hi

looking to do a discount brokerage model---is it advisable to have an office address/virtual office

or

just run it from home

Clients/Customers just want Top-Notch Service, Support and Advertising . . . . but at a Discount Price.

For the most part, I don't think they care one iota about you, or where you work, as long as you get the job done.

There are other opinions. Do a search of "Home Office" ----->

I think this will depend almost entirely on the client and his/her personal take on it. As a general rule of thumb, though, I think that a strictly at-home agent will have less of a chance of landing large corporate clients simply because corporations (generally) are very formal and are likely to not appreciate the fact that their agent does not operate out of a formal office setting.

What is your definition of corporate clients, Relocation companies and/or FHLMC, FNMA, Banks, etc? I disagree generally with you. RE today is far different than when I started in 1989 and I don't mean just the market. Performance and consistency of execution in that performance has nothing to do with bricks and mortars whether SOHO or a strictly office building and location. When I started the PRC teletype was only at the office and MLS books were the key to having a 2 week record of what was available. Now and for the past decade or so we have internet. If you did not get along with one broker, who had the listing your buyer wanted, you would know someone else in another office and they could pick up the key and meet you there or submit the offer. Now we have electronic key boxes anytime for use. Information can be anywhere in the SOHO, bricks and mortar office, the vehicle and on your hip or in your purse.

I am only as good as my last transaction is about the best way to sum up my mantra, other than my sign off phrase. If I the repeat performance of the last transaction again and again and again, I have found from my experience the corporations do not care one wit where you office. 50% of my time is spent in my mobile office in my Lex, using an bidirectional amplifier booster for signal, an autodesk, a laptop, printer, WiMax, scanner...I got it all right there and again at my SOHO when I get back in. Its up to you as agent/broker how bad you want it, if there is a fire in your belly to succeed because the money will follow. My clients are performance oriented and the majority IMHO do not care where I park myself to work. Just that I get the work done, get the property sold, do in fast or a reasonable time and take care of everything in betweento get it to the table for an escrow close.

If you are setting up a brokerage then I think you need a physical office. No office = fly by operation in my mind. It would probably hard to attract quality agents to work for you with out one.

On the other hand if your an agent a home office works fine, you should be meeting clients at properties.

It just depends on what you want to accomplish.

I am in commercial and most of my clients we meet at a restaurant,a building they own,or an internet cafe type place.

So I don't need a bricks and mortar for what I do and it's wasted money to be put to better use elsewhere in my business.

If you want to do a discount model the sellers could care less as they are focused on the low fees and saving money.

If you are trying a virtual 100% brokerage I have found the lackluster agents want to join and the top producers are over demanding.

After years of trail and error my best combo has been to do my own deals and make my own investments. No headache and the money is great.

I'm a 100% virtual brokerage. But I also have no agents, primarily because I just don't want to spend the money buying the software technology to handle that (and I really enjoying working independently anyhow).

I had my first truly awkward "I can't find your address on your website, where's your office located?" conversation from a potential buyer the other day. I say it's awkward because there was a looooooong pause when I responded that my office was located at my house, and that I'd be happy to meet them at a location much more convenient to them instead.

Usually, I'm quite forthcoming about the fact that I don't have an office, and as a general rule, potential clients quickly buy into the idea of the virtual office when I tell them it means I have no overhead costs and can therefore charge them much lower commissions or give them hefty commission rebates.

Even if I did lose that aforementioned lead (and I didn't--we set an appointment for that afternoon and are touring a few more listings this coming week), I'd still be far ahead financially.

Now, depending on how large you're planning on YOUR brokerage to be, you may well need an office, especially if you're planning on being large enough to have assistants, receptionists, etc. It really does help to have those kinds of operations consolidated into a more physically centralized space, even if your agents aren't ever going to be there.

I think you can get away with either if you have the correct set-up and systems to support it. I dont think there is absolutely anything wrong with not having a corporate headcourters/office. If you are, however, want to employ agents and such then there are of course positive and negatives to both a virtual office and a phisical office.

My clients do not seem to mind.

A few ask...I explain how much an office costs, and that I would have to pass that on to my clients as increased fees, etc.

They switch to how smart I am for saving money and still providing great service.

When clinets ask if we should meet at the office, I ask them where they are coming from and suggest a restaurant or fast food place somewhere near the properties or in between our two locations. Most go with it.

Telling sellers that you work out of your home probably wouldn't be so bad because most of their transaction is done at their home, and, you usually know what you're going to need - contract, addendum, etc, before you go.

I would still get a feeling of fly-by-night in meeting buyers at public places because that's about the only place you've got to go unless you go to their home and use all THEIR supplies, or, to their hotel if the hotel is gracious enough to let you set up shop in the lobby or use THEIR supplies. You have a buyer who has sent you some listing choices but wants to discuss these listings and also wants to go over listings on the internet. Then you end up printing numerous listings, your agent copy and the buyer's version of the listing. You'd have to carry a computer, printer, connection, paper, stashes of ink, and then print them in your car or at a cafe?!! I can see it happening when you're checking, at that very instant, to see if any new listings have hit the market - printing a listing or two in that fashion.

I don't know about everyone else, but, when I can get a buyer to devote at least 9-10 hours of looking at homes, I try to cram in as many as possible (better to get it over and done with than dragging on for days on end so you can devote time to the next client) - and they're usually willing to see that many when the properties meet all their criteria. I know other agents say to narrow down their choices, but many buyers don't really know what they want. They think they do - until they see how much their "wants" really cost against their "needs". In an office setting, everyone can relax and take their time, - there's no interruptions and no distractions.

Perhaps in years down the road, the public will accept working out of your car like that or always meeting somewhere in public. I certainly don't want my lawyer or doctor working out of a car. I'd think they were working "under the radar" of the licensing bureau.

Speaking of licensing, in VA, a broker is required to have an office. They can have a home office but it must be available to the public and the public cannot enter the home's "living" area. Pretty hard to do in most homes unless you specifically had it built for that or converted a garage into an office and added a bathroom. I am quite sure there are a number of these violations in VA in that regard. I wait for the day (if it hasn't happened already) that the licensing board comes to do an inspection and find the "home" does not meet the criteria. They announced last year that they were going to step up inspections.

On top of that, I DON'T want potential clients knowing where I live. They'd have to be pretty special for me to share the info (despite the fact they might be able to find it on public information sights, but even that's pretty nil b/c most stuff is under a different name (legal alias).

I represented the seller and the buyer on the house across the street from my residence so these buyers knew where I lived. Tried to be friends with them - apart, they were great but together they fought like cats and dogs and tried to drag me into it if I was alone with either one. Had they been just regular neighbors I didn't know, I wouldn't have learned all the icky details of their personal life.

I'll stick with an office. I only pay $300/mo. which includes utilities - not much different than these virtual offices that charge $300 per transaction.

Get addresses and hours of business for your local libraries. They are normally quiet during daytime, air conditioned, large tables, plenty of parking and free to use.

VA Broker - I couldn't rent a garage for $300 in my neighborhood - LOL! Even an office share would be around $2,500/mo.

Wow! Well, there are a few places here where the rent is fairly cheap - they just raised my rent up six months ago from the $275 I was paying for the past 3 yrs. We're only talking about an 11x11 room - but it works for meeting clients. Faces a four-lane, well-used highway, 2nd story with large windows - my office also faces the highway and the parking lot. Now the downstairs offices (smaller) were going for $200 or so, but no windows and they're in the back, you can't see the parking lot nor who is coming and going - not good when you're sometimes there in the evening with clients and on the weekends. They had a potential client who wanted the whole second floor (there are 4 offices there) but 3 of us wouldn't sell out. Although now, I wished I had (provided the back room was $100/mo. instead) because I work from home except when I need to meet clients (and pick up my mail weekly) and the tenant beside me, who I really liked, left shortly thereafter.

Yeah, you get a great deal. I, too, would rent an office for that price. An office of that size here would be at minium $2500 - even in the worst neighborhoods and could go as high as $6,000/mo. Of course, San Francisco is known to be pricey, so many of us work from home.

IMO I would have an office. If you are trying to cut costs I would just get a small office.

I think in PA if you have your own real estate company you are required to have an office with at least two distinct areas, one for private meeting areas(a closing room per se)

I do not know if there is any allowance in the PA real estate commission rules for virtual offices.

PA has no provision for a virtual office. It must be as Perky described and it is actually inspected before a license to operate is issued.

Of course the OP is in Canada..but ultimately the decision of whether to have an office or not depends on your governing authorities...in PA, it is not allowed...obviously in other areas it is...

We get quite a few walk-in customers so it is to our advantage to have an office.

I'm an independant Broker / Owner working out of my home office in Utah and it's legal and my clients are fine with it.

I do not think it matters. Customers are looking for trustworthy agents.

I have been using my home office almost exclusively for two decades. In my experience, it is accepted now much better than it was when I started. In fact, many of my clients tele-commute, and understand that much more is often accomplished at home (as long as you are disciplined) over a traditional office.

People are most concerned about the quality of service. If a client sees you slacking off they will drop you. IMO you can work from a home office with no problem if you want to work with the average person. If you want to go higher end luxury you will need an office.

Wow! I wished VA would do that!

this isnt true,..i work the mid to high end 500k-1mill

they never once ask me to come to my office..
my office is a nice waterfront location..
but none of my clients ever want to meet me there..
and since there are no buyers and sellers in my office..
im never there...

I don't think it matters if you have an office or not. IMHO, it is a decision based on your personal preference, as well as how big your operation is. Most clients will want to view your properties, which (obviously) is done on site; therefore, it often doesn't matter if you have an office or work out of a little office under your stairs. :)

Hi everyone--this is my first time on this forum, but this question caught my eye.

I've always worked from home. It's probably not the BEST, but I think it's worth the saved cost.

Especially if you live in an area where office space is even moderately expensive, and you haven't yet worked up the deal volume such that your yearly office rent would be more than 15% of your annual revenue as agent. I would say target that 15% break-even before investing in formal space.

BUT, if possible, try to create a formal space in your home with a professional desk, framed paperwork on the walls, etc. Make it look as formal as possible, and try to make it close to your entryway so that clients do not have to walk through different rooms in your home to get to your office space.

Also, if your home is way "out there" in the middle of the woods or something, think twice before inviting clients to this "office". Then the virtual model is probably the way to go, or think more about making 20% your break-even target.

Hi,
I don't think that it matters a lot. People are generally looking for good services in their budget and a reliable person. It hardly matters, where they work from.

Even when I worked for C21 and had office space, I was out of the office except for meetings.
Meeting Buyers at properties that I show and Sellers at their home. No client wants to make a detour to visit an office. We are also almost paper less. No need to print listings. I show them on IPAD. Last 4 years I lost only one client who wanted to visit an office. Rest, appreciate that we are meeting at property.

you must have a office for that. Because it is really very essential for professionals.