A passion for the deal

On a typical day, Northeastern University student Julian Jung rises at 7 a.m. He finalizes the sale of a condo, races to class, and then meets with property managers, landlords and real estate investors in his Boston office. He studies at midnight and finally gets to sleep at 3 a.m.

In four hours, he’ll do it all over again.

Jung, a third-year finance and accountingmajor, is the leasing manager for Hodara Real Estate Group, America’s first student-run real estate brokerage firm. Over the last year and a half, he has brokered sales of more than $1 million worth of residential and investment property in Boston, Allston, Brighton and Somerville.

“I’ll work on a deal until 3 a.m.,” Jung says. “I’ll sit on doorsteps to make sure I close it.”

The brokerage firm, founded in 2009 by a friend of Jung’s, Alex Hodara, without seed money or debt financing, has completed some $10 million in sales over the last two years. It has been featured on national news programs, such as CNBC’s “Reality Check,” and in major newspapers, such as The Boston Globe.

Jung applies what he learns in his finance and accounting classes at Northeastern to analyze the value of real estate properties and deliver perfect pitches to his clients. “I’m applying what I learned in the classroom to real-life situations,” he says. “It allowed me to bring everything full-circle.”

Jung, Hodara and business partner Vincent Vomero, another Boston-area student, chronicle their lives as young entrepreneurs in a reality web series called “Making Moves,” the first season of which racked up more than 95,000 views. The program is slated to appear on up to 30 college TV networks around the country and has some 6,500 Facebook fans.

The three entrepreneurial gurus also spotlight individuals on the program who want to make it big—top choices include YouTube stars, clothing designers or college hockey players—by connecting them with athletic trainers, website developers, public relations professionals and Internet celebrities.

Though Jung and his business partners achieved success on their own, they have a soft spot for helping motivated people reach their dreams. Jung did his initial six-month stint with the firm as a co-op, and the real estate group now hires other Northeastern students on co-op.

“If you go out there and pursue your passion, you never know what it could turn into,” says Jung.

He knows: The success of the real estate firm led to networking opportunities with the former chief operating officer of Century 21 Real Estate, and custom homebuilder Cindy Stumpo, who hosts the HGTV program “Tough as Nails.” The recovery drink Code Blue, whose investors include funnyman Seth Rogen, sponsors “Making Moves” and helps Jung and the gang pitch bigger players.

“Our goal is to inspire people and continue to build our professional network,” Jung says. “We’re all about learning and growing and loving what we do. I hope it doesn’t change.”