6 Tips for Surviving Your First Year in Real Estate
Starting your new career in real estate might seem like a daunting challenge, but it doesn’t have to be. With such a rewarding career ahead of you, all it takes is a few extra steps to ensure you not just survive but thrive, as a real estate professional. Here are six tips for how you can get the most out of your first year in real estate.
1. Prepare an Ideal Week
When it comes to working in real estate, effective time management is the most important element contributing to your success. Whether you are a sales agent or property manager, both roles require you to plan, prioritise and complete many daily tasks, on top of answering never-ending phone calls and emails. The best way to manage your time is by preparing what’s called an ‘Ideal Week’. An Ideal Week is a document which identifies tasks and prioritises them in an efficient daily order. This is how you can maximise your productivity and minimise your stress, which both go a long way in helping you succeed.
2. Build a support network
Having a support network is essential if you want to survive your first year in real estate. Whether it’s through real estate conferences, seminars, and workshops, or connecting with colleagues on LinkedIn or Validum student alumni, these networking opportunities all help build your team of advisors. Forming valuable industry connections with colleagues from all roles and levels is a great way to fill the knowledge and experience gaps you will undoubtedly have when starting your career.
3. Find a mentor
Whilst it’s important to build a support network, finding a mentor is how you can take your career to the next level. Attending networking events and connecting with colleagues online are the best ways to find a mentor that’s right for you. A good mentor boosts your career, helps you set goals, and holds you accountable. You should look for someone who asks challenging questions, provides constructive criticism, offers useful resources, and willingly shares their expertise. As the most valuable part of your support network, finding a mentor is how you can take your career from good to great in your first year.
4. Know your marketplace
Once you get started in real estate, you’ll soon discover that knowing your marketplace is the key to succeeding. Since real estate is about living and breathing your market area, you should allocate time in your Ideal Week to stepping outside your office and into your community. Getting to know the best places to wine, dine, shop and play, is just as critical as knowing your area’s latest property data. Conducting this weekly research not only helps you become a market area specialist but ensures you feel more at home in the community you now represent.
5. Continue to upskill
Once you gain your real estate sale certificate and start your new career, your training should not stop there. As you apply what you’ve studied, you’ll naturally find areas where you excel, where you lack, and where you’re interested in learning more. Surviving your first year, therefore, requires commitment to ongoing training. Upskilling and fine-tuning your existing skills can be done online through institutions like Validum – why not upgrade from your Sales Certificate to your full Real Estate Agent Licence? This is how ongoing training can be part of your Ideal Week to ensure you remain at the top of your game in your first year.
6. Learn about property investment
Whilst understanding real estate is essential, agents often overlook the hidden value of learning about property investment. From the moment you start, you will be making important decisions about your clients’ investments and financial security, so it’s critical you understand their needs and how best to fulfil them. As a result, taking a property investment course can not only help you better understand your clients but help you perform better in your new role and stand out from other candidates.
Your first year in real estate might seem challenging, but these six tips will help you not just survive but thrive. A career in this industry can be truly rewarding if you simply take a few extra steps to help you get started. If you’d like more information on Validum’s online real estate courses to help you become qualified or upskill, get in touch today by calling (07) 3193 5270.
Which real estate survival tip works best for you? Or, let us know your own survival tips.
