Any Real Estate Agents out there?

[ladypanther]

Thinking about making that move. (becoming an agent)

[Doyle]

I say go for it.  I know you haven't been happy with what your are currently doing for a while now. 

[ladypanther]

20 minutes ago, Doyle said:

I say go for it.  I know you haven't been happy with what your are currently doing for a while now. 

 I want to know if others are happy being an agent.

[Anybodyhome]

When I lived in Virginia I had my own real estate home inspection business and worked with agents all the time. I know several agents here in NC and all of them tell me the same thing- you set your own schedule, and income is directly tied to effort. I've looked into it as a retirement job to dabble in and my wife is considering it as a career change. 

You have to be driven, willing to work weekends and nights and you'll have to decide if you want every listing that comes your way or are you going to be selective and take those you know you can move quickly. There are costs to consider. For example, if you work for a company, they'll handle all your advertising and open house publicity, but you'll be expected to pay. Your annual license fee is a few hundred bucks and you have to maintain a certain level of continuing education hours each year. A lot of out-of-pocket expenses to be aware of. And that 3% commission is only partially yours if you work for an agency. 

But despite all of that, most agents I know do like it and have been at it for quite some time. 

[thefuzz]

Year number 14 for me.  Certainly not in the Century 21/Keller Williams type role, more of a specialist, but I enjoy it.

The course to get your license is awful, teaches you nothing about selling real estate, and there is quite a bit of classwork after you pass the initial class, and the state tests.

You will miss birthdays, funerals, beach days, and there is no such thing as a day off or a vacation....ever...but you get paid for that.  You can work as a general agent (Century 21), work for a developer, a builder, investor, apartment companies, commercial, rental management, etc....there are many different jobs other than riding people around and unlocking homes.

You will need to have some money saved up for your first year or two most likely, but not always.  If you are going into general, I would go with the largest company around, that offers the most support and training for new agents....they are likely going to have "open houses" that need duty agents to man...so there is a way to get your face out there.

Sorry, rambling.

[ladypanther]

6 hours ago, thefuzz said:

Sorry, rambling.

No...thank you. That is quite helpful.  I do not mind hard work and I already have a terrible schedule.  I want a more professional setting.  I am good at what I do but get no support. ( I was salesperson of the month last month :-)  ).  I am already on 100% commission.

I am talking with a large company in Hickory...1 of my previous customers works there and highly recommends them.  He said I would make a very good Buyer's Agent.

I may have to leave my job to take the real estate classes..so there is 5 weeks with no income. I am working on having 6 months of living expenses saved up to begin this venture.  My current business goes dead for 4 months beginning  about Nov....so not too much difference.  1 thing is-I do have health insurance thru my employer.  Got to do some research on what that is going to cost me.

[SmokinwithWilly]

Look into online real estate classes. I know most of the refreshers are available online. If the initial ones are as well, you can take them whenever and it's a lot more convenient without having to take time off. 

[ladypanther]

13 minutes ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

Look into online real estate classes. I know most of the refreshers are available online. If the initial ones are as well, you can take them whenever and it's a lot more convenient without having to take time off. 

NC is 1 of a few states where you can not take the pre licensing courses online.  Must be in classroom. Hard to believe.  Can get a college degree online, an MBA, even a law degree.

[thefuzz]

17 hours ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

Look into online real estate classes. I know most of the refreshers are available online. If the initial ones are as well, you can take them whenever and it's a lot more convenient without having to take time off. 

Yea, not possible here.

They are serious in this state about licensing RE agents these days....not so much in the past.

[thefuzz]

19 hours ago, ladypanther said:

No...thank you. That is quite helpful.  I do not mind hard work and I already have a terrible schedule.  I want a more professional setting.  I am good at what I do but get no support. ( I was salesperson of the month last month :-)  ).  I am already on 100% commission.

I am talking with a large company in Hickory...1 of my previous customers works there and highly recommends them.  He said I would make a very good Buyer's Agent.

I may have to leave my job to take the real estate classes..so there is 5 weeks with no income. I am working on having 6 months of living expenses saved up to begin this venture.  My current business goes dead for 4 months beginning  about Nov....so not too much difference.  1 thing is-I do have health insurance thru my employer.  Got to do some research on what that is going to cost me.

If you go to a big enough company, you should be able to cut down on the "down time" with no income.  But make sure it's a firm that goes out of it's way to help younger/greener agents.

Builders also need onsite agents to sit in models, sometimes they pay a small salary in addition to commission.

Being a buyers agent has it's share of great and terrible days.  When you are new/broke/green, you won't be able to choose your customers....but the longer you are in, the more choosy you can be.

[ladypanther]

Know anything about this company?

http://www.teammetro.net/

Quote

 

If you are considering a career in real estate sales, Weichert is definitely the best place to get started! We offer great training, a supportive environment, and opportunities to advance.

Responsibilities

As a sales associate, you will build a client base through various marketing and networking activities, and use tools like our advanced lead generation system to help you build your business.

You will participate in weekly sales meetings and other office activities to stay connected and up-to-date on available properties and new potential clients in your local area. You will also be responsible for providing friendly, professional service to all of our customers and maintaining solid relationships with past clients.

 

 

[thefuzz]

18 hours ago, ladypanther said:

Know anything about this company?

http://www.teammetro.net/

 

Don't know much about them, not popular over on the East side of the state.

[Woodie]

You might also want to ask this question on city-data.com.  I know several realtors that post there regularly and could give some good advise and tips.  Good Luck!!

Charlotte

York and Lancaster counties

[Ja Rhule]

1 hour ago, thebigcat said:

there's going to be a recession in the next 12-16 months, I would not start a career in that right now.

 

New car sales is a good indicator on the first cracks in the economy and almost all manufacturers are sitting on a lot of unsold new inventory

 

http://247wallst.com/autos/2017/03/13/gm-has-huge-supply-of-unsold-cars/

What recession? Charlotte actually has too little supply to offer because of all the demand.  Considering that we are huge banking city and banks are sitting on a ton of capital, I doubt anything will happen here.

http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/28/for-first-time-since-financial-crisis-fed-clears-all-big-banks-capital-return-plans.html