Life and Career Management
Kevin Jones
Its All About YOU - the Book
Real Estate Blog

Whether you are a real estate agent, broker, investor, homeowner, industry professional or just someone that has interest in what is like to be a real estate agent, here is a little insight on our career.  Most people think that all we do is show up take a listing, put a sign up, sign a couple of papers and make all this money. 

I want to share with everyone that this real estate industry is not as simple as it looks, not that is hard either, but it does have its complicated times.  Each transaction is completely different, they take on a life of their own and that, for me is what really makes this job interesting, fun and each deal I treat as a learning experience.

What is it like to be a real estate agent, what do we do all day long?  Go to a nice office, sit at a fancy desk, go out to lunch everyday, hit the golf course by 3 and be home by five.  Besides that drive expensive cars and live in big houses and just really living the life.  That is the common perception of most agents.

The average real estate agent does 3 to 4 deals a year, even at 4 transactions a year at an average of $750,000 per house that would be only $75,000 gross to the broker at a 2.5% commission.  Most agents are on a 65-80% split that would be $45,000 to $60,000 net income and at 3 deals a year that is $36,500 to 45,000 per year!  On top of that most agents average sale price is a lot lower than the $750,000 used in this example.

A day in the life of a real estate agent that is honestly out there working would include the following:

Here is a list of the 12 basic functions of a Real Estate Agent.
1.) Lead Generation
2.) Lead Conversion
3.) Closing
4.) Operating as a Business
5.) Customer Service & Listening Skills
6.) Marketing
7.) Buyer and Listing Skills
8.) Mastering your Schedule
9) Mental Toughness
10.) Business Maturity
11.) Documentation
12.) Making a Customer for life

Many agents and brokers today and trying to figure out how to increase their business, real estate is fairly basic in its ways, it is all about the numbers, just like any other business.  To increase your business or bottomline you have to increase the numbers.

How any Agent or Broker can increase their business:
1.) Attract and talk to more clients everyday
2.) Ask for the business
3.) Increase Your Sales Price or Commission

Most agents today are struggling with the business, there are a few key factors that agents do, some are out there hustling, others wait for the business to come to them.  Are you Passive or Proactive in your approach to your business?  Personally I can’t sit still and wait for it to come to me so I use the proactive approach.  Here are a few ways to capture business.

Lead Generation:
You can wait for the phone to ring
Place Advertisements
Send out Mailers
Place ads on Bus Benches
Make Phone Calls
Go out and do some Door Knocking
Internet Prospecting
Hold Open Houses
Buyer and or Seller Seminars

The basic areas in which our real estate customers can be broken down into 9 categories.  I track where my business comes from so that I know where I am to spend more money and resources to build either that area or other areas that are lacking.

Your Primary Lead Sources:
1.) Past Clients
2.) Sphere of Influence
3.) Expired
4.) FSBO
5.) Sign Call
6.) Ad Call
7.) Internet
8.) Referrals
9.) Preforeclosures

In real estate there are two types of agents in my opinion.  The salesperson and the order taker.  A great salesperson will take control and do the necessary steps it takes to get the best deal for the client, in the shortest amount of time, with the least amount of inconvenience.  The order taker will go with the flow.

Are you a good salesperson?  How is your Salesmanship:
1.) Do you have the ability to build rapport with a wide variety of people
2.) Can you use Scripts and not sound like a robot
3.) Do you have the ability to qualify buyers and sellers before working with them
4.) How good is your Buyer and Seller Presentations

As a great real estate agent it is your job to do more than sell.  We are educators throughout the entire process, the buyer and sell will need to know what is going on.  Maybe not each and every item but enough so that they are comfortable on their level.  We will need to motivate and entertain them to eliminate much of the stress that is associated with the transaction.  Lastly it is our job to negotiate and close the best possible price and terms for our clients, because that is what they expect us to do for them, it is our responsibilty to them to do that.

Throughout the Process you will need to:
1.) Educate them
2.) Entertain them
3.) Motivate them
4.) Handle their Objections
5.) Negotiate with and for them
6.) Close them

Sometimes deals sway back and forth, it is our job to manage the transaction which includes, the buyer, the seller and the agents, inspections and all the unique things that come up in a deal to a successful close of escrow to keep enable our clients with the luxury of getting what it is that they want … the deal closed!

Three keyfactors in keeping the deal together:
1.) Not being attached to the outcome.
2.) Being cool and calm with everyone I speak with.
3.) Get the Agents emotions out of the deal

No matter what happens at home, on the way to work or during the day, we must always remember that everyone has a bad day.  Even we might have a bad day and when we do, we must leave that outside the workplace and deal with it outside of our clients time.  We need to continue to work and get the job done, regardless!

We all have our bad days, but we always have to:
Do our job inspite of what is going on in our lives!

We all deal with the dramatic person from time to time.  When this happens we need to always be the one in control and solve the problem and give them a solution in a very calming manner.

In a dramatic moment:
You have to be the calming force.

When we need to increase our productivity, here is a great tip, the “Best 10″, “Hot 10″ or whatever you want to call it, always have 10 leads that you follow up with constantly and contunue to rotate the less motivated out with the more motivated in.

How to increase our productivity:
Always have 10 HOT leads, every week take 1 or 2 off and replace them with someone HOTTER!
A pregnant woman has to give birth … there is just no way around it … that baby is coming out one way or another!
How many of your buyers and or sellers are pregnant? 
On a scale of 1 to 9 where is the motivation of your clients?

Going the Extra Mile:
Seldom today anyone does anymore than they absolutely have to, make it a point to always under promise and over deliver!  Do those small things that you don’t have to do, they are all the little things that add up to the big things in the end! Go the extra mile!

 Hopefully this sheds a little light on our industry for all, it is by far one of the greatest industries out there … Where else can I wake up in the morning and be able to have this thought:

“Who will I get to help achieve the American Dream today” Kevin Jones

If you have any question about real estate or loans fell free to call me at 818-955-7653 in my Burbank Office or 805-474-7040 in my Pismo Beach office.  Thank you for your time … May success be with you always!  Kevin Jones

Life and Career Management
Kevin Jones - Life Coach
Its All About YOU - the Book
Real Estate Blog