Stuart Neal's Real Estate Blog - Careers Guidance

The Four Types of New REALTOR® Which Are You?

As part of my rolling 2-year study I have had the privilege to interview literally hundreds of newer industry members. My original reason for conducting the study was to learn and share the reasons for the extremely high dropout rate of new industry members. 

According to anecdotal information staff at the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton (RAE) shared with me, around 73% of new members don’t last longer than 2 years. 

A byproduct of my study was that I started to expose knowledge gaps and I now offer FREE ‘Bootcamp’ workshops to those that wish to learn and improve.

In my opinion, new REALTORS® fall into one of 4 groups. Which one are you?

Large Sphere (SOI)

You have a larger extended family, and you are close to many family members.…

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The Two Main Road Blocks New REALTORS® Face

After interviewing hundreds of new REALTORS® I have discovered that most do not give much thought as to where their clients will come from once, they get into practice. 

Some people have told me that they simply expected people to start calling them, others believed that clients would come from their brokerage, others knew they would be expected to prospect ‘friends and family’, but few have done the math to figure out if they actually have enough ‘friends and family’ to sustain them.

In simple terms, most new REALTORS® face 2 challenges.

First, how do I win new clients?

If you are coming into the industry the ‘traditional’ way, you will be expected to prospect everyone you know for business. If you had to draw up a list of people that…

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3 Ways to Run a Killer Open House

For many REALTORS® hosting Open Houses every weekend sometimes multiple times per weekend for several years has been the bedrock of their success in launching their real estate careers.

And there is a wrong way and there is a right way to do them.

The Wrong Way

First let’s discuss the wrong way. I should know I have done them this way. The wrong way is to pick a house, any house. Don’t bother to promote or advertise it in any way. Show up 5 minutes before you intend to start your Open House, put your sign on the lawn. Enter home, drop your bag on the floor and wait for your first visitor. In most cases you will be waiting a long time and in many cases no one will ever come. This kind of approach will lead you to believe that Open Houses area…

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How Long Does it Take to Get a Real Estate Licence?

The easy answer to this question is that this really depends upon you. In Alberta and under the current jurisdiction of RECA (Real Estate Council of Alberta) I have witnessed many people complete the route to residential licensing in 3 to 6 months. Historically a person would have 18 months from registration with the educational institution to complete.

I know of one person who treated their education like a job. They were ready to go in only 2 weeks from start to finish.

Adding other modules (not necessary in my opinion) such as commercial, property management and rural will add to your educational timeline and these might also be added later.

However, this is about to change. RECA was instructed by the provincial government to relinquish…

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Yue Wang Celebrates His First Year at Ambergate

Yue Wang was a rookie REALTOR® just over one year ago. Our team training and marketing program added more than $100,000 to his first year’s income.

Here are 3 things that Yue told me he most enjoyed about his experience.

“First, I have really appreciated the ‘lead generation program’ that Stuart has created. I have some of my own clients, but the Ambergate program turned what would have been a good year into a great one. *

Second, I have enjoyed the ongoing support available to me when needed. Stuart’s and other team members support helped my practice grow.

And third, I have enjoyed the collaborative spirit of the team environment that Stuart fosters. Every weekly meeting has been an opportunity to share and to create positivity for us…

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3 Reasons to FOCUS on Move Up Buyers in a HOT Market

You have probably been bombarded with advice to go after listings in this super-hot market and its good advice. In fact, I have a workshop coming up on April 16th packed with ideas as to how you can win them based on my 20 plus years of experience.

But, for some, working with move up buyers might be a better fit. For most REALTORS® working with buyers is a joy. Working with sellers less so.

Here are 3 reasons why move up buyers could be a better choice:

1.     You might get 2 transactions from one client. You find a home and sell a home.
2.     You will always need buyers in any market and the record-breaking numbers of deals in the single family and condo segments of our market confirm the business is there.
3.     Buyers are more likely to…

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3 Reasons to Show a Buyer 3 Homes

A couple of weeks ago I heard that Redfin (a prominent brokerage in the USA) encourages its agents, to show 3 homes on the first outing. Why?

1.  You stand a better chance of building a relationship,

2.  Relationships lead to loyalty,

3.  Your chance of writing an offer with the buyer goes up to 90%, (according to Redfin)

The next time you agree to show a home to a prospective client for the first time, try to get them into 3 homes. If you need to research 2 more homes ‘on the fly’ after you have shown them the first one, do it.

They will thank you for it and you will dramatically increase your chances of winning a client and getting paid.

Yue Wang a Partner / Advisor on my team used this technique this past week and converted ‘a…

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3 Reasons You Need More Buyers than Ever in Your Database

In a market of low supply that favors home sellers and not buyers it’s never been more important to load your database with as many buyer prospects as you can.

Here is why.

1.  The Law of Probability Will Favour You

As is often the case the bigger your supply the more strongly you can rely on the Pareto Principle (the 80.20 rule to favour you). 20% of your prospects will act. The other 80% will not.

2.  More Multiple Offers

You can expect to be involved in more multiple offer situations than ever before. If your pre purchase consultation and counseling skills are strong, your clients will be willing to compete and with your guidance they may produce a winning offer. In many cases you will not win and will have to try again later.…

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3 Ways to Help Your Buyers Win When Inventory is Short

When I reviewed the market stats yesterday, there was 1799 condos for sale across the whole of Edmonton that’s 4% down when compared to January 2021.

And there were only 1510 single family homes for sale, down 18% on this time last year.

What does this mean for your clients?

1.     Consider educating them to be more compromising and be ready to pay more than they had hoped for
2.     Ensure that when you do write an offer you have done some research to find out what the seller actually values and wants, beyond the best price.
3.     Encourage your clients to consider older listings. Most buyers ignore these assuming they are overpriced or that there is something wrong with them. The price could have been adjusted and might be priced right…

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What’s Your ‘Word’ for 2022?

If I could show you a way to develop your REALTOR® career. Improve some component of your life, or personality, would you be interested?

Long after most folks have abandoned their new year’s resolutions this approach will keep you on track with your REALTOR® career. The folks at Ninja Selling taught me this simple technique a few years ago and it has served me well ever since.

January is a wonderful time to start this exercise. Here’s how it works.

Pick ONE word that sums up what you would like to improve and have it pop up on your calendar every morning, or make a pledge to write it down, or say it aloud every day.

Last year my word was ‘Sharing’. It popped up every day at the foot of my calendar and so often, that I started to hear a…

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