My career for the past 7 years has been a one-man show. Unless I needed specific help on a particular item, each abstract, project, and title opinion involved me working on my own, in my quiet office, tucked away from the world. I knew whenever I chose to get into real estate that it would be a 180 from my previous work life, but yesterday's open house just displayed how much of a change this new life is going to be for me. And I'll be honest, sometimes I wonder if I can pull it off - but I'm definitely NOT one to shy away from a challenge!
I wanted to share a few lessons that I learned yesterday from my first official open house. And before I do so, please keep in mind: I'm not perfect. I don't claim to be, nor will I ever claim to be. I'm learning every single day, so while I share via my blog about my experiences, lessons learned, etc, please don't judge! I'm doing the best I can, and I'm truly enjoying what I've done so far. I am hoping someone who reads my blog may also be able to learn something from it, too!
So here goes:
1) When making a flyer to pass out to visitors at your open house, make sure you include ALL pertinent information. And if, for example, 5 different people in a row come up to you and ask the price of the house, and you keep wondering why everyone keeps asking that, maybe you should review your flyer. 'Cause it sounds like you forgot to put the price on the flyer........ #epicfail
2) Wear comfortable shoes. This does not include the black sandals I wore yesterday. #blisters
3) Most importantly, get the visitors to talk to you and share their opinions about the house. Every visitor whom I got the chance to talk to (and there were so many at some points, I didn't get to talk long to all of them), was asked what they loved about the house, what they would change if they could, and how they felt about the price. #feedback
4) Make sure you pass out your business cards to EVERY visitor. I accomplished this by stapling a business card to every flyer that was passed out. #networking
5) Perhaps the most important lesson learned from yesterday was that I need to be able to think more quickly on my feet. Not everybody is going to love every thing about the home, and as a realtor, you have to be prepared to counteract each negative comment with something positive about the home. This is an absolute must, so from now on, any home that is listed with me is going to get a full-evaluation from myself (and my supportive spouse) about not only what is great about the house, but also what is NOT great about the house. Make a list of the things the buyers might not like, and come up with a solid reason of why it really isn't a big issue like the buyer thinks it might be. #positivity
I was very fortunate with the open house yesterday in that 95% of the people who viewed the home loved the sleek, modern look of the home, the fabulous entertaining space out back, and the price. However, now having my first open house as a realtor under my belt, I'm setting the bar even higher for next week's open house, and I can't wait to implement the things I learned from yesterday.
Monday, July 13, 2015
Friday, July 10, 2015
New Beginnings
Hi everyone!
As part of my new venture in real estate, I wanted to create a Facebook page that would keep everyone updated on how my new business is going (at least, those who WANTED to know, anyway)! I didn't want to clog up my personal FB page with my business stuff - I figured it was best to keep the two separate, or my friends list might keep getting shorter and shorter!
There isn't much to my page right now since I'm just getting started, but one thing I wanted to add to my page is a blog about real estate. I'm still forming the basis for it, but I'm thinking it will end up being a hodge-podge of sorts about my experiences in real estate (without giving personal details about my clients, of course); lessons learned (painful or otherwise); and any real estate tips that come to mind. I don't even know how often it will get updated. I suspect it will be slow going at first, as I work to get myself established as a new realtor. It's hard getting started in this business, but I'm not one to shy away from a challenge!
So this is my first post: the ups and downs of losing my job in April and praying to the Lord above about what to do next! I never expected to be let go from the law firm, but in hindsight, I think it's the best thing that could have happened. There's comfort in consistency, and even though I knew that job was NOT the job for me, I wouldn't have ventured from what I know (which is oil and gas title). While my plan was to go back to school for nursing (an idea which I have toyed with for a couple years now), my gut told me there was a reason that I hadn't followed through with that plan: it wasn't the right one. And when the opportunity to do real estate practically fell in my lap, my first thought was: NO WAY!! Why would I want to take a job where the pay is inconsistent and I have to branch out and have a job where I actually interact with people?! I'm used to sitting in an office typing title opinions all day by myself! What do I know about sales?
Alas, after much consideration and prayer, I decided to take the plunge. Dave gave me his support 100%, and he believes in me enough for us to take a big risk by investing time and money into a career that will be slow-going at first and may put us in an awkward financial position as I try to build my clientele. I'm not a risk-taker by nature, so anyone that knows me is probably as shocked as I am that I have chosen to take such a 180 from my norm!
So what have I learned so far? Sometimes you just have to close your eyes, believe in yourself, and take a leap of faith. I'm only two weeks into this career, and in a time of anxiety and self-doubt on Monday night, I started looking at new jobs, a Plan B of sorts, in case real estate doesn't work out. A few minutes into the job search I shook my head, put down my phone, and gave it to God. I've said all along I'm going to put this in His hands and trust that I'm making the right decision, and yet here I was, already doubting The Plan. After praying that evening, I went to sleep with a sense of peace.....and less than 24 hours later, I had an email from someone who asked to meet with me about listing his family's home. I met with the potential client yesterday, and although this person wasn't ready to list their home for another week or so, I believe it went well, and I'm hoping to earn their business. And even if it doesn't work out, or the family chooses to go down a different path, I will still look upon that situation as a reminder that I need to keep the faith, give it some time, and let the plan work itself out.
As part of my new venture in real estate, I wanted to create a Facebook page that would keep everyone updated on how my new business is going (at least, those who WANTED to know, anyway)! I didn't want to clog up my personal FB page with my business stuff - I figured it was best to keep the two separate, or my friends list might keep getting shorter and shorter!
There isn't much to my page right now since I'm just getting started, but one thing I wanted to add to my page is a blog about real estate. I'm still forming the basis for it, but I'm thinking it will end up being a hodge-podge of sorts about my experiences in real estate (without giving personal details about my clients, of course); lessons learned (painful or otherwise); and any real estate tips that come to mind. I don't even know how often it will get updated. I suspect it will be slow going at first, as I work to get myself established as a new realtor. It's hard getting started in this business, but I'm not one to shy away from a challenge!
So this is my first post: the ups and downs of losing my job in April and praying to the Lord above about what to do next! I never expected to be let go from the law firm, but in hindsight, I think it's the best thing that could have happened. There's comfort in consistency, and even though I knew that job was NOT the job for me, I wouldn't have ventured from what I know (which is oil and gas title). While my plan was to go back to school for nursing (an idea which I have toyed with for a couple years now), my gut told me there was a reason that I hadn't followed through with that plan: it wasn't the right one. And when the opportunity to do real estate practically fell in my lap, my first thought was: NO WAY!! Why would I want to take a job where the pay is inconsistent and I have to branch out and have a job where I actually interact with people?! I'm used to sitting in an office typing title opinions all day by myself! What do I know about sales?
Alas, after much consideration and prayer, I decided to take the plunge. Dave gave me his support 100%, and he believes in me enough for us to take a big risk by investing time and money into a career that will be slow-going at first and may put us in an awkward financial position as I try to build my clientele. I'm not a risk-taker by nature, so anyone that knows me is probably as shocked as I am that I have chosen to take such a 180 from my norm!
So what have I learned so far? Sometimes you just have to close your eyes, believe in yourself, and take a leap of faith. I'm only two weeks into this career, and in a time of anxiety and self-doubt on Monday night, I started looking at new jobs, a Plan B of sorts, in case real estate doesn't work out. A few minutes into the job search I shook my head, put down my phone, and gave it to God. I've said all along I'm going to put this in His hands and trust that I'm making the right decision, and yet here I was, already doubting The Plan. After praying that evening, I went to sleep with a sense of peace.....and less than 24 hours later, I had an email from someone who asked to meet with me about listing his family's home. I met with the potential client yesterday, and although this person wasn't ready to list their home for another week or so, I believe it went well, and I'm hoping to earn their business. And even if it doesn't work out, or the family chooses to go down a different path, I will still look upon that situation as a reminder that I need to keep the faith, give it some time, and let the plan work itself out.
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