Let's face it, the media has been the Real Estate markets worst enemy of late. Agents/Brokers are tightening the expense belt and doing whatever is necessary to cut costs and still maintain a profitable business. The dilemma is, what costs to cut and what new expenses to incur. Let's take a look at this.....
Making money is the endgame in this industry (and all industries for that matter)! What areas of your business can you truly afford to cut costs in? Marketing? Administrative? Advertising is the key to getting your properties in front of potential buyers and administrative processes are necessary. You can always cut the advertising frequency and means down to a minimum and still get the exposure but that is a risk as well. Let's not even get on the subject of gas prices...that is a whole other blog!
I have found this whole market issue to be of interest so I asked some of my clients what their strategy is behind hiring a Real Estate Professional Assistant and the answer has ALWAYS been that it actually "saves them time and money" two things that they treasure! Here are the common points each agent/broker stated:
- Gives them more time in the field and not tied behind a desk
- They have less stress because they know that these tasks are being handled while they concentrate on other things
- They can tie a REPA's Contract to Close fees into closing escrow so they are actually saving money
- No employee/employer fees or taxes
- Remote/Online REPA's are self sufficient and require no training (except for agent specific tasks)
- REPA's are technologically savvy and help maintain web presence and are great communicators
Hiring an assistant is a personal choice and should not be taken lightly. Only the agent/broker can decide if they would benefit more from an onsite or remote assistant. There are pros and cons to both. The common problem with hiring an onsite assistant is that many areas do not have qualified applicants for that position and those that are semi-qualified require extensive training which is a time-eater. Qualified remote assistants are out there but you must do your due diligence in ensuring that they are qualified, experienced and have the ability to meet your needs. REPA's can specialize in many different areas:
•· Transaction Coordination
•· Marketing
•· Lead Coordination
•· Listing Management
•· Web Presence Development
Many agents will hire for one area or find a REPA that can meet every need. In my experience, many agents will simply start off with a REPA that specializes in Transaction Coordination (Contract to Close) as this is an extreme time-eater for many agents and eats up many cell phone minutes J This also gives the agent the ability to "test the waters". Once a relationship is established, it becomes easy for the agent and REPA to discuss additional options that may help the agent free up even more time by extending the REPA's service to additional areas.
My advice before hiring an assistant, remote or on-site, is to define your needs. Know what is eating your time and what you want to take off your "To-Do" list and put on someone else's. Start small, take baby steps with the services so you can grow and define what is best for you. Interview, interview, interview~listen, listen, listen ~ know that you can communicate with your chosen REPA. This is important, you will want to develop a working relationship with this person and knowing that you can relate to them is important.
In today's market, you must be smart with your expenses. Hiring a REPA is not for everyone, is it for you? Only you can answer that.
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