I hit a new high-water mark this week: I took my fourth listing.
That is, my fourth simultaneous listing. Two of them are rentals, but in this market that’s pretty darned exciting.
I also knew that I couldn’t handle everything. I do publishing work about half-time and I love it. The steady income helps smooth the highs and lows of real estate. As important as the money, the steady work itself keeps me focused on a world of deadlines and short-term results, which makes me a better real estate agent.
But there are also commitments that I have — every week and every month. Throw in a couple of buyer clients and I knew that at the peak of both work cycles it would just be too much.
So I decide to take on a partner on my newest listing. One of the more senior people in my office, someone who is always very high-energy and whose real estate practice I admire, had been complaining that things were slow for him, and that he didn’t have any listings.
I talked to my sponsoring broker first, to make sure that he thought it would be a good idea. He did. But then there were details to think about. "How do these things work?" I asked. "How do you parcel out the work and the split?"
His response, "You can do it any way you want, but I’ve always found 50-50 works best."
"Shouldn’t I get a bigger share for taking the listing?" I asked.
"Do you want a bigger share or do you want to sell the apartment?" was his response.
So I called the senior agent and offered him 50-50, and he was psyched. Of course I had to get him a little comfortable with the details — it hadn’t been his pricing, and the prep work I had the seller do before bringing the property to market wasn’t necessarily his prep work — but he was happy to have something to sink his teeth into.
That was yesterday. Right after our discussion I went to the place, which is vacant, to check that the painters had done a good job and to get another set of keys made — and to ensure that they worked.
Today I had envisioned would be a lighter load. I had some writing to do yet I spent a chunk of the day just working on the senior agent’s list of questions and thoughts.
You know what? It’s all stuff that will need to get done anyway. It’s just that it wouldn’t have occurred to me to tackle it now.
I see what has made this senior agent so successful — a combination of being able to look five steps ahead, and an amazing wellspring of energy.
When we started this (was it only yesterday?) I had basically asked him to do half the lifting, including half the open houses, telling him when my publishing work would be at its most critical.
And I’m sure that it will fall out that way eventually. But for now, I can’t wait to do a bunch of the work together. He volunteered to do the first open house next Sunday and I said I wanted to be there, because I’m so excited to watch him work.
I do truly believe this listing will sell a little more quickly for having the both of us working on it, and that it’s worth giving up half the potential profits for both the speed and my sanity.
But, don’t tell the senior agent, it would have been worth it just for the education, too.
Alison Rogers is a licensed salesperson and author of "Diary of a Real Estate Rookie."
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