This was not how most REALM Community Forum calls begin.
“I don’t mean to be a downer,” said San Francisco Area Compass Agent Jim Walberg, “but we need to talk about something. Today we found out that we lost a well-respected member of our local real estate community to suicide. Completely out of the blue. What’s going on right now is having a profound impact on real estate agents, we need to reach out and be a resource for everyone. Some are doing quite well, others are not.”
Stress. Anxiety. Emotional Health. Is this really something we need to be talking about with real estate agents right now? You’re damn right it is, maybe more now than at any point in our entire history.
Think about it. We’ve always been the lightning rod for stress and anxiety for our clients, and we’re happy to do it. Don’t worry about selling your home, I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about finding movers, I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about schools, I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about one of the biggest stress events you’ll ever go through, I’ll take care of it.
When we take care of our clients, as we should, we also take on all the stress and anxiety that comes along with it. Now, with COVID19, the social justice movement, and all the uncertainty in the world right now, what we take on has been amplified with our clients, which means it’s been amplified with us. And of course, now more than ever as, as real estate professionals we’re all dealing with overwhelming personal and professional anxieties and uncertainties ourselves.
Every single real estate agent we know right now is under some kind of stress; Client, business, or personal stress is at a level we’ve never seen before. Every. Single. One.
There are precious few conversations about this topic at the moment, but the ones who are focusing on this issue are doing a wonderful job:
- We enthusiastically applaud Houston real estate agent Nicole Lopez, who in her amazingly well written Inman opinion piece last month said, “Mental health in this industry is a topic we all know we should talk about, but rarely ever do. It’s clouded by our need for greatness, performance, and the stigma that if someone smells weakness, they’ll come in for the kill quickly.
- We also applaud the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (Australia), which aptly described the unique position of real estate agents during COVID-19 in their April 1 story Let’s Talk: Mental Health During COVID-19.
As for REALM, we’ve recently developed a new mantra: REALM is a collection of the most accomplished real estate professionals ever assembled. With that claim comes our commitment to help lead this industry on the most important issues, including this one. REALM pledges to discuss, highlight, and help provide solutions to the growing concern around the emotional health and well-being of real estate agents. We pledge to lead, and lean on, each other.
Most of us got into the business to help others. Let’s make sure some of the “others” we are helping are each other.
About REALM
REALM is a real estate collective made up of elite luxury professionals across the country. Membership is brand-agnostic, extremely limited, and by invitation only. A REALM membership is a relationship enhancer, and includes a game-changing technology platform that will enhance client data, provide a lifestyle profile for clients, and then matches elite REALM members anywhere in the world based on the clients they represent and the listings they have. To learn more, go to www.realm-global.com.