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Why is it that the general public regards us so poorly? Personally I think there are a number of reasons, primary among them is the low standard for entry into the profession. Take a few courses, pass and exam, and presto, you are a real estate agent. Unfortunately passing the exam is only the beginning of the learning process, but agents are let out on their own, often with little or no real supervision, right away. The reality is that real estate is complicated. It requires a combination of skill sets that include project management (getting the house ready for sale), successful marketing, construction issues, legal issues, and negotiating skills, to mention only a few. It takes most agents a number of years to hone and refine those skills. Some new agents learn very quickly, but some never do!! I would like to see a system where new agents would have to work as apprentices for established agent for at least a year or two before getting a final, permanent license.
Secondly, not all real estate agents are Realtors®. Realtors® belong to a professional organization the National Association of Realtors® and subscribe to the strict code of ethics referred to in the opening paragraph. Realtors® who violate those rules can be reoported and they may lose their status.
Also, in my humble opinion, there just are too many real estate agents out there. There seems to be a misconception that selling real estate is easy. Just stick a sign in the ground, hold and open house or two, and presto, make a lot of money! That may in fact be true when the market is hot, as it has been for the past few years (although there are a myriad of things that can and do go wrong even in a fast market). However that misconception melts away pretty fast when the market slows, houses stay on the market forever, buyers refuse to buy, sellers refuse to be realistic, and agents have to really, really work to find buyers, find the right house for them, and negotiate, sometimes fiercely, to make the deal go together. When I entered real estate in the early 1980’s, interest rates for first mortgages zoomed as high as 16-20%!! Most sales involved “creative financing” which took many forms, some of which were downright scary!! But you had to be creative. I remember negotiations going back and forth for days or even weeks before everybody agreed on all the details.
When the market is hot though, and there are several available agents for every potential listing, some agents will start cutting corners, making promises they can’t keep, forgetting that their primary function is to serve their clients as opposed to line their pockets. They discount their commissions, and then try to “double end” the transaction (represent both sides) to make it profitable. Sellers may think their agent is great for finding a buyer for them, but they don’t realize that they may have lost thousands by not exposing their home to a wider range of buyers. Sometimes these same agents don’t market it like they should. How can they when they have cut out their own profit margin? Advertising is expensive!
When the market takes a downturn, one thing is certain. Many agents will flee the scene. Once the dust has settled, look around. The agents that are left are the same ones who were there before the craziness started. They are professionals, almost always with a loyal client base of repeat and referral clients. Like any profession, there are good and bad, but it is the bad ones that make it difficult for everybody. I, for one, can hardly wait for the dust to settle!! |
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