Commercial Property with Sandra Carder
Commercial real estate has traditionally been a male dominated career, full of cookie cutter corporate avatars, talking in numbers and moving and shaking in a business sector which seemed impossible to break in to. As far as career choices go in high school, ‘commercial agent’ is not on the list – nor has it typically been a role considered by anyone wanting a career in real estate. To date the industry has been a prehistoric old boys club that remains in short supply of resources and support even for those working in the industry today. In short, Commercial Real Estate is long overdue for its ‘Uber moment’. My name is Sandra Carder, I am a commercial real estate agent with over two decades in the industry and I am here to interrupt the market.
When I started in the commercial real estate sector I was completely thrown in the proverbial deep end. There were no courses, mentorships or guidelines for new agents entering the industry . I was lucky. I had an Uncle who thought it would be a good fit for me, a business degree and a bit of sales experience in several other industries. I managed to convince the Principal of a very large industrial agency to give me a go at the ripe old age of 23. I was told; I was too old to be a Cadet, don’t upset the Sales Manager and ‘by the way they had never hired a female salesperson before’. Turns out, I was the only female in a team of 20 males. It was a baptism of fire from the start, and I was forced to learn on the job, making loads of silly and sometimes expensive mistakes, earning peanuts, and going home crying in my car a lot of the time. But I had grit and was determined to stick it out and learn the ropes. It probably took me five years to become ‘industry ready’. That is simply far too long.
I am now consolidating my experience and knowledge to build a manifesto for anyone considering a career as a commercial real estate agent and to remove the mystery and enigma surrounding the industry. I want to create a community of what I call ‘Fast Starters’ and provide them with ongoing resources and tools to help them succeed in this amazing industry. The platform includes an online forum, webinars, educational blogs and podcasts. I am also providing a mentorship program and currently developing an online training course called The Fundaments of Commercial Real Estate.
So why Commercial? It is probably one of the most rewarding and challenging sales careers you can have. You are dealing with businesspeople whose decisions are based on numbers and not emotion. Every day is different, you hold business hours, so its typically Monday to Friday and you meet some incredible people. There is also unlimited earning potential and not a lot of competition if you are prepared to do the work. Opportunities are not affected by the economy or market conditions if you have the necessary skills to pivot and keep moving forward. I want to teach the Fast Starters the tools and habits to do these things, so they can enjoy incredible success without having to swim in the deep end like I did. The Fundamentals of Commercial Real Estate Course provides anyone who has already completed a real estate/sales licence an opportunity to broaden the scope of their property knowledge, as well as a steppingstone to pursue a career in the commercial sector if so desired.
The real estate licencing courses afforded by the Validum Group are next level in terms of flexibility, convenience, and ease. How lucky are we to be able to sit in the comfort of our own homes and undertake a fully accredited course that allows you to totally change your career and enter the world of property. Completing my full licence through Validum truly changed the trajectory of my life and I will be forever grateful to the team for making this process both seamless, painless and fun. Now it’s my time to give back and share the knowledge and experience I have gained over the past 20 odd years and make it simple for anyone interested in the commercial industry to find out more, get support and demystify the process. My course, The Fundamentals of Commercial Real Estate will cater for agents who wants to upskill, so they have a good understanding of the role of a commercial real estate agent. It will provide in-depth detail about the different sectors, a tool kit of terminology and jargon and teach participants the skillset needed to work in the industry. This course is ideal for anyone who wants to pursue a full-blown career in commercial real estate or simply offer a wider scope of services to their real estate clients. It will also allow them to be part of a network of Fast Starters who can support and help one another and tap into an ever-evolving pool of resources and knowledge.
For anyone interested in registering for this course please contact me via email [email protected] or visit my website milliondollaragent.live and subscribe.