CITY INSIGHT HOUSTON   •   October 23, 2018

Why do agents fail within their first year?

Top Reasons why real estate agents fail

Non-existent or delusional business plan of revenue.

Most agents do not plan ahead on how their income flow is going to change and that’s understandable. In order to be part of the 20% that do succeed, City Insight Houston guides agents on planning and implementing a legitimate business plan that can help agents achieve the numbers they want. Start small, scale up, and visualize with reason. 

Lack of sufficient start-up capital.

This is such a major point that goes along with not being aware of what you are getting into. Before starting anything, you will need pay for your real estate classes. This cost will vary depending on which program you go with. Then you have the cost to sign up for TREC, your real estate exam cost and costs for fingerprints. Then you have the cost to sign up for NAR and HAR (HAR and NAR have different levels of payments as well so if you want to go for the full package be prepared, each package is worth it). You’ll have to also take into account all the other marketing material you will need, and additional fees on miscellaneous tasks. That’s still not everything. Now add all your current  bills and expenses because they are not going to stop (rent/insurance/car/groceries etc). Your first close on a real estate transaction takes around 90 days to pay out. The great thing is this “struggle” is only at the beginning. After the first phase is done, you will see your income go back up and you should be able to keep your business going as you start to close more transactions.

Ineffective marketing strategies.

Because there are hundreds of options available for you to market yourself, could explain why real estate agents fail. It’s easy to get caught up and use the first strategy you see. While this may work, the potential with using the right strategy is exponentially more efficient. At City Insight Houston, we have done the digging and searching for the best strategies. We use multiple platforms and a plan that is tailored to each agent. 

Lack of basic sales and/or business skills.

Real Estate is not as easy as the professionals and movies make it seem. Sales and business skills are learned through experiences and there are a lot of great mentors and books to teach you. This subject is a self learning journey and like everything in life, if you are just starting out, take it slow and master one skill at a time. For example, start out by being an expert in leasing and focus on a targeted area. Then you can start learning a different strategy, then another one, and so on. You will continuously improve for the rest of your years so don’t feel bad if the results are not what you expect at first. 

Lack of self-motivation/drive.

At the end of the day you are in business. This is your business. Growing up, we are taught that you get a job, get the training, get told what to do and when to do it, and you’re pushed to work otherwise you are fired. With real estate, there is no one pushing you and nobody will thats why real estate agents fail.  You have to build the mindset to be self motivated. We can not teach mindset, this should already be burning inside of you if you truly want to be in this business.

Lack of effective mentoring by office managers/brokers.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of brokers to choose from and only few are well established and have effective mentoring. At City Insight Houston, we’ve built a more modernized and hands on program to mentor you through each step. Check out our previous article on the subject in our blog post, “Jumpstart on your real estate career.” All in all, it comes down to building the right mindset to teach yourself. Observe what other top agents are doing and copy them. Network and chat with other agents. This will help you build tips and strategies that fit your personality. We will introduce you to everything we have learned step by step and help guide you as you master each skill and strategy.

Just plain worn out.

This is especially true if you did not prepare for the initial costs of being an agent. If you do get worn out, don’t let it get to you! Always remember your goal and what you are doing this for and why you started. The beauty of real estate is that it all depends on you; you get out of it what you put in. If you find your reason for doing real estate isn’t motivating you enough, take a day or a couple days off to do something random and fun that you’ll enjoy. This will help you feel refreshed and reenergized and hopefully help you realize real estate opportunities are everywhere. 

Common Problems

Agents are bombarded with far too many shiny objects, and it can become difficult to concentrate on important things like leads. There are strategies and methods out there that you can do like posting on social media. It can be easy to get romantic with this but you could potentially forget your purpose of getting leads and not wasting time. 

Do not fall into the category of suffering from the “magic pill syndrome” and start thinking that just one thing will solve your problems. This is highly unlikely if you’re focusing on only one form of marketing or lead generating and expecting it to continue giving you business. You need to constantly be adapting. On the other hand, trying too many strategies can be unsatisfactory as well. We will guide you into learning to find a balance. 

Another common problem is listening to “guru’s” who have never even sold real estate. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people who like to preach or advertise (in their own words) courses that they themselves have not taken. True experienced guru’s have plenty of proof to show what they have done. They obviously won’t tell you all their strategies and secrets but learn from the information they do give out. 

Become the 20%

Find a brokerage that offers training sessions for their agents and support from your teammates.

Work hard on your business; especially during the first 90 days.

Stop listening to negative people and focus on taking advice ONLY from agents who have earned what you want to earn. Read the books and stories of great successful real estate agents. 

Practice and recite daily affirmations and program your brain for success by having the proper mindset. 

Remember: Garbage in – Garbage out. Don’t let negativity into your mind. You will get out of your mind what you put into it. 

Be cool. Not like “rockstar” cool, rather be authentic. Don’t try to be something/someone you’re not. The right people will be attracted to who you “really” are.