Years ago when I told an old friend that I had just gotten my real estate license, she grimaced. I was surprised and somewhat hurt by her reaction and I asked her to explain. She told me that she mentally equated real estate agents with used car dealers; that they’re both shady and superficial, not terribly bright, and that they don’t listen but rather wait to speak and ultimately try to force you into a situation that you don’t want. She added that she avoided agents socially, that she wouldn’t go to open houses because of their high pressure tactics, and generally thought that real estate was a giant MLM scheme. I was rendered speechless by her comments and, to some degree, felt a bit panicked by them. I had just chosen this career, poured a fair bit of time and capital into it, and had counted on her support.
For the next several weeks, I thought about what she had said, how firmly she held her convictions, and whether or not there was any truth to them. I looked at the agents in my office, those I co-brokered with on real estate transactions, and those I knew from our social circle. It occurred to me that people come into the industry as they are and they would be no different regardless of what field they’re in. Most agents I knew were just people – some who were drawn to the industry because of their love of houses, others because they wanted to help people. Some came into real estate because they’d hoped to make a lot of money but soon learned that it is a hard way to make a living. The majority of agents make less than $35,000 a year and there is endless training, fees, hours and hours spent showing homes, finding clients, working through transactions, and, let’s not forget, the commitment to working evenings, weekends, and holidays.
I came to the conclusion that the agent archetype my friend described doesn’t actually exist. The industry doesn’t make a person a “pit-bull” or a “shark.” If a person is shady or overly-aggressive, that person came into the business that way. Agents aren’t monolithic. There are good and bad, diligent and lazy, high pressure and laid back. Sure, some firms cultivate a highly competitive, results-driven culture and perhaps their agents are pressed to be aggressive. I’m sure that most don’t last long in that environment. I never worked in that kind of firm and never would. That is not the kind of culture I want nor is it the kind of agent I am or want to be.
Which leads me to why I joined Carrboro Realty. I wanted a human-scale, customer-focused firm where I could devote all the time that is necessary to each client. I wanted a firm that recognized that real estate is what we do and not who we are; that agents don’t have to dress formally and lease expensive cars to be great at their jobs. I wanted to work in the kind of environment where each and every day, I could disprove my friend’s stereotype to myself and my clients by being a great listener, a trusted friend, an advocate, a tour guide, a navigator, and least of all, a “salesperson.” If you need an agent, shop around. There are lots of us who don’t fit the stereotype; more than you might think.