All Forum Posts by: Bryan Gamble

As an agent, instead of using my personal name on everything can I use a DBA business instead?

People always talk about "building your business", but without brand recognition these possibilities seem, well, limited. If i ever leave the business I may want to sell the business I've worked hard to build, this seems hard to do if everything is reliant upon my personal name and brokers franchise name. Also, God forbid a few deals go wrong and my personal name comes under scrutiny. With a business name, one could simply close shop, create a new name and maybe start fresh. This would seem fairly difficult if using ones birth name. You cant just go around changing your real life name all willy nilly. Having a DBA name would also allow me to distribute any excess leads to other agents within my network all while under my umbrella. Never to be about the agent in particular, but instead, about the brand which made the connection possible. Besides, in the long run, catchy business names and slogans are embedded into the mind and are always easier to remember than one individuals' name.

So as an agent, is creating a DBA name and conducting all real estate transactions using this name possible? If so, what are some obstacles I may encounter along the way?

Any and all responses are welcomed and will be forever cherished. Thanks a bunch!

I'm an agent thinking of creating a site. I don't want it affiliated with my broker, I would like to use it as a tool to generate some leads and help build my own brand. How easy is it to integrate my local MLS search access into my site? Has anyone done it personally? What are some of the steps involved? I am planning on using a Wordpress theme for the platform.

Greetings, this is a very touching father/son story. As Stephen mentioned, it would not be a great idea to "LLC" your residence. A better idea would be to go and ask your dad for some money and go find investment properties to "LLC". Hope this helps.

Regards

Nice. Great story and motivation for others to stay hungry and do what needs to be done to find great deals.

$49 is an absolutely a rip off!! Please do some more research. Website based services love "newbie" gullible consumers who need web services. Like many others suggested, simply find a WP template you like (most for under $50) and then pay an experienced designer to customize it to your liking ($100-$200 depending on your requirements) if you don't want to do it yourself. As for hosting, GoDaddy or Hostgator will be all you need for under $20 a month.

I'm usually a skeptic to new tech launches, as most tend to be mostly hype in the end. I will say however that this one does seem legit and quite promising. @John Steele Thanks for the heads up. Found an article in the link below that further outlines Canva's business model for anyone interested in finding out more about it. 

http://techcrunch.com/2013/08/26/backed-by-3-milli...

To my knowledge linking to other sites can also be advantageous because it can also be a good way of networking with other local bloggers in your niche as well. They will see where their traffic comes from and if its coming from you, then perhaps a favor for a favor or future mention or link on their site in return? This is how it is beneficial from the marketing stand point anyways. Hope that provides more insight and good luck!

As mentioned above, things always have potential to turn ugly with these type of set ups,  but seems like you have things well thought out. Although he is taking on risk by lending, you are technically "doing everything else" which can add up to a WHOLE LOT OF SWEAT put in on your end.  When its all said and done will he deserve half of all of your relentless hard work and effort just because he had some dough to front you at the beginning? I think not!  I agree his percentage should be adjusted accordingly per deal etc. Geez..Half?! While you're doing all the necessary work? ..In that case you are a lenders dream come true!! Lol. Keep us updated, I hope whatever you decide works out for you.

I agree with Derek totally. Social media when used correctly, can have a huge affect on any business these days.  Too many realtors and investors are too easily sucked into an advertising mindset instead of a promoters mindset. The difference in the two is that an advertiser creates a budget and then looks to high traffic revenues to throw dollars towards advertising. While a promoter more often than not creates or finds a specific venue and promotes a service i.e. party promoters/planners. Anywho...what im trying to say is don't just rely on Trulia etc. Develop your own platform via social media and promote it in your local market. Hope my social media pep talk was helpful :)