I mastermind with agents from my area on a regular basis and a question came up in discussions with this mastermind group of top agents in Tampa, Florida, that I thought would be a great blog topic.

So, when do you know it’s time to add a full-time assistant to your business?

I was asked this question and the first response I could think of was: “When you can afford it”. I’ve learned in the last year, as our business has more than doubled, that if I hadn’t taken the plunge to hire my assistant, I’d still be in the same place I was last year.

Looking back a year ago when we decided to build a team, hire staff and add agents, I realize there were some tell tale signs it was time for us to get “people leverage” and help to take our business to the level we wanted to.

We were very productive and profitable (I sold $7 million that year and was “lean” on expenses) but we had lofty goals and knew there is no way I could keep up with it all myself.

Ultimately, I knew if I wanted to sell more real estate, I would need someone to handle the paperwork, admin tasks, transaction management, appointment setting, photo taking, lock box hanging, and all of the other tasks that can take us away from our lofty sales goals.

However, you have to have enough income or savings to be able to afford it for a few months. It’s always a risk because you could hire the wrong person, lose money, disappoint clients, etc. Continue reading this post

Bad advice number 1

“Dont pay for leads.” “You are crazy if you pay for leads.” “The leads you receive are worthless.” “You can generate your own leads if you are worth your salt in real estate.” 

I listened to this one for awhile. It did make sense, at first. I was working day and night to try to generate my own leads and I got plain burned out. So, I decided to give HomeGain a try. Technically, yes, I am paying for leads. Oh it is so nice to have leads come to me instead of spinning my wheels. Now I have time for other things like, meeting people!

Bad advice number 2

This one is very controversial. “Don’t pay for enhanced listings on Realtor.com.”

I listened to this one from some very well respected folks in the industry. Well, I got a really nice listing and I gave in and got the enhanced listing package. I grew very tired of trying to explain to sellers why their listings aren’t showing multiple pictures. “Suzy Seller down the street has an enhanced listing.” Sellers don’t care about the politics of Realtor.com. They just want to ooh and aah over the listing on Realtor.com. They will go there to check on it. Even if you give them a hundred other websites to look at, they WILL check Realtor.com. And I do get leads from Realtor.com. Good ones.

Bad advice number 3

“Blogging is a waste of time.” “You are a Realtor not a blogger.”

Ok, I admit I am not a blogger. I try to blog. I am a real estate broker who happens to blog. I blog my listings and real estate news. Maybe a few jokes and community news now and again. It is very eclectic. It is MY blog. I can do whatever I want, darn it. Now I am even blogging on multiple sites. And the sweet majic is…..SEO! Can you say number one on Google?

Continue reading this post

Surrounded by plummeting prices, bankrupting banks, fickle financiers, sagging stocks, cantankerous consumers … It’s time for some frivolity.

If you, like I, show a decent number of properties and, in the process, read the displayed MLS remarks, you’ll quickly discover that the art of good fiction writing is alive and well. With the current onslaught of foreclosures and distressed properties, listing agents have become, by necessity, “creative” with their carefully crafted comments. As I read their information, designed to convey the important aspects of the home, I’d swear some of them are gunning for a Pulitzer.

And then you visit the property, read the comments again and ask, “How did we get there from here?”

As an example, a property I recently visited had remarks stating, “Needs cosmetic work.”

Translation? “Throw in a stick of dynamite and start over!” The carpets were decimated, strips of wallpaper hung peeling from the walls, all the baseboards were missing and there was SUBSTANTIAL water damage to an upstairs bathroom floor and the ceiling underneath. Read, “gaping hole.” And that was just the beginning.

A REALTOR’S job is to sell property, and what they pen is designed to get you and your homebuyer to visit.

Continue reading this post

We all know that the real estate industry is in turmoil. The credit market is tight and is inhibiting homebuyers. Home values have declined for several years and sellers cannot afford to sell. We are stagnating and consumer confidence is at an all time low.

So, what will kick start the industry and get it moving? Will the economic Obama stimulus package provide the benefits the Federal government has indicated? Will financial markets recover? Will homes start appreciating again? Will we all have jobs?

This is what we are all asking ourselves, but what do we do while we are waiting for everything to take effect? Well, take care of what you can and hope for the best for the rest.

We need to change our expectations. We will not be able to buy a new car every few years. Forget that 42″ flat panel TV. Do you really need to go out to dinner again this month? You are planning on retiring at 55, really?

We can change our habits. Save your money. We can save for the next rainy day because we are already in this one. We better learn this lesson now. Make your expectations realistic and do not live beyond your means. Continue reading this post

I am frequently asked, “Where is your office?” It’s like the location of my office means something. And to many people, it actually means a lot. It represents, in their minds, the not-so-subtle idea that you are limited to working only a short distance out from the geographical location of your desk.

And so, when asked the “magic” question, my response is always the same: “Where do you WANT it to be?”

Truth is, as a virtual agent, I do have an “office.” After all, our license has to hang somewhere for us to be legit. Although I have a great office in which to work, I’m not interested in “impressing” my clients with the size of the building or the fountain in the foyer. Instead … I meet them where THEY are.

In fact, I’ve discovered that “bringing them home to meet the parents” can raise questions you DON’T want them asking. Such as:

• “How much money does it take to run an operation like this?”
  • “Dang … this Realtor must be bankin’ BIG bucks … wonder if I can hit them up for part of their commission…?”
  • “If they have a building like this in this economy, are they in touch with reality…?”
  • “Why do I have to drive all the way over here when I live in ________?”

Virtual agents have virtual offices. In my “real” office I don’t even have a desk. Don’t want one. My “actual” desk, when meeting with clients, is any available table at the Starbucks closest to where my clients live. Or the table in their existing digs.

Here is why this is critical:

Continue reading this post

I am not a top Realtor in my market, nor am I seasoned veteran.  However, I am finally at a point where I understand the business of real estate and its complex, ever challenging nature.  Real estate is not a career for people with limited resources. 

Starting a real estate career is no different than starting a new business.  The main reason that small business start ups fail is lack of proper funding and resources. 

I have looked at the careers of several highly successful agents and have found some common threads. 

Many of them were rooky of the year when they started. 

Most of them had “sponsorship” from someone who was in a position to help them build their success.  By sponsorship I mean that there was a person of influence who could essentially feed them a continuous pool of clients.  It might be a family member who worked at a corporation that was moving employees to the area, a broker in charge who was giving them relocation clients,

Continue reading this post