Summer Associate, Leasing

Our mission at Groma is to build and operate a real-estate-backed cryptocurrency for the world. In doing so, we hope to provide an alternative stable global currency, democratize real estate ownership, and help to build better cities. Given our goals, Groma is one-part real estate firm and one-part technology startup. As a real estate firm, we focus on acquiring, renovating, and developing buildings in the cities in which we operate. As a technology startup, we focus on enabling the efficient operation of the real estate arm of the business, expressing all of our real estate assets on the blockchain, and building the digital currency that represents fractional ownership of our real estate portfolio.

About the Role

Groma’s Property Operations department is recruiting Summer Leasing Associates with exceptional communication and collaborative skills. This associate program will provide a unique opportunity to collaborate closely not only with all members of the Property Operations team but also with a variety of different departments, including Accounting & Finance, Legal, and Operations. A successful candidate will be eager to learn new skills across a variety of disciplines and welcome the challenge of designing strategies, programs, and solutions from the ground up.

As a part of the Groma Leasing team, this position will primarily be responsible for marketing, showing, and closing residential leases for prospective renters looking to find a new home during Boston's busiest leasing season. Most individuals looking for a new place to live tend to do so outside normal working hours and we have created structures that balance our teams schedules with our renters needs. What we’ve done is structured working hours that shift later into the evening and have team members working alternating weekends, but balance it out with 4 day weekends on your “off” weekends as well as flexible vacation time. Here is what a standard month might look like:

The duration of the program is roughly 13 weeks, beginning June 1st (earlier is preferable but not required) and ending on September 2nd. This position offers a unique opportunity to gain professional insight into the real estate brokerage marketplace in the greater Boston area and learn about fair housing regulations. Here at Groma, we focus on employee education and engagement to keep everyone growing and learning.

Inbound Lead Management

• Communicate with prospective renters and learn about the marketplace
• Establish diligent systems for sales management and follow-ups
• Gain experience with lead management software

Marketing & Showings

• Show apartments to prospective residents and establish relationships with them
• Educate renters on Groma policies and best practices
• Work with a team of other Summer associates and full-time Property Operations Associates to get leases across the finish line

Apartment Turnover Coordination

• Assist vacating residents with the move-out process
• Assist incoming residents with move-in requirements
• Assist the Property Operations team with all September 1st turnovers

Fair Housing Education

• Work under experienced real estate agents
• Get familiar with the Boston real estate market
• Learn how to grow a real estate business effectively

Qualifications

• Ability to work in the field and in-office
• Strong customer service and communication skills
• Strong organizational techniques and diligence
• No real estate experience is required
• Ability to work through 9/2/2024, including Labor Day weekend

Culture Overview

At Groma, we’re looking to build something big and are on a fast growth trajectory. While a healthy work-life balance is important to our team, we want to be upfront that there may be times when we expect commitments outside of the standard 9-5. We strive to respect individuals and their needs while also acknowledging the reality that we have a small team that is trying to accomplish some very ambitious goals in a short time period.  

We are also focused on maintaining our dynamic in-office culture at Groma’s headquarters in beautiful downtown Boston, Massachusetts. We believe that in-person collaboration and spontaneous interpersonal interaction is critical to the company’s success at this stage. Also, our office is great. We own the whole building and have made it very much our own space. We’ve got a gym, shower/locker rooms, a game room, a rooftop garden, and all the normal stuff to make an office a comfortable work environment and a fun place to be. We understand that everyone will need flexibility from time to time, but want to be transparent with this expectation.

We have an ever-evolving list of values and conventions that guide how we operate as a company, but here are some of our core ones:

• We approach our work with pragmatic idealism that enables us to focus on our desire to make the world a better place in ways big and small while also being open to intelligent compromises that accelerate us on our path to serve our broader societal goals.
• Our whole team believes strongly that the challenges we are trying to solve require effective teams, not individual heroes.
• We have complex conversations well. We sit at the intersection of housing and blockchain policy, both nuanced topics with real-world impacts. We pride ourselves on being thoughtful, seeking the best solutions to real-world challenges, and implementing them effectively in the real world.

Perks & Benefits

• Competitive compensation package
• Fully covered commuter passes for bus, subway, boat, or commuter rail
• Ten days of paid time off
• Four official company holidays that fall within the summer associate term, including Juneteenth, Fourth of July, and July 5th (bonus day in 2024)
• A beautiful office in downtown Boston with a gym, locker rooms, game room, rooftop garden, and at least one catered lunch and breakfast per week