The role of a Realtor is constantly evolving. The latest trend over the past few years has been the Team Building philosophy. This is being promoted by small boutique firms and large franchise companies as a way to increase productivity. It makes sense considering that we all have the same 24 hours in a day to try and get as much as we can done.
The question is how does a successful Real Estate Team look like and work?
Typical Team Profile
- Team Leader – this person plays the role of keeping everyone on the team working together. Making sure there aren’t any bottlenecks in your real estate business.
- Listing Agent – any good team will need at least one high performing listing agent. Someone that has shown the ability to list homes on a consistent basis.
- Buyers Agent – some agents only want to work with buyers. This person most often knows every part of your local community and loves sharing the history and facts that can help a buyer make a sale.
- Marketing Agent – real estate is a business of marketing. You are only as good as your last deal and you need to keep your brand in front of people 24/7/365. Not everyone understands how to properly do online marketing and direct mail marketing. This person on the team is solely focused on promoting your listings and services.
- Open House Coordinator – It’s important to do open houses. The typical issue is that Open Houses take place during the same time that listing appointments or showing buyers homes takes place. Having one person deal with this aspect of the business will ensure that you have a steady stream of open houses which generates more leads of both buyers and sellers and sells more homes.
- Transaction Coordinator – Some people are just awesome with paperwork. They don’t mind having mountains of contracts to work with and enjoy the process of the Real Estate Transaction.
- Closing Agent – Closings can each last for about 2 hours or more. It’s best to have one or two people manage the bulk of closings.
This is just a general discription of what a Real Estate Team looks like. You can structure it as needed and grow when you’re able too. Some of the above roles will end up being the same person. Just remember that you need to gauge your team and determine the proper structure. This should be done on a monthly basis to make sure that each person is maximizing their potential.
Be Selective!
Since a team structure is different than a regular brokerage, you want to make sure that every member of your team fits well together. The health of your team depends on it. Don’t just build a team of people who don’t really enjoy their roles.
Benefits to Consumers
Working with a team has many benefits for consumers. Efficiency is the main benefit. Since everyone is focused on a specific task, deals can typically get done sooner. This is something that buyers and sellers will enjoy. Obviously this also benefits the team since word of mouth is so vital.
Should You Build or Join a Team?
The answer is different for everyone. If you don’t like working with others then obviously the answer is no. If you like certain aspects of Real Estate and not other aspects, then joing a team might make sense. Just make sure the team you join is able to provide guidance and structure.
Conclusion
The purpose of working in a Team Model, is theoretically each member of the team focus’s on a specific task which ultimately means faster and better deals. Some people don’t want to work in this type of model because they don’t want to split commissions. This also means the process of lead generation and handling transactions might take longer.
Are you part of a Real Estate Team? Share your thoughs.