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A good start would be if brokers didn't take in just any warm body and were semi-selective in their hiring. Also, any agent who didn't live up to standards and production should be cut loose.
Lately it seems all the part timers seem to be going to these "On Line" brokers who provide no over sight or training. There should be a minimum requirement for brokers.
You know the oversight committee here that looks at changes wanted to make it so that in order to keep your real estate license you had to close one transaction a year. One. The backlash was astonishing. So that recommendation is gone.
Too often people still perceive "us" agents/brokers as a cut above used car salesmen; nothing personal to those used car salesmen
We go through extensive training; we have to take continued educational courses; we are held accountable for so many things, whether it is disclosures, neighborhoods, a seller getting upset because his/her house is not being shown; a purchaser whose offer was not accepted... etc
For some reason, I think the general public think we only show a house, the purchaser says WOW, what a great house, I am going to buy it now; we prepare a contract, the seller says hooray, love the price and then we sit down at a closing and take home an incredible commission check!
I don't know about other agents/brokers...sometimes, especially these days...by the time we are done negotiating, a building inspection, dealing with the banks, making all attorneys happy, dealing with "items of a personal nature", preparing extensions...sometimes we end up, if you do the math i.e., hours spent, telephone calls, emails, and hand holding, we might actually come up to $4.75 per hour!
Thanks to everyone for the feedback. It just gets disheartening to hear all the negative perceptions from the public. Hate that they minimize how important we are, especially with everything that is going on with the current market. Back when the market was booming, you probably only needed a pulse to sell a house. Guess I shouldn't worry about how we are perceived as a whole and just worry about myself.
Guess I shouldn't worry about how we are perceived as a whole and just worry about myself.
Bingo. I go about my business doing the best job I can for my clients and don't worry about the rest. I can't control that so I don't worry about it.
For me...when agents jump up and start defending our industry, it makes it worse. I think acknowledging the faults of our industry and helping consumers to figure out how to pick the good agents out there goes a long way towards making the industry better.
and remember if you ever need an agent in Salem, just send 'em my way, wontcha...cause I'm a #1 yabba dabba doer agent here.
(mods, not soliciting just being sarcastic)
Sarcastic about picking ME?
I am wounded...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Silverfall
You know the oversight committee here that looks at changes wanted to make it so that in order to keep your real estate license you had to close one transaction a year. One. The backlash was astonishing. So that recommendation is gone.
It isn't a question of sales volume, I think.
Competence and ethics come to mind, and folks should re-test routinely to prove they are cognizant of skills and have mastered issues, at least well enough to lie their way through testing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin1975
Thanks to everyone for the feedback. It just gets disheartening to hear all the negative perceptions from the public. Hate that they minimize how important we are, especially with everything that is going on with the current market. Back when the market was booming, you probably only needed a pulse to sell a house. Guess I shouldn't worry about how we are perceived as a whole and just worry about myself.
Right. As long as you are focused on doing it right....
I came out of retirement to become a real estate broker. When retired I invested in real estate and had hired a few good but mostly poor realtors.
There are good realtors who are good honest people but overall, I find the level of ethics is poor. Try a pop quiz of the NAR code with anyone in your office - you will see what I mean!! Additionally, I find realtors fail to LEARN their business. All too often, Cont. Ed. courses are nothing short of a joke. Seldom is there a test. Usually the test is seldom more than 10 questions, 7 correct answers for a passing grade. Come on!
I have truly enjoyed the real estate business. As an investor, landlord and realtor. Realtors will be respected when they (collectively) have earned the respect. I'm sorry to say I don't see it happening anytime soon.
As for this market - Yes, it will wash out some. In our city about 400 agents dropped out. That's all fine but only means there's a few less agents. It's no assurance that the "bad" ones are gone.
I think the thought was that if you weren't doing at least one transaction a year, then you might not be current enough in the market to properly represent clients. I agree that we need to be cautious about the sales volume as a guide for licensing, but I do think that if you do one transaction every three years you might not be able to represent clients well.
Anyway, I think that was the theory behind that idea.
I think the thought was that if you weren't doing at least one transaction a year, then you might not be current enough in the market to properly represent clients. I agree that we need to be cautious about the sales volume as a guide for licensing, but I do think that if you do one transaction every three years you might not be able to represent clients well.
Anyway, I think that was the theory behind that idea.
That idea is not without merit.
One of real concerns is the agent who IS doing some volume and doesn't take CE until the very last week of the CE year.
They are the ones who send you documents on expired forms, and aren't up to speed on rules and forms changes until other agents with whom they do business educate them to some degree during the course of transactions.
Although I am not an agent, I have been self employed for a very very long time and have worked with realtors from day one. With that being said I agree with the issues above, but I also see that the majority of the agents, at least here, have very little ambition, little to no customer respect and they all need a course in the how tos in business conduct. What happened to the days when an agent had to spend time on the floor, required to answer their phones or cover for another agent? All the education in the world does not help a person if they have no concern for success for their self or for the agency let alone for their clients. Those are the agents that need to leave the profession and their brokers need to weed them out.
The prerequisites to become a Realtor are way too low. The education requirements and examinations need to be more rigorous. I'd like to see extensive mandatory training in contract law before licensing and periodic refreshers for license renewals.
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