Complete Idiot's Guide to Success as a Real Estate Agent

Release date: December 2003; 2nd Ed., December 2006.

Best Reviews: Robert Bruss, nationally syndicated real estate columnist, gives a rave review on Sullivan's book. He says: "If you are a real estate agent, or thinking of becoming a real estate licensee, "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Success as a Real Estate Agent" by Marilyn Sullivan is a must read. On my scale of one to 10, it rates a solid 10."

Summary: Despite immense growing pains, the real estate industry has emerged as a powerful sector in our national and global economy. When compared with the stock market's dismal performance, the real estate market has taken an enviable leadership position. With interest rates having reached all-time lows and a reliable track record of consistent appreciation and preferential tax treatment, the real estate market gained a terrific momentum that was hard for its workers to keep pace with.
A major challenge for the industry was to incorporate enough technology to keep pace with the enormous frenzy real estate experienced. But, we have done it by mastering a tremendous technology learning curve. It wasn't easy; it took persistence and determination, but we're there. Now, a new challenge faces the real estate professional. How do the many of us who have made real estate a highly successful career continue to prosper when the real estate market levels off? The answer is to combine technology with lead generation and make it 24/7 and self-automating. Those using such a model will proper and those who do not will exit the industry.
For this new edition of this book, we built the Master Marketing Model, the most cutting edge lead generating system ever presented. It incorporates the very latest in technology-based products to capture leads and feed them directly into your in automated campaign driven contacts database. All this happens 24/7 without you.

The secret to the Master Marketing Model is its multi-media features which integrate various methods of interaction to produce a virtually multi-dimensional reach. In essence, it reaches the many senses of your consumer base by utilizing internet interface, voice interaction, in-person contact and written media. The system is set up to capture your prospect and cycle them through multiple formats of your marketing information. The object is to hit them on many fronts and many levels.

The high tech portion of our model consists of a personal web site with an MLS search function, an all-in-one internet-based contact management program with automated campaign capability, an 800 number call capture system and web paging. To our technology-based model we add select low tech marketing to round out our Master Marketing Model. While this book presents comprehensive tools for new agents and Top Dogs alike, Chapter 13 features our new lead-generating system that will mark you as one of the real estate professionals that flourishes no matter what the real estate market does.

Release date: December 2003; 2nd Ed., December 2006.

Table of Contents/Foreward

Table of Contents

Part 1 First Things First 1

1 The Attraction of Real Estate 3
The Satisfaction of the Job 4
Qualifications for the Job 5
The Call to Real Estate 6
Real Estate Has No Hierarchy 7
Financial Reward 8

2 The Spectrum of Careers 11
An Overview of Career Choices 12
Personality Profiling 12
Residential Sales 16
Commercial Sales 18
Mortgage Brokers 19
Property Managers 20
Appraisers 21
Take Your Time 22
Research the Field 23
What's Your Passion? 24
Carving a Niche 25

3 A Day in the Life 27
Residential Sales 28
Commercial Sales 33
Mortgage Broker 36
Property Management 38
The Appraiser 40
Which Is It for You? 42
Switching Careers Within Real Estate 42

4 Your Prelicensing Education 45
The Terminology 46
Requirement Exceptions 46
Prelicensing Course Procedures 47
Determine Your State's Requirements 48
Prelicensing Courses 48
Timing and Surviving 49
Real Estate Principles 50
Course Challenges 59

5 Preparing for and Taking the Exam 61
A Checklist of Exam-Preparation Tasks 61
Apply to Take the Exam 62
Determine Exam Procedures 63
Gather Information on Exam Content 64
Take an Exam-Preparation Course 65
Simulate the Exam Conditions 66
Master Exam-Taking Strategies 67
Adopt the Right Attitude 68
Implement Good Exam-Taking Policies 70

Part 2 Getting Started 73

6 Choosing Your Office 75
Socializing with the Real Estate Country Club 76
Don't Believe All Agents 76
Understanding the Relationship 77
Supporting the Fable 79
Choosing the Right Office 79
Interviewing Firms 87
Regrets of New Agents 88

7 Building Your Business 91
A Dose of Reality Training 92
Obtain Office Training and Support 93
Participate with Your Realtor Associations 94
Know the Market 95
Manage Your Own Business 99
Take Construction and Architecture Courses 105
Take Continuing Education and Specialty Training 106

8 Building Personal and Professional Power 109
The Seven Principles of Power 110
Principle 1 See Your Work as Your Passion 111
Principle 2 Develop a Burning Desire to Succeed 112
Principle 3 Be an Independent Thinker 113
Principle 4 Have a Positive Attitude 114
Principle 5 Be Self-Disciplined 116
Principle 6 Be Ethical 118
Principle 7 Have Good People Skills 119
The Sum of the Parts 120

9 Building Your Power Team 123
Choosing Your Power Team Members 124
Partnering with Another Agent 125
Arranging the Partnership 126
Using a Professional Stager 127
Finding Power Team Members 127
Qualifying Power Team Members 128
Team Motivation 131
Transaction and Quality Control 132

Part 3 Building an Unbeatable System 133

10 Making Your Market 135
Tap Your Sphere of Influence 136
Specialize 138
Market to Your Neighborhood 139
Do More of What You Like 139
Join Organizations 140
Remind Past Clients 140
Give Free Seminars 140
List on Others' Websites 141
Use Your Own Website 142
Send Mailers 144
Advertise Effectively 145
Broadcast Your Career 146
Prospect for Gold 147

11 Managing the Time Demon 151
Use Your Time Well 152
Beware of High-Maintenance People 153
Peer Pressure 154
Hire a Helper 155
Partnering with Another Agent 156
The Loan and Inspection Contingencies 156
The Title Contingency 157
Work with the Closing Professional 157

12 Computer Technology 159
No More Alibis 160
Your High-Tech System 160
The Hardware You Will Need 161
The Software You Will Need 165
Connectivity 171
Obtaining Computer Training 172

Part 4 Putting It All Together 175

13 A Master of Organization 177
Make Your Computer Your Business Partner 178
Becoming a Calendar Wizard 181
Organizing Your Computer Files 183
Synchronizing and Backing Up Data 184
Establishing Your Home Office 185
Setting Up a Vehicle Office 188
Working Anywhere in the Field 189

14 Building a Referral Stream System 191
Meeting People and Keeping Their Information 192
Keeping Organized and Caretaking 192
Step 1 Setup 194
Step 2 Input 197
Step 3 Processing 198
Reviewing the Referral Stream 200
Examining the Philosophy 201
Tips on Making the System Work 201

15 The New Ideal 203
The Times, They Are a-Changin' 204
Performing Our Fiduciary Duty 204
Recognizing the Sales Scripts 205
Participating in the Transformation 206
Relating to the Competition 213
Predicting the Result 213

16 A Winning Listing Presentation 215
Qualifying Sellers 216
Listing Presentations 217
Listen to Your Clients 221
Allow for Rejection 223
Part 5 The Parts of the Transaction 225

17 Representing the Seller 227
Professional Staging 228
Evaluating Property Problems 228
Listing on the MLS 230
Hosting the Broker's Open House 230
Holding the Open House for the Public 231
Responding to the Offer 235
Handling Multiple Offers 236
Facilitating the Transaction to Closing 237
Dealing with a Stale Listing 238
Reporting to Your Clients 239

18 Representing the Buyer 241
Qualifying the Buyer 242
Presenting to the Buyer 243
Touring Buyers 245
Reporting to Your Client 246
Preparing the Offer 246
Offer Presentation 247
The Transaction Timeline and Steps 247
Dealing with All-Important Contingencies 252
Closing 254
Acting as a Deal Agent 256

19 Using the Transaction Documents 257
The Primary Documents 258
The Listing Agreement 258
Agency Disclosures 260
The Purchase Agreement 262
Seller Disclosures 266
Agent Inspection and Disclosures 267
The Settlement Statement 268
Part 6 Becoming a Top Dog 269

20 Cutting-Edge Top Dogs 271
The Top Dog's Motivation 272
Destination Websites 272
E-Mail Productivity and Professionalism 278
Specialized Training and Professional Designations 279

21 Giving and Getting Support 283
The Top Dog Plan 284
Hiring a Business Coach 284
Monitoring Personal and Professional Power 285
Obtaining Technology Support 287
Administrative Assistance 289
Obtaining Virtual Assistance 295
Virtual Assistance Versus Live Assistance 296
Receiving Spiritual Support 297
Giving Support Through Mentorship 298

22 Staging Your Listings 299
The Stage for Home Staging 299
Staging Is a Sensitive Subject 300
Convincing Clients to Stage 301
What Is Staging? 302
Staging Is an Investment 306

23 Future Income Streams 309
Creating Future Income Streams 310
The Rich Dad Books 310
Investing in Real Estate Continually 311
Take Commissions as Equity Interests 311
Facilitating Stock Market Transition 313
Selling Your Business 317

Glossary 323
Index 329

Foreward

By Richard Mendenhall, 2001 Past President of the National Association of REALTORS

If you are in the real estate business or considering making real estate sales your career, you need to read this book. Marilyn Sullivan brings a new and refreshing perspective to the real estate profession. As a past president of the National Association of Realtors, I can attest to the fact that the real estate industry is experiencing phenomenal change in the way we do business from the ground floor up. As a result, there is a need for a kind of refurbishing of the way real estate professionals represent and communicate with their clients. Marilyn Sullivan is able to address these issues from many vantage points through her expertise as a real estate broker, lawyer, author and entrepreneur over the past 25 years.

Marilyn's legal background gives her the tools to define the job of the real estate agent as more of a professional client advocate instead of a salesperson geared toward selling a client on a product. As a broker and lawyer who has analyzed the legal obligation of the real estate agent to her client from both perspectives, she is able to introduce you to a New Ideal in the way real estate professionals represent their clients. This important book tutors you in this updated and upgraded model of providing ethics-based, client-first service to clientele. The New Ideal as presented in this book is an about-face from salesperson mentality to professional real estate practitioner as the image of the real estate agent evolves with its changing marketplace.

The real estate industry is both rewarded and challenged by technological innovation. The handshake of yesteryear has turned into high tech methods of conducting business. The business of real estate sales has become so directly linked to the Internet and to a well-organized contacts database, by virtue of its endless stream of people, that technology must be the mainstay of your business.
This book shows you how to stay in step with technology and to incorporate it fully into your business, yet still retain the personal touch, which is so important in the real estate business.

Real estate professionals are entrepreneurs in every sense of the word. We work under a company's logo, but we are the owners and operators of our own small businesses. If you come to real estate with an entrepreneurial state of mind, you will have the best chance to achieve maximum success, personal fulfillment and optimum profit. In this excellent new book, Marilyn coaches you to set your limits high and reach them. Her approach is both practical and philosophical, incorporating high ideals, creative thinking and practical solutions.

As an innovator of deal-making strategies, Marilyn mentors you to sharpen your creative mind set for forging your own specialties and making deals happen. Home staging is emphasized as a valuable way to advance your listing package and increase the market for residential listings. She also shows you a method of reverse farming whereby your market finds you 24-7 through scrupulous building and indexing of your web site.

Marilyn also shares her proven technology-based marketing technique called the Referral Stream System to help you build a business that is entirely referral-based. Her Future Income Stream strategies will cause you to view your earnings as long-term investments instead of short-term sources of income, transforming you into a profit-earning investor. You will be motivated to adopt an investor state of mind as you are tutored to become a Top Dog in your field.

While many other books have been written about how to achieve success as a real estate agent, this book is a treatise on how to practice real estate in a more productive, professional manner. Let me say it one more time, if you are in the real estate business or considering making real estate sales your career, you need to read this book.

Richard Mendenhall
2001 Past President of the National Association of REALTORS

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