Believe It Or Not, I Really Do Work All Day EVERY day…I’m A Realtor!
Most people grow up and take traditional jobs. You know the kind that you have a set time to be there each day, the two 15 minute breaks, the hour lunch, sick time, vacation time, health benefits, 401K and the set time to get off work.
Then there are the Entrepreneurial types. These are the people who strike out to create a business of their own. This is where real estate agents or Realtors like myself usually fall. While there are some who work in the traditional sphere, most are entrepreneurs. But is appears that much of the public really does not understand this. Just like other entrepreneurs, a Realtor must wake up and perform business each and every day. They must show up EVERY day at their office even when there does not look to be a customer in sight. Why? Because we run a business. The next time you go to a store you love, you will have the expectation that it is open during its business hours. Well the same holds true for a Realtor’s business.
I write this because I have often been asked by well meaning individuals, “What did you today?” or “Did you go to work?” This is an interesting question because I go to work every day excluding my regularly scheduled off days. My telephone answering machine tells callers exactly what my schedule is each and every day for returning calls and changes each and everyday. Therefore, I remain befuddled by these questions. So I have come to realize that most people cannot truly wrap their minds around what it is a Realtor actually does all day since a Realtor typically does not have to clock in and out and they seemingly control their own schedules. Surely most Realtors do not work all day every day, or do they?
So humor me for a moment while I give you a small sample of what a very usual day may be like for me.
4:00-6:00 a.m. check emails, change telephone answering machine, update blog articles, check Multiple Listing Service, make calls to lenders back east on files.
6:00-6:30 a.m. get dressed and prepare breakfast
6:30-8:00 a.m. prepare children for school and off we go!
8:00-9:30 a.m. Time to get my own workout in
9:30- 10:00 a.m. Showered and changed for the day
10:00 a.m. -11:00 a.m. return phone calls to clients, lenders, other real estate agents etc. Finish prep work for today’s showings and listings. Grab a breakfast bar on the way out the door.
11:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m. Fight traffic all the way to listing appointment. How can a 30 minute drive turn into an hours drive so quickly? Answer phone calls and return phone calls throughout the drive all via my trusted bluetooth and cell phone.
12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m. Listing appointment with client. Go over sales comparable, tour home, take pictures, sign paperwork, etc.
1:00 p.m. off to lunch appointment with next client. Thank goodness it’s not too far.
1:30-2:45 p.m. Lunch appointment with client to discuss current market and best plan for their home
2:45 p.m.- 3:45 p.m. back on the road, more phone calls. Escrow just called and said loan docs are in on one of the homes for sale in Corona. I need to get to Riverside by 4:30 to show homes to a first time buyer.
3:45-7:30 cut through all the traffic and over to Riverside to show homes to first time buyers. Guess I will run over and pick up my sign from the house in Corona.
7:30-8:00 drive home. Prepare dinner for kids and get them ready for school tomorrow.
So as you can see based on a small sampling…YES, I Really Do Work ALL DAY, EVERY DAY! I do not have a traditional job. The freedoms that you think I have either do not often exist and the ones that do exist come with a price. I eat in my car and on the run. Occasionally, I eat lunch with a client and it allows me to multi-task. I make and receive calls anytime I am not in the presence of clients. I start out early and tend to have pretty long, intense days. I have an e-fax and email capabilities on my phone. I even have a printer in the trunk. I am plugged in and working all day. When I am working, I am REALLY working. Some days ( more often than not with the market downturn) I do not get compensated. I do not get paid sick days, paid holiday time or sick time. I am an entrepreneur and would not trade what I do. But the next time you are wondering what a Realtor like myself does all day…give this a quick read.