I love my wife Ann, who is also my business partner; she does all the honest-to-goodness work while I write articles about real estate or the housing market and purport to be an "expert" at something. She is decently civil about the whole thing too, and complements me by saying how we each contribute different things to the job, which is after all why we work so well together. I have decided to politely agree with her on this point.
I am blessed because I know that, while there are a number of successful husband/wife teams in real estate, there are a lot of folks out there that cannot understand this relationship - working and otherwise. I know this because people tell each of us in all seriousness that they could no more work with their spouse than fly like a bird! Or they will project their experience by saying, "You'll be divorced in less than a year". Well, thankfully, I am pleased to report we are still together, making it work after nearly three years in business and over twenty years of marriage. Fortunately, I suppose, most partnerships don't involve marriage.
I've been in housing in one form or another since 1986, and a Realtor/Broker for more than seven years. I've seen lots of partnership business models. Some work seamlessly well, while others fall through gaps in the seams. The ones that seem to survive appear to succeed as Ann said, because each member of the team contributes to the effort equally. Each person is either pulling in the same amount of business, or provides another talent that is indispensible to the business. Either way, partners feel their efforts are valued, and that their counterpart is doing their share of the work too.
I suppose teams in real estate work just like any other relationship - hard work, dedication, appreciation, mutual respect, sharing and caring to name a few. It kind of makes me feel like I'm back in kindergarten or something, but isn't that where we started to first learn our most basic and important lessons for life anyway? If you're interested in a partnership, find someone you like and trust and give it a few test runs together to see if it works. Unlike marriage, if it doesn't work out simply find someone else with whom to try it. A good partnership may take some time to find the best fit. I had the advantage of a long relationship to fall back on, but then I've always been a slow learner.
John VanderSyde is an Associate Broker with Virginia Properties, A Long & Foster Company, and is also a Licensed Architect. You can learn more about Ann & John VanderSyde By visiting their website www.InSydeHomes.com or by calling (804) 282-7300
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