Another way for experienced agents to make it in the real industry

After writing the last article, I began thinking about my situation and the choice I have to make between developing a team or going in my present direction as a lone wolf. I have made the decision to start a team, but the make-up of the team might just be an extension of my present direction. Currently, I am combining sales with investments.

An experienced agent should learn about investing after a period of time, but investing is not necessary, just an option. Part of my business is working with selected buyers, part is taking selected listings and part is investing (and working with investors).

For someone who wants to avoid the big company environment, creating a small, diverse company that does a little of it all can be the way to go. I prefer this route because it fits my personality and the investing side is interesting and challenging. Managing properties is also a part of it. To create a good managment company, I believe the small and personal touch is better for the investors, otherwise their investments get lost in the hustle and bustle of larger offices where everyone has demands on their time and priorities get bumped.

I plan to gradually build my own investment properties and manage  the properties of others until I can eventually transition to investments while keeping a small team of high producers to work with buyers and sellers.

For more experienced agents who don't want to be in large office environments, this is an option.

So, even though I think for the majority of agents the team route is the best route, there are other options for agents the more experience they acquire. Later I will write about another opportunity I see for agents with the right skills -- marketing specialist. I believe more and more companies will begin to realize they need a strong, local marketing specialist, inhouse and integrated, and that this position will be a very important position. It's one thing for companies to be part of large franchise operations with national marketing, it's another to have a local, inhouse marketing specialist focusing on a particular franchise in a particular location. How big does an office need to be in order to justify a marketing specialist? Should marketing be contracted, or is it best to hire the right person with the right skills who truly understands the local real estate market and the real estate industry in general?