Updated about 10 years ago on . Most recent reply
Getting on board
Hi forum members! I'm up in the Boston Mass area. I've had my RE brokers license for 20 years but never really put it use. I am a software engineer and seeing that's what I attended college for that's the industry I've been employed in for the past 30 years.
Well I'm thinking of jumping into the real estate industry on a part-time basis. I know this is not a great time but any words of advice on how to get started? I plan on using my tech background to reach out to clients but I know nothing beats person-to-person contact.
What gotchas or things should I watch for in the industry out there in 2015? Let's treat my experience in this industry as a newbie. I have the theory but lack the practical.
Most Popular Reply
Hi @David Blue and Welcome to BP. I hate to disagree with you @Matt Lefebvre but I found NAR/MAR/GBAR to be a complete waste of money. I used to work for an office that subscribed to those memberships and I have since left and abandoned my membership. I am closing 2-3 deals a month and nobody cares that I don't pay a fee to NAR. I do strongly suggest working for another broker at first as there is a ton of regulation on the paperwork and you would certainly want a transaction co-coordinator making sure you are in full compliance. Many of the bigger and well know national offices give you a poor split and charge fees as well, I certainly suggest not working for anyone that won't give you at least a clean 80% split on the commission, unless they have something else of great value to offer(like really good training, every office says they do but only a select few actually do). I do a lot of business out in Worcester which is fairly close to you, that is a huge market and even though the final sale prices are lower out there than Boston there is just so much business to go around, which might be a good place for you to start getting your feet wet if you decide to get into sales(not rentals) . I also strongly suggest going to local REIA meetups like Black Diamond to start networking with other investors and agents.