Differences Between Real Estate and Other “Salesperson Jobs”
Choosing a career in real estate may seem just like taking any other type of sales job. But the truth is that a real estate licensee is anything but a typical salesperson. Not only are they often present for some of the best and worst experiences in their clients’ lives, what they do literally can ripple for generations.
It’s a lot of responsibility being a real estate salesperson, but there’s also a lot to love about a job in the real estate industry.
You Sell Something Truly Unique
Unlike the mass produced goods peddled by most sales people, you have the special distinction of selling things that are truly unique. Real estate, by definition, is unique. There are no two lots that are the same, and no two buildings that are identical. Because buildings can’t be mass produced, you’ve got an extra level of challenge to your job in finding the exact right structure and location for each and every one of your clients.
There’s only one of each, so how well you know your clients matters a lot. That relationship is especially unique in the world of sales, it can even lead to friendships that last a lifetime. Don’t be surprised if you’re invited to weddings or holiday celebrations after a particularly involved search for real estate.
What You Do Really Matters
That’s not to say that a car salesperson or the local cookware monger isn’t doing an important job. Of course they are, cars and cookware are necessary for modern life in most places. But there’s no comparing the deep financial impacts that owning real estate can have on a family, versus buying some all-clad pots.
A well-chosen house in a safe neighborhood not only provides a family with a sense of home, it can set them up for a financially secure future. A first home, especially, is a foundation for wealth-building that’s difficult to replicate with any other sort of major purchase. How much equity that home generates will determine where the next home will be located, and so on.
For families looking to build generational wealth, well-chosen home purchases leave children with solid real estate-based foundations, whether they sell the property or choose to live in it. Most property will depreciate over time, but real estate tends to increase in value as long as it’s maintained.
You’re There for the Good and the Bad
A first home purchase is one of the biggest steps for families trying to really put down roots – and you get to be there for it. You’re always going to be remembered as the person who helped these people find a place to call their own. That’s an incredibly rewarding feeling, especially when they refer their friends to you for the same personal treatment.
On the other hand, you’re also likely to be there for the worst points in people’s lives. That’s the rough part. Divorces and deaths in the family often require the services of a real estate salesperson to help liquidate real estate holdings. And while you are absolutely helping exhausted people deal with overwhelming situations, it can sometimes be a lot to deal with.
You Get to Fight for Underdogs
Depending on your specialties and interests, you may find yourself having to stand up for your clients when they’re facing glitches in their transactions. They don’t all go smoothly – in fact, it’s more common to hit a bump or two than to not. Most of the time, you’ll just absorb those bumps and keep moving the transaction forward, but once in a while, you’ll have to really fight for what’s right.
For example, if you get to your walk-through and discover that the seller of the home your clients are purchasing has removed all the light fixtures, those buyers are looking to you to help them. They’re in a bad position because they were ready to move in, but how can they now? Your job is to protect the interests of your clients, even if it means going to bat with them in the 11th hour.
And it’s all worth it when you report back that you’ve got the situation under control and a sense of relief washes over the room.
Not Like Any Other Sales Job
Being a real estate salesperson isn’t like any other sales job. And that’s actually pretty neat, if you think about it. It takes a special kind of person to be able to balance the empathy and analysis needed to really hunt up the right property for a buyer or a buyer for each property.