Hello all. I am a brand new Agent and was just wondering in a vast warehouse of knowledge and experience such as this site represents, what would be.. say the top ten mistakes that new agents make most frequently. (Be it from misunderstanding, lack of education on how to execute a certain key element, important things most new agents overlook or just the general mine field of "moving target" complexities and variables in their "on the job" training.) Any and all opinions would be greatly appreciated!

My advise is to learn as much as possible, and don't get discouraged. Marketing doesn't pay off overnight. You need to keep plugging away, even when you start seeing results. Most new agents stop all marketing as soon as they have a deal together.

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Dylan Darling
Search for Bend Oregon real estate and all Central Oregon homes for sale. Bend OR homes for sale.

Great point! Thanks for the insight!

1) Get the Buyer Broker agreement signed BEFORE you go out with the client (a client who wont sign...wont buy from you either).

2) make sure your car has GAS before you meet with the client!!

3) understand your contracts. Nothing worse when the BIG day comes and you ask them to sign, then you have to keep reading it to understand for yourself what you want them to sign.

4) Go to broker meetings and board meetings. You wont know what "other" agents know unless you do. Not to mention if you've got a listing-what better place to show it to so many agents.

5) Have a good website!! Most agents miss this the most. A professional site will appeal the web savvy client...and these days it's most of who is looking.

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Paula Smith St George and Hurricane Utah Real Estate
Unisun Realty ~ O48 Associates, St. George, UT.
Southern Utah MLS listings
Articles and Information About St George Utah

Great stuff. Thanks!

Don't quit your night job! Just kidding. When I started selling real estate I was waiting on tables. I kept my job until I was confident that I could succeed in the Real Estate game.

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Dylan Darling
Search for Bend Oregon real estate and all Central Oregon homes for sale. Bend OR homes for sale.

I'm sure some of this is controversial, but here goes:

1. Have a 6mo reserve of money or a sugar momma/daddy to live off of + about $5-10K to market yourself during those 6mo. Sorry, IMHO this is what it takes - if you don't have this, don't bother. One of the biggest reasons new agents aren't successful is they're too poor (or unwilling to spend).

2. Be prepared to work every day, all day while you're establishing a client base. Your first business will likely be buyers and will come through floor calls/open houses or personal referrals from friends if you have a large sphere. Agents that feel that this business is easy going into it will not be successful.

3. Learn contracts and systems and junk like that but never forget - your primary job is to be talking with ready-and-able buyers and sellers. Can't do that burried in paperwork.

4. Other agents from your office will likely give referrals/leads. Work them for experience and the chance something might happen, but always strive to generate your own pristine leads. Those leads from other agents are often the low-rate buyers and sellers that those more experienced agents have already weeded out of their own system and are hoping someone else can convert for a 25% referral.

5. Print marketing is still viable and effective - especially for seller leads. Start with a smaller area - 200 homes tops - and market to them once a week for 3 weeks, then once every 2-3 weeks for a month or two, then continue to send them marketing once a month. After doing this, you should be known in an area and will start to get called for appointments when people get ready to list. Biggest mistake: forget to send marketing for a few months or don't send it often enough at the beginning.

6. Get started on your website but realize it will take lots of work and time to get you to the top to start getting those leads. In the mean time, there are quicker ways of getting business so you can continue to pay bills and feed yourself.

7. Your biggest tools in real estate are knowledge and confidence. Be armed with both in every appointment or every phone call you make. Read "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu - if you know yourself and your enemy you won't be bested in a thousand engagements. Don't ever act like a new agent and certainly don't admit it unless asked directly.

8. Never get upset, rattled, discouraged or otherwise remain negative for any length of time. You need an iron will and the ability to bounce back after dissappointment to survive this business. Hide a sword in a smile.

9. You don't have to discount commission to be successful in this business. New agents feel that by dropping their own rates, you can create business. This isn't the case - most of the time you'll just be working for a client for less than you would otherwise. Be aware of your self worth and confident when you tell them your rate. If you feel embarassed telling them how much your services cost, you aren't fully aware of your self worth and need to re-examine that.

10. Surround yourself with success. You work too hard to have a deal fall apart because of an incompetent loan officer or un-organized attorney. Start looking for the best loan officer, best attorney and best home inspector you can find. NOT the ones that will do you "favors" - the ones that will do a great job for your client, will keep you in the loop, are available when you need them and always work to keep the client locked into the deal and the idea of buying or selling a home. Get to know the top producers in your office. NEVER suck up - that image will be hard to shake later on when you're more successful.

That's all I can think of right now.

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Eric Rogers - REALTOR
Century 21 Pro-Team
Aurora IL Real Estate | Batavia Real Estate
Yorkville Real Estate

Great advice up there, so I am going to keep mine short and sweet. Don't buy leads. Not ever, spend your time and money on putting up a webiste that is useful and has good content

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Rob Muller
ReMax Town & Country
Canton, GA 30114
770-363-4528
Cherokee County GA Realestate | East Cobb GA Real Estate | West Cobb GA Real Estate Specializing in Cherokee County GA, Canton GA, East Cobb, West Cobb, Acworth, Kennesaw Real Estate Markets.

Eric R. thats a good list above... One of the biggest mistakes is thinking that the commission checks will come right away. Even if you hit the ground running and close a deal soon after licensing, you might not see your first commission check for 2-3 months.

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Portland Real Estate | Portland MLS | Portland General Contractor
Milan Cole, Broker
Oregon First
(503) 953-3416

Always be networking. Make sure no matter where you are or what you are doing, make people realize your an agent. Don't just be the guy down the street, become the authority on your area.

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Kevin O'Brien
Outer Banks Property Management | Outer Banks | Outer Banks Beach Blog
"It's always a great day in paradise"