A Real Estate Agent’s Life

I guess most folks think Real Estate Agents don’t do much. Sitting around, drinking coffee, chatting with other agents, counting the money that comes rolling in, blah blah blah. Yep, most days I just sit around typing on my computer, browsing Facebook and Twitter, and every few minutes I roll around in a huge pile of your money. Yep, that’s me.

Well, not really.

Seriously, it’s ridiculous what we Agents do sometimes. Ridiculous. This weekend I was checking on a client’s cats. Yep, really. Had to go by the listing and make sure the cats were ok while they were out of town in case there was a showing. Catsitter. You have no idea what an agent goes through on a daily basis. But I’m gonna tell you.

Think of the time you interviewed for your last job. Or the job you’re currently trying to get. It’s a job interview, so imagine everything that goes with it- nervousness, jitters, stomach pains, the whole deal. Then imagine doing that every few weeks. Or if you’re in demand, and it’s a good market, every week. A job interview. That’s what a listing appointment is like for me. Every sit down with a seller is like an job interview. And as
you know, that sucks. And if you get the “Job” you immediately get to start spending money on your job- marketing, advertising, fliers, driving to and from, measuring the house, taking photos, open houses, etc. And you’re liable for any of the information if it turns out to be wrong. Oh yeah. And you might work for 3 or 6 months and make absolutely nothing. In fact, you poured money into your new job and ended up in the red. Or you don’t get the job- now you’ve heard the word NO again. Do you take it personally? Do you analyze it to death? Is it you? Did you have something in your teeth? Do you suck? I must suck- I didn’t get the job. I suck. Oh man, I suck.

Yep, that’s my job. You gotta have thick skin to do this job. REALLY thick skin.

And then there’s the dealing with buyers who might be interested in the home. You gotta sell it to em on the phone or by email just to get them over to the house. And you make the appointment to show it and you drive over and guess what- you sit there from 5 til until 25 after and they don’t show up. And they don’t answer their phone when you call them. Or worse, they do answer and you manage to make it thru “Hey it’s Your Agent with Your Company and I’m at the house” and they hang up on you. Does this actually happen? Oh yes. ALL the TIME.

Why do I keep doing this? Sometimes I’m not sure.

There’s licensing costs and gas prices and mandatory education and keeping track of road construction like the Urban Loop and the FedEx runway and expansion of businesses (are they hiring?) and updates of contracts and agents who don’t do their jobs or worse- have NO CLUE what they are doing. And buyers who don’t know what they want and sellers who think their house is worth more than the market is telling you. And it’s 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Weekend? What’s that? Vacation? Hah. Last Saturday I had to leave my daughter crying for me not to leave so I could go show property in the hope that I might actually sell something so we can eat.

I’ve crawled into crawlspaces and attics, I’ve hit my head on dozens of support beams and hangy things, I once got cut from the odd nail that tore thru my shirt and the bleeding was so bad I had to get napkins from my car to stop the bleeding. That’s happened a lot, bleeding. I’ve cut myself many times in homes. I’ve ruined many a pair of shoes and pants. People hang up on me, people stand me up, people talk like I’m a used car salesman. I’ve lost friends. I’ve been yelled and screamed at, I’ve gotten cursed at and once a guy spit at me. I once walked into a house full of people smoking crack & I backed out reeeealllllyyyyy slowly and got the hell out of there. I’ve gotten lost more times than I can remember. I’ve had days when I made so many phone calls that my ears literally hurt from holding the phone to my ear.

And yet…

I’ve been hugged many times. I’ve had buyers cry at closing who just couldn’t believe they were buying their first home. I’ve met some awesome folks. I’ve gotten gifts from appreciative buyers. I’ve gotten the best recommendations from really great people. And sometimes I forget that I could be digging ditches or doing construction or not have a job at all. I’m not complaining- the one bottle of Wild Turkey from a grateful homeowner who I found a renter for or the Mini Me I got from a buyer who I helped makes up for 10 idiots who aren’t grateful or yell at me (when I told them what to do and they didn’t listen).

It’s a crazy roller coaster job I’ve got. Sometimes it sucks, sometimes it rocks. But it’s a lot harder than it looks. I mean it.

(I wrote this back in March. Still applies today.)