Looking for a Career in Real Estate? What You Can Do to Make Yourself Standout

A career in real estate often ends up being a very lucrative one, but that doesn’t mean that building a career in the business is easy. In fact, because of the relatively low entry requirements for becoming a real estate agent, many areas are practically flooded with more than can make an exceptional living.

However, if you’re passionate about real estate, don’t assume that you’re never going to make it in the field. You simply have to make yourself stand out from the crowd. Use these six tips to distinguish yourself from the rest of the pack in the real estate game.

1. Quality Over Cost

Many real estate agents do whatever they can to get listings – even drop commission rates. While this certainly seems beneficial, it’s not the market you want to put yourself into.

Simply put, you don’t want to be a bargain agent that doesn’t do the best work but provides the best rates. You want to be the agent that provides the best work for a fair rate! Doing that will keep you in business comfortably for years.

2. Go Above and Beyond

Great customer service should be part of every real estate agent’s day-to-day operations. Unfortunately, most customers don’t always experience this from their agent.

Many real estate agents forget about customers as soon as a home is bought or sold and they receive their commission. When this is the case, it results in less referrals and fewer repeat customers for you, which becomes a real problem if times get lean and new customers aren’t as easily found.

3. Ditch the Marketing Gimmicks

Of course, marketing is a great tool to help you gain customers. However, once you’re face to face with potential clients, it’s time to forget about all the gimmicks and make yourself a real person – not a real estate agent.

Buyers want a home quickly and for little money – sellers want to sell fast for as much as possible. Letting customers know you’re aware of what they want in plain terms and dropping all the stuff about social media and online marketing will help you get listings and sales.

4. Become Part of Your Community

No matter where you live, there’s some way for you to join the community. Maybe you attend neighborhood council meetings, perhaps join a small business association in your area. Whatever you do, you want to be a fixture in your community.

That way when somebody needs a real estate agent, they’ll think of you because they’ve been seeing you on a regular basis and know you’re part of the community, not just another salesman.

5. Have a Unique Specialty

Knowing the ins and outs of real estate in your area is key to making a living in the real estate market. However, having knowledge in a unique area – VA loans and the military lifestyle, for example – really sets you apart and helps you find extra business to put your earnings over the top.

You’ll likely also get repeat business from referrals if you have a specialty like that.

6. Be Honest

Maybe a lot of real estate agents are honest with customers, but a good percentage will say anything to get a listing or make a sale. Don’t succumb to this temptation.

When you first get into the business, it might look like a good way to get ahead, but it could be your downfall in the long run. If you’re not honest with customers, they won’t be referring you to their friends and they’ll even go out of their way to let others know they shouldn’t work with you.

Dishonesty will catch up with you sooner or later in the real estate market.

Like any career, being the best takes a lot of hard work and dedication. In real estate, it pays to know the ins and outs of the market and to hone your skill set. Sure, there are thousands of real estate agents, but that doesn’t mean you’re not necessary. Any home buyer or seller will tell you that they’ll take a real estate agent who really knows what they’re doing over a mediocre one anyday.

Naomi Shaw is a freelance writer in Southern California. She enjoys studying the real estate market and knows that a good real estate agent is hard to find. Working with www.Ovlix.com, she helps others find their dream home.