Life as a Real Estate Agent

My Journey of Real Estate

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 21:18:40 GMT

Of all the crazy things I could do, I launched a new career at the age of 40 in a city that I only knew a handful of people. What was I thinking?

Reminiscing of the day I joined real estate in July 2010, I knew this was going to be the career for me. Work hard. Hustle. Grind. Verbs and Adjectives, that were very familiar to me over the years in anything I set out to do. Real Estate was going to be no different.

Over the span of my career, I was able to set and meet several milestones that would place me apart from most agents.

Happy Valentines Day to my Real Estate Career

Mon, 14 Feb 2022 21:22:00 GMT

Dear Real Estate,

Remember when we first got together? People didn’t think we’d last. Maybe they didn’t always say it, but they thought it.

“You could do so much better. Why would you be a real estate agent?”

“What’s your back-up plan?”

“You should get a real job…”

I’m sure they were well-intentioned. But I ignored them.

There were times, though, when even I wondered if you were worth the chase. You do tend to play hard to get. Not even sure you know you’re that way. But maybe you do. Maybe you just wanted to see how much I really cared.

I’ve come to love and appreciate that about you. If you were too easy, our relationship wouldn’t be so rewarding…and my love and respect wouldn’t be so deep.

Who knows, maybe I’d have scrammed when times got tough.

We jumped right into marriage

I’m glad we jumped right into marriage. If we’d just dated—if I’d kept my options open—we probably wouldn’t be where we are today. Commitment was a good thing.

For better or for worse…

We’ve certainly had our share of worse, right Real Estate? You remember 2005-2010, don’t you? Those were some tough years. You were sluggish. Money was tight. Things just didn’t seem right.

But we stuck it out. And we’re better and stronger because of those years. And I’m sure we’ll go through times like that again. We’ll be OK.

To me, you were never a one night stand

Not just anybody can see the depth of your beauty. Takes a special type. It’s weird how some people look at you like the “love ‘em and leave ‘em” type. You’re not… necessarily. But if that’s how someone treats you, you’re cool with it. The truth is, you’ll love anyone.

And you do. You have millions of lovers. Some new, some old. Some will come and go, some will be with you forever.

Used to bug me. Thought we had something special. But I’ve come to terms with it. I know many will be nothing but a quick fling. They won’t truly love you and will be out the door quickly. Nothing wrong with that. Things happen. Sometimes relationships don’t work.

I’m totally fine sharing you with others. I just hope they love and respect you as much as I do.

They say you’re moody

I get a little defensive when people say you’re in one of your moods. Sure, you have your ups and downs. Who doesn’t?

But it’s not you… it’s them. You’re never going to be perfect to everyone at every moment. Someone’s always gonna have something to say about you. But I dig that you ignore what everyone’s saying and how you just keep on being you.

Don’t get me wrong, I know we’ve had a few spats over the years. But now that I get that you’re not the boss of me, any more than I can tell you what to do or when, we almost never disagree.

But sometimes I wish you wouldn’t go around looking so sexy. Every time I hear people saying how hot Real Estate is right now, I can’t help but to question their motives in my own protective little way.

It’s not about the number of transactions

When I was younger, I never really got what people meant when they’d say that love grows deeper over time. But now I realize it does. It evolves.

I’m not sure about you, but for me, early on it was all about having as many transactions a month as possible. Heck, I was always hoping for multiple transactions in a day!

But the honeymoon is over. It’s not about the quantity for me anymore. It’s about the quality of the transactions. And don’t take that as me saying I’m “settling” for quality… I just yearn for quality more than quantity is all.

(But hey, don’t get me wrong… I’ll take as many quality transactions as I can get! Just sayin’…)

It’s not you, it’s…

There’s a lot of reasons people get angry at each other and break up. With you, I think it’s typically over money issues. Or, about not having enough transactions. They kinda go hand in hand.

You do stress people out.

Dragging you to counselling isn’t gonna work, though. It’s on them to make the relationship work. You couldn’t be more flexible, understanding, or accepting.

Maybe it’d be best if they just spent some quiet alone-time with you.

Real Estate, it’s not you when things are aggravating. It’s not you that causes the stress, the worry, the wasted time, and ups and downs. It’s people that cause these things…

It’s other agents. It’s buyers and sellers. It’s appraisers, attorneys, inspectors, and lenders.

It’s the economy.

It’s how they all interact and affect each other.

But deep down it’s not you, Real Estate.

Over the years, I’ve learned to help people understand you better. Calm them and help them see you for what you are. Help them love you as much as I do and deal with you as you are, not as they want you to be. And ideally, I help them all deal with each other with love and respect and an understanding that we all have a relationship with you, and we all need to get along.

To marry you is to marry your family

To marry you is to marry your whole family… and each and every one of their quirky ways.

Speaking of which, if another one of your relatives says, “You still doin’ Real Estate?” one more time… Don’t they know it’s more than that with us!?

But I’ve learned that it’s important to love them all, even if they are difficult to like at times. But I certainly have my favorites to sit next to at the holidays.

But at times, it seems we’re always around other people…

Alone time, just me and you

Whether it’s clients, inspectors, appraisers, attorneys, or other agents–the family of people it takes for us to get anything done–the busy-ness can get in the way of remembering what it is I love about you.

It’s funny though, isn’t it? When we’re alone, I just can’t wait to be around everyone, anyone…to be busy again. And then the noise, the motion and commotion of it all, gets in the way of seeing you for everything you are and could be.

So, sometimes it’s just plain good to sit down and be alone with you, and let you know I am constantly thinking about you and working on “us”. It’s good for you to know, but more importantly it’s good for me to remember.

And as we ride off into the sunset, I recognize your free spirit, and that’s a good thing.

Because ultimately, your love is meant to be shared with the world. We’re nothing without others.

Buyer Agent Lingo that only Agents Understand

Tue, 25 Jan 2022 21:21:00 GMT

Somehow, some way, no matter who you are, how long you’ve been in the business, or where you do business, there are certain phrases every agent hears (or utters) when interacting with other agents.

At face value, an outsider may think they mean exactly what the words are saying, but after you’ve been around the real estate block a time or two, you get to know what certain phrases really mean.

Let’s take a look at 7 common phrases a listing agent hears from a buyer’s agent, and how it translates to an agent once they know how to read between the lines:

1) “My clients are well qualified.”

This is usually just a quick little phrase a buyer’s agent drops in conversation with a listing agent to dance around the one thing everyone wants to know—how much their buyer is offering. It’s presumed that the buyer is well qualified for the house; otherwise, why would you even be coming in with an offer…

Translation: So you’re saying their offer’s probably gonna suck, right?

2) “My clients could buy this cash if they wanted to.”

There are a number of reasons why this would come out of an agent’s mouth. But it’s usually in response to the listing agent questioning or pushing back on a low down payment, a low offer, or their pre-approval letter.

Translation: But they’re not…and probably actually couldn’t…so why are you bringing it up?

3) “My client’s initial offer is…”

This comes out a millisecond before the buyer’s agent tells you the actual amount the buyer is offering. And in that millisecond, an agent who knows a thing or two knows way more than they should…

Translation: First of all, your client’s offer is probably coming in way low, you don’t agree with how much your client is initially offering, and they’re willing to offer more.

4) “My buyer will accept the house as-is.”

Sounds like the buyer’s gonna be totally cool, and this will be a smooth transaction! No need to worry about any home inspection issues!

Translation: Your buyer is 100% going to ask for every single thing to be repaired that the inspector finds, including the squeaky hinge on the bedroom closet door.

5) “In my experience…”

This could also come out more specifically as, “In my 13 years as an agent…”, but this is a nicer, gentler way of saying it. It can come out at any given moment in a transaction, from the initial offer, all the way to the closing table, and applied to any number of issues.

Translation: You don’t agree with what I’m saying, and you want to establish dominance and get your way by playing the years-in-business card. (FWIW, the picture on that card probably hasn’t been updated any more recently than your actual business card headshot.)

6) “I look forward to working with you on this transaction.”

This one’s tricky in that there are two distinct times you’re most likely to hear this. It could be as you’re submitting an offer, or right after they find out their buyer’s offer was accepted. Who’d question such a basic, genuine-sounding sentence? An experienced agent, that’s who!

Translation(s): If it’s said as the offer is being submitted, there’s a good chance the agent is puffing up the offer a bit with a little “presumption”, as if they’re so confident in their client’s offer, even though it’s not all that great. If it’s said after all negotiations are done, and the offer is accepted, there’s a good chance it literally means the opposite and that they are in no way looking forward to working with you, but let’s just do this and get it over with.

7) “Are you happy with your current broker?”

You’d probably think they’re asking because they’re wondering if your company is great and if they should consider working there as well.

Translation: I’m about to recruit the ever-living hell out of you!

Enjoy your giggles

What is it like to be a new agent in our Halifax Real Estate Market?

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 21:20:00 GMT

Today's topic is focused around new agents in our market. What difficulties or challenges have they been facing? Are their challenges the same thing that our market's first time buyers are faced with?

Welcome to my panel, 2 up and coming agents from Royal LePage Atlantic, Yena Lim and Jack Luke. Find out how they are helping their buyers win in our aggressive market.

How did I become an agent in Halifax?

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 21:17:00 GMT

How did it all begin?

Back in 2008 I was working for the Daily News here locally. Selling advertising. My core client was real estate agents. I remember one agent in particular that every time I called him, he always asked when was I going to "peddle" something of worth? Others stated "you should be in real estate"

To be honest, I never had the courage. I really didn't think I could be good at it. Until one day I was on a call with a busy agent who went on and on about how busy she was. I blurted "sure I'll get my license and help you!" To this day I am not sure why I said it.

It took me 3 months to do the course from home. The first exam I failed miserably, the 2nd I passed with flying colors. The agent who I offered to rest my license with, didn't really work out. I then went to Exit, where I met my long time friend and mentor Wayne.

The rest is history.

How did you get started in your career?

Real Estate Agents, get a REAL JOB!

Wed, 23 Oct 2019 21:16:00 GMT

“You should get a real job”

I have heard this quite frequently over the years ‘being a real estate agent is not a real job’. (I shudder as I write the words)

In 2010, the decision was made to become an agent. Goodness knows what I was thinking at the time. I was 40, not from #Halifax, therefore I really did not know anyone . My rolodex consisted of local real estate agents as in my previous career I sold them advertising. Really? What was I thinking?

Initially I started with a small brokerage. The broker at the time was an amazing agent, who was just not ready to direct a team and especially train a new agent. I lasted a few months until I decided I needed a mentor and training. There were at least 3 brokerages locally that I was attracted to. I decided upon one of them and never looked back.

As an agent, you wake up every morning unemployed. There is no mandatory sales training as you would have in corporate world. There is no salary, no medical plan…. no nothing. Just you, the wifi, a cell, trying to live the dream.

Sales in a corporate world will have mentorship, training and targets to reach. From the very beginning I attached myself to a top agent who I met with every 2 weeks. Whatever he said I followed religiously. If I was asked to jump, I wanted to know high I should, how long and what do I do when I am there. Every lead I was given, I latched onto like a hungry dog on a meat truck. I wanted success and didn’t want to stop at medorocity. There was a mortgage to pay and a retirement plan that I did not have in place.

Everyday when I woke up I had 3 things to accomplish without a budget.

Lead Generate
Market
Follow Up — Follow UP

How in the heck do you do this with out money? My first plan of attack was to use Social Media, after all it was free. In 2012 I started my first business page on Facebook. I posted religiously and grew my profile. Referrals started trickling in. Deals were happening that allowed me to invest in marketing. I worked more than I ever did when working “for the man” 40 hrs turned into 50 and 60. I answered calls after 9pm, worked at my desk some nights till midnight. There wasn’t enough time during the week to accomplish everything that I had set out to do. Was I stressed? Yes. But… I had freedom and it was my choice.

In 2013 my mentor had sold the brokerage and changed career paths. I panicked as I valued his mentorship. I quizzed him on what my next move should be, he said Sandra “get a coach” so naturally I did. My philosophy was, if Tiger Woods has a coach, I should too, otherwise how in the heck will I know what to do. The commitment was made to attend 2 seminars a year and speak with my coach for 30 minutes each week.

Each year I have grown my business by 26% or more. Time management I was soon able to get under control by hiring the best assistant ever. I was able to time block when I saw clients, become pragmatic when homes were to be listed and I was able to schedule a development day each week. My entire business became systematic with a personal touch. I went from doing 15 transactions the first year to a total of 60 plus per year as time progressed. My best year was in 2017, I completed 81. For 2019, I suspect to do the same. To reference this, there are currently 1300 agents in the city of #Halifax. There has been YTD 5997 transactions, meaning the average agent is completing 4.6 deals per year.

Do I have a real job? I would like to think that it is more real than most. A business was built without any foundation. I have been able to employee 2 full time staff for the past 3 years and develop a team of 6 agents. I have spoken internationally at conferences to audiences of 6000 agents.I became a video influencer. As well the first agent in the world to use Messenger on their Facebook for websites.

For those of you who think we are just sales people, we are from it. Each day we have to be innovative and not afraid of hearing the word “no” Perseverance. Persistence. Consistency. Key ingredients of success, is what we are made of.

Remembering one of my childhood stories, I leave you with this.

Real Estate is my #velveteenrabbit

IT’S REAL.