How to Profit During the First Three Months of Your Real Estate Career
Being a rookie realtor is not easy. It’s so difficult that most believe that it’s impossible for them to make any money during the first three months in their careers.
This isn’t true. Although new realtors will always face an uphill battle, there are some who have made money during the first few months of their career.
Their successes were caused by many different factors, some of which we will discuss here. So if you want to make money in real estate then the following information will teach you what you need to know.
A Quick Note of the Real Estate Industry
Before we discuss any tips or advice, it’s important to point out that there are no guarantees in the real estate market. Even the pros make mistakes and there are cases where rookie realtors – either by blind luck or real talent – are able to close lucrative deals.
The tips that will be mentioned here can help you close deals but they don’t offer any guarantees.
Remember that real estate transactions are affected by hundreds of factors, and anyone of them can ruin an almost perfect deal. So although the following tips can substantially increase your chances of closing a great sale, they are by no means perfect.
Team Up With a Successful Real Estate Agent
If you know a veteran realtor with a good track record who is willing to work with you then you should ask him to team up with you.
Teaming up with experienced realtors is better than learning things on your own.
Not only can they show you the ropes, but they can also clue you in some of the systems and techniques that realtors use.
Working with an experienced realtor is more than just a partnership. It’s also a kind of mentorship. You’ll most likely have to content yourself the lesser share of each commission but the information and training that you get by working with an experienced realtor will be worth it.
For one thing, you’ll learn how experienced realtors work, how they speed up sales, how they find leads and more.
Furthermore, you’ll also have someone to watch your back and keep you focused on your goal. Your mentor-partner can also help you avoid certain mistakes, and if he really likes you, he may even help you find new leads of your own.
And of course, working with an experienced realtor will increase your chances of closing a lucrative deal during the first three months of your real estate career.
Join a Team
If you can’t find an experienced realtor to show you the ropes then the next best thing is to join a team. The bigger your team, the better your chances of making a sale.
Large real estate teams are not only more efficient, but they also have plenty of leads. Also, a team of six to seven realtors can easily find dozens of leads in a few days than a single realtor can find in a few weeks.
Before you join a real estate team, however, you will need to choose your role. A few good examples include escrow coordinator, virtual coordinator, social media expert, home touring specialist, listing agent and more. So before you join a team, pick a role that is suitable for your skills and expertise.
For example, if you have a lot of experience with social media, you can take charge of the team’s social media accounts, and if you’re good with people, you can be the guy in charge of home tours.
If you’re good with the organization, you can help the leader of the team with planning or handle most of the team’s communication. There are all kinds of jobs and responsibilities that you can try when you join a real estate team, so prepare accordingly.
Naturally, the downside to joining a team of realtors is that you will need to split the commission with your teammates.
And since you’re the rookie, you will need to earn the respect of your teammates is you want them to treat you as an equal. However, if you want to make money fast then being a team player is one of the fastest ways to do it.
Learn What You Should and Should Not Do
Another way to make money quickly is to understand what you should and should not do as a realtor. Many rookie realtors learn the ‘Do’s and Don’ts’ of the real estate market over the years.
They learn how to judge a buyer/seller, how to find good leads and how to find the right price for a particular property.
There are also some lessons which can only be learned by instinct, and since you don’t have the time to develop those instincts, you will need to make do with better planning.
Start by examining how experienced realtors plan out each deal and you should get a good idea of how they think and what they do.
In fact, that’s one of the best ways to become a good realtor – studying experienced realtors. If you can’t get an experienced real estate agent to take you under his or her wing then the next best thing is to study their technique from afar.
You can even study the lives and strategies of experienced realtors through the internet. There are literally hundreds of articles, videos and manuals that you can use to improve your own skills.
As for the things that you should not do, just Google the ‘biggest failures and mistakes ever made in real estate,’ and you’ll find what you need to know. Like most careers, the real estate industry has its share of no-no’s and things that ‘you should never do.’
Some are quite obvious while others are more implicit or situational in nature. For example, there are certain limits on how long you should wait for buyers to call back with an offer.
These limits are not always expressly stated but most experienced realtors know where to draw the line, and so should you.
Pick a System
Many realtors use systems. Systems are basically plans which are designed to increase your chances of closing a deal successfully. They can also help you avoid mistakes, prepare better-talking points and help you understand your leads better.
As a rookie realtor, you won’t have a chance to develop your system from scratch. So you will need to borrow them from your experienced colleagues.
Some experienced realtors, for example, focus on a specific demographic or community, while others specialize in online real estate activities. There are also realtors whose systems can be used for any situation, and there are some whose systems can only be applied in very specific scenarios.
However, if you can’t get your immediate colleagues to share their systems with you then go online and look for one yourself.
Many realtors have posted articles and videos about their ‘systems’ and you can take things from there. Just Google real estate systems, and you’ll find hundreds, if not thousands, of examples to choose from.
Sometimes, you won’t even have to copy a system completely. You can try taking multiple systems and combining them into a new system that is suitable for your particular needs, or you can try creating a unique system based on those that you’ve read about.
One word of warning though. Learning about a system and implementing it are two different things. A particular system may seem easy or even simple on paper but it can’t help you unless you develop your skills as a real estate agent, which brings us to the final point of this article.
Develop Your Skills
Finally, you will need to develop those skills which are crucial in the real estate industry. As a rookie realtor, you won’t have enough time to fully develop these skills within the first three months of your real estate career, but it’s worth trying nevertheless.
The sooner you start, the better, regardless of whether or not you close any deals in the first three months.
A few good examples include communication, negotiation, organization, escrow management, scheduling and more. Again, you won’t master these skills in three months, but you’ll be able to close your deals more quickly if you know which types of skills are needed in your line of work.
Additionally, you can also leverage certain skills which are not necessarily related to the real estate industry. For example, if you know how to pilot a drone, you can rent one to take pictures of those properties that you’re trying to sell.
Likewise, if you’re good with websites, you can use those skills to promote properties online, or at least reach out to potential leads on the internet.
These are not real estate skills per se, but they can be useful if you know how to leverage them correctly. So if you want to make money in your first three months as a realtor then you should work on your skills.
