How Available Should You be to Your Clients?

A real estate agent's career is built around connecting to clients, but when is it too much of a good thing? Setting boundaries can be difficult if you are concerned about being available for clients. Guarding your time, however, is imperative for the sake of your happiness and career performance.

Understand that excellent client service does not mean being available at all hours of the day and night. Nor does it mean accepting rude or exploitative behavior. You are just as worthy of respect as your clients are. Not only are you worthy of respect, you come off as more professional when you have clear limits on your time.

Being a realtor means that you have to take control of your work/life balance. Your commitments to those close to you are your first priority. Set aside time to spend time with your friends and family - it's good for them and for you to have the expectation of time, uninterrupted by a client's call. Sometimes you may have to miss events or postpone activities, but the majority of time you spend with your loved ones should be "set in stone".

Clients are important, of course. Respect their time by clearly defining yours. Tell your clients up front that you work from xx:xx to xx:xx. In between those hours, you are available. After hours, you are not available unless it is an emergency. Clearly define what emergencies are and set expectations for them as well.

Everyone in the real estate business is going to have at least one, "He has a cell phone, so I can call him at any time and get angry if he doesn't answer!" A cell phone does not have to be a leash. Your voice mail should state the hours that you are available to clients. You don't *have* to answer the phone for a client - let it go to voice mail! Let your clients know the hours when you check your voice mail, answer the phone, and return calls.

The "phone hours" also apply to email and MSN. You might want to create a separate MSN identity to support your working life and only be logged in when you are available to clients. Since many realtors work with Blackberry phones and similar devices, this boundary will help you schedule your time with greater accuracy.

We want to give our clients the best service possible, but this does not translate to being constantly available. Reasonable limits actually make us able to do our jobs better. We function better as people and as realtors when we safeguard our time.

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