What do you like most about your realty company?

Question

As a new agent I am searching for a broker to work for.  What do you like most about yours?  What questions would you ask of brokers if you were new and just starting out?

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"What questions would you ask of brokers if you were new and just starting out?"

I would ask what kind of training and continuing education/seminars you offer? What about mentoring? Is there a strong culture of internal competition here? What about agent support? Tell me about your intranet tools. Tell me about the brokerage split policies here at XXX.

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Keller Williams has an awesome business model, and they are heavily into training which both work to make an agent very successful. Combine that with the fact that competition is removed internally, and mentoring takes it's place, and you really have a recipe for success.

Unfortunately, I am in Manhattan, and we don't have the KW culture here. Hell, we don't even have co-broke or MLS.

BTW, another interesting firm is Charles Rutenberg. Google it, and check out the commission model. Empowering to the agent, and fosters more independence.
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My favorite thing is catered breakfasts, with a beautiful view of Central Park out my window while I am giving comps in Gwathmey and Gehry buildings to David Geffen, and waiting for my black car to bring my assistant back from the bank with my deposit slips.

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I am a REALTOR with Keller Williasms in Tallahassee, Florida after having started real estate officially in 2004 with Exit Realty. Both companies are great in my opinion. Agents get a lot of training, support, and a friendly caring atmospher. I would read and reread The Millionaire Real Estate Agent, which is the foundation for the Keller Williams systems. It is applicable for real estate agents in general, however.

Kenneth Fach, REALTOR, e-PRO Certified
Keller Williams Town and Country Realty, 
1520 Killearn Center Blvd. Tallahassee, FL 32309

Each office is independently owned and operated.

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I can give you the basics, sure.  Keller Williams is based on the principle of sharing with their agents.  Each office is independently owned and operated, usually by other agents.  But they remain behind the scenes and you wouldn't know that they owned the branch.  The idea of profit sharing is rewarding agents for growing the company and they call it a downline.  I had an agent introduce me to Keller Williams, when I joined I put him down as my sponsor (the person who gave you information or put you in contact with the team leader etc).  The commission splits are different everywhere but say it is 60/40...the sponsor gets a percentage of the profit of the office if the office is profitable that month, so my sponsor has a vested interest in whether I succeed.  The share is divided in this very convoluted way and it is not 40%...because there are some other things that get paid with that but it is a portion of it.  When I bring someone on and they make a sale and the office sees a profit that month, not only do I get a portion of the profit but so does my sponsor and it goes down a line.

I hope that heps, I am not sure how well I explained it.  If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

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I do work at Keller Williams, the nice thing about profit sharing at KW is that you don't have to participate if you choose not not.  I plan on taking advantage of profit sharing because it is easy money.  I agree with you that the atmosphere and people at KW are unique.  That is why I chose to work for this company even though I interviewed a few others.  Their belief system and priorities are wonderful.

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I couldn't agree more and if I do end up with KW, I plan on participating in it as well...another stream of income never hurt anyone.

It's going to be a while before I begin interviewing, but I'm anxious to know the logistics of the profit sharing plan - is that something you can share with us?

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Hey spizzo-

I'm assuming you're referring to Keller Williams...

Oddly enough, I recently attended the open house (for one of their new branch offices) in Midtown Atlanta and I can honestly say I was blown away by not only the office itself, but the people were just incredible. The only person at the entire party I knew was my agent, but within 30 minutes or so of him showing me around and introducing me to his colleagues, I fell in love with everyone and Keller Williams as a company. I can't really explain it well, but the people, their attitudes, and their sense of camaraderie were amazing and I'm completely sold on the company.

I'm seriously considering pursuing real estate as a full-time career so Keller William is definitely in the running of brokers that I'm considering.

However, make sure to do your due diligence. Some agents despise the company due to their "profit sharing" program which can be viewed many different ways, some of which are unfavorable.

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Hey!

I work for an amazing company that has an office in Atlanta but I am not sure where else they have offices.  One thing to know is that it really depends on what you are looking to get out of your career.  My company's value system was an important part of why I chose it.  Please feel free to contact me directly and I can give you more specific information.

Sarah

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it might be different from area to area for what you would want out of your broker.