The Following Article was Published in Cascade Arts & Entertainment, 1999

"Have You Hugged Your Realtor Today?"

By Ann Golden Eglé, PCC , CPCC Of Golden Visions Success Coaching

Ever had a bad experience with a Realtor? Has that tainted your opinion of the profession?

Realtors are not only the least understood, but quite possibly the least sane of all professionals! What other professional would work for months, sometimes years with no guarantee of receiving a pay check? Sounds a little crazy doesn’t it? What are the chances that you’d be willing to do this?

Surprisingly enough, Realtors get paid only when the seller accepts an offer and the transaction actually closes, not a moment before. By that time they have paid for all promotional materials, advertisements, postage and gas, at the very least. They have given up their weekends to conduct open houses and show properties and cheerfully taken business calls at all hours of the day and night.

Unlike other commissioned sales reps who deal in less emotional matters, Realtors live a life of missed or interrupted family events, celebrations and vacations in order to be available to soothe their clients ongoing fears and concerns and to handle the myriad of details.

The image that many of us have of a Realtor is someone who talks fast, will pressure us into something we don’t actually want and then end up with a fat commission check. Eleven years as a top nationally ranked member of this profession opened my eyes a bit.

By the time taxes, the company split, promotional expenses and operating expenses (E & O insurance, continuing education, communicating devices such as phone, computers and pager, professional dues, auto expenses, office setup and supplies) are taken out, the commission does not seem so fat.

What many people do not know is what truly good human beings Realtors are. Most genuinely care about quality of life, their environment, making their city a better place and providing the very best service imaginable. Granted, every profession has it’s bad eggs and the real estate profession is not exempt.

In order to be successful in this profession, a Realtor must possess a working knowledge of everything from marketing to finance to infrastructure and zoning to psychology, and many things in between. There were days when I felt more like a marriage counselor than Realtor.

Realtors have to be able to skillfully communicate and negotiate with such diverse entities as appraisers, lenders, exterminators, attorneys, inspectors, septic and well engineers, public officials, title officers, contractors and emotional buyers and sellers. All in the same day! Try that out for fun sometime.

Why do they do it? Because of the intrigue. Realtors by their very nature are entrepreneurial. They don’t think inside the box. Every day brings on new challenges, experiences and opportunities to learn and grow.

Many thrive on helping people accomplish what they simply can not accomplish on their own. Most are extremely independent and bask in the freedom to come and go between commitments, while being connected to the world through their pagers and cell phones.

The fact is that you have an enormous resource in your Realtor, whether buying, selling, leasing or renting. They have the knowledge, technology, skills, talent and intense desire to pull seemingly impossible transactions together. Far too many sales do not come to fruition due to carelessness or lack of communication of uneducated participants.

If you are working with a Realtor who is doing a superb job for you, let them know today. By all means remain loyal to him or her. If they are not performing in a satisfactory manner, communicate that as well. As in all endeavors, honesty is the best policy.

If you feel that you cannot communicate with the Realtor you have selected, find one with whom you can communicate. You have too much at stake to be dealing with anyone less than who you consider to be the very best!

Ann Golden Eglé, CPPC, owner of GOLDEN VISIONS SUCCESS COACHING, is a licensed Real Estate Associate Broker, on an extended sabbatical. Ann coaches executives, professionals, sales/marketing reps and entrepreneurs throughout the U.S. and Canada. Eglé also produces a free coaching "Thought of the Week", which is distributed via e-mail. Contact Ann at 541-385-8887 or [email protected].

Reprinted with permission from Cascade Arts & Entertainment, 1999




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