Ten Mistakes Real Estate Agents Make — Learn To Avoid Them

Mistakes are a part and parcel of every step of our lives and in a profession as challenging as that of real estate, missteps are bound to happen. We have seen newer real estate agents and even experienced realtors make some common mistakes. If you are focused on gaining long-term success, then you need to do more than increase your efficiency.

As a real estate agent, you also need to identify your mistakes and rectify them in order to sell more homes and earn more income. Your effort will deliver results only when by focusing on the right areas. So, with that in mind, we went and asked some of our successful real estate agents what mistakes did they make when they were new agents and if they have any words of advice.

Common Mistakes New Real Estate Agents Make

After interviewing our team of expert real estate agents and realtors, we have put together this list of mistakes new agents make when they are starting off in the real estate business. Read through each point and make sure you manage to sidestep these in your career.

1. Not Creating A Real Estate Business Plan

In terms of common mistakes, one of the first that many agents make is to start working without a concrete plan of action. They spend some money on supplies and start trying to find leads. There is no clarity behind their choice of actions. Part of this is due to the hustle culture, where constant movement is favored over a calm purpose. The problem is, this may have a hit-or-miss result. Either way, there is no consistent growth.

As a real estate agent, you are a small business owner, therefore you need to start thinking like one. The first agenda should be to create a real estate business plan. It should be comprehensive and cover all aspects of your real estate business, such as your lead generation, marketing, office setup, your financial expenses, and your income goals.

When you create your plan, make sure that you write down measurable goals and regularly monitor and make changes as needed to it and keep your business on track.

2. Not Having A Plan To Get Buyer And Seller Leads

Not having a plan to acquire buyers and sellers leads is another major mistake that many real estate agents make. New real estate agents rely entirely on their brokerages for getting new client leads, but this is not adequate. Different brokerage houses have different systems for allocating leads. This might mean that you are not able to utilize your time properly.

You should have your own plan for getting new leads. One of the best ways is to sign up for an online lead generation service. A really popular and reliable online lead generation platform is Dorrmat. It provides the registered agents with a continuous supply of quality seller leads. Moreover, Dorrmat offers a range of useful features and facilities, such as a Customer Relationship Management tool, a professional landing page, vendor addition, and more. These can be highly beneficial for new real estate agents as it helps them minimize their expenditures and at the same time benefit from a higher income thanks to Dorrmat's quality leads.

3. Inadequate Time Invested On Phone Calls To Clients

Most real estate agents make an effort to avoid cold calling, but the truth is this is a major mistake. You need to call both your clients and potential prospects on a regular basis. New real estate agents fail to understand that spending time on a phone call is an investment and also a necessary part of their everyday work.

Have a clear block of time in your schedule planned for making all the necessary phone calls to your clients. It is a good idea to segregate your clients into call-backs, referrals, future prospects, and more. Then you can prepare phone call scripts for all categories. This will make your work more efficient, and you will get better results.

4. Not Keeping Track Of Your Effort And Time

In terms of common mistakes, time mismanagement is one of the biggest follies new real estate agents make. Getting a real estate license is honestly the easy part, but no real estate education prepares you for the multiple tasks that you need to juggle as real estate professionals.

From handling sales to taking care of marketing. From picking up new skills to widening your social and professional influence, there is a lot that real estate agents have to do. It is easy for many new real estate agents to lose track of their time and end up spending more effort on aspects that are not important or are not getting them the required results.

One of the best ways to counter this is to create time blocks and keep measuring the results derived from each activity. This will ensure that you stay on course and achieve the professional goals that you have set for yourself. Checking these every week and then planning for the next week will help a lot, and you would not wonder where all the time went.

5. Lack Of Marketing Effort

One mistake new real estate agents make is not having an adequate marketing expenditure. Money is one of those resources that any agent will be very cautious in spending. Yes, there are certain compulsory expenses that a real estate agent has to bear while starting out, yet many think that they can wait for a little while before marketing, or worse, make wrong marketing efforts.

The thing about business is that not just marketing, but also the right marketing is what gets you more business.

It is better to start small and market your efforts on a limited scale. Try to focus on the local property market and the buyers and sellers in your city. You are going to make a few mistakes regarding your marketing choices, but that is any day better than not beginning the marketing process at all.

6. Offering Low-Cost Service To Friends And Family

Family and friends are an integral part of your real estate social and business circle. You will see most blog pages offer tips about how you should approach them for leads as new agents. Now, there is nothing wrong with approaching your social circle for leads and business when you start. However, offering deep discounts to this segment of people is one of the major mistakes that you can make as a real estate agent

The key is to remember that you are running a business, and you need money to sustain it. Your friends and family are also your clients, so you need to treat them like that. You cannot be expected to provide the services at a loss to your job.

You can show your gratitude for the opportunity by delivering excellent service. Furthermore, you could even get them a really great closing gift. This will ensure that you are making money for your professional guidance and expertise, and are also not putting yourself in a position where you need to give unnecessary discounts to this group of your clients.

7. Not Having A Strong Real Estate Team

In the line of common mistakes that we discussed with our experts, one that almost all mentioned was not having a strong team to help you close the deal. Many agents prioritize the commission that they will earn over the support of a real estate team. The mistakes new agents make are that they focus only on the money aspect and undervalue the importance of having a team with experienced realtors and brokers.

One of our experts said that the reduction in commission is to be thought of as an expense towards further education. When you start your career as part of a team, you get to learn a lot as a real estate agent in terms of the practical aspects of the real estate career and properly marketing in your city.

When you work with another realtor, you learn more about the day-to-day aspects of the job. You develop the skills that help you sell houses and answer clients' queries better. If you ever face trouble in closing a transaction, then you can ask your broker to help you out.

8. Lack Of Focus On Income Prospects

Common mistakes regarding not being able to prioritize your income prospects are something that all new real estate agents tend to make. Agents tend to spend long hours and work through weekends without actually seeing any measurable results.

It is important to plan how you would approach new leads, how you will handle the sale of a house, and how you would work to gain referrals. When you learn how to prioritize your income-generating prospects, it is also important to learn all other required administrative work that a business requires. Once you have understood which activities will directly lead to an uptick in leads, then you can devote more of your business resources towards that avenue.

For instance, if you see that the blogs you post are getting more visitors to your real estate website, then focus more on getting quality content on your site. Consider whether video marketing is an aspect that can get you more sellers, Constant evaluation and re-thinking are needed to become successful in the real estate field.

9. Not Asking Tips From A Fellow Real Estate Agent

Education is an ongoing part of your life if you are a real estate agent. Gaining success is hard for those who never ask for help or suggestions from fellow brokers. The cost of making mistakes because you did not request assistance can be huge.

For instance, if you have recently shifted to New York from a city on the other coast then you are virtually starting from scratch. Merely completing the formalities related to the real estate license is not enough.

Consider asking a fellow broker to team up with you. Learn how the market works, how to get a house sold in a big city, and access the resources and contacts your partner has built over the years. These will ensure that you are able to build your influence and skills without never having to worry.

10. Lack Of Communication With Clients

Poor communication with clients is one error that will cost you dollars. The success of a realtor is dependent on maintaining excellent communication channels with your clients and prospects. A new real estate agent is at times hesitant to frequently communicate with their clients. They do not want to make the clients feel discomfited.

The problem with this attitude is that many real estate business clients might feel that their real estate agents are not taking adequate care of their real estate-related matters. Never make a client feel that you are not constantly making the efforts to work on getting them the best deal.

It is necessary to stay in touch with your clients and ensure that you keep them updated on all proceedings. Keep your messages short and brief. Always try to give information and inquire whether they require any other assistance from you. As a real estate agent, you need to ensure that you stay in touch with all your clients right from the lead stage to completing the transaction.

Summary

Our final word of advice to all the new real estate agents who are trying to build a successful real estate business is that you need to be patient. Pay attention to the mistakes you tend to make. Slowly start working to minimize them one by one.

Remember, all the real estate professionals that we spoke to made a few of these mistakes in their initial years as new agents. The trick is to learn from them and ensure not to make those mistakes. Real estate education is an ongoing process, as this is a constantly evolving field. By knowing where you could go wrong, you are already halfway ahead on the right path.