Real Estate Forums

Shannon · 11-28-2005, 12:51 PM

Hello all!
I earned my Real Estate License in Aug 2005...became a Realtor..and then 2 months later realized that I needed to make a change if I was going to make it in Real Estate.
Being new to my area and Real Estate...I figured out that I needed to focus on one market. I found out that because I did not have a solid business plan..that I was feeling very scattered on where to even begin with the business. I have been contemplating working for a builder, on location.
I severed ties with the REALTOR name but still have my license. Currently my license is in a holding company where I can make money on referrals..I just do not want to be a somebody doing nothing. In most cities..from what I have learned have many REALTORS who are just getting by..and then you have the handful that are doing GREAT..but sacrifice lots of personal family and self time to cater to their clients..
Suggestions are welcome...I like to hear good ideas from experienced Real Estate professionals.

REMAX LV · 12-01-2005, 05:00 PM

Here in this forum most of us are pretty big on internet marketing. It depends on what you are working to accomplish as well. How about joining a team, talking with your broker, or spending money on marketing in different areas than you currently are doing so?

Las Vegas Real Estate · 12-01-2005, 05:24 PM

I think that those are all great options REMAX, especialy joining team. That can be one of the best ways to gain experience and training and percure business too. One of the hardest parts of being new in real estate is creating leads/ business, and joining a team typically solves that problem.

Shannon · 12-03-2005, 07:49 AM

Tell me about your internet marketing.
-Shannon

Shannon · 12-03-2005, 01:00 PM

I see that a lot of people join a team...and it seems to work well with some.
I know that for me....its just not economically right for me to start my real estate business from scratch...and then move in 2 years...because I am a military spouse.
Do any of you have experience with working in a builders office?
Also, do any of you strictly do marketing for real estate?
Please share some feedback.
And let me know any creative ways in which people used their license.
Thanks

Shannon

Las Vegas Homes · 12-03-2005, 05:33 PM

I think that by internet marketing, Las Vegas Real Estate means building your website and getting your name out there. Also, search engine optimizing is huge in making sure that you are, in fact, recognized and exposed to possible clientele.

smorris · 12-03-2005, 06:12 PM

Shannon I have built my business almost exclusively by internet marketing. It doesn't cost that much if you do the work yourself and when you first start out you definately have more time than money. You can work from home and pick the hours you wan to work. I have never paid for page position and find link partners a great way to send traffic to my website. When I first started the internet route my broker was not in to it and kept pushing me to do the same ole' same ole' advertize in the real estate magazines, send out direct mail pieces, go out and knock on doors, hand out cards to everyone you meet etc.etc. She said you need to get out from behind that computer and go get some business! I told her that I was doing just that but not the conventional way and she said well you'll never make it. Well I didn't have the money to advertise and if I put it on a credit card I didn't have anything to advertise so I would advertise other Realtors listings or the ones they couldn't sell or ones they didn't want to advertise, that wasn't working, I was going broke,I don't like people who knock on my door,my friends come to the back door, sales people, and generally unwanted people come to the front door and I am immediately on guard, what are they selling, or are they going to knock me down and hold my family hostage? any way not my way of doing things. So I spent hours learning first how to build a website and then more hours learning how to get the serach engines to recognize my efforts. At least I wasn't sitting around getting depressed over what wasn't happening. and it finally paid off and my broker now says that she was wrong about me. I am so glad that most Realtors in my area still do business the old way

I get to work at home sometimes in my pajamas,watch soaps if I want to and have as much business as I can handle by myself, I take most of my listings online and have never met most of them in person, 98% of my buyers are from my website and have even sold some properties sight unseen from pictures that I personally go and take for them. It is a new world, so whatever you decide to do in your situation the internet is waiting for you and whatever ideas you can dream up can be accomplished without taking the time away from your family, wherever you live it can go with you, find a need and fill it!
Smorris

Shannon · 12-04-2005, 08:39 AM

smorris,
I myself am not into the door knocking. My broker encourages new agents to door knock, hand out business cards to everyone, build a website, saturate your sphere of influence and tell everybody you meet that you are in real estate. I understand that at first...most of a new agents time is supposed to be spent on prospecting so that later on you do not have to prospect as much. I figured out real quick that in this business...most of the great experienced agents just do not have the time to take a rookie under their wing.
I think I do have great potential in real estate...I have been thinking a lot about what avenue best suites me.
Thanks
Shannon

Portland Real Estate · 12-14-2005, 09:21 PM

There're some great advice here. Should I had the opportunity of joining a team, I would have done so in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, it wasn't available in my old company. From my experience, internet works wonders. However, it also requires some business and techno savvy to pull it off. Getting the traffic is easy. There's SEO and PPCs available everywhere to get people to visit. Getting those people to contact you and eventually turn them into clients, that's the much harder part. It really takes quite of bit of tenacity, patience, and some money to get things going well.

San Diego Homes & Condos · 12-15-2005, 10:23 AM

Shannon I started in real estate in San Diego this past July and I was lucky somehow stumbled onto a team that is ranked rather nicely on the internet and I am so busy and I work out of my home and I have like 40 something prospects actively looking for homes ready to by now all the way till next January and I love it! I show homes for about 3-4 full days a week and I am gonna do so good this year.

My advice... go to google and msn and yahoo and look up homes and condos in the city you live and see who comes up 1-10 on there. Then contact them all start with one of course and find out how you can join their team.
Going to a builder can be okay but I have friends who do that and they hate it because you are not building your pipeline, you have to wait for people to come to you, and if they don't like what you are showing them you loose them.

If you worked in the kind of team I am suggesting you will be where they are looking and best of all when they feel like talking about real estate is when you are calling them. People are busy and trust me you will have better luck with them when they are ready to look.

I am just a rookie like you and take it from me it is working!