Learning the Tricks of the Trade vs. Learning the Trade.
I'm a thinker... always pondering something. When I hear or read something, I'm always trying to relate it to being a real estate broker.
This morning, I ran across a term that we've all heard and used forever... Tricks of the Trade. The context was not real estate related but it got me to thinking, as usual.
The tricks of the real estate trade... simplistic things that help real estate agents solve problems. Procedures that make us appear more knowledgeable about real estate than those that are not working in the industry?
There are many things available to agents to simplify their work such as "fill-in-the-blanks" contracts. That's a "trick of the trade" but understanding that contract and being able to answer questions about it, explain what those terms and the paragraphs they are contained within mean.. that's knowing your trade.
Sending a client to a mortgage broker to get pre-qualed is a good "trick of the trade". Sitting down with that client, looking at their debt to income ratio and being able to explain to them how this may affect their borrowing power, that's knowing your trade.
Pulling comps and telling a client what different homes sold for is good.. I've heard of agents that just average the price per sq ft on comps and then use that as a suggested market price for a property.. I consider that a little less than adequate trick of the trade.. BUT knowing why certain homes sold for more or less than others and how that could potentially affect the market value or appraisal of a client's home, using that information to complete a good CMA, that's knowing your trade.
We all like to use good simple things that make our job easier "The Tricks of the Trade". BUT I want to also understand and be able to do a good job without those things and understand what's behind those Tricks.. Real Knowledge of the Trade. In fact, I have listened to agents complain about the cost of continuing ed and in the same breath almost brag about some "tricks of the trade" package that they got for a bargain..costed more than their continuing ed class that they had just complained about...
Then there are tools of the trade that all of us use and would probably have trouble functioning without. Don't think we can classify those as tricks of the trade. They have become almost absolutely necessary: cell phones, computers, the internet...
Education... There's always a place in our profession to keep learning, understanding, gaining knowledge, depth in our experience that does only come with putting the knowledge to use over time...learning the trade.
Got any "tricks of the trade" that you like to use to make your job easier...and what would you recommend an agent have knowledge of to help them understand why that trick works?
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