Saving to be A Real Estate Agent?

Question

I had put it off for awhile, but now I'm in the beginning stages of getting my real estate license. While taking my courses I've become extremely enthusiastic in getting my license and start selling houses, however.... I've been hit with a dilemma. I was told to have a pretty healthy savings account when I do get started because often it takes awhile to actually get paid. Patience is virtue, of course, but other than waiting and staying in a job I hate to save money, is there any other ways Realtors make money on the side while also doing real estate full-time?

Wale Lawal · Answer

@Kaitlyn Robinson

It always good to have some savings when you start.

You can also assist another agent and that might get you some experience and money too.

Good luck!

Drew Sygit · Answer

@Kaitlyn Robinson the first 12 months of as an agent are actually easy. Everyting is new and exciting and you usually get business from family & friends.

The 2nd year is the hardest, after you burn through your family & friends and then have to face real work to do business.

Why can't you do real estate part time NOW, until you get your RE business going?

Read below advice:

Why does everyone want to spend money chasing strangers – and ignore their own personal network?

Per this NY Times article, the average American knows around 600 people.
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/19/science/the-average-american-knows-how-many-people.html#:~:text=The%20average%20American%20knows%20about,do%20you%20know%20named%20Kevin%3F

Per the US Census Bureau, the average American moves 11.7 time in their life, which based upon an approximate lifespan of 84 years, works out to be about every 7 years.
https://www.census.gov/topics/population/migration/guidance/calculating-migration-expectancy.html#:~:text=Using%202007%20ACS%20data%2C%20it,one%20move%20per%20single%20year

So, if the average American knows 600 people and they each move about every 7 years, that means that the average American knows around 85 people that move in any given year.

How many of those moves do you want to be involved in?

To maximize the number of transactions you’re involved in you will need to:

• Be Top of Mind when they think about moving - which requires consistent reminders.
• Be seen as an Expert – which requires a consistent message and Evidence of Success stories
• Gain their Trust – which requires communicating integrity

So, start out by listing everyone you know in an Excel spreadsheet.

Why Excel?  Because later, you can easily use it as your mailing list! Create columns for Name, Street Address, City, State, Zip and then contact info: Last Contact, Relationship, Status, Email & Phone.

IMPORTANT: do NOT ask people for THEIR business, ask for referrals! Why? Because they will get defensive if they feel you are pressuring them. Remember, they can always refer themselves😊

Now, make it a goal to call at least 5-10 of these people EVERY day and ask a MAX OF THREE off the list below of who they know that:

• Just inherited a home
• Had a loved one pass away
• Is behind on their mortgage or tax payments
• Has a relative that can’t take care of their house anymore
• Has a house they’re having trouble selling
• Is facing bankruptcy
• Knows a probate attorney
• Knows a bankruptcy attorney
• etc

Why only three off the list per contact? Because on average, we can only remember three things at a time. If you try to go over the whole list, you’ll lose the attention of an average person and they won’t remember anything!

It should only take you about a month or two to contact everyone on your list and then the tough part – you start all over again.

Why the repetition? Because it takes repetition for people to remember things and you have to be top-of-mind when they encounter a potential client for you!

Have you ever been to McDonalds? Of course you have! So, why is McDonalds still spending billions on advertising?

One more tip – people remember stories that trigger their emotions. So, tell a story of how you (or a fellow wholesaler) helped a seller out with their challenge(s). Change your story each month as different stories will resonate with different people AND use each story to emphasize one of your “who do you know…” questions.

As you start closing deals, you will need to reinvest your profits into mailing lists and other scalable activities to grow your business.

One last thing – we recommended you create a Status column on your spreadsheet, now we’ll explain why. If you find someone that seems to know a lot of people needing your services, wouldn’t it make sense to focus more resources on them? Conversely, you will run into people on your list that just seem to be a waste of time, so you’ll want to avoid them. So, create status codes for both of these and a few in-between codes to help you work smarter, not harder.

Rob Chiang · Answer

You can start work as a junior realtor that receives a small salary each month.  If you need cash flow NOW vs in the future, the pressure could create great results, or it could cause you to quit the industry before your "pinata" breaks open.

Eudith Vacio · Answer

Hey Kaitlyn!

There sure is, you can do showing for other agents OR ask a real estate agent if you can help them with their transactions. I would take full advantage of open houses and doing them right. Start telling everyone that you are in real estate!

Nate Sanow · Answer

There might be teams looking to hire in your area... Property management, while not being the same thing can teach similar skills. For example leasing agents can receive commissions, albeit smaller ones but perhaps more frequent.

Bruce Woodruff · Answer

I doubt it. It will certainly take you a while to get a deal closed, and then you have to pay your broker, and your other costs of doing business. I think it would be smart to stick with your 9-5 and work RE on weekends and after work. Sure it sucks working 60 hrs a week, but most self-employed people do....

Saving to be A Real Estate Agent?

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