Sometimes, I get great questions like these and I need to share them. Chances are, many of you are facing similar decisions and choices in your career path.
Question:
Hello, Walter. I first want to say thanks for all the information you have shared over the years. I have to say you are the best trainer that I have come across in all these years of doing real estate – your ideas, your systems are the best! I have bought all of your books and training material. I have to be honest I am one of those who has the books, but has not ALWAYS used all of them. Picking and choosing what I felt was needed at the time. On any account, that is on me not you. Thanks again. You’re like a mentor and you do not know it.
Here is where I am right now and I wanted to get your opinion. I am 45, and I am kind of starring over. My dad who was 66 passed in April and I just know that I am in a point where I need to super pad my retirement. I am a broker/owner. I have a niche in my community where I live. For the first time, I have decided to get an outside office from my home. All these 25 years, I have worked from home office. I am now going to work in an office space.
I have seen ALL of how you ran your business back in the day. You were the ONLY one – running it as the ONLY Broker with your system and staff I am really thinking of taking the next 10 years and doing that. I have 6 agents that are with me; 3 REALLY work. We are a smaller local company, but I do about $65,000 to $80K a year without working the system hard. I just feel I can work your system like you did back then without all the extra agents.
Do you think this would be a good thing to do or grow a smaller office with about 20 agents?
My office will be done by end of November – 6 offices and 2 baths and a conference room and in the community I work in.
I appreciate your advice.
Emory W.
Answer:
Hi, Emory. Thanks for the nice words!
- Just pay attention to seller lead generation systems/letters in the books. Getting up 30% of the signs up in your area is your goal. It will be an attraction for new agents also. Everything else comes naturally; consistent seller leads is the hard part.
- At some point, you get tired of selling real estate. It will be nice to fall back on managing and being a broker ten years from now. It will also be nice to start having some tenants pay off the mortgages on some rental real estate.
- I never thought you could be truly effective in your home. Your assistant does not know what is going on, and you cannot manage by walking around.
- Keep your agents. Give them goals and have them commit to one source of seller lead generation. Hold them accountable. Give them many months and 6 warnings to get moving. If they don’t, let them go. I suspect the three that don’t work won’t be there 6 months from now. This will attract top agents to your office. You will need agents to support the overhead and supplement your income when you get tired of selling full-time. If you decide against agents and growing the company, you will really like having a few buyer’s agents for showings.
- I like multiple sources of income. Grow your office, buy rental property, and keep up your personal production for a few more years.
Go get ‘em!
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