Behind the Real Estate Curtain – A Message to Buyers, Sellers and Agents

Nathan Abbott shares the realities of being a real estate agent along Florida’s Emerald Coast.

Interested in being a Real Estate Agent?

For those of you looking to get into real estate as a career it can be phenomenal job. There’s always a glass ceiling you can break and you can create a great life from real estate sales.

But, you can also get slapped in the face too. Sometimes you may wonder how you’re going to pay your next bill. Real estate is not for the faint at heart. Its extremely hard work. You’ve got to get good at time management. You’ve got to wake up and give yourself personal motivation. It’s really hard to pick yourself up if you’re beaten down all the time. Deals fall apart and a property sale you thought would close sometimes doesn’t.

You have to pick yourself up every morning and say, “You know what, its a new day. I’m going to start over again.” So, for those of you trying to get into real estate, its a great job – but you’ve got to be aware of what you’re getting into. We have agents on our team who have had some very tough times, and to see them pull themselves out of that through this business and create a better life for themselves is an amazing thing to watch. But, you’ve got to be in it full force.

I recommend having about 6 months of reserves to support yourself when you begin your career as a real estate agent with no income. Because, that’s a big reality that may occur and does for many real estate agents.

It takes a lot of time to get comfortable in the market. It usually takes 2-3 years before you start getting in your comfort zone. And, I always try to be a sponge to learn new things. The minute I personally feel that you think you know it all or that you’re doing it perfectly is when you fail -and you fail quickly. To be in a position where I can try to raise up the people on our team to have a better environment for themselves, then it is a testament.

What Makes Real Estate A Valuable Career?

I love changing lives through real estate for the better. That’s really where my passion is. I love relationships. I love connecting with people. I love getting to know the families.

To be able to do that as a real estate agent make real estate a career that I know is meant for me. To be able to help a first time home buyer make that home a reality for them or to meet someone who has saved their whole life to have a second home and you find this perfect condo or beach property where you know they are going to have wonderful memories with their family – that’s what really hits home for me.

I also like solving problems. If there’s a difficult real estate situation, trying to figure out the right solution for all parties involved and to see success through that is  also something I’m really passionate about. Our team lives by a vision to truly raise a higher standard of expectation.

Had a Bad Real Estate Experience or Real Estate Agent?

Let’s be real. The real estate brand is looked poorly upon. A lot of people think Realtors are cut-throat, pushy sales people. That’s what I try to not be.

No one likes to be sold. People like to be connected with. They like to have a relationship. They want to know they are not just another commission. That’s where the true passion and the positive energy comes from for me.

There are a lot of part time real estate agents out there. Unfortunately, a lot of their customers had a very poor experience. It didn’t work out very well for them if the agent was just trying to sell them over and were not sincere and just weren’t real. We really try to keep it real at the Nathan Abbott Team. It makes it hard on the agents who are truly trying to make an impact on this industry to re-correct those bad real estate experiences. It all comes to the relationship. We need to be able to break through those barriers to connect with customers on a personal level and to create a friendship and that keeps on surviving the times.

As a real estate agent, that’s where your business really starts to grow. Even then you can have tough times. We’ve put a lot of energy into our business. But, there are factors at times that you have no control of like the way the market is shifting, a hurricane or natural disaster. The bills don’t stop. And, if you don’t sell property, you may not be able to support your own family.

For anyone interested in purchasing or selling real estate, we want to change any previous bad experiences you’ve had and help you have a positive experience with our team.

Your loyalty to us as real estate agents means everything to us. Sometimes, customers do not realize how much work is put into real estate transactions -everything from initial research to the expenses involved in a listing and the time devoted. It can feel like a dagger in the heart when we put time in and a customer calls another agent at the final hour and closes a deal with them. Keep in mind, if we as real estate agents do not sell property, we may not be able to support our own families.

Through the experience we give you, we want to create an awesome environment, and we cherish when customers are loyal to us as well. And that’s what makes the perfect connection between the real estate agent and their customers. Because, believe me, if an agent knows you’re loyal to them, they are going to be so sincere to you, they’re going to go the extra mile, they’re going to do things for you because they are passionate about your relationship. That’s so much more than just a commission.

Changing the Perception of Today’s Real Estate Agents

I hope shared some valuable information for buyers, sellers and agents. For those of you looking to become a real estate agent, I hope you come on board and give it a shot. But I do want you to be aware of  what you’re getting yourself into.

For those customers that think that there are always Realtors at their disposal, that may be true. But, there is a huge difference between real estate agents who will give back to you the right knowledge and details to create success for you versus agents who will fall short every time. There are about 3,600 agents in our area and only the top 1,000-1,500 are really building their business and creating positive environments for their customers.

We hope we have the opportunity to build a relationship and work with you to help you achieve your real estate goals. The Nathan Abbott Team is always here as your trusted real estate advisors for Florida’s Emerald Coast.