gregorygarver.com

[TJR]

I am just working on becoming licensed as a real estate agent in Michigan, I have found 2 brokerages that I really like and am working on narrowing it down to 1, any tips as I begin this career I have full researched it and know the risks and the disadvantages. Any ideas for marketing, or anything else that may be helpful? Would like to hear from some expierenced agents. Thanks!

[angela0985]

I've worked as a Realtor two different times but only on a part time basis. What I saw from successful Realtors is that you have to work it like a job. Go into the office every day. Make a lot of phone calls. One broker I worked for said 10 phone calls a day and you would be successful. Plan on calling For Sale By Owners and Expired listings. Give a business card to everyone you meet. Make a list of people you know (sphere of influence) and send an introductory letter to those people telling them that you are now selling real estate and if they know anyone looking to buy or sell please contact you. Any time you meet someone or have a new client add them to your list. Send out a postcard or newsletter about once a month so they don't forget about you. When you are trying to get an appointment or a commitment on a contract don't ask a question that they can answer no to. For instance, don't ask if you can come over, instead ask if 6:00 or 7:00 is better for them. Give a choice, it makes it harder for them to say no. My husband's aunt is a successful real estate agent in NC and I'm told she went door to door when she first started. Basically, plan on working your butt off to start with and after a while you'll start getting referrals. Make sure you give good customer service so your buyers and sellers will use you again and refer their friends to you.

[LidyaD]

Wow. I really like Angela's answer. It is very informative and tells you what you want to know. It is quite true that you have to work your butt off in the beginning. Make a list of at least 5 things to do EVERYDAY to further your business. IE: make calls, send brochures, hand out business cards, advertisements, etc. Make sure you go to the office if not everyday, as much as you can. You will learn a lot from your colleagues, this information is priceless. If your state is like mine, then the classes you took, taught you how to pass the test, they did not each you to work a deal. You will learn this from experience and from people in your office. Also, if you have a partner at the office, you can both learn from each other and help each other out.Good luck!

[JimH2879]

Angela answer was outstanding and realistic. Do not forget to have some form of saving plan, it may be 6 months or longer before you see your first sale.Good luck.

[slguldi]

I have been a Realtor since April 2006, I have closed over 90 deals since then and make a six figure income/year from real estate. No that is not typical for the industry, but it is typical for the company I work for. When you get your license look for TRAINING, and I mean real training. Not just "watch this agent and you will figure it out". We have classes daily to teach new and experienced agents to take their business to the next level. Now sales is important to real estate but the thing to remember is this: Your most important job as a real estate agent is LEAD GENERATION, NOT selling houses. You cannot sell houses if you do not have clients. The average is 3-6 months for the first sale but it is easy to beat that if you just work your sphere of influence and meet new people every day. Lead generation can be free, cold calling, door knocking, strike up conversations in check-out lines...The flexibility in hours is not what people think, I work 9-5 PLUS eveings and weekends. And the only reason I do not work more is we have a virtual assitant for processing contracts, 2 buyers specialists, an in-house assistant who handles all of the non-dollar productive work for us so we can focus on lead generation and our sellers. You can work less but generally speaking, plan on making less... It is a very rewarding job, both personally and financially if you work hard and put systems in place to help you succeed. But it is what you put into it, there is no easy $ in real estate.I am with Keller Williams,and pay a split to a cap with my broker. if you are on an 80/20 split forever, instead of a split to a cap like we do and you sold 6 million a year then you would pay your broker $36000 for that year. I pay 22K and I am done paying the broker until my next anniversary date, no matter how much business I do, which far exceeds 6M a year. Oh and I made 20K in profit sharing last year, so really I paid my broker $2000 last year.....Seems like that is pretty basic math to me..... Find a broker who will spend the time to teach you how to bring in leads, read the Millionaire Real Estate Agent to learn some great systems, and more about lead generation and leverage, dedicate time every day to lead generation, and most of all HAVE FUN.