From a New York reader:
I was reading an old blog post of yours about starving real estate agents. Boy can I relate. I have been forced to get a “day job” ugh, and do [real estate] at night and weekends. I need to get back on track so I can quit that damn day job!
-J
Expired and FSBO(for sale by owner) Listings my Specialty!
We’re feeling your pain, but likely our reader “Ramen4Realtors” is laughing his/her head off. Regardless, we’re always looking for good writers…(it doesn’t pay, but at least you can vent.)
–Theory of the Starving Real Estate Agent [theFrontSteps]
seems like this is happening all over. here is a post about some realtor stats, including the amount they get paid:
Realtors are making less money
Sucks to be a realtor and be forced to grow-up and get a real job…kicking and screaming it seems.
Here’s hoping for continued low sales volumes and Darwinism continuing in earnst. The great purge is upon us. May only the strong survive.
grow up realtors. you are all little babies! get out there and get a “REAL” job!
Mocking does not make it not true…Is your day coming soon Garrett? I would be scared too.
Aren’t you guys both realtors? if not, I have been misreading one of your posts all along.
UMMM.. i think it is CLEAR that realtors are making BANK! If they weren’t, how could Alex go surfing and vacationing all the time? That would be irrational. Realtors definitely make much more than people think.
I work in biotech (hence the Darwin ref). Real estate and bear watching on SS is nothing more than a hobby for me. I do not joke though. I think this period will result in a purge of the fluff in the RE industry. Be strong fluj (and other RE agent readers).
And…Over the hill renter remains predictable.
There is one rule in my house and that is, “when the surf is good, Alex goes surfing”. We live in SF, and it ain’t good that often. Doesn’t mean I’m making more or less $$ than the average person, it just means I choose to blow everything off when the surf is good. Not to mention it clears the mind so I can deal with being a Realtor in a (more) down market.
Hope????
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/06/16/suburb.city/index.html
craig–
i was mocking, only because of the tone of your comment–i can picture you saying that with an evil smirk on your face and your hands slowly rubbing together in a dark room with a dusty light shining down on you. muuaahhhh haaaaa haaaa haaaaaaa. i don’t disagree with you in terms of only the strongest surviving. in fact, i’d LOVE to see the industry filled with fewer people that don’t know what they are doing, but of course, i don’t wish those people any ill will or trouble finding different work, making money or just surviving in this extremely expensive city. personally, i don’t know when “my day is coming,” (and don’t know if it will, unless you are talking about kicking the bucket) but lucky for me, i’m involved in many things outside of real estate. real estate is my main profession, i’ve been in the business for almost five years and i have noticed a change and expect continuing change. i’m a small business owner, have experience in many fields and no matter what happens, i’m not going out “kicking and screaming.” to the contrary, i hope to learn, adjust and get better and grow professionally.
true or not, I’d like to point the tiny (unvisible) difference between agents and Realtors.
I know many agents who never left their day job. To be honest, I guess most of them NEVER closed a deal beside an insider job (their own house, the brother’s house etc) – from the realestate world, they have only a piece of paper to prove they got a licence. Having closed 2 to 10 deals in the past year(s) shouldnt have entitled them to dich their day job in the first place. Selling houses is like art (paint or music or acting). it takes years of nursing the passion beside a day job to arctually start up. and become a real income. Acting ONCE, selling ONE paint, or singing ONCE on American Idol doesnt make you an actor, a paintor or a singer – and you should put those earnings into saving before it’s gone forever.
On the other hand, there are some agents who have much more experience, who have been dealing with fluctuating income over the past 5 or 25 years, and that I hope have solid grounds to stand the storm. Would anybody imply that Barbara is or will take a day job?
So if we take those two groups aside, the group that is interesting is the group we should focuse on. Like. How to define that group (Realtors only? more than x deals a year only?). Then ask them what THEY think.
And to second Garrett, I agree that the economy will take a lot of weed away (always good), and maybe give a good opportunity for the remaining agents to become better, to educate themselves etc.
A simple example: instead of running like crazy from house to house on a client’s list, what about doing a “tour of san francisco” and each open house, go and visit a property that is not on any client’s list, and that might actually never be on a client list. Like… got together with a couple of friends, and visit 4-5 bayview properties and have lunch there on a tuesday tour?
There is NOTHING like this to actually feel a market.
You might even meet and spend some good time with agents that you might have never met before, and possibly create a good relation that could help a deal in the future.
That’s what Alex has been doing for several years now. The “tour de san francisco” is only one way to BECOME a better agent. And to be honest, we are personnaly impressed by agents who actually KNOW the street names and the architectural properties of said streets. So get on your bikes, get in your shoes, and take full advantage of less stress and less rush to get ready for the next way of something. Because nobody knows when the next wave is coming.
go sophie! :)
Craig,
The urbanist professor’s vision of the American future in that article is a lot like how Europe is already. There isn’t a lot of crime in the cities. It seems to happen on the fringes of the cities and outside the rings. I can see it happening here too.
And then there’s the advent of the Internet. People can learn about very curent things remotely, but to experience them? To the cities they’ll come. Maybe.
Back to the topic at hand. Here is an example of why I’m very glad there are a lot of REALLY FUCKING STUPID PEOPLE who are gonna leave. There are going to be some other casualties too. People who started at the wrong time, chiefly. They can always try again later.
But check this out. It just showed up in my mailbox. From one Sandra Haindy. The lede, “Tired of gloom and doom stories about the US real estate market? We are, too. So welcome to”:
http://www.happyREnews.com
Very useful indeed!
Alex – I feel the same way as you do regarding Snowboarding! When it dumps 24 inches of snow, I’m taking several days off IMMEDIATELY to go up to Squaw. Life is about luxury, not misery!
Good thing about a lot of real estate agents is that commissions are lower due to competition.
I pity a lot of renters saving and investing the difference in this stock market. So many renter friends I know are down 10-15% this year while rents are skyrocketing!
40YOR