Why Mentoring is Important in Real Estate Sales

The truth is that becoming a real estate agent is a lot easier than becoming a successful one. Taking real estate classes online and passing the real estate exam is the easy part. After you get your real estate license, the next step is to get connected with a brokerage and jump into production as quickly as you can.

One way that newer Realtors accelerate their chances of making it in the business is by getting paired up with a mentor. There are many reasons why mentors work and can bend the learning curve for a newer agent. I wanted to share a few of these so you know that you aren’t going to be thrown to the wolves in most real estate offices. You’ll have help in the form of a mentor.

Mentors Increase Your Chances of Actually Staying in the Business

Ask any big broker and they will tell you that the biggest burden they face in their business isn’t actually getting sued by an angry client. It’s actually recruitment and retention. The burnout rate for newer agents is so high that most companies have a stated goal of hiring 5-10 new agents per month because so many new agents don’t end up making it. This in turn means that the broker has to put resources into recruitment leaving them less time to train their newer sales staff. It’s a vicious cycle.

A great mentor can give 1:1 advice to a mentee and help them work through concerns which helps retain great salespeople.

By keeping agent turnover low, the broker can build a strong network of experienced and qualified agents rather than dealing with the constant task of recruiting newer agents to replace the ones that leave.

Time Savings for The Broker

Imagine large real estate brokerages. I define a “large” real estate company as one with at least 100 agents. There is really no effective way that one man or woman can be there to answer questions, coach and train a staff that large and do it consistently.

For this reason, a well thought out mentorship program is an easy way to save the broker time and hassle. By leveraging mentors, newer agents with questions can look to their mentor for help as opposed to hunting down an already stretched-too-thin broker/owner. This frees the broker up to only answer those high-level questions that stump even the best of mentors.

Additionally, mentors also play a vital role in reducing the “on-the-job” training necessary for newer agents working on their first escrow. In effect, the mentor can act as a ‘project-based’ sounding board for help on a deal-by-deal basis. This will allow the broker to invest more time working on higher level training rather than putting out deal specific fires.

Mentors Offer Encouragement and Act as a Cheerleader

Great mentors should help us see those things that we would not otherwise recognize. For newer agents this means that their mentor is able to realize what you are capable of achieving and will put you on the track to realize your potential.

This is especially true in the real estate business where there are several ups and downs in the course of a day and that every deal is on life support at some point in the escrow process.

Helping a newer agent manage their emotions and keep their eye on the finish line is a critical aspect of the business.

A great mentor can give a boost to the confidence that a newer agent needs.

Mentors Have Experience That They Can Pass On

Every veteran real estate agent has had a buyer buy from someone else or a seller who didn’t give them the listing. Understanding how to navigate these emotional ups and downs is critical.

A mentor who is transparent about their experience has likely been where you are, and has made the same mistakes you might have made or are about to make.

A good mentor will share their own mistakes, so they aren’t repeated by a newer agent.

Before you get a real estate mentor, I’m guessing that you need to sign up for online real estate classes. Please call me at 888 768 5285 and I would be happy to discuss your career and help you get started in our great business of listing and selling real estate.

Love,

Kartik