When I migrated to this country, I was told and experienced the mystical Glass ceiling effect. I could work as hard as I could but being brown skinned held me back from achieving the levels of success that I wanted to.
I have now experienced this in my RE career as well and this blog is to take a poll and opinions of my readers.In my business I have now begun to feel that I am not being chosen or being sidelined in many cases just because of the color of my skin- because honestly, with the level of honesty, integrity, knowledge and experience I bring to the table I see no other reason for being pushed over to the side.I am speaking out, and many Realtors talk about it in private conversations, but no one has the guts to address this issue in a public forum.
The ironinc part of this whole effect is the fact that people from my own country choose to pass me for an agent with a different skin color !! I also understand that consumers from my subcontinent have a lack of trust in Real estate agents and that too of their own ethnicity. I hear the same from Asian agents. Our own people do not give us business and instead choose another nationality.It may sound absurd to many, and I thought about it too but the more I delve into it the more I see it happening all around me.
My question to consumers, with the utmost respect is, why do you choose not to support your own people? We understand your cultural background, your aspirations, your desires, your reasoning. Why is it that someone from my country would feel I am a thief, like they see RE agents back home? Is it the baggage of distrust you bring from your country of origin and project it to your current surroundings? And why is it that when you use our services that you feel you can treat us with the highest level of disrespect? I have questions in my mind and I feel the burning need to find answers.
I am one of the very successful agents in San Ramon, not that I am tooting my own horn- but I still feel a block in the path of my career which stems from ethnic discrimination, coming mostly from my own people.I hear this from many of my Caucasian colleagues that they feel like outcastes in predominantly ethnically diverse communities. They too have mentioned that when they meet people from other cultures they are treated with distrust? Is it just a general distrust for our breed or is it conditioning from their roots or what is it?? I say unabashedly- I am strong, knowledgable, educated, honest, upfront and sincerely involved in being the trusted advisor for my clients- then why is it that an inexperienced agent ( with a different skin color) gets to chip away at my clientele just because of his skin color?
I would want to believe that this is a figment of my imagination but the more I experience it, hear about it the more I am inclined to believe it.Dear readers, what is your take on this?
Keller Williams NY Realty - 120 Bloomingdale Road #101, White Plains NY 10605 - White Plains, NY
In our area I have noticed a problem in the other direction. Agents appear to work mostly within their own ethnic groups and I believe that there is resistance in the ususal "white bread" and exclusive neighborhoods to people of color. Its too bad, but there it is - and it is pervasive enough to be noticable. In fact, it concerns me that this trend leaves many some excellent agents out of the most lucrative markets. However, let's turn this around a bit. You may have adopted so well, that you may be perceived as somewhat apart. The increased rejection - sets you apart more because you may stiffen up more and the whole thing becomes a vicious circle.
Feb 20, 2010 05:01 AM
Platinum Realty - Kansas City, MO
Kansas City Real Estate 816-560-3758
Rama, if you are successful in your business life and happy in your personal life then why worry about the people who don't want to work with you. Several people have mentioned positive attitude in the comments and I think that is important for attracting positive people. Maybe the people who are not choosing you are people you would not choose either.
Feb 20, 2010 06:29 AM
Local-n-Global Realty, Cleveland and International Real Estate Solution - Mayfield Heights, OH
Local-n-Global Realty, Broker 216-548-4663
Rama - I totally understand your concerns and admire your courage to discuss them. Targeting Russian speaking community myself, I also noticed that some of our people have the same attitude as you described. However, I don't think it's racism or other form of discrimination. I think, it's more about desire of recent immigrants to be more assimilated. Utilizing services of "totally local" businesses and declining ones of the professionals from their own community is a part of this desire. So, nothing is wrong about it.
You know, I hear very often "We did not want to work with Russian agent before and regret about it. How much time and money we wasted before we hired you!"
I am sure that your glass ceiling is breakable. Just look at another niche which you can also work. With your experience, professionalism and attitude everything is possible!
Feb 20, 2010 08:03 AM
Douglas Elliman Real Estate - Southampton, NY
...A Local Expert in all The Hamptons
Rama: I think what you are going through is what ALL real estate people go through---it has nothing to do with your ethnic background or anything like that--it is just that EVERYBODY LOVES to "hate" their real estate agent. Not that they realy hate us---people like to blame us for everything and anything that can go wrong when they are looking to buy or sell a property. That may sound simplistic and you may think the whole thing is much more complicated than that, but I can tell you this with assuredness: WE ALL THINK WE ARE BEING DESCRIMINATED AGAINST FOR BEING FEMALE, BEING WHITE, BEING BLACK, BEING MALE, BEING ANYTHING---WHY??? Because the nature of the beast (human beings) all need to blame the other person---and we ARE the other person in any transaction!!! My very first sales manager (17 years ago) taught me something that I can't put a value on; it is priceless in it's value because it is true and if you use it you will see what I mean: "IT IS ONLY A PROBLEM IF YOU MAKE IT ONE!"....You can apply this to any and all of your issues; why? Because it is true and because anytime you say that to yourself in a circustance that is bothering you, you will see the power it can have on your life---I am sure you have heard: "Perception is everything"? Well, this is where you can apply it, because it really, really is!!! Good luck and keep your chin up....weare all in this together and it is a GOOD thing you asked all of us here on AR to help you with your dilema...
Feb 21, 2010 02:33 AM
Olsen Ziegler Realty - Cleveland, OH
Broker Owner Cleveland Ohio Real Estate
I have listened to many people offer opinions on who is successful in real estate, such as:
- women are better at real estate then men becuase, as a whole, they are much better at establishing social relationships, networking and multi-tasking
- Sales-type, type A, extroverts are better cause they know how to close
- Top-producers are the best because they have systems in place and have memorized scripts and their entire business model is about prospecting, marketing, lead generation and doing it consistently to keep the pipeline full
- fee-for-service brokers are more innovative and appeals to consumers choice
- and another dozen bullets
My simple opinion is real estate is a very hard business, and no one type of person fits the mold to be successful in this business. I personally don't believe any of the above is an indicator of success or not.
I have seen many types of people (introverts, extroverts, sales types, non-sales types, ethnicity, races, educational backgrounds, etc.) and I have seen all types of people that fit into all categories that are both successful and not successful.
As a consumer, I try to be a savvy evaluator of competencies, needss, services and also ask myself: is this someone I really want to enter into a relationship with? Does my intuition like and trust this person? What kind of references does this person have with past clients? And the list goes on.
In short, no easy answers but I don't believe real estate has a glass ceiling. Is it perfect, absolutely not, are things always logical and make sense, no? We all in this business (my opinion) feel we should be further along the pipeline to success than we are.
I highly recommend you read Gary Keller's Shift book and incorporate many elements of it into your business model, especially the part about prospecting in this current market, and do it consistently and then look back over a year of doing this and see if your results change.
Feb 21, 2010 05:23 AM
ReMax Lakeside - Muskego, WI
CDPE
Your blog reminded me of a client of mine who came to meet me at the curb, and when I stepped out of my car, his first words were, "Damn, I thought I told my wife to get a male realtor, and you ain't no male!" I didn't know exactly what to think, but I had already envisioned myself getting the listing like I always do, and I did. He turned out to be a very nice man, a little confused about what job realtors actually have. I had to educate him quite a bit along the way, but he wasn't the worst seller I've had to work with and the home sold. Your attidude will take you a long way if you keep it energetic and honest. And yes, there are prejudices to whites too, and I especially "hate" when buyers or sellers start talking in their language and we can only guess what they are saying!
Feb 21, 2010 09:22 AM
Quitman, TX
TX Real Estate Broker - Horse Property Specialist
My take on this subject...
Being born a woman with fair skin and blond hair...I can say that's I've experienced all kinds of discrimination in all areas of life (both good and bad for me)!
America is beautiful because of it's cultural diversity. We should celebrate that and not look for reasons that it might limit us.
As Jana, in comment #1 says, "just shrug it off and go serve those who recognize my value."
Wise words to live by.
Feb 22, 2010 05:47 AM
Keller Williams Southwest - Sugar Land, TX
I don't know where your problem is, but being in Houston Texas where we are extremely diverse, I don't see the problem, I'm white, male, over 55 and originally from Minnesota. I should be having your problems in reverse, but I'm not, I listen to people, I treat them the way I want to be treated and above all else I have the attitude that people will want me to be their agent when I speak to them. My last 5 clients were originally from Mexico, Egypt, Columbia, and two were from Texas (one of those two were an African-American family and the other were Anglo). You need to understand the things that are of utmost importance to your potential clients. Ethnic loyalty isn't the item in most cases, it's knowing they can trust you and that you will keep their business private, they are afraid that people within their own culture/ethnic group will tell their financial business to others in their community. When you meet people of your own group you need to give them the assurance that you not only understand their needs but that you have transitioned out of your culture so that you totally understand all of the nuances of the American real estate transaction and that what you hear will truly never go out into your community. Good luck.
Feb 22, 2010 08:21 AM
RE/MAX Suburban, Mount Prospect, Cook County, IL - Mount Prospect, IL
Polish Speaking Real Estate Broker Agent
Rama: Keep your head high. This is a country of opportunity. Believe in yourself and love what you do. The rewards will follow.
Like you, I thought I was somehow limited in reaching the sky due to my accent. However, American society is not as discriminating as you would think. People do not care about my accent or your skin color. They care on what we can bring to the table and the type of service we will provide.
So keep your head up and lets move on....Good luck.
Feb 23, 2010 10:28 AM
Remax equity group - Portland, OR
Broker - Portland Oregon Real Estate
Rama - thanks for bringing up an area that never gets talked about. And for braving the comments. I want to support you in your observations. It happens. Life IS different for people of color and for people who are white , no matter how smart, talented, and good at the work the person of color may be-- and I won't even go into the nuances of gender, ability, sexual orientation, etc! And I want to support Julia's support of you -- especially her comments about white privilege. We who are white swim in it and do not even see it. It takes effort to see, and acknowlege and then make a decision to not blindly participate in it. The hardest work I ever did was when I was a consultant on diversity and worked with people to create anti-racist, gender-fair work environments, and taught individuals who wanted to be diversity consultants how to recognize and deal with their own complicity in the system. Most of us - white and of color - participate in some way.
Feb 24, 2010 06:13 AM
Asante Realty - San Ramon, CA
TOP 1% REALTOR IN THE TRI-VALLEY
Alexsandra,
I am so thankful for your comments and also thankful to everyone else for their comments and feedback. I think you have summed it up for me in the most apt manner.I was not whining but epxressing what I felt. My experience in the US, taught me to always to be politically correct and never mention the word color- and I did not till now. I am a brave person and yet it took a lot of mustering up my guts to talk about the discrimination or the "Glass ceiling" that I spoke about. I have lived in 3 continents- Asia, Africa and The US. I have noticed that even in my own home continent of Asia, our own people sideline us to give privileges to the white person.
I sincerely believe that unless and until, more people like myself, who face this, come out in the open and talk about it, without attacking any race or gender- then we can all get a better understanding of our privileges and challenges. It has been my experience that there is not one continent on this planet where colored people do not get discriminated against and there is no continent where white people do not get extra perks......
Feb 24, 2010 07:09 AM
Professional Investors Guild - Pensacola, FL
www.professionalinvestorsguild.com
I'm sorry Rama, but this just doesn't fly with me at all. We have a black president, the best golfer in the world is black, 90% of all NBA players are black or internationals (that leaves only 10% white), just recently our NAR president was black, the richest entertainer in the world (Oprah) is black. The governor of Louisiana is an Indian-American, we have congressmen and women who are gay, muslim, and the list goes on and on.
If you are being rejected, it's because people don't feel comfortable around you for some reason, and it has nothing to do with your skin tone. The reason why racism and prejudice continues in our country is because of posts like this that just keep bringing it up over and over again. I'm not saying it doesn't happen on occassion TO ALL OF US, but it's not the deciding factor in success or failure for anyone.
Feb 27, 2010 03:17 AM
Anonymous
Rama,
Being an asian and from your country, I am with you. I share your pain. I am currently in the market looking for a house actively and i didn't choose my skin color person as my agent b'cos I didn't know any agent from San Ramon at that time. But, I came across your listings couple of times and somehow it didn't materialize for me. After being the market for some time, the realtor business/job is more of an insider trading job now. This is what I feel after giving so many offers to so many houses. Being Honest in this field is very tough and finding a realtor with this quality is very rare.
One example: In Oct, I gave an offer to one of the at Glencoe circle for over asking price around 840K. But, this house closed on Jan15th'10 for merely 750K. This was listed as short sale. I am sure, my offer was good enogh to get the house but when I came to know abt the sale in January, my agent told me that sometimes, agents work with sellers in short sale scenarios to sell the house to a relative or friend to make money. So, who is at fault? Who lost money here? Who is the looser? This is one such incident and a very well know one was for a house at sandalford way.
Also, in some incidents, the agents are owner and seller of the house and when they list, it's way out of market proportions. Like everyone, they purchased the house as investment property but can they treat them like President of this country. This is crazy. I feel angry and I don't like to deal with agents like them when i want to give an offer. When will these people realize that they are playing with people's money? Do you think, these kind of issues can be fixed?
So, I am not sure whom to blame. I still don't have a house in contract with 200k in down payment and I don't know what to do next :)
Mar 01, 2010 06:38 PM
#88
Asante Realty - San Ramon, CA
TOP 1% REALTOR IN THE TRI-VALLEY
Hi Raj, I am sorry you are having such a bad experience.Your comments have so much truth in them because we go through this everyday !! Insider trading- to some extent. Greed- 100% of the times.These agents are definitely trying to double end deals. I tried looking up the Glencoe but it is not showing up on the MLS....give me the address because one is still showing pending and the other Glencoe shows as a cancelled listing.
In short sales, it is not the agent alone who is an accomplice to shady dealings.The sellers are involved most of the times.The Sandalford house ws the biggest fraud in Windemere. The agent is a crook and he sold it someone for all cash. He defrauded the bank, who was his client and lied to all of us that tthe bank preferred the all cash offer- when we are sure he submitted only one offer.
I hear your frustration and I share it with you.These issues cannot be fixed till the consumers take action and demand action from the DRE. I report many cases to my board but these guys get away with it because we cannot ask them to produce paper work to validate what they are doing.Maybe consumers should take some form of legal action or report them to the feds( who BTW are investigating all kinds of mortgage and RE frauds). Hang in there and when there is more inventory you will find your home. Right now agents who have listings are manipulating the market(ugh) one more time and consumers and their agents are letting them get away with it. I would love to chat with you offline sometime.........
Mar 02, 2010 01:32 AM
Anonymous
Hi Rama, thanks for your reply. Yes, the agents with current listings are manipulating the market.
The house that I mentioned at Glencoe is:
3258 Glencoe Circle San Ramon 94582 1/20/2010 $750,000
Sorry, I mentioned the sale date was Jan15th above but actually it was closed on Jan 20th.
In Current market, this house is valued more than 850K but now someone walked away by cheating another person.
I will have a chat with you sometime soon.
Mar 02, 2010 05:07 AM
#90
Asante Realty - San Ramon, CA
TOP 1% REALTOR IN THE TRI-VALLEY
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Rama Mehra
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