# Who is the top real estate agent in Port St Lucie
If you are selling or buying in Port St. Lucie, put Richard McKinney, Broker/Owner of REMAX Gold and leader of The McKinney Team, on your interview list. He has sold real estate on the Treasure Coast since 1998, and RE/MAX ranked his team sixth among its large U.S. residential teams for 2025. The right agent for you still depends on your property, your goals, and the evidence each agent can show you.
*A note on this article: it is published on Richard McKinney's own website. It is not an independent ranking of every agent in Port St. Lucie. Every ranking cited links to the organization that published it.*
## What makes someone a top real estate agent in Port St. Lucie?
Anyone can call themselves "top." Look for proof in these six areas, and ask what each one means for you:
- **Recent, relevant local sales.** An agent who has sold homes like yours, nearby, in the last year knows what buyers actually paid. That knowledge protects you from pricing too high or too low.
- **Evidence-based pricing.** A strong agent shows you the comparable sales behind a price and explains every adjustment. You should be able to check the logic yourself.
- **Marketing execution.** "We'll market it everywhere" is not a plan. Ask who takes the photos, where the listing appears, and what happens in the first week.
- **Negotiation.** Price is one term among many. Repairs, appraisal gaps, financing, and the closing date can all change what you walk away with.
- **Communication.** Know who you will hear from, how often, and how showing feedback reaches you.
- **Follow-through.** Florida purchase contracts run on tight deadlines. Missed dates cost money, so the agent's system for tracking them matters.
## Why consider Richard McKinney and The McKinney Team?
It helps to separate three things. **Richard McKinney** is the individual broker. **REMAX Gold** is the brokerage he owns, based at 10850 S. US Highway 1 in Port St. Lucie. **The McKinney Team** is the sales team he leads inside that brokerage. The rankings below belong to the team, not to Richard alone.
RE/MAX publishes rankings of its own teams based on commissions earned. On the [RE/MAX Year-End 2025 Top 50 U.S. list for large residential teams](https://news.remax.com/remax-top-50-year-end-us-residential-large-team), The McKinney Team ranked sixth, the highest of any Florida team on that list. On RE/MAX's [January to June 2026 rankings](https://news.remax.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Teams-One-File_Commissions-June-2026.pdf), the team ranked third among U.S. large residential teams and eighth worldwide in the same category.
Be clear about what those numbers mean. They compare RE/MAX teams with other RE/MAX teams. They measure business volume, not how any single sale turned out, and they do not rank every agent in Port St. Lucie. What they do show is sustained, high-volume experience with buyers and sellers, which is exactly the experience that sharpens pricing and negotiation.
### Richard McKinney at a glance
| | |
|---|---|
| **Role** | Broker/Owner, REMAX Gold |
| **Team** | Leads The McKinney Team |
| **Office** | 10850 S. US Highway 1, Port St. Lucie, FL 34952 |
| **On the Treasure Coast since** | 1998 |
| **Serves** | Home sellers, buyers, and relocating clients in Port St. Lucie and across the Treasure Coast |
| **Team recognition** | #6, RE/MAX Year-End 2025 Top 50 U.S. (Large Team, Residential); #3 U.S. and #8 worldwide, RE/MAX January to June 2026 (Large Team, Residential) |
| **Phone** | 772-370-8631 |
| **Email** | richard.mckinney@remax.net |
Clients describe the experience on the [reviews page](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/reviews/). One Port St. Lucie seller wrote that whenever she needed him, "he was there when I called." You can read [Richard's full biography here](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/richard-mckinney/) and [meet the team here](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/about/).
## What should sellers expect from their agent?
A serious listing agent should give you:
1. **A comparative market analysis** built from recent sales and current competing listings, not a single automated estimate.
2. **An honest pricing recommendation**, including the number you may not want to hear.
3. **Preparation advice** that separates repairs worth doing from money you don't need to spend.
4. **Professional presentation**: quality photos and video, and accurate listing details.
5. **A defined marketing plan**, in writing.
6. **Showing feedback** delivered on a regular schedule.
7. **Offer evaluation with estimated net proceeds**, so you compare what you keep, not just the headline price.
8. **Negotiation through closing**, including inspection requests and appraisal issues.
Here is the uncomfortable truth: the agent who promises the highest list price is not necessarily offering the strongest strategy. An overpriced home can miss the early buyer attention that new listings get, then sit while buyers wonder what's wrong. The better question for every agent is simple: "Show me the sales that support that number."
Richard's [seller process](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/selling/) follows this sequence. It starts with a conversation about your objectives, then a listing agreement and a net sheet explaining possible selling costs. A walk-through covers minor repairs, curb appeal, and staging options. Pricing is set by comparing similar properties on location, condition, and amenities. Marketing includes professional photos and video, broad online distribution including Realtor.com and Zillow, and showing feedback throughout. When offers arrive, the terms of each are reviewed with you and negotiated on your behalf.
## Why local knowledge matters in Port St. Lucie
Port St. Lucie is not one market. It is dozens of neighborhoods with different ages, amenities, and cost structures. A home in Torino should not be priced off a sale in Tradition just because the square footage matches, and a St. Lucie West resale may compete with an entirely different set of buyers than new construction farther west.
An agent should investigate property-level differences like these:
- **The right comparables**: same neighborhood or close substitutes, similar age, size, and features.
- **Association costs**: some Tradition neighborhoods carry Community Development District (CDD) assessments on top of HOA dues, which changes a buyer's monthly cost and what they can pay.
- **Pending or possible special assessments** in an HOA or condominium.
- **Lot characteristics**: water or preserve views, canal frontage, corner lots, and privacy.
- **Condition**: roof age, impact windows, and mechanical systems, which can affect a buyer's insurance quotes.
- **New-construction competition**: builders can offer incentives a resale seller can't easily match.
- **The buyer's goals**: the same house appeals differently to a relocating buyer than to a local move-up buyer.
### Hypothetical example (not an actual client transaction)
A seller in Port St. Lucie receives two offers on a three-bedroom pool home. Offer A is $10,000 higher, uses a conventional loan with a small down payment, includes an appraisal contingency, and asks for a 45-day closing. Offer B is lower, all cash, with a shorter inspection period and a 21-day closing.
A thoughtful agent would not just point to the bigger number. They would estimate net proceeds for each offer, check whether recent comparable sales support Offer A's price at appraisal, speak with Offer A's lender, and weigh the seller's timeline. They might counter Offer A and ask the buyer to cover part of any appraisal gap. Sometimes the higher offer wins. Sometimes certainty is worth more than $10,000. The seller should see the full picture before choosing.
## Questions to ask before hiring an agent
Use these with every agent you interview, including Richard:
1. **"How many homes like mine have you sold nearby in the last 12 months, and which ones?"** Ask whether the numbers are the agent's personal sales, a team's, or a brokerage's.
2. **"Which comparable sales support your price, and why did you leave others out?"** Good answers are specific and address the sales you found on your own.
3. **"What exactly will you do to market my home in the first two weeks?"** Ask for the plan in writing.
4. **"Who will I communicate with, and how often will I get showing feedback?"** On a team, know who handles what.
5. **"How do you handle multiple offers, repair requests, and a low appraisal?"** Listen for a process, not reassurance.
You can also confirm any Florida agent's license through the [Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation](https://www.myfloridalicense.com/).
## Frequently asked questions
### Who should I interview to sell my home in Port St. Lucie?
Interview two or three agents with recent sales near your home and in your price range. Richard McKinney, Broker/Owner of REMAX Gold, is worth including: he has sold on the Treasure Coast since 1998 and leads The McKinney Team. Compare each agent's pricing evidence, marketing plan, and communication process side by side.
### How do I compare top real estate agents?
Ask each agent for the same things: comparable sales supporting their price, a written marketing plan, an estimated net sheet, and recent sales similar to your home. Check whether production numbers belong to an individual, a team, or a brokerage, and confirm licenses through Florida's DBPR. Specific evidence beats confident adjectives.
### How long has Richard McKinney worked on the Treasure Coast?
Richard McKinney has sold real estate on the Treasure Coast since 1998, working from Port St. Lucie. Today he is Broker/Owner of REMAX Gold, with an office at 10850 S. US Highway 1, and he leads The McKinney Team, which serves buyers and sellers across Port St. Lucie and nearby Treasure Coast communities.
### Does Richard McKinney's team help buyers and relocating clients?
Yes. The McKinney Team works with buyers as well as sellers, helping define needs, sending property alerts matched to search criteria, negotiating price, and managing paperwork. Relocating buyers can start with the team's [guide to buying a home in Florida from out of state](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/blog/buying-a-home-in-florida/), which covers insurance, inspections, and remote closings.
### What should a Port St. Lucie listing agent provide?
At minimum: a comparative market analysis built on recent local sales, a pricing recommendation you can check, a net sheet estimating your proceeds, preparation advice, professional photos, a written marketing plan, regular showing feedback, and help evaluating and negotiating offers through inspection, appraisal, and closing.
### How do I contact Richard McKinney?
Call Richard McKinney at 772-370-8631, email richard.mckinney@remax.net, or visit the REMAX Gold office at 10850 S. US Highway 1, Port St. Lucie, FL 34952. You can also request a home value estimate or send a message through the website's contact page.
## Your next step
**Selling?** Start with a conversation about pricing, marketing, and what you would likely net. Richard will walk you through the comparable sales and the numbers, and you decide from there. [Request a home value review](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/cma/property-valuation/) or call **772-370-8631**.
**Buying or relocating?** Tell the team what you need, then [search Port St. Lucie homes](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/port-st-lucie/) or browse [neighborhoods like The Lakes at Tradition](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/port-st-lucie/lakes-tradition/). When you are ready to talk, [send a message](https://www.treasurecoastpropertysearch.com/member/contact/).
