You might think that I joined the company and immediately began my tutelage of succession, but nothing could be further from the truth. I officially started with the company when I was 15, helping on the weekends answering phones, taking messages, setting up appointments and learning the conveyancing side of things.

So you’d think my dad would agree I'd learned a few things by osmosis, but he didn't see it that way. When I officially got my licence I was on a 90/10 split (pretty much only the top producers in the industry obtain that today) which seems like a fantastic deal for me except my portion was 10%. I did lots off odd jobs for him including cut lawns, picking up dog poop and other jobs at our rental properties.

What he recognized was that the best way for me to learn the business was to give me a mentor. Bette Morrisson or Elizabeth Morrisson was assigned as my mentor and we later became great friends as well. Bette started her real estate career in the late 1950’s. If you go to the REALTORS® Association in Edmonton you’ll see plenty of pictures in black and white in the assembly room of past president’s and life members. Its not until about 1985 that you start to see a steady stream of women in these categories.

When Bette started her career in real estate she didn’t have a loving spouse hanging around to support her, she was divorced with two young children at home. Back when she got divorced it was not nearly as common as it is today and there certainly weren’t a lot of the old boys cheering her on. She let me in on a secret that she knew even back then: “Real estate is the great leveler,” she’d tell me. “I can make as much money as any man if I work hard enough.” In previous positions her pay wasn't commensurate with that of her male co-workers but in real estate that was definitely not the case.

There are many other things this wonderful woman taught me, and she definitely gave me a unique perspective on life and the difficulties and struggles of a single parent.
When we weren’t busy we would sit and talk over a pot of tea in her Rio Terrace home about life, love and happiness. Thanks for the tea and all the wonderful lessons Bette.
 

Here are a few of the most telling stats he posted:

• Average prices: In Toronto, the average bungalow price in the first quarter jumped 13.3% to $459,000, and condo prices rose 10 per cent to $317,500 compared to a year earlier. In Edmonton, the average residential price is $12,000 below the national average at $330,000
• Trends: Toronto's average house prices continued to climb through 2008 and 2009, even as prices in Alberta's major cities declined from the all-time highs set in 2007. In Edmonton, the average price of a single-detached home spiked to a record high of more than $420,000 in mid-2007. Last month, it sat at $388,500.
• Afffordability: 32.9% of median pre-tax household income was needed to service the mortgage on a typical detached bungalow in Edmonton (Calgary 37.1%, National 40.6% - Ottawa and Montreal the same, Toronto 49.1%, Vancouver 69%). For 2-stories Calgary and Edmonton were below 40 per cent, while Toronto and Vancouver were at 58% and 77% respectively.
• Average household incomes: Calgary $113,000, Edmonton $90,000, Vancouver $82,300 (about $2000 higher than Windsor), Toronto $101,400.
• In the U.S. at the peak the ratio of average household income levels to average local house prices got to 10 times or more in overheated markets like Los Angeles and Phoenix. In Vancouver, the average detached bungalow now costs roughly 11 times the typical average local household income level. Yikes!

After 20 years as a REALTOR® I can look back with perfect hindsight and see all the great and not so great decisions I've made. One particularly brutal year early in my career I had 9 deals fall apart in one month. This would have been financially devastating for me if I hadn't listened to my father (and mentor) when he drilled it into my head to always keep a reserve. Changes in the market last year wiped out a few high flyers, and seriously affected many in the industry (as one very well known agent commented to me – between the drop in his stock portfolio and lack of sales he was almost ruined).

Starting out doesn’t require a huge amount of money in relation to the income you can make. The main issue is to make sure you have the resources to survive should things not go well for awhile.  If you don’t and are unlucky you may make some desperate choices that will not only see you out of the business but also in court.

Some companies try to attract agents with extremely low costs, telling them that they will be able to direct their commissions into their own advertising and marketing (since the brokerage doesn't do any). In theory this works well but generally not for new people. Newer agents often are more likely to hold on to the money they earn rather than reinvesting it in themselves through education, technology or marketing. They often find it risky to spend much money marketing their listings (which because of the lack of good marketing don’t sell and become another financial burden instead of an opportunity).

Even though as an agent you work for a brokerage, when you become an agent you are starting a business and you need to plan your success as an agent the same way you would a business. And one thing every new business needs to get off the ground is money. Depending on the type of brokerage you select you will need a different amount of start up capital (for example some brokerages will provide you with new business so you need less start up money for marketing). Start up costs include, but are not limited to your course, licensing and membership fees and may include a laptop (or tablet at our company), marketing materials, a new vehicle, new clothes etc…

Of course you have to remember that one of the most valuable resources you have is your time. So if you have lots of money and no time the result will be fairly similar to having no money and nothing but time. The way I've come to look at my career is that I am always unemployed since I'm always looking for work.

If you're considering a career in real estate we'd be happy to chat with you about the opportunities and challenges that come along with becoming a real estate agent. Our brokerage offers new agents the best chance at success – every one of our new agents has had at least one sale in their first month, and has earned over $100,000 in their second year in the business.

• Why most agents fail and how you can succeed
• Commissions, splits and desk fees
• How to find clients
• What skills are important for new REALTORS®
• What to look for in a brokerage
• Training – when, why, how much?
• Joining a team vs going it alone

The vast majority of new REALTORS® are out of the business within 2 years. Don't be one of them!

Monday, November 9, 6:30pm. Open to the first 15 registrants, space is filling up.

Next week we are hosting an online career seminar where we will discuss getting started in a real estate career including topics such as: skills, training, costs, selecting a brokerage, commissions, prospecting, working with a team vs flying solo, and more. If you're thinking about a career in real estate, or are already taking the course register today for our online seminar and get your career going in the right direction – there are only 15 spots available on a first come first served basis. The seminar takes place on Monday November 9 at 6:30 pm.

Online Career Seminar -

We have found there are 5 common reasons why most new agents are out of the business within two years. The previous article discussed the lack of planning that is common among new agents. The topic today is:

Lack of Commitment

No one starts their real estate career thinking "I’m not committed to real estate" (just like no one gets married thinking they are not committed to their spouse, but divorce happens a lot!). It's only later that you discover the restrictions that were placed on their commitment:

• "I had to hold a part time job bar-tending because my family couldn’t survive with no money coming in, and it was just too difficult to make it work."
• "My fiance makes a salary  with benefits and I have to work around his schedule.  That means taking care of the kids in the morning and not scheduling appointments when he has to work in the evenings."
• "I have a certain lifestyle that’s most important to me.  Golf and travel are important so my career will have to be secondary to that."

I’m not saying that these (or other) reasons are bad, but when you are new in a competitive industry, the difference between success and failure is often those extra steps you take for your clients.  As an employer/manager I care about your personal struggles and priorities, but some of your clients will not, especially when hundreds of thousdands of their dollars are on the line. 

My Sensei (a very successful Edmonton real estate agent) always says, if you want to be great at something “you are either all in or all out.”  The bottom line is, that truly successful people in this industry are extremely committed in the begining and yes, that means some personal sacrafices may have to be made. Once you are truly sucessful you can manage the balance between personal and career objectives more easily but at the start commitment and hard work are key.

If you're interested in more information about working at our little company, check out www.jointeamjohnston.com today and don't forget to register for our online career seminar.

A lot of people contact us about joining our little company through www.jointeamjohnston.com, and most people have the same questions about working in the real estate industry. So, we've decided to do a series of articles here on the blog about real estate careers, and why the majority of new real estate agents are out of the business within two years.

Why do most new agents fail?

1. Lack of planning
2. Lack of committment
3. Lack of resources
4. Selecting the wrong brokerage
5. Lack of business savvy.

Today we will discuss the lack of planning that is common among new real estate associates (the other issues will be addressed in future articles).

Most people who have become licensed in real estate have no clue what is actually required to be successful in real estate.  They get licensed with a minimum amount of training and then off they go "helping" buyers and sellers.  They hold the same license as I do but I can tell you from painful experience they usually have a long way to go before they really start to understand that real estate is more than looking at homes.

The first common mistake among new associates is choosing a brokerage and starting training after getting their license. If they have interviewed at different brokerages, they have probably been told to expect not to make a sale for the first 6 months. This is because the average new associate actually doesn't make a sale for the first 6 months. Why? Lack of planning!

Another reason new associates have a slow start is that the brokerage they choose has a lack of training and business development support, and they condition their associates to accept lower results right from the get go.

I’ve always believed you have to be prepared to make a sale the moment you are licensed (many of our associates do), but you also have to be prepared to survive until you do.

So… plan ahead! Meet with brokerages before you take the course. Create your business plan before you take the course (your broker can help you with this). Start training and create your marketing plan while you're in the course. If you get all this done ahead of time, then the day you are licensed you are ready to start making a living. Otherwise, you'll end up like most other new licencees without a sale for 6 months.

We start working with our new hires while they're still in the course – this is very rare amongst real estate companies. We take them on appointments and mentor them before they are licensed, we help them study for the exams and answer their questions, we train them on the technology they will be using, we get their web sites set up and marketing pieces ready to go… all while they are still in the course. That's why all of our new agents have made at least one sale in their first month and are all still in the business.

If you're interested in a career in real estate in Edmonton check out www.jointeamjohnston.com for more information.