What a life, right? They make their own hours, attend fun galas and events and sell a house here and there for a big fat commission check. If you ever really wondered what it was like to be a real estate agent or are just curious what your agent really does all day, look no further. Take a gander at a day in the life of a real estate agent in Floresville.
Administrative Duties
A real estate agent may work under a broker but the agent is still responsible for running his business as an independent contractor. This means completing any administrative duties such as getting flyers made and distributed. The agent must develop marketing plans for new listing and manage their own database. Agents should respond to messages and prepare required documents for clients. Busier and more successful agents hire an assistance or junior agent to complete many administrative tasks. Every day has tasks to do but also has things that crop up at the last minute which throws off the timetable. The phone rings at all hours because when a house hunter has a question they want it answered. Many agents do not answer their phones after a certain hour because they have learned excited people call at all times. One of my clients became a client at 9:30 on a Saturday night. I have also had calls at 9 pm on Saturday from a person who didn’t want to call their agent and had a question. Believe it or not that is annoying. Your agent is there to answer your questions. That is what they get paid for.
Client Work
Some administrative work is client work. There is other work for clients that aren’t administrative. This includes searching for listings for buyers, talking to other agents about offers and negotiating deals. It also means taking clients to see homes after arranging to get into the homes. Seller’s agents must work with buyers to ensure the home is prepared for listing and open house. Seller’s agents must also market and do any work that needs to be done to sell the home. There may be a lot of research involved for a client. Personally I research things such as ag exemption requirements, well costs, septic costs, deed restrictions, th and any other item that is pertinent to my clients’ needs.
Lead Generation
Because a real estate agent works as an independent contractor, he must constantly be filling his pipeline for his next client. Lead generation includes cold calling, networking events, sitting for other agents on their open houses and walking neighborhoods to meet potential sellers. Some agents run online ads or hold community events. Each agent runs their own business and chooses the marketing options for lead generation that provide the best results. If they have a personal website they must maintain it and keep it up to date. All of that is paid for from the agent’s earnings.
Meetings, Meetings, Meetings
Real estate agents attend a lot of meetings. This could be networking meetings, clients meetings, and broker meetings. Brokers are the main agent in an office, overseeing the legalities of the agents below them. Larger brokers have big reputations that help younger agents build the credibility needed to establish themselves in the market. Brokers will holds meetings about contract or regulatory issues. They will hold sales training and negotiation tactics workshops. They also host weekly meetings to review the state of real estate market trends. Agents are expected to attend these meetings to be well versed on market trends and be as professional as possible in representing themselves and the office.
Agent Continuing Education
A real estate agent is a regulated license. As such, the agent must study and pass an exam in the state where she markets and sells real estate. Part of the license requirements is completing continuing education mandated by the real estate licensing board. Agents can also take certifications and get specific designations through classes that teach them specific skills to help certain clients. There are buyer’s designations that are different than seller’s designations. Someone can become certified to work with senior citizens. Different real estate agents choose different designations depending on the direction of their career.