LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, May 14, 2025 — Amy Lin isn’t just a graduate student — she’s also on the front lines of today’s real estate market.
A licensed California real estate professional since 2019 and a top agent at Partner Real Estate, Lin is bridging the gap between academia and the brokerage world. As part of her MBA program at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Lin recently completed a research project titled “How to Implement a Better Training Program for Newly Recruited Real Estate Agents: A Case Study of Partner Real Estate Agency.”
The project tackles one of the industry’s biggest challenges: agent attrition. National statistics show nearly half of new agents fail within their first year, primarily due to insufficient training and lack of mentorship. Lin’s dual perspective as both an active agent and academic researcher uniquely positioned her to examine this issue from the inside out.
“I’ve seen firsthand how overwhelming the first year in real estate can be without the right support,” said Lin. “This research gave me the opportunity to study what’s actually working — and what could be improved — within our current system at Partner Real Estate.”
Her study focused on Partner Real Estate’s two-week onboarding program, which blends live Zoom instruction, daily coaching, hands-on role-play, and one-on-one mentorship. The survey of licensed agents at the firm revealed:
- 84% would recommend the training to a fellow agent
- 68% were satisfied or very satisfied with the program
- 84% felt the training prepared them well for real-world success
- 76% rated the post-training mentorship positively
- A small percentage noted a desire for even more real-world, hands-on practice
Lin’s literature review reinforced these results, highlighting four key elements for effective training: mentorship, blended learning, structured onboarding, and ongoing professional development. Research cited in the study showed that mentorship alone can boost an agent’s first-year closings by 25%, while structured training programs can improve retention by 20%.
“Amy’s insights validate much of what we’ve built at Partner Real Estate — and her feedback is helping us make it even better,” said Rudy Lira Kusuma, CEO of Partner Real Estate. “She represents exactly the kind of agent this industry needs: someone who’s producing results in the field while pushing for innovation behind the scenes.”
With over 120 licensed agents and a goal of helping each one open at least one escrow per week, Partner Real Estate has made agent success its top priority. Lin’s study serves as both confirmation and a catalyst — providing data-driven direction for strengthening the brokerage’s hybrid learning model even further.
“This wasn’t just an academic project,” said Lori Hintz, Broker-Officer of Partner Real Estate. “Amy brought real-world perspective to a very real challenge in our industry. Her work will help shape how we onboard and empower agents going forward.”
Looking ahead, Lin recommends that future research explore longitudinal performance tracking, multi-brokerage comparisons, and deeper interviews to enrich survey findings. But for now, her case study stands as a model of what can happen when education and experience come together to move the industry forward.
Contact:
Rudy Lira Kusuma
CEO, Partner Real Estate
[email protected]
Amy Lin
MBA Candidate, Cal Poly Pomona
Associate Real Estate Agent, Partner Real Estate
DRE #02082369
RUDY LIRA KUSUMA
Partner Real Estate
+1 626-789-0159
[email protected]
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