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Eyes on the Prize

/ Strategic Real Estate Trainers / 1 Comment

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Let the Games Begin!

So, you’re thinking about a career in real estate?  Great!  It can be especially rewarding if you’re the kind of person who likes to take charge and carve out your own destiny.  Say goodbye to annual reviews, begging for promotions, and office politics.  You want to be the Boss!

You want to be free!

However, freedom is like rope.  Give a guy enough and he might hang himself if he’s not careful!  To avoid such a tragic end, you must treat real estate sales like a business.  And every good business begins with a goal.

You Gotta Have a Goal

When’s the last time you began a vacation by pointing your car west and driving with no destination in mind?  Probably never.  In the neighborhoods served by Property Consultants Realty, it’s reasonable for an agent to earn $100,000 per year.  That’s the prize you should fix your eyes on for the next 12 months.

Reverse Engineering

So, your goal is $100,000.  Now what?  Let’s plug in a few numbers to see what that means in terms of action:
Incomegoals2

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you’re curious about how the numbers were calculated, look below:

  • Percent of Total Income:  based on past experience
  • Annual Income:  Percent of Total Income x Desired Income
  • Average Sales Price:  based on MLS data for my market
  • Average Commission – Percent:  based on past experience
  • Average Commission – Dollars:  Average Sales Price x Average Commission – Percent
  • Agent’s Share of Commission:  based on past experience
  • Agent’s Average Commission:  Average Commission – Dollars x Agent’s Share of Commission
  • Units Closed:  Annual Income / Agent’s Average Commission
  • Percent that Actually Close:  based on past experience
  • Units to be Taken:  Units Closed / Percent that Actually Close
  • Monthly Units to be Taken:  Units to be Taken / 12
  • Closed Volume:  Average Sales Price x Units Closed
  • Combined Volume:  Closed Volume (Sellers) + Closed Volume (Buyers)

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There’s an App for That

You may be muttering under your breath, “I hate spreadsheets.”  That’s OK.  Check out the following websites for help setting goals:

http://www.marketleader.com/leadcalculator/

http://www.realtor.com/goals/

What’s Next?

So, you’ve set a goal and some major milestones.  Now what?  It’s time to plan activities which’ll help you achieve your goal.  See you next time and have an epic day!

Property Consultants Realty was established in 1989.  We are well known in Bucktown, Wicker Park, and the surrounding areas.  We are committed to providing world class service based on integrity, communication and expertise.  We always place our client’s needs first.

If you’re ready to succeed, want top-notch training, ongoing support, and access to the best tools, then join our team.

Complete the form below and let’s schedule time to talk about your future.

Are You a Blockhead?

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By Doug Perry

Charlie Brown football

 

Charlie Brown 

I was born at the end of the Baby Boom.  And as such, I grew up on Charlie Brown:  boy-next-door, antihero.  Poor Charlie Brown was continually tormented by his archnemesis:  Lucy.  She would sadistically pull away the football every time he tried to kick a field goal.  And after he landed on his back with a thud, she’d look down at him, shake her head and say, ‘Charlie Brown, you blockhead!’

I too am a blockhead…but of a different sort.

You Wanna Rock?  You Better Block!

In my previous post, ‘Plans Are Useless, But Planning Is Everything,’ I laid out tasks that will help you achieve your goals.

If you don’t block out time to complete tasks, then they won’t get done.  So, it’s crucial that you place tasks on a calendar.  I use Top Producer, and like most CRM, it has a calendar.  It allows me to do the following:

  • Block out time for recurring tasks
  • Schedule appointments
  • Set reminders
  • Display past due tasks
  • Share calendars
  • View tasks by day, week, month
  • Print reports
  • And more…

Lather, Rinse, Repeat

Let’s face it.  There’s a lot of repetition in our business, and I’m OK with that.  But why recreate the wheel every morning?  The logical thing to do is to set up repetitive tasks so that they recur automatically on your calendar.

For example, video is my medium for creating content.  I create five brief videos per week as follows:

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My spreadsheet tells me what to do and how much, but my calendar tells me when and how long:

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Set it and forget it.  No need to think about what you’re going to do every day, just execute.

I’m Old…I Need to be Reminded

Alzheimer’s hasn’t set in yet.  However, it’s helpful to be reminded to stop one task and start another.  As you get busy, it’s easy to lose track of time.  If you get caught up in one task, you may run out of time for other important things.  So setting up reminders for recurring activities and appointments is a must.

When Was That Due?

On the Top Producer home screen, there’s a section entitled My Business.  I can view incomplete activities sorted by type;  calls, appointments, to dos, etc.  I can quickly identify overdue tasks because they have red exclamation marks next to them:

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Sharing is Caring

Once upon a time, I had assistants and a team.  Sharing calendars allowed us to coordinate activities, work efficiently, and hold one another accountable.  I can view team member calendars simply by selecting from a drop-down list.  Also, I can grant authority to my Assistant to view selected calendars.

There’s an App for That

I sync my Top Producer calendar with my Google calendar and manage everything from there.  Why?  Because I maintain several calendars and it’s nice to have them all in one place.  Google allows me to color code, view them together, separately, or in any combination.  To view all that Google calendar has to offer, check out this video playlist:

Next Steps

So now that you’ve blocked out time to complete tasks, what’s next?  Choose tools to complete them.  See you next time and have an epic day!

Property Consultants Realty was established in 1989.  We are well known in Bucktown, Wicker Park, and the surrounding areas.  We are committed to providing world class service based on integrity, communication and expertise.  We always place our client’s needs first.

If you’re ready to succeed, want top-notch training, ongoing support, and access to the best tools, then join our team.

Complete the form below and let’s schedule time to talk about your future.

Starting a Career in Real Estate: What You Need to Know

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Getting Started button-160595_1280

Are you a new agent in Chicago?  Then the Getting Started series is just for you.  We found a great article on starting your real estate career.  Highlights include the following:

  • Working for Yourself
  • Finding a Broker
  • The “Split”
  • How Much Money Can You Make?
  • What You Need to Get Started

Click the link below to read the full article.

Starting a Career in Real Estate: What You Need to Know | Signs.com Blog http://ow.ly/biWx305ceNI

Property Consultants Realty was established in 1989.  We are well known in Bucktown, Wicker Park, and surrounding Chicago neighborhoods.  We are committed to providing world class service based on integrity, communication and expertise.  We always place our client’s needs first.

If you’re ready to succeed, want top-notch training, ongoing support, and access to the best tools, then join our team.

Complete the form on this page and let’s schedule time to talk about your future.