Meet Courtney Poulos

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Courtney Poulos. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Courtney below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Courtney with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
I was a child in the 1980s. No cell phones, MTV was new, people still danced. Madonna was my inspiration, and she as irreverent, plus people said I looked like her (even when I was 8). Unlike mainstream cultural noir, my family was NOT in a era of material gain, but the social programming did create wants in me–material wants. While my single mom worked every day from 8am-7pm, I dreamed up things to sell to the neighbors. I created bookmarks and laminated them with tape and sold those door to door for 25 cents a piece. I sold Olympic Cards and Gifts door to door (found them in the back of a comic book). I sold hoagies door to door. Independence to me was the ability to change my circumstance by actually DOING something. By TRYING. I did NOT give up, and I did produce the sales for Olympic Cards and Gifts that allowed me to get the bookbag I so desired. My work ethic came out of want. Now, as an adult, it’s about working smarter, not harder, and checking myself on material wants (those have mostly diminished). Want now looks at time as the commodity — how can I spend the most time with the people I love. That is what motivates my work ethic now!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
ACME Real Estate is a full-service boutique brokerage committed to savvy marketing and expert representation with a keen focus on our client success. At ACME, we keep it small and curated so our homebuyers and sellers know they will receive personalized service based on honesty, integrity and industry expertise. And we are distinctive that way — ACME Real Estate is not a big team at a corporate brokerage. We are the trendsetters in real estate marketing in Los Angeles.

Started in 2011, ACME has surfed the market tsunami with grace — leading designer renovation resale clients and homebuyers alike through their journey. We have two Los Angeles offices, one in Eagle Rock and one in West Adams. In 2024, we are excited to launch Per_Forma, ACME’s own in-house luxury design studio, making it even easier for our investor clients to deliver a design product that resonates with today’s buyers.

Buy. Sell. Invest. Adore.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The three qualities that I possess that are definitely impactful include:

1. Old school loyalty – you either have it or you don’t. In real estate, there are so many corporate motives now — if sales are down, recruitment gets very aggressive. It can be tempting to forget the investment that others have made in you. I will say this with honesty — loyalty is underrated. For me, I remember exactly who taught me how to build my business, my mentor and former boss Polly Driscoll. I will never forget her contribution to me and I always give her credit when I have the opportunity.

2. Accountability – ACME is a boutique, we stand or fall on our performance. I teach our agents to make NO excuses. One must always say, “Where can I be better, do more, be more effective.” The answer is always within. No external entity can then take your success away from you, nor will you have anyone to blame but yourself if you are not getting the results you want out of your life.

3. Inventiveness – One of my superpowers is seeing what’s next, what the missings are or will be. To do this, you have to be attentive to detail but also have the ability to see yourself with more distance, like a drone view. You have to take time to evaluate your competition, see where your competitors have caught up with you, check their blind spots, and move into those spaces. I’m competitive, but that’s nothing without creating a better offering, a better experience for the client.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?
The ideal ACME client is coachable. What does that mean, exactly?

Let’s face it–buying or selling real estate comes with a lot of fear, typically. People google their fears, read horror stories, talk to their parents in Oklahoma about the Los Angeles. At the end of the day, many real estate agents have a bad reputation.

ACME agents get that part and can help educate a client through the process, if they will let us! From the first buyer consultation or sales consultation, we break down exactly what to expect and demystify the process so you can TRUST that you won’t be caught off guard or feel alone or overwhelmed.

ACME is also very well known for it’s designer renovation resale offerings — we work with investors who may have the cash to flip, but not the design prowess. Our agents are highly skilled at finding the best opportunities for acquisition, and assist with the fit and finish schedule on the resale to produce the type of homes that buyers want in today’s market. So, if you are flipper, take the coaching from agents who are working with buyers every day of the week. We hear their complaints and wants, and we can make the process success for you!

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Headshot @tinajunemalek House Shot @shotbywadz

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