophy. Fear may show up, but it does not get to make the decision. Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is doing what needs to be done, while fear is standing right beside you.
After arriving in the United States, Magda and her family settled in New Jersey. Seven family members lived together in a two-bedroom apartment, each working minimum-wage jobs. At the time, they were making only around three or four dollars an hour each. But her mother had a vision. She told the family they needed to buy a home. So they saved every penny they could for three years and eventually purchased a house in Bergen County, New Jersey, for $165,000.
Five years later, they sold that home for half a million dollars. That sale changed everything. It showed Magda and her family the power of homeownership, wealth building, and real estate. Her mother used the proceeds to help each of her children buy homes of their own. That was the beginning of Magda’s interest in real estate, although it would take several more years before she officially entered the business.
When Magda did step into real estate, she found success quickly. She began in general real estate, then moved from New Jersey to North Carolina, where her career in new home sales truly began. In 2007, Magda joined Lennar Homes and quickly realized that new construction was very different from resale. Instead of pretending she knew everything, she did what true professionals do: she sought training. She searched for the best new home sales trainers and invested in herself, even when she had to pay out of pocket. This is where I first met her when she attended our bi-annual new home training program in Delray Beach. I remember her million-kilowatt smile and story even back then as if it were yesterday. Little did I know what she would go on to accomplish in our new home sale industry.
That is a powerful lesson for every salesperson. Training is not an expense. Training is acceleration. It gives you confidence, structure, language, process, and belief. Magda understood early that if she wanted to become great, she had to learn from people who had already mastered the craft.
Her career continued to grow. She worked for national builders, regional builders, and smaller builders, giving her what she calls a complete 360-degree view of the new home industry. Over time, she became one of the most successful new home sales professionals in the country. She sold more than 1,100 homes and generated over half a billion dollars in real estate sales.
But the numbers become even more extraordinary when you hear what happened during her peak years. In one community, Magda was the only salesperson responsible for a 700-home neighborhood. The volume was so high that there probably should have been several salespeople, but she managed the opportunity with discipline, service, and tremendous effort. She worked seven days a week, often ten to twelve hours a day, while still maintaining outstanding customer relationships.
In 2020, she had a backlog of 96 homes under contract and produced approximately $62 million in annual sales. She closed close to $60 million and earned around $975,000 in income that year. The following year, she broke $1.1 million in annual income. Her largest single two-week paycheck was $159,000. Those numbers are not shared to boast. They are shared to show what is possible when preparation meets opportunity, and someone is willing to do extraordinary work.
Magda is very clear that success in new home sales often requires what she calls the perfect storm: the right timeframe, the right community, the right pricing, the right product, and the right salesperson. But luck alone is never enough. As the old saying goes, luck is preparation meeting opportunity. Magda had put in the hours. She had built the relationships. She had studied her craft. When the opportunity came, she was ready.
Became a resource, a guide and a trusted expert; treat Realtors as partners, not transactions.
One of the greatest lessons from Magda’s success is her approach to Realtor relationships. She did not wait for agents to show up. She built friendships intentionally. At one point, her database included around 11,000 Realtors, cultivated over many years. She hosted office meetings, taught free classes, met top producers for coffee, and took mega-producers to dinner. She treated Realtors as partners, not transactions.
Her philosophy is beautifully simple: if you want to make more sales, you have to make more friends first. But those friendships must be genuine. You cannot approach Realtors with the attitude of “what can you do for me?” You have to lead with value. Magda would call brokers and ask if anyone had taught their agents how to sell new construction. Then she would come in and teach classes for free. She explained how builders think, how homes are selected for homesites, how construction works, and how agents could better serve buyers interested in new homes.
That is the kind of value that creates loyalty. When those agents later had buyers interested in new construction, they thought of Magda first. She became a resource, a guide, and a trusted expert. She also understood that the fortune is in the follow-up. After presentations, she collected contact information and sent useful materials. She created her own monthly newsletter called The New Homes Construction World, where she shared updates not only about her own communities, but also about the broader new construction market, including competitors. That is confidence. That is leadership. That is how you become the trusted voice in your market.
Magda’s discipline went far beyond Realtor outreach. She often arrived at her sales office long before opening time. While many sales offices opened at 10 a.m., she would be there early, walking inventory, checking the condition of homes, communicating with construction managers, and making follow-up calls before the day began. She knew that once customers started walking through the door, the day could quickly disappear. Her success was not accidental. It was scheduled.
“Tienes que creértela.” = “You have to believe it.”
+ Believe you deserve it!
Her story also reminds us that success is not just about money. After earning a life-changing income, Magda turned much of her attention toward philanthropy. She began working with an organization called BuildOn, helping build schools in Africa. She has traveled to countries such as Malawi and Senegal, physically helping construct schools and bring hope to children and families. For Magda, money became a way to create what she calls emotional paychecks.
That may be the most beautiful part of her story. She did not forget where she came from. She used her success to give back. She understands what it feels like to start with nothing, and she also understands the responsibility that can come with opportunity.
Magda is now sharing her wisdom through her upcoming book, The New Home Construction Advantage, with the subtitle The Real Estate Agent Blueprint for Growing Income Through New Home Sales. The book is designed to help Realtors understand the new construction world and take advantage of one of the greatest opportunities in the market today. As she explained, many agents are not trained in new home sales, and that lack of knowledge can cost them income and cost buyers opportunities.
Her message to Realtors is clear: new construction may be one of the biggest opportunities of the next decade. With resale inventory challenges, interest rate concerns, builder incentives, rate buy-downs, and improved value in many communities, agents who learn how to sell new homes can dramatically expand their business.
For onsite salespeople, her message is equally clear: stop waiting and start building relationships. Identify the producing agents in your market. Offer education. Become useful. Follow up. Stay in touch. Create a database. Keep showing up. Do not expect one breakfast, one broker open, or one email to change your career. Relationships are cultivated over time.
Near the end of our conversation, Magda shared a phrase in Spanish: “Tienes que creértela.” It means, “You have to believe it.” But she added something even deeper. You not only have to believe in yourself, but you also have to believe that you deserve success. That is a powerful distinction. Many people work hard, but somewhere inside, they question whether success is really meant for them. Magda’s life proves that it is.
Her final message was simple and profound. Five years are going to pass anyway. The question is, what are you going to do with those five years? Are you going to make excuses, or are you going to take action? Are you going to let fear stop you, or are you going to remember that there is no time to be afraid?
Magda Esola’s story is not just a real estate story. It is an American Dream story. It is a courageous story. It is a sales mastery story. It is a reminder that where you start does not have to determine where you finish. From minimum-wage to millionaire, from fear to faith, from crossing the river to building schools across the world, Magda has shown us what is possible when belief, discipline, service, and courage come together.
And for every salesperson listening, watching, or reading, her message should ring loud and clear: There is no time to be afraid. You’re almost home.
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Magda Esola is a nationally recognized real estate leader and is the Founder of The Magda Esola Group, a real estate and consulting firm. With more than two decades in the industry, Magda has sold more than 1,100 homes and generated over half a billion dollars in real estate sales, specializing in new construction and luxury homes. Magda sits on the NAHREP National Board of Directors, continuing to advocate for Latino wealth-building and leadership development across the country. Magda was also recently installed as President of the United Latinas Charlotte Chapter, where she is committed to empowering and elevating Latina leaders across the region. Magda can be reached at magdaesola@gmail.com or by phone at 973-418-9801.
Roland is founder of New Home Sales Plus and is a nationally recognized sales trainer, coach and author of Mastery of Selling for New Homes, and Mastry of Negotiation. Roland can be reached at Roland@newhomesalesplus.Com; or by phone at 561-236-2400.