If you are coming from the 9-5 world you may find real estate sales to be a shock to your system. Personally, I love the ever changing dynamics of this business. But the very things I do not mind drive many people away within the first couple of deals. Last night was a classic example.
The Setup: Kansas vs. Kansas State is a big deal here in the heartland when it comes to basketball. Tip off is at 8:00 pm and I'm set to meet a bunch of buddies on both sides of the issue up at Johnny's in Olathe. At 5:00 pm an offer comes in on one of my listings.
The Issue: Many agents I know are adamant about keeping certain business hours. They protect their family and recreational time fervently. And I too, set aside time that is not to be disturbed...like the birth of a child or Sunday morning services or that long awaited date with my bride. But in a soft seller's market I do not believe it is in the best interest of my client to be so rigid. So I put in a call to my client and we begin the process.
The Outcome: Throughout the KU v KSU game, while sitting in a noisy restaurant/bar with a bunch of friends I constantly had to keep sending text messages and answering phone calls as the night wore on with counter offer after counter offer. We finally wrapped it all up around 10:00 pm...just as the game was ending! So with one eye on the game, another on my buddies and a third eye on the deal we got it all put together.
Now I can hear it already! You were negotiating a deal in a bar? How could you do the best job for your clients? What if you forget something? Blah, blah, blah. Here's the deal. My clients know me. They read my blogs. We talk a lot. They know basketball and friends and family are important to me. They are just as likely to call me at lunch and hear me sitting with my 9 year old up at school as they are to catch me at the office. The beauty of being a real estate agent in the 21st century is the ability to be mobile. Mobile phones and laptops and PDAs make life and business easier to conduct.
But with all this mobility and communication comes the trade off. Real estate, for me, is usually conducted within the hours of 9-6. Actually, most deals are done within those time constraints. But flexibility is a must and if I occasionally have to be on the phones at 10:00 pm, so be it. For me, it beats knowing that I HAVE to be at the office at 8:30 am tomorrow morning. It beats the boss telling me I can be hungry at 12:00 but have to be back by 1:00. And that whether or not the work is finished earlier or later I can leave at 5:00. Sometimes I stay up late and work till 1:00 am on different real estate projects. Sometimes I don't make it to the office until 10:30 the next day.
I'm self-employed. I can do that. So long as I exceed the expectations of my clients and work hard enough to provide the lifestyle for my family that they deserve. There it is. The ying and yang of a REALTOR's business hours.
The Setup: Kansas vs. Kansas State is a big deal here in the heartland when it comes to basketball. Tip off is at 8:00 pm and I'm set to meet a bunch of buddies on both sides of the issue up at Johnny's in Olathe. At 5:00 pm an offer comes in on one of my listings.
The Issue: Many agents I know are adamant about keeping certain business hours. They protect their family and recreational time fervently. And I too, set aside time that is not to be disturbed...like the birth of a child or Sunday morning services or that long awaited date with my bride. But in a soft seller's market I do not believe it is in the best interest of my client to be so rigid. So I put in a call to my client and we begin the process.
The Outcome: Throughout the KU v KSU game, while sitting in a noisy restaurant/bar with a bunch of friends I constantly had to keep sending text messages and answering phone calls as the night wore on with counter offer after counter offer. We finally wrapped it all up around 10:00 pm...just as the game was ending! So with one eye on the game, another on my buddies and a third eye on the deal we got it all put together.
Now I can hear it already! You were negotiating a deal in a bar? How could you do the best job for your clients? What if you forget something? Blah, blah, blah. Here's the deal. My clients know me. They read my blogs. We talk a lot. They know basketball and friends and family are important to me. They are just as likely to call me at lunch and hear me sitting with my 9 year old up at school as they are to catch me at the office. The beauty of being a real estate agent in the 21st century is the ability to be mobile. Mobile phones and laptops and PDAs make life and business easier to conduct.
But with all this mobility and communication comes the trade off. Real estate, for me, is usually conducted within the hours of 9-6. Actually, most deals are done within those time constraints. But flexibility is a must and if I occasionally have to be on the phones at 10:00 pm, so be it. For me, it beats knowing that I HAVE to be at the office at 8:30 am tomorrow morning. It beats the boss telling me I can be hungry at 12:00 but have to be back by 1:00. And that whether or not the work is finished earlier or later I can leave at 5:00. Sometimes I stay up late and work till 1:00 am on different real estate projects. Sometimes I don't make it to the office until 10:30 the next day.
I'm self-employed. I can do that. So long as I exceed the expectations of my clients and work hard enough to provide the lifestyle for my family that they deserve. There it is. The ying and yang of a REALTOR's business hours.
2 comments:
Well written, good insight in the real life of a Realtor.
Nice information! keep writing,I like it...
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