People bumping fist

Attracting the Best Realtors (and Keep Them from Leaving)

by Express Cash Flow Blog Posts

Attracting the best realtors is an interesting thing, in that its very premise requires changing your prospect’s mindset so drastically that they make a major life change, and once successful, ensuring that they never have their mindset changed in a similar fashion in the future.

This presents a challenge, because you are dealing with precisely the population of people whose minds were once changed in the first place.  So how do you go about winning both of these competitions?  It is all about creating the belief that you as a real estate brokerage offer a competitive advantage in the marketplace, and that working anywhere else would leave them at a disadvantage.

That’s wonderful as a strategy to attract the best realtors, but how do you actually go about creating that belief?

  • Attracting the best realtors requires training not only on the mechanics of the business (writing contracts, negotiating offers, etc), but focus also on how to gain more business. While almost all offices will offer floor time and open houses to hungry new agents, these methods are outdated when it comes to optimizing your presence among today’s web-savvy buyers.
  • Having a committed, proven, and effective strategy for agents to boost their business with online marketing will help you differentiate your brand from the competition.
  • Be a leader in technology. In an ever increasing technology based marketplace, not only are buyers and sellers starting their searches online, but agents looking for a place to hang their license are as well.  Taking advantage of premium placement on agent recruitment sites like AgentBranch.com are a great way to stand out as a leader in technology.
  • Give agents the right incentives to stay. This might be the most important of all.  Recruiting new agents is only half the battle, as your new recruits are just as likely to leave you as they were their last employer.  There is no one catch all solution to retaining agents though, it is more about understanding what motivates each individual
  • Will your newly recruited top producer be more motivated if he is given an equity stake in the company if he meets certain thresholds of production, or would he respond better to having a higher split on each transaction?  Will your new licensees perform better if given freedom to market how they see fit on a higher split, or provided with lead generation on a lower split?  Answering these questions correctly for each agent is key.  At the end of the day, successful brokerages will make all of their agents as successful as possible, and in so doing, will help preserve the highest possible retention rate.
referral

Building The Best Referral Base

by Express Cash Flow Blog Posts

Referral Base Is Key

Much is made of how real estate agents are always doing business “by referral only” and mention that the best compliment you can give them is a referral of a family member, friend, or associate.  This is on business cards, email signatures, personalized notepads and perhaps even hanging on a sign in real estate offices.  But how do all these real estate agents go about building the referral base they seek?  We’d like to share with you some of their tricks of the trade.

  1. Always be involved in your community: This doesn’t just mean involvment in your community to secure buyers and listings, but also when it has NOTHING to do with real estate. Get to know the people living in your community.  Become an advocate for these issues and make yourself a local presence, for everything that isn’t about your own self-interest, and you will start to your referral base grow.
  2. Pick a Non-Profit You Are Passionate About, and Support It: This gives you an opportunity to do work that you care about.  It also helps build a network of like-minded people. What’s more, non-profits are generally led by successful people whom are more likely to transact in real estate, and eventually be a boost to your bottom line.  See?  It really is all for a good cause!
  3. Be A Resource for Others: One of the best ways for people to remember you as a savvy business person is to always have what they need, right then. This means knowing the right contractor, plumber, electrician, landscaper, photographer and hairdresser at a moment’s notice.  Being the resource people trust in the business community will help you build relationships.  In time, this will lead to reciprocity amongst your referral base.
  4. Pick A Strong Networking Group: Many industry veterans will tell you that belonging to a networking group is a must.  BNI, Toastmasters, Le Tip, ProVisors and other networking groups are all great options. These groups are crucial to building your networking skills and referral base.  However, it is crucial to pick the right group.  If the whole group is new to their business together, this will be a slower path towards growth.
  5. All The face time: In today’s world of modern day technology, we have more ways than ever to avoid actually sitting and talking with other people. We can email, text, call, Facebook Message, Tweet or Snapchat all of our contacts.  We’re to the point where getting face time is not the same thing as FaceTime.  We humans are social creatures, and the best way to stay top of mind is the old fashioned way.  This means being in the same place at the same time, and having meaningful conversations.  So schedule coffee, lunch, drinks, dinners, gym sessions or walks on the beach.  Spend time with people.  People who enrich you both personally and professionally, and whom have genuine interest in your business.  The ROI on this time spent with another real live human is the best way to grow your referral base.

About Us:

Express Cash Flow provides commission advances for real
estate agents and brokers.  Check us out at www.ExpressCashFlow.com or call us at 844-818-2274.

referral

Top Expenses of Real Estate Agents

by Express Cash Flow Blog Posts

Owning your own business comes with a roller coaster of highs and lows, both emotionally and financially. Real estate brokers and agents are not immune to these, and the costs of running a real estate business can add up quickly, especially considering how long transactions take (and they are only taking longer).

Here is a partial list of the cash it takes to be a real estate agent:

Before you stick that first “For Sale” sign in a yard, or show that first home to a potential buyer, you’ll need to spend between $1,500 and $2,000. You’ll need to enroll in a real estate class, typically from a state accredited provider. The costs will vary. In California, for example, courses range from $200 to $700. Once you’ve finished the course, you’ll need to take the licensing exam. In California, the licensing exam fee is $60 see the updated California Real Estate Licensing Fees. Many states also require fingerprinting and background checks, which range in cost.

Realtor Association Fees

You don’t have to join the local association of Realtors in your area, however, membership has its benefits. Members of the association sign a code of conduct, and typically, its board has a regulatory authority over its members. Your fees may include membership in a local organization as well as a state organization. If you live in a metropolitan area that bisects more than one state, you may have to pay membership fees to more than one state or locality. Your local Realtor association also hosts a multiple listing service, or MLS, allowing other agents to peruse the listings of their peers.  There is an annual membership fee to join the association. In most places, the fee costs between $200 and $500 per year. Real estate agents pay this fee once each year.

Multiple Listing Service Dues

You’ll have to be a member of the local association to use your area’s multiple listing service. In addition to the association membership fee, you’ll also need to pay an annual fee to subscribe to the MLS, As the listing service is linked to a geographic area, these fees vary by location.

Agency Fees

Real estate agents who are just starting out must either obtain a broker’s license themselves, or work underneath the supervision of an established brokerage. Many brokers will require that real estate agents contribute to office and franchising costs, and they do this in a variety of ways. The most common ways are to charge a monthly “desk” fee regardless of the agents production, or instead they’ll charge a % of each transaction the real estate agent closes.

Equipment Costs

You’ll have some access to office equipment, but you’ll also need a top of the line mobile device and associated data plan. What’s more, you’ll also need a durable and efficient laptop, as well as a high end camera (nope, that one on your phone isn’t going to cut it) to take listing photos.   Yard signs, open house signs, lockboxes and lockbox keys also come with the territory.

Error and Omissions Insurance

This insurance protects you if a real estate contract or issue winds up in court. Costs vary per area and per brokerage.

Real estate agents typically spend $3,000+ to become licensed and start their business. Agents will spend far more each year on marketing and general expenses to keep it going. Though costs vary from agent to agent and state to state, a commission advance service is one way to help fight the challenge of consistent expenses and, at least in the beginning, income that takes a while to become consistent.