First broker was a very pleasant lady with CB....very informative, charges no desk fees,supplies business cards, provides free training....but kind of required that I needed to devote time for " in time" as far as spending time in the office, and that would require my having to resign from my current P/T job in another job I have.....2nd interview was with a guy who MUST have been a used car salesman in a previous life, very type-A personality....maybe even type AAAA+++, a bit too much for me...have to buy my own business cards, he's not affiliated with a major brokerage, he an independent broker, no desk fees...he will provide training for me, free training and is flexible with my training and is willing to work with me as far as my other job goes...

I'd really like to go with the CB job, only thing is, I'd have to resign my other job, BUT my territory would be rather big....very confused here as far as what to do

I started out with Coldwell Banker, I think they are a good company to begin with. They have excellent training.

If you are serious about your real estate career, you will need to devote time for training and gaining clients. However, I would not quit a job just starting out, you may even pick up some clients from your other job :-)...Best wishes!

Thanks, Peace...I much prefer the Coldwell Banker brand...and I don't think I'll be quitting my other job....when you were with them, were they a 50/50 split company?

Yes, unfortunately I started out on a 50/50 split. They would go up according to your production.

They do a lot of advertising and have receptionists to take care of all of the appointments and some of the paperwork, which is nice... so it was'nt too bad...

BUT my territory would be rather big.

What does that mean. They assign territories?

I think you need to discover what type of training each provide. There are different levels of training. There is the kind that tells you how to find clients and nothing else. Then there is the kind that helps you find clients and also how to do the transactions without getting sued and how to handle it smoothly.

Buying business cards shouldn't be one of your reasons for joining a company over another. They don't cost that much. The split and type of training is much more important then that.

Remember not all CB companies are the same. The one in my area doesn't do to much advertising. In fact that company had a total of 2 closings last month. And I can't remember the last time I saw a CB ad on TV if that's what you are talking about.

I agree that business cards are not a determining factor, but just from my 2 interviews, I found the one with CB to be much more professionally presented...she seemed upfront and interested in Me, rather than listening to this other guy ramble on about how good HE is !
CB does not have ANY listings in my area at all, just Remax and a LOT of independant brokers...CB requires me to be in their office to answer phones and be a member of some Rotary club type of establishment....
Seeing as this is my first venture into the real estate sales business, I would appreciate any and all information I can gather from you experienced professionals in here.

It certainly sounds like you are leaning towards CB, and I would do the same in your situation. What helped me decide with KW as my first agency is that the mentor/broker seemed to have a sincere interest in helping me succeed, whereas some others brokers with whom I interviewed were more apathetic. It seems like you already made up your mind about CB.

The only problem I have with CB broker, was her flexibility as far as my working my part time job until early afternoon....she wants me in the office on a set time during the week. I'd like to have some guaranteed money coming in , especially with my wife being out of work and just working P/T herself...the other broker, the fat talking used car salesman type, is flexible with his training...but his training lasts 5 weeks, whereas CBs' is just 7-10 days...I'd like to really jump onboard with someone BEFORE the tax credit ends on 4/30 as well.

Why only two brokers, talk to some others!!

I have only been contacted by 3 of them so far...CB and 2 Independants....after the first Independant, I'm afraid to speak to the 3rd, LOL....I sat with the guy for over an hour and all he did was talk about himself,how great he is...kind of reminded me a LOT of the Ricky Gervais character on the British Office, especially the part where he said..." I hold all the training sessions here myself, I really like making people laugh"

Why not interview the RE/MAX and other independents with listings in your area? You know if you are going to be in that CB office to answer the phones you are going to be getting sign calls from wherever they have listings. You don't have to wait to be contacted by them.

I agree.

[quote=Doin' bpose][quote=MontyC21]Why only two brokers, talk to some others!! [/quote]

I agree. [/quote]

Agreed as well, I'm still in the process of interviewing my brokers, and I have gone as far as just walking in w/o an appointment to see if they are all just sitting around or working..

I've been to just over 10 my self.. so far.

manning. Of the ones you just have walked in have you gotten to talk to anyone? I'm just curious.

I usually end up with a "sales/office manager" and they are almost always available. Most of the "large" companies around here the principal broker is not at the actual office I'm looking at working out of.

Thought I would chime in here. I have been with Re/Max since 1998- and no other brand. When you are sure of your selling abilities it is the cheapest brand with the most Brand support.
If you have mainaly Re/Max in your area, you should speak to them.

The bone I have to pick with CB is the ridiculous additional $200 fees that buyers and sellers are expected to pay. When they refuse, guess who pays corporate that "fee for having a client." Yes! Agents!

I hired a CB agent for myself to sell an out of state property. They were the prevailing agency in the area in NC where I sold the property. Their contract was absurdly long, as well as the "fee." They wanted to "force" my transaction through relocation- because I was out of state. I contacted a specific agent on my own! I told that Broker- give it to my girl 100% without any referrals to "relo" or I was outta there! They complied.

Be careful. Is all I am saying. There are many ways to get this done. When you know you can sell, then look at it on a yearly basis and go with the fee structure that works.

"street"

Re/Max is by FAR the cheapest! for some reason everyone keeps telling me to stay away because they are so expencive? Are people not actually doing the math? My local is offering 70/30 w/ the 30 paying towards my deskfees, untill they are paid w/ no money owed if I don't meet cap (12k) once I hit the 12k I move to 95/5.

Coldwell on the other hand is saying 60/40 till 20k then 88/12.. seems like simple math to me!




Another question I'm having is how it is when there is a "Team" in house..

ie: Principal broker has a team, also runs the branch, branch has a dedicated sales manager to work with other people in the branch. Total full time at branch is 15, 8 of them are on the "team." Am I hurting myself joining this type of atmosphere?

no desk fees on CB with me, just 50/50 until i gett 25k then it goes 60/40

pslt: 50/50 till 25k in my opinion is a 25k desk fee..am I looking at this the wrong way?

In my case I only have a desk fee if I sell, and that is paid by my 30% to them at 12k a year@ re/max...

CB has it 50/50 no desk fees, ever

CB is in trouble, very indebted. I get their REO listings in my area even though we have a CB office. I am a REMAX agent. They will very liekly be bought out. Shop around.

Only one I see who isn't in trouble is this other nroker, who speaks very highly about himself....all he spoke about was himself the WHOLE interview I had with him

Not advocating either way, but generally the balloon broker's cap must be attained every year. If you don't make the cap in your first year, for instance, the remaining amount carries to the next year, and so on and so on.
Also, read the IC agreement carefully. If you leave (Balloon)and haven't made the cap amount, you are responsible for the amount remaining. Some (but not all) brokers will go to court and get a judgement for the amount owed based on the contract you signed.
I know there is a balloon broker in this market that sued 2 agents in 2009 that joined in January and left in May. One ended up filing bankruptcy.

And I worked for several years at a balloon office under this program and never has a problem making the cap amount by April, but YMMV, especially since you are very new to the business.

I left Re\Max a year ago. I had worked at Re\Max for 5 years. Re\Max has its advantages, but they are expensive to work at (in my area).

I talked to CB, I liked their set-up. The CB going under has been a rumor I have heard for 6 years now. They still seem strong though. There training seemed good, the fees were very minimal. Much like Most Brokerages though, they are independantly owned and operated.

There is still going to be a cost to belong to any company. They may not call it a desk fee. At remax you pay a 295 (maybe 395/yr) fee to Re\Max international, plus 5% of every transaction goes to International. CB has a similair fee paid to Corporate. Keller Williams calls it something different, none of its free.

CB and KW In my opinion are great for new agents. They provide alot of support and training. I have never seen that in a Re\Max. The only downfall is though, they expect you to commit, so your PT job may be in jeopardy.

I think I am going to email the CB broker and tell her I'd really want to go with her brokerage, but her unwillingness to be flexible with my schedule ( until summer, as I work for a local school department, part time ) is the only drawback to my signing on with her

Interview other brokers!!!!!

This job is all about reaching out and talking to people. Google real estate for your city, call the phone #, ask for the managing broker and say "Hi, my name is Joe Schmoe and I am a new agent looking to hang my license at a great company. Can you tell me what you do for you new agents to make the successful?" And then let them sell you.

Call ten right now. ask lots of questions. you are interviewing them! If you cannot even do this, you are in the wrong business.

There is almost a 90 percent chance you will FAIL in this business. At some point you have to take the leap of faith and go ALL in !

The part-time job is an problem most new agents face.I would say if you have 6 months of reserves then go in full time. TRAINING IS NOT a 7 day or a 2 week course. Learning is a life long event. If you treat everyday like you know nothing your mind will be open to learn the most knowledge possible for that day.

Bottom line is I have about 35 agents. I tell them what they need to do to be a success. Many don't listen and the ones that do are closing sales and making money. There is no MAGIC BROKER out there where you will work not much and make a killing selling real estate. Now if you are willing to do what many are not you can have the life of your dreams.

Regardless of which brokerage and broker you have it all comes down to accountability. If you set a good plan and follow it everyday over time positive things will start to happen.

Set so much time each day for prospecting,appointments,blogging,social networking,lunch,etc. By having tasks and a time line you will be highly effective and can moniter results and adjust for maximum returns. Many people that work part-time or full time jobs do a crappy job. Meaning the mindset is what is the least I can do to get this paycheck and not get fired.

In real estate you have to really put the work in and nobody is looking over your shoulder pushing you. Instead of what brokerage you need to find out if you really have what it takes to give it a go in this business.

well, there it is in a nutshell.....i guess I will suck as an agent

Those are your words-not mine. If that's all you got out of that post re-read it again.

What I will say is most new agents idea of real estate in licensing class doesn't come close to the real world.

Success lies with you and the actions you take not the brokerage you are with. If you look at top earners at different brokerages they all have similar traits that make them a success.

Maybe you are one of the ten percent who knows. I think the part-time job will be a crutch a hinder your transition to gain traction and do real estate full time. What you need to do as a new agent is go with a top producer who will put you on their team,train you,and you will have a steady stream of closings so you can do real estate full time and not have the other job. Sure you will be on a 50/50 split but that is expected when you need to learn and are new. Over time you will start picking up traits to generate your own business and branch out on your own if you so choose.

good luck

I doubt that it is unwillingness. When a Company extablishes a "Policy" that applies to all sales personnel, they forfeit their flexibility.

I'm not a Franchisee; but I am very familiar with their workings, in Real Estate and elsewhere. The only exception I know of with CB on this Part-Time issue is one where an Agency had a salesman who was also the Road Superintendent for a small town at the time they became a CB Franchise . . . . and then even he had to document that he was devoting the equivalent of full-time to his Real Estate endeavors.

Everyone wants to be the exception. But sometimes a "Policy" works to the advantage of the Staff; sometimes it works to their disadvantage. The point is "it works" because it makes difficult issues predictable, kind of like a constitution. You will find that you don't want to work in an environment where there is too much flexibility.

If it were 5 years ago, I'd have no problem quitting my PT job and going in head first into this career, but as you all know, times are different

I gave up a good job with benefits to do real estate. To this point, I have not looked back. You will be amazed at how many more deals "fall into your lap" when full time.

LOL, yeah, but did you have a paranoid wife...?

LOL I certainly did when I gave up my full time job for real estate....now I am the paranoid one because she is giving up her full time job to assist me and home school our little one. As I have told other people who have looked to get into the business, you can't wait to be successful and then put in the time....you must put in the time to become successful.

I sure do ! Doesn't matter how much I make so don't plan on that going away !

pslt1156

Just go with the best deal, provided they have some name recognition in your market area. Training is easy to acquire. KEEP YOUR JOB!!!

Years ago I had CB agents asking to join my office. They brought over their training materials and I had them throw it out after reviewing it with them. I thought no wonder they're not doing any real business.

I always thought CB's business model was to have a 1000 agents doing a deal with a friend or relative twice a year with a low slit rather then have 40 agents doing 25 deals a year with a much better split. Money is going to keep your business going so get as good a deal as you can.

[quote=manning]"street"

Another question I'm having is how it is when there is a "Team" in house..

ie: Principal broker has a team, also runs the branch, branch has a dedicated sales manager to work with other people in the branch. Total full time at branch is 15, 8 of them are on the "team." Am I hurting myself joining this type of atmosphere? [/quote]

Can anyone answer this question?