Hi,

I am now faced with a decision that will impact the rest of my life, and I can't seem to decide which way to go. Here's the scenario:

I have been in RE for 2 years, and absolutely love it. I work in a small agency and am currently the top agent, aside from the owner/broker. The part I am not crazy about is prospection, but if I look back finding clients hasn't been THAT hard. But, still, this is an item I don't think I'll ever be 100% comfortable with.

My first year was somewhat difficult, but this past one has been awesome. I have proven to myself I can actually make a good living at this, and have gained tremendous knowledge of my market, etc.

I have always been attracted to one of the top teams in my city. A few months ago I sent them my cv, thinking it would fall in the cracks and don't get noticed. I got a call back and had a first interview with the team director. I then got a second interview with the actual ''leader'' and his other director, which lasted 2 hours. I left that meeting emotionally drained and didn't know if I had gotten in or not. The next day I got a call saying the whole team wanted to meet me next week.

I think I may have gotten the gig.

Now, for the past week the reality of it all has actually hit me and I don't know what to do.

My worry is mostly tied to the financial and time management aspect of it.

According to the numbers I ran, I would have to close about 3 times as many deals to achieve the same salary I made this past year (based on the way the team works).

Now, I am a hard worker and am not afraid to get my hands dirty, BUT, I am also quite confident that, even if those clients are given to me and no prospection is needed on my part, the time it will take to close 3 times as many clients is probably astonishing.

I am at a loss. I can't seem to decide. I don't have a gut feeling that tells me which way to go.

I am now coming to you guys for some guidance.

Thank you!

I would stay put.

Why go from being your own boss, which you have done successfully, to someone else's worker bee?

If traditional prospecting is a turn off for you, consider pursuing expireds, or check out Jennifer Allan's books Sell With Soul, and If You Aren't Having Fun Selling Real Estate You Aren't Doing It Right. http://www.sellwithsoul.com is her website. She is a member of this board but hasn't been here in a while - you could send her a PM to say hi and ask her about her books.

Her methods are not liked by those who espouse traditional in-your-face prospecting methods.

I do not really prospect at all. I generate most of my business from the Internet and from personal referrals. I will contact expireds if I want the listing badly enough - I don't consider calling an expired the same thing as cold calling people out of the blue.

So . . . . what are the benefits (for you) of leaving where you are and joining this "team" ?

It sounds like they want you MORE than you need them !

What's in it for me?

Being able to be out in the field without prospecting. Somewhat of a ''guaranteed'' income coming from the commission pool. Less worry about getting business. More coaching. More clients. Being exposed to more real estate than I am now, being on my own.

What I forgot to mention that that my current listings (not sold before I join the team) - about 4, would now get signed under the ''leader'' (if my clients accept to sign of course). I would basically loose them as they would now enter the pool. All listings are officially under the leader's name.

I know it sounds crazy for me to go there. If I analyze how I tend to think, I realize that I start getting real nervous when I don't have anything official down the pipeline. Like, right now for example. Sure, I work with buyers and I have some listings, but I have notarized all that was to be notarized. That's when I tend to get nervous.

Also - when I say prospecting...I don't cold call people. I do expireds by mail, do lots of mailings, use Twitter and FB, do open houses for other brokers, etc.

Urrghghh.

I would never do it. But that's me.

There is always a trade off. I value my independence more than anything; I would hate having to "punch a clock" per se for someone else other than the clients I choose to make appointments with...

Your income isn't really guaranteed is it? Isn't it like everyone else's, based on sales? You are now interdependent on others as well as answerable to them. Not for me!

But hey...I'm just a rogue.

I'm not in Canada; but if you currently work under the auspices of a Canadian Broker . . . . wouldn't your current Listings stay right where they are, with your current Broker? At least that's the way it would be in U.S. jurisdictions . . . . the Listings BELONG the Brokerage.

And when you go to a new Brokerage, your new Listings will then belong to that Broker . . . . NOT some "leader".

The listings do belong to the brokerage but each brokerage will have it's own policies as spelled out in their contracts with regards to what happens with listings if you go to a different brokerage.

You join the team and fast forward 5 years to where you want to part ways with the team.

You have no experience generating leads.
You have no sales record to use to generate leads because the team takes all the credit.
You will be starting 'new' all over again.

Where you are now you can build up a business which you can take with you whenever you get the urge to move to a new company.

Why in the world would you want to join a team where they take 2/3 of your money?

[quote=Vermont][quote=MarieMtl]What I forgot to mention that that my current listings (not sold before I join the team) - about 4, would now get signed under the ''leader'' (if my clients accept to sign of course).[/quote]
I'm not in Canada; but if you currently work under the auspices of a Canadian Broker . . . . wouldn't your current Listings stay right where they are, with your current Broker? At least that's the way it would be in U.S. jurisdictions . . . . the Listings BELONG the Brokerage. [/quote]

Hi Vermont,

Yes, technically they would belong to my current brokerage firm. However, knowing my broker, she would most likely ask me to ask my current clients how THEY wish to proceed with the change. I would tend to think they will likely wish to stay with me (vs a broker they don't even know).

That includes a 2M listing. :-= Not sure I'll actually sell it, but I still worked hard to get it, and would hate to see it go to somebody else. :-=

Now I feel bad having pursued that option, if I'm about to tell them I'm not going ahead with it! lol

I guess I have to learn to be even more confident in my own abilities, and learn to deal with uncertainty even further....

The Listings do belong to the broker.

However in the part of Canada, what actually happens can really depend. What normally happens is that the listing is transfered over to the new brokerage with no problem.

However if an agent switches brokerages and the current broker wants to play hardball, I've seen a general brokerage for sale sign go up on the lawn or the listing being transferred to another agent within the original brokerage. When this happens often the listing is put on "DO NOT SHOW" and ends up back with the original agent after the contract expires.

After all as a client I want to deal with a specific agent not somebody that the brokerage assigns to me.

As to the OP. I think that this is a personal choice for you. We have some "teams" similar to what your describing around here, not something I would want to participate in, since the "name" broker seems to be the one making all the money, while all of the agents are on a revolving door.

However if the stress of finding new clients for you is too much, this might be a good thing for you to avoid burn out.

A 3rd option for you might be to form your own team with 2 or 3 other agents in your current office. Since your the top agent I'd bet you'd have no problems finding potential partners.

So you're already doing well, without significant prospecting, and you can do things pretty much your own way. Your option is to work for someone who is going to be calling all the shots, and you'll have to hustle to do triple the volume in order to make the same living.

Sounds like a bad deal to me. If they're THAT excited to have you, clearly they recognize it's going to be benefit them. It doesn't seem like you'll get nearly as much out of it as them. I'd rather be a top performer in a small group than a nobody in a big group.

BTW, I don't enjoy prospecting either, and I don't do it. SOI, referrals, internet marketing, and mailings have worked well enough that I have never needed to cold call, door-knock, or hound FSBOs/expireds (and I don't ever intend to do any of them).

You can always get coaching, training, etc. if and when you want it. Since I don't have to share my commission with anyone, I can pay for all the coaching I want and still be in fine financial shape. Whatever coaching the team offers had better be worth all the extra work you'd have be doing...

Don't feel bad for them, they will find another sucker or brand new agent to do their slave work for them.

Please don't sell yourself short. You've done well. Continue to do so.

Sounds like you've already sold yourself into making this move. If you're already good, it seems like you're hurting your long term prospects. Like bigtoe mentioned, you will have ZERO clients when you decide to move on. At the same time, if you dislike prospecting, then you can stay with this team until they disband, and move on to another team down the road.

Wow... I agree with the others. I too do not enjoy "traditional" prospecting. Although I'm quite new, I have found people seem to gravitate to me naturally because I'm simply being myself - meaning, I'm not being pushy, and I'm truly interested in them, and their needs.

If I were in your shoes, there is no way I would switch to being part of a team. You've clearly proven yourself and your abilities. Continue to do what works for you - and that obviously includes being your own boss. :) If you join the team, it will always be about the numbers.

And I'll point out, that because they likely prospect quite aggressively (not that there's anything wrong with that), your leads may be more difficult for you to manage and relate to, since YOU were not in control of the relationship from day one. If you're like me, you don't care for the prospecting part, you may find you prefer to be in charge of (and responsible for) the relationship from the get go, rather than having them simply passed off to you. Having "prospects" passed-off to me from someone else would feel awkward. But that's just me. :)

Instead of just telling them you don't want to work with them why not use the situation to your advantage?

Tell them the commission split is too small to justify the move and if they are willing to meet your terms you might reconsider. First figure out what it would take for you to switch, jack that number up so you have room to negotiate down and see where you end up.

They obviously want you, now find out how much they are willing to pay. This business is all about negotiations, so start negotiating.

Why not go to a brokerage chain like RE/Max or Keller Williams in Canada that allows you to build your own team?

Whooa thanks everyone for your input.

I honestly don't think the split can be negotiated. They have been working with that system for eons now. You get 25% of your commissions + a % from each transaction each team member closes.

I prepared a text to let them know I'm backing out, but something is stopping me from calling them. Something is also stopping me from ordering signs (which I was supposed to do yesterday).

The point you guys brought up about not having my own clients if I ever wished to leave the team is certainly a valid one. The thing is, in my head anyways, if I go there I'm thinking it's a looooong term thing. Maybe I'm not looking far enough into the future?

One thing that is also a consideration is personalities between my current broker and the other one. I understand it doesn't make a difference in my bank account, but it certainly affects my day to day life. In a nutshell, in my opinion, my current broker should not have an agency. She is a really good agent, but lacks in the coaching and running an agency part. She can get moody and borderline inappropriate in the way she reacts to the slightest things (say, if you jot down someone's phone number without the area code first - something that would lead a normal person to think it's the local area code without having a fit over it).

The other broker is a real source of inspiration. He is a true, true leader which I respect hugely. No fuss, straight shooter. I am inspired every time he gives advice.

Now, how important are these non-financial items? I don't know.

One could say that I should perhaps look for another agency that would be a better fit for me. Maybe I'm wrong, but in my neck of the woods the other agencies tend to be agent mills with little interaction and high fees. I'd rather deal with my broker's tamper tantrums than go elsewhere (on my own) I think.

I also started developing my own brand in the past year, which is also a consideration (my own logo, letterhead, new flyers, etc).

I'm giving myself til the week-end.

Uurgghghh

You would be well served to check out Keller Williams in your area if there is one.

They have a TON (and i mean ALOT) of training in their internal websites. Hundreds of agent interviews with mega agents where they open up their systems, they also take all the mega agents and gather them together where they take all their "how tos" on marketing, organization, etc and compile it into manuals.

I have been in several chains... but if you want to build your own team and get top notch training check them out.

I'm afraid KW isn't present in Quebec!

http://www.remax-quebec.com/en/showHome.rmx

Re/Max is.. I would check them out.

Well I worked for a broker like yours for a few months, then one day she fired me. But that was about a really serious disagreement we had over lead generation and the internet and she was stubborn and bull headed and had a "My way or the highway, get out!" motto. (She is not a broker or owner or even a realtor anymore).

Always have an exit plan - keep your sneakers on - this is a business where people do move about frequently until they find the "one" place where they are finally settled. Being able to be independent is SO important.

As for coaching I think it sucks when brokers don't train their agents - but that could be a subconscious strategy on her part if she is an agent as well - a competing broker is not the best one to work for.

You can get good training from other sources than your broker though. Ask your local board of realtors about training on things like contracts if you need help with that. Then you can look online for a plethora of avenues of training/coaching. Jennifer Allan who I already mentioned is but one coach - there are hundreds that you can find and choose from to suit your style and personality.

You can learn a lot about how NOT to be as far as a realtor goes as well as how to be a terrific realtor by reading blogs on ActiveRain.com - sadly a lot of "fluff" gets manufactured by way of blogs on ActiveRain and you have to dig for the good stuff. But it's there....especially if you have certain subject in mind that you can specifically search for.

Here are interviews with some Mega Agents that someone posted online, you can reverse engineer most of what they do from these.

http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22KW+Agent+Mountain%22

someone posted these online some time ago.

So go find yourself a better broker, whose organization will allow you to do your business the way you want to do it without forking over the bulk of your own earned commissions. Unless you're in the tiniest of towns, surely you have more options than just your current one, and joining a team.

1st rule of negotiations - everything is negotiable.

2nd rule - don't give up until the horse stops breathing and then you beat it for a while just to make sure it's dead.

You are giving up without even trying. If you are too timid to negotiate on your own behalf how can you negotiate for clients?

The worst thing that can happen is they say no, you don't take the job and their respect for you goes up even more for expecting more, and you don't look like a quitter.

of course, now there is a good chance someone on the team has stumbled upon this thread and they are following it now?

IMHO, there is no real, long-term upside on you joining this elite team. Sounds as though you've done well on your own and need to part brokers, but not necessarily to join the team you've mentioned. Best of luck.

I would NEVER do triple the work for the same paycheck. That just seems silly. Besides, these team guys always make it sound like business just falls in your lap. Reality is that someone on that team has to be prospecting and it most likely will end up being you.

Well it's been awhile, so what did you do? I have just read this for the first time and the thought of your joining the team gave me indigestion.

Most of the prospecting of the type you have been doing can be transferred to a part time assistant when the bank account is a little fatter, enough to make you comfortable for awhile and then surprise when you finally do it the bank account should get fatter.

And something else to remember, you should be "prospecting" all the time, it should just be natural if it is done right.

If I were you I would stick with working for myself. You are already successful at it. It seems to be you might be looking for security. This is why you may want to join a team.

The only security you truly have is a flood stream of constant leads. I would get a system. if your into call calling do Mike Ferry - if you're into innovation and have an open mind and want the leads to come to you do Craig Proctor -

The latter is my favorite. I've have a whole lot of success from his system.

Hellos,

Quick update: I decided to stay put. I told them in early Jan.

About a week ago the ''leader'' actually called me to say he was ''hugely disappointed in my decision''. :-?

Anyhoo, what's actually funny is that I currently am in a transaction with them. :)

I've had an excellent month of January - one of my best months ever. I think I would have slit my wrists if I would have had to 'give' these transactions to the team....

As it stands, it's probably one of the best decisions I've ever made.

Thank you ALL for your wonderful input. :)

I can't offer any better advice than what the other members here have already offered. I hope it all goes well with whatever decision you make.

I like Bigtoe reply. Remember most things are Negotiable in Real Estate...start negotiating! If that fails start your own team? Good luck with your decision.
-Queen

I realize this is a little old, and that you decided to stay put (the right decision) but I wanted to post my viewpoint as someone who is a team leader.

Being a part of a team can be very valuable, and I think its one of the best ways for a new agent to get started nowadays. You get more personalized training, a name and track record you can go out and sell right away, access to leads that you can work, etc. However, I don't think this setup you've described here would be beneficial to anyone...except the team leader. You keep 25% of your commissions?!?! What?!?! I mean...I don't even keep 25% of my team member's commissions! Thats just nuts.

What I do think you should do is find a new broker. Your broker is so important, especially when you're newer. You need someone you can lean on and who will have your back. Sounds like you're doing great...any broker would be happy to have you.

I know its scary looking at having a lull in business, I have been there many times (I too have never liked to prospect and have built a more referral type business). What you have to remember is your fortunes can turn around so quickly in this business, like they did for you here...

Good luck!