I just read a blog by one of my agents Darren Hill in Glendale California. I started to write a quick comment and my comments turned into its own blog entry. For a reference here is a portion of his or read the entire blog here.
...Then I looked at one of the comments from readers of the same article on the magazines website. (Thanks to the people who rallied against the inaccuracies of the text, but there was one that made me cringe.) It's what uninformed people will think, nodding their head in agreement with what the article says. They believe Realtors study for an easy test, pass it, and away a real estate agent goes. Let me tell you. The studies, the investment, the research, the schooling, and the dedication I have done and still do is not any small amount of work. Home sellers should understand that there is more to just putting up a sign on their lawn.
Darren Hill
Darren.Hill@ChooseConfidence.com
Darren-
You are right about the article being a misconception or maybe even better said a "stereotype." Good agents play an invaluable role in protecting the individual as well as the public's best interest in what is a major cornerstone of the United States. Owning a piece of it is too important to role the dice and hope everything goes ok. Realtors (both agent and broker) do make a positive difference. We ask ourselves as an industry how members of the public could have this stereo type. I have to say, Employing Brokers are a big part of the why! Most of us who have been in this business and have beaten the 85%+ turn over rate know that it is too easy to get a real estate license and take on the roll of handling million dollar assets on behalf of others. The states regulatory agencies typically say they are here to provide minimum standards and general regulations but it is the Brokers that are to police the quality of service. Recognizing this leads me to the conclusion that too many Employing Real Estate Brokers are trying to compensate for that 85% turnover rate and are far too worried about the quantity of agents rather than the quality of their real estate services and how it affects the home buyer and home seller. Some hire 300 real estate agents so that 60 might produce an acceptable amount of sales and eventually figure this job out. I do not question the math of the 80/20 rule or the historical challenges of being an employing broker. I have been one in 5 western states.
I do however want to make a suggestion that worked for me. Before I went independent with Confidence Realty (now New Home Executives Confidence Realty) I was contracted to manage for a large national firm. When I started, it was me and 3 or 4 residential real estate agents. Over the next 6 years it grew to at its peak, around 80+ full time agents. Most of these were in Arizona selling homes in the Phoenix and Tucson home markets. 
When I began to hire agents I placed all new agents with a "Mentor" who held the new agent's hand through the transactions of resale and new home sales. The new agent had to share a part of their commission with the mentor but in exchange got a quick start on home sales in Arizona or wherever they worked. Their quality of work was excellent, but most importantly, the clients were served at the highest level, and the new agent efficiently learned the business the right way. Neither trial by fire nor the sink or swim method. My turn over rate was under 10% and my Arizona Residential team produced about ¼ of a billion dollars in 100% one sided buyer agency transactions over my last year for that company. As the broker I very rarely had a call from a client that was not about how grateful they were for all the hard work their agent did for them. I was fortunate to have one fantastic agent after another.
I continue this philosophy still today with my New Home Executives Confidence Realty Agents. I am applying this technique to my hiring in Arizona, California and in Colorado. All three have very different home markets, from an overwhelming amount of bank owned and foreclosed properties to multimillion dollar luxury homes in the California MLS. The principle of good service to the agents brings good service to the clients. When I started my independent real estate firm, we again started with a small group and are growing on our quality and experience, not by playing the numbers and counting on the quick buck a "short timer" agent can bring. New agents are welcome as long as they have the proper amount of support to truly serve our clients. Our experienced real estate agents love being a part of the big picture.
Here is my challenge to all of you (including myself). Those of us at the top of our real estate careers all take on this challenge to eliminate the real estate agent stereotype and continue to raise the professional bar for our entire industry. It is the Employing Brokers that have the best chance to have an immediate impact. Please talk to your Broker about being a mentor and doing your part to better serve the public and your fellow real estate professional. If any of you agents or brokers is interested in forming a cross brokerage mentoring group please let me know. We are competitors in the market but are brothers and sisters in service.
At your service,
Brian L Beebe, GRI
President / Managing Broker
New Home Executives Confidence Realty
1-877-454-6500 ext705
Helping Agents and Brokers Serve Home Buyers and Home Sellers in Arizona California and Colorado
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