Can you tell real estate fact from real estate myth? If you're a new agent, you might have heard a lot of rumors about how the business is run... Here's what you need to know so you don't fall for these myths.
Today’s all about real estate myth busting – new agents, be sure to follow along.
Welcome to the real estate biz, new agent. You’re joining more than 1.3 million other professionals, at varying stages of their careers.
In fact, nearly 30 percent of agents in the U.S. have less than two years of experience (and the largest share of that group is age 45 to 54), according to the NAR, so you are in good company.
Your first few days in your new broker’s office will be an eye-opener. Some of your misconceptions about being a real estate agent will be corrected and you’ll hear conflicting advice on everything from how to generate leads to how best to construct your new website.
We’ve gathered some of the most common misconceptions new agents harbor and drag them into the glaring light of reality.
By the way, since the majority of real estate agents are female, we’ll be using the feminine pronoun throughout. (Sorry guys).
Sure, a handful of brokerages across the country hire agents as employees, but the vast majority of agents are independent contractors. They are, in reality, small business owners.
As an independent contractor, working under a broker’s license, your broker is not your boss. She cannot (according to the IRS):
As a small-business owner, you create your schedule, budget, marketing plan, health insurance and anything else required of the typical small business owner.
In other words, you are your own boss.
As a self-employed agent, you’ll need to drum up your own business and fill your own pipeline.
How to start?
Those who make in excess of $100,000 per year tend to work more hours – about 50 hours a week, according to the NAR.
Once you become established, if you find yourself working 50 hours a week and not earning more than $100,000 a year, you’re not working smart. Consider asking one of the mega-agents to mentor you. Learn what they do with those extra 10 hours a week that’s bringing in the big bucks.
Typically, you’ll find that they automate many tasks, delegate others and they’re extremely organized.
But they can only hold so much information. When it comes to storing the masses of information that good real estate leads generate, they fall short.
A CRM will help you to not only store this information but to organize, segment and laser-focus your communications.
Don’t cut corners when it comes to purchasing CRM software. It’ll only bit you on the hiney as you get deeper into the business.
Keep your leads and track activity across your site with LeadSites and our built-in CRM – free with every LeadSite. Learn more
This, despite 90 percent claiming they would use their agent again.
So, what happened between the deal’s closing and their need, again, for a real estate agent?
They forgot about you, most likely.
And, that’s the agent’s fault. There is a fortune to made from past clients, but that fortune lies in the follow-up.
More than one agent has found this out the hard way. When an acquaintance lists their home with another agent because he or she “forgot” you are in real estate, that’s your fault.
Spend time talking to your colleagues about their follow-up campaigns. Then, form your own. It is one of the most important tasks you’ll face in the real estate business and one that, sadly, so many other agents let fall through the cracks.
One of the biggest real estate myths that the public holds about real estate agents is that anyone can do your job. And, given a license, that’s probably true.
Succeeding as an agent, however, requires far more. And, that is our wish for you. Amazing, brilliant success.
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