real estate agents

MayorMcCheese000

Tell me all abut your life please!

I am looking into a career change, insurance is just so depressing! Tell me about what it was like getting started. How difficult is it to be successful? What are the best and worst parts of the job? Is it a career you would reccomend to others? Any info is greatly appreciated, thanks!!

MelandJeff

Hello!

I hate to get on a soap box, or appear that way, so sorry in advance. :-)

I have been a licensed Realtor since 1998. I do corporate relocation now, so in a nutshell I do buyouts and whatnot. Basically I hire agents and buy and sell houses all over the country. If anyone here has had a corporate buy out, they had someone like me buy their house from them on behalf of their company :-)

As an agent that is out representing buyers and sellers- it is hard. In the beginning (and really, forever) there are loooong hours involved. You are always on. If you cancel an appointment due to a sick kid, or whatever, you can bet on kissing that client goodbye. Granted, some are loyal and will stick with you, but dont bank on it. It is an expensive license to maintain, there are association dues, mls dues, and continuing education each year.

You can work your tail off for someone who ultimately wont end up selling or purchasing, but that is the way it goes. It balances out because then you could turn around and have someone buy the first house they see with no inspection or financing issues.

In this market, I dont know that I would recommend it- however, there have been a TON of agents that have fallen out and the competition is less fierce.

IDK, you can email me if you want any more advice or if you have specific questions. Let me know and I will PM you my email addy.

 

LeoChic

I am not an agent currently but I was an agent while I was pregnant with my 1st.

In the beginning, it can be expensive.  I paid around $800 to attend real estate school.  Once I passed my test, I selected one of our local agencies to work for.  My fees to get started with the broker agency were somewhere around $500.  Everything you do comes out of your pocket.  Any mailers you want to do, any ads to promote yourself, you are responsible for.  Also, you'll be categorized as self-employed which is tricky with regard to taxes (this does help with all those fees though since they can become write-offs).

Also, be prepared to do some work for free because people are goofy.  You can have clients ask to see tons of houses but never buy.  You can have clients ask you to help them list their house and then never list.  All the while, you have to just keep at it because you don't want to get a bad name in the business since most of your business comes from referrals. 

In the beginning, it's a lot of hard work.  I think people who have a large network of people in their life normally tend to do better in the business.  Once you get some listings and sales under your belt and your name gets out there, then you can do well.

I hope this doesn't discourage you.  It can be a great career for the right person.  It wasn't for me but I'm glad I tried it.

MayorMcCheese000

 

I have always had a lot of drive and have had much success in my current career because I am a hard worker. I feel like it is something I could be successful in because of my qualities and skills, but it is an intimidating thing to jump into. It seems like the type of career where people start out eager and excited and end up discouraged, dejected and burned out. I understand that, and that is what is scary to me. I really want a career that is my own, something that I can be soley responsible for my own success in. Talking to people all day long about having car accidents is starting to wear me down and I am worried that too many more years in the insurance industry to going to pigeon hole me into an industry I am not interested in. I guess most of my questions include the process of starting up, how to go about it the best way and tips on taking the plunge...

justEK

MayorMcCheese000:

 

 Talking to people all day long about having car accidents is starting to wear me down and I am worried that too many more years in the insurance industry to going to pigeon hole me into an industry I am not interested in. I guess most of my questions include the process of starting up, how to go about it the best way and tips on taking the plunge...

This is exactly why I ran far far away from insurance!

Really just butting in to tell you good luck with whatever you decide!

amiamish

MelandJeff:

Hello!

I hate to get on a soap box, or appear that way, so sorry in advance. :-)

I have been a licensed Realtor since 1998. I do corporate relocation now, so in a nutshell I do buyouts and whatnot. Basically I hire agents and buy and sell houses all over the country. If anyone here has had a corporate buy out, they had someone like me buy their house from them on behalf of their company :-)

As an agent that is out representing buyers and sellers- it is hard. In the beginning (and really, forever) there are loooong hours involved. You are always on. If you cancel an appointment due to a sick kid, or whatever, you can bet on kissing that client goodbye. Granted, some are loyal and will stick with you, but dont bank on it. It is an expensive license to maintain, there are association dues, mls dues, and continuing education each year.

You can work your tail off for someone who ultimately wont end up selling or purchasing, but that is the way it goes. It balances out because then you could turn around and have someone buy the first house they see with no inspection or financing issues.

In this market, I dont know that I would recommend it- however, there have been a TON of agents that have fallen out and the competition is less fierce.

IDK, you can email me if you want any more advice or if you have specific questions. Let me know and I will PM you my email addy.

 

Man, I never really realized it was so involving (is that the right word?) to be an agent. I mean, I knew all of the above, but seeing it all at one time is still a shocker.

We'll be selling/buying in the near future, so I'll keep this in mind when working with an agent.

AnnapolisLari

My mom was an agent for 8 years. It is a LOT more work than most people think it is. You have to be available nights and weekends when most people are off work. She frequently wrote offers late at night.

Calls early in the morning and in the middle of dinner/bedtime for little kids. We were in hs/college when she was an agent, so it didn't affect her kids, but it's something to consider.