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30 Things to Do in Your First Month as a Real Estate Agent
Are you a newly licensed real estate agent? If you’re fresh out of real estate school, you are probably thrilled that you passed the test and found a great broker…. but have no idea what to do next! Real estate schools do not prepare you for what it takes to become a successful REALTOR, so your first month as a real estate agent is often overwhelming. Below you will find tips to help you put a plan in place, so you have all the tools, knowledge and confidence needed to get launch a successful new career in real estate!
Get Organized
1. Order business cards – a basic card is fine in the beginning, you can always order more later with your website and branding
2. Purchase your eKey app to order to access lockboxes and show houses (often called the Supra eKey)
3. Get a professional headshot
4. Write a quick bio – even though you don’t have any experience (yet), share your background, values and let readers know why they would benefit and enjoy working with you
5. Gather names, addresses, and emails of everyone you know (this is your new database or sphere of influence). Even if you just have their email or phone number, put it in a spreadsheet and fill in the blanks later. We think you’ll be amazed at how many people you know and it’s so handy to have all of their information in one central location.
Let People Know About Your New Real Estate Career
6. Create a short letter and mail to your database to let them know that you’re now in real estate, loving it, and are here to assist them – and anyone they know.
7. Create a MailChimp.com eNewsletter account (it’s free!) and then add all the names and emails from your new database so that you can send them a monthly email with real estate tips, neighborhood news, etc. Please note that you may want to create more than one mailing list in MailChimp; for example “Close Friends”, “Past Clients” and “Acquaintances”. This will help you tailor your marketing efforts down the road.
8. Register and add your professional photo and bio to popular real estate websites like Zillow, HomeSnap, Trulia, LinkedIn, and Yelp. You can also create a Facebook business page. If someone googles your name, you want them to find you (and your smiling face!) and build credibility online.
Understand the Market
9. Go and show yourself a few homes – test your new eKey, open the lockbox and get comfortable with the process. This will help you get a feel for the homes and prices and inventory.
10. Pick a neighborhood every day. Drive-by all the neighborhood homes for sale in the MLS. This will also help you navigate different areas of town so that when you do have a buyer in your car, you are familiar with the area.
11. Run real estate market reports using the MLS – make sure you understand the current market conditions (i.e. how fast homes are selling, average prices, and list to sales price ratios). If you find something interesting, share it on Facebook or in your monthly eNewsletter!
12. Offer free home valuation reports to all your friends – it’s great practice and you never know if one may consider selling their home!
Connect with Other Agents
13. Open Houses – let everyone in your new brokerage know that you are available to host open houses! Usually, your broker is willing to send an email out on your behalf. Here are some amazing tips for hosting and promoting open houses.
14. Offer to show homes for other agents – busy real estate agents will gladly pay you a small fee or mentor you in exchange for your help.
15. Shadow another real estate agent on a listing appointment and/or buyer consultation.
16. Attend Agent Caravans on Tuesdays.
Learn Everything You Can
17. Take at least one class with your local MLS to make sure you know to search for homes, pull comparable sales reports, create just listed alerts and more.
18. Listen to the stories of top real estate agents on webinars and podcasts (See our list of the top real estate podcasts).
19. Review the real estate contracts and practice writing contracts for single-family homes and condominiums.
20. Attend any new agent orientations with your new real estate brokerage.
21. Find a mentor – a seasoned real estate agent or broker can show you the ropes and help you confront the unanticipated issues you’re sure to face with your initial clients. If you’re willing to share some of the commission on your first few deals, many agents will work with you from start to finish on your first contracts. An experienced mentor is also a good sounding board and can level-set your expectations for your first year in the real estate business.
Create a Plan for the Future
22. Draft a business plan – you probably aren’t going to know what to include in your plan initially, but setting some basic goals and a budget for the next 90 days is the perfect place to start.
23. Outline your goals for each week — setting realistic goals will keep you on track and can help you avoid feeling overwhelmed. You can also review your goals with your broker or mentor to get additional feedback and make sure you’re on the right track.
If you are a new agent with eXp Realty, we would also recommend:
24. Activate your lead generation website (KVCore) and start sharing your new website and/or local company listings on Facebook and other social media sites.
25. Create a list of interesting links from your KVCore lead gen site and post them on your new Facebook business page and Twitter. Examples include open houses this weekend, price reductions on Mondays, homes that were just listed this week, and “complimentary home valuation” posts.
26. Attend “Fast Start” orientation classes for new real estate agents and the eXp New Agent University.
27. Schedule a consultation with your sponsor and/or mentor.
28. Add your picture and bio to all the eXp Realty agent rosters and referral networks (you can do this on eXp Enterprise and eXp Workplace).
29. Check out the full line up of classes each week at EXPcloud.com
30. Ask for buyer leads! Many agents in your area may have extra KVCore website leads that they would be willing to share with you in return for a referral fee.
31. Offer to host an open house. You can visit eXp Workplace, find your state or city, and add a post that you are willing to host open houses this weekend. This is a great way to find and connect with potential home buyers.
Editor’s note: This article was created by Kerry Lucasse, Founder of Building Better Agents and REALTOR at eXp Realty. Information deemed reliable but is subject to change.
About Building Better Agents
At Building Better Agents, we are dedicated to helping agents build successful real estate careers. We help agents develop a plan, build a database, and work smarter to uncover the keys to success as a real estate agent. All without cold calling, door knocking, and chasing expired listings. Building Better Agents Leaders Kerry Lucasse and Kary Perry are proud to be agents with eXp Realty.
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For more information, please contact us today!
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