FACT: The real estate industry is indeed a 24/7 business. To think real estate is part time is a foolhardy belief.
Professional real estate agents receive calls, texts and emails before 6am and well after 9pm depending upon the time zone. These communications happen between Sunday to Sunday and even legal holidays are not free from property tour requests. Then there are those short notice showing requests which can thoroughly mess up an agent’s “when” schedule.
As real estate agents are independent contractors, the time of "when" they work is up to them. Now some will voluntarily accept “seat time” or “desk time” at the brick and mortar office while others will work remotely.
My first residential sale which was my second property sale back in 2018 was a direct result of another agent failing to honor her or his “when.” I showed the buyer a property located in historic Kingman, AZ on a Sunday afternoon.
The buyer did not purchase that property, but instead purchased another one within the city limits of Kingman, AZ. And, I was the buyer’s agent. Funny thing the initial buyer’s agent who failed to honor his or her "when" kept calling the buyer back and could not understand why the buyer did not want to hire this agent.
As I am an early bird, usually up no later than 5am, I have completed my emails by 7am. Then my "when" time is devoted to undertaking other real estate research, updating the brokerage’s CRM as well as reading the various real estate newsletters that I receive.
With the Code of Ethics and general sales experience, time is of the essence. To delay responding may mean a lost seller or a lost buyer.
This morning my "when" schedule was significantly changed. I had to make five (5) unexpected phone calls that required immediate attention. The five (5) calls turned into a total of 10 calls. These calls also involved sending emails to other parties involved in one pending offer for vacant land and two real estate transactions already in escrow. Finally by 11:30am, I was able to return to my pre-existing “when” schedule.
Yes, everyone needs time off. For me, that time off is usually from 5pm to 9pm and if possible I take at least one Saturday off each month. I do answer the phone, but as a morning person I am far more effective in the am than the pm. I usually inform my clients during our initial communication that I will respond in the morning for any specific requests. Of course, I do answer calls if there is an emergency.
Again, when you do what you love to do, you will find the time to work with clients as well as have that time for yourself, your family and your friends. And the secret is not to become too stressed out when your “when” schedule is destroyed for a few hours or even a couple of days. By focusing on what you can control or influence and letting go of what you cannot control, allows you to work through last minute changes to your “when” schedule.
Feature Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com
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