Should Listing agents come out of the Closet?

I am taking a risk by writing this blog post.

I bet you are wondering what in tar-nation is she going to say...

Well I hope you don't see this as unprofessional, or whining.

My intention is to educate the public.

You see...the majority...they think we list their house for free.

I am considering outlining my marketing budget at my listing presentations.

I think they need to know not only the great service we provide- but that is is very expensive for us, and WE ONLY GET PAID (and reimbursed ) if their home sells.

This leads me to a declaration. I hereby swear to you and the MLS universe that I WILL NO LONGER TAKE OVER-PRICED LISTINGS. I have made this promise before, but I am actually fully dedicated to keeping it this time. The just cost me way too much!!!

I think people deserve to know - in detail- that we are investing huge amounts of time and MONEY in marketing THEIR HOME. I think it would help elevate the respect that the public has for Realtor's and real estate agents.

I am going to go first. I am coming out of the closet and it feels weird, but here goes...

I spend close to 1,200$ a month to be a Realtor- and for (mainly) marketing homes. I make choices to do things such as ENHANCED Realtor.com, virtual tours, great website, all kinds of extra's. I can't believe I am doing this. I feel like I am standing in the grocery line naked! (bad visual)...

But WHY NOT? I think the average person needs to understand that we are in business for ourselves, self employed - in most cases certainly no benefits. We work all kinds of hours to accomodate other people's schedules, and yet for some reason the general opinion of us is quite low.

The skills to be a good agent are VAST and the job description has over 100 things that we do to service our clients- both buyer's and sellers.

We are highly skilled professionals with a huge out-go in a very risky marketplace.

One thing that GREATLY effects whether or not we re-coup our investment on behalf of sellers are the decisions that the sellers make, such as condition, presentation, PRICING, and more. These are decisions that need to be carefully discussed in a market where most homes are not selling.

Maybe you think it is tacky that I have come forward with this topic. I hope not. I hope you understand that people have every right to sell their home by owner, and if they choose to hire a real estate brokerage- I think they would actually think HIGHER of us if they knew how much we put into what we do- both behind the scenes and by paying our portions of marketing and the long list of expenses we have to BE PROFESSIONAL Realtor's.

I am so proud of what I do. I am grateful for the many things my broker provides me as well- and I am happy to give them the commision split because they do a great job providing me with a beautiful office, staff, equiptment, training, and so much more.

I do think the general public would benefit from understanding better how our industry works.

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