First-Year: Real Estate Agent Tips

What to expect your first year as a real estate agent? 

Well, it depends on a variety of factors, including the overall market conditions, your specific area, your client base. Still, we can confidently state that it’ll be absolutely nothing like Million Dollar Deal.

Real estate is a highly competitive, intense, fast-paced field, and, ideally, you hit the ground running. Let’s warm you up so you can do just that!

7 First-Year Real Estate Agent Tips

First, breathe! You got this. Confidence is a critical ingredient in your success, so is preparedness.

ABP. Always be prospecting—every day. 

Don’t stop. Prospecting is a continual process because leads fuel your business. Plan on taking a systemic, strategic approach; in other words, ditch the scattered, Oh-I-Should-Do-Something today method. It doesn’t work, or at least not consistently. 

Create a plan of action that you implement each day, which should encompass:

• Get in touch with owners on expired listings. Be the first to offer help and assistance to them.
• Contact new For Sale By Owner homeowners. The majority of people who start on the FSBO route end up working with an agent, so this is a significant opportunity.
• Work your Client Relationship Manager. You should have scheduled contacts on your CRM.
  But let’s back up: as a first-year real estate agent, you may not have a CRM! In that case, focus some time and attention on setting it up. Try DIY options (spreadsheets), Google Streak, or paid subscriptions.
• Work your network: Reach out to real estate investors and renters who you can nurture along the sales journey. You’ll also want to include contractors, staging experts, designers, lenders, financial folks, real estate attorneys, and other complementary professionals in your network. These connections can become rich sources of referrals.
  
  

Become the Market Expert.

You want people to trust you to handle one of (if not the) most significant transactions in their lives. 

They need to know that they are in good hands. Keep up to date on the latest market news: check daily hot sheets, know what’s available at different price points, find out how long properties have been on the market, follow price trends, etc. 

If someone asks a question, you must have data to back up your answers. When someone wants more information on a listing, describe the home without pulling up the listing. Get to know your area; drive and walk around the neighborhoods so you can paint an accurate picture for them (and so you don’t have to rely on Google Maps to get around to viewings!).

All of this reinforces their confidence in you.

Balance Responsiveness and Life. Clients often expect 24/7 access to you! 

They’ll call, they’ll email, they’ll text. You need to respond promptly or risk losing business. However, you also need to take time for yourself. Sleep, eat, relax! Establish boundaries from the get-go. For example, tell them that you always respond within X hours when you show homes or engage in appointments. 

Always reply as promptly as you can, even if just to say, “I got your message and am working on your request.” 

Another way to free up some time is to create an FAQ page on your website and information-rich blog posts and articles that will answer many of your clients’ and leads’ potential questions.

If you’re ultra-busy, you might also consider forwarding your calls to a receptionist or utilizing a call answering service.

Don’t Bank On Fast Paydays.

Say you sell a house in your first month as a real estate agent. Great! 

That commission will undoubtedly come in handy in two to three months. With a 30-60 day escrow period, you will have to wait on that. And if you do not sell a house in your first month (which is quite common), that stretch is even longer. 

This isn’t said to discourage you but to prepare you. Have a financial cushion so you can make it through the first several months on the job. Having a secondary revenue stream is not a bad idea either.

Sell Yourself. In the real estate business, you are not just selling homes. 

You are selling yourself as a trusted expert and guide. You are running a business, and your biggest asset is you. Check out books, podcasts, and webinars for marketing for first-year real estate agent tips.

Build a Compelling Online Presence.

On a related note: a crucial part of sales and marketing is establishing a robust online presence. 

The vast majority of those entering into a real estate journey starts online. You need to be “findable” via search to build credibility. 

First step: create a great website stocked with high-quality images and video, information, and helpful resources for leads and clients. In this world, you cannot afford not to have a website.

Focus. In what area do you want to specialize? 

If you said “residential real estate,” dig deeper. Do you want to focus on folks who are downsizing due to retirement? First-time buyers? Relocating families? 

Now, some agents think this will limit their reach and narrow their market share. Understandable. But what targeting a niche does is allow you to compete against other agents in that same niche; this is much more manageable than competing 

In Conclusion

A list of first-year real estate agent tips could go on and on, and on. 

The advice we have provided here will get you started - but keep going. Advertise with Homes & Land; this is an ideal marketing solution that will help you adapt (and thrive) as a new agent. Shine a spotlight on your listings, generate quality leads, and position yourself as a motivated, go-getting agent who gets results.