As a tv journalist and producer who has traveled the world and reported from many so-called "hot-spots", it was a refreshing change to move from cold Canada (weather I mean) to Florida in 1994.
Shortly after moving here, at the age of 45, I found that early retirement was not all that it was made out to be. One has to keep one's mind busy or your brain will turn to sponge.
This led to a second career, this time in Real Estate and I quickly found that a Realtor can do very well financially, but there must be a well thought out plan and a will to work "VERY HARD".
The old saying that "80-90 percent of the work in real estate is conducted by 10 percent of the Realtors" is certainly true.
There are many thousands of people in this, such important profession, who have absolutely no business in real estate in any way, shape or form. There was and unfortunately continues to be an attitude by people out there, that "anyone can sell real estate". How untrue that is.
As a journalist, I worked with the most professional of people, whether they were other journalists, politicians, attorneys, and general business entrepreneurs. The system "weeded" out the incompetents.
Unfortunately, there does not seem to be a way to rid the real estate industry of people who do not know a "Deed Restriction" from a "Power of Attorney". They certainly do not know how to write a brochure, descriptive text in the MLS, hold an "Open House", how to dress for work, or to even speak properly.
The "Greater Tampa Association of Realtors", GTAR, in its recent monthly newspaper, reported on a poll showing Realtors at the bottom of the public's list of important professions in America.
Officials at the Board seemed to shrug at the news.
My company, Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, corporate owned office in Plant City, Florida, a Tampa suburb, has been one of the few companies out to try and change the public perception of Realtors, by holding many, many seminars and training sessions and by giving their associates the tools necessary to do the job professionally.
Unfortunately, there are many "Johnny-Come-Lately's" who popped up in the last five years, especially in Florida, where the market has been "HOT". These companies have a "Make a Quick Buck" and the rest "Be Damned" attitude. They take-on people who obtained their state real estate license, "goodness knows how".
The "Fly-By-Night" companies, some of which have already disappeared, following the market adjustment this year, offer(ed) absolutely no training to agents and simply collected a small fee at transaction time.
This is not to say that a new real estate firm should be prevented from entering the market place, but real estate is such an important component in our economy that there should be some standards established by the National Association of Realtors, its state or Canadian province regulatory bodies, as well as municipal real estate boards.
Take a very recent case where a client of mine watched in horror as a so-called Realtor, dressed in shorts so short that part of her derriere was showing, plus a skimpy tank-top, brought a customer to see her upscale home. Comparatively speaking, it's like going to a pharmacy to have a prescription filled and the pharmacist is dressed for the beach.
Some basic business decorum and skills are really all that are required for a member of the public to begin having confidence in the real estate profession again. It may not be rocket-science but if one were to conduct a survey, you'll find the successful agents are always dressed in business attire.
If nothing is done to police itself, the real estate brokerage business will see the banks and other financial institutions, get their wishes approved by Congress which would enable them to Broker real estate transactions.
That would place this extremely important profession in the hands of the financeers who already have too much clout in the economy.
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