Jason Ellis

After reading a fellow AR members post on this very topic, I started thinking, “why would anyone want to do what we do in this Market”. Then shortly, very shortly, a new thought entered my mind “why would anyone not want to do what we do?” This is a great time for someone to get in real estate “That’s right, I said it” - but I do have several thoughts and recommendations when starting out.

We all know it and we all say it – “Real Estate is Cyclical”. The market will come back around - and sooner than later. This is a great time to get in, learn and be ready for the turn. At the very worst, you now have your license and you can refer out business. Everyone knows someone that is thinking of selling or buying some type of Real Estate. There are referral networks, Active Rain, and many people make good money strictly on referrals.

First and foremost, try to find an experienced agent to team up with. If you can’t find a Top Agent willing to team up with you, offer to help out with the Top Agents in your company:

Offer to do Open Houses on their listings
Offer to make follow up phone calls for them
Offer to help with mailings

I had the opportunity to do this for an experienced agent in Boca Raton, FL. when I started my real estate career (1995). However, I was too “smart” to accept his help, (one of my biggest regrets in my business life) - he is now one of the Top Agents in South Florida.

Now you are not doing this for free, don’t be taken advantage of. You need to negotiate a fee for these services up front so there is not a misunderstanding if a deal does come out of your efforts.

For the Open House - if a Buyer that is not under a Buyer’s Broker agreement comes in and you are fortunate enough to “sell” them the home, you should get the Sell Side and Listing agent gets the list side – “easy enough”. However, if a Buyer that is represented by another Realtor buys during or from the Open House, you should negotiate a 25% referral. Documentation is very important during this open house, so make sure to register the potential Buyer and/or their Agent.

Phone Calls - Standard is a 10% referral for Listings and Sales.

Mailings are usually done gratis but don’t let them treat you like you work in the mail room!!

Your greatest compensation is the top agents “knowledge”. ASK QUESTIONS and then ASK MORE QUESTIONS. These agents are the TOP in their office for a reason. Their success was not handed to them, they had to work for it and they will be able to give you advice that will save you countless hours of “spinning your wheels”.

The second piece of advice is READ about Real Estate. There are countless books, blogs, and websites about real estate. Classes are great, but they tend to be more about laws, ethics and other important matters on how to conduct yourself. Classes don’t help you in the Real Estate jungle. A book that helped me, which I wish I had found when I started, is “Closing Strong” by Meyers Barnes.

Third - be prepared but don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t know the answer to that question”. There is nothing worse for your credibility. If you are asked a question and you give an answer that is wrong, your chances of “selling or listing” this client/customer’s property is slim to none. However, if you say “that is a great question- let me do a little research and I will get back with you”, they will be a little more trusting when you say “this is a great deal” or “we need to jump on this deal before it’s gone”. BUT, BE PREPARED if the questions is something you should know i.e. “what are the taxes on this home, what do the HOA dues cover on this condo, can I use my own builder on this home site?” These are questions you need to know the answers to.

Now, I don’t want to make it sound easy. It is far from easy and will take hard work. But, if you are willing to put in the time and effort - you can be successful.

Here are some suggestions for reading material:

Closing Strong – Meyers Barnes
Secrets of Closing the Sale – Zig Ziglar

My favorite - www.realtytimes.com

AR members please add your suggestions in the comment box –

Sago Plantation at Legends is the newest natural gas community in Myrtle Beach… Beautiful Palm Tree themed street-scapes w/ rolled curb and gutters, underground utilities including clean natural gas, awesome Owners amenities center w/ large workout room – huge pool – spa – BBQ area – and all the other amenities that are demanded of a Coastal Lifestyle.

With your lot purchase at Sago Plantation the developer pays your initiation fee to the award winning Legends Golf Course. This comprehensive membership covers the family’s green fees, access to the 30 acre lighted drive range, merchandise discount in Pro Shop, and guest privileges.

Our preferred builders Sago Plantation are moving Green w/ energy Efficient Heating and Air conditioning with sealed ducts, Low E windows, Sensor lighting (aka ghost lighting), reflective roofing, blown cellulose insulation, and many more energy and Eco friendly materials.

You may ask yourself “How will going Green benefit me?” This is a great question and it is about much more than “saving the spotted owl syndrome”. When you “Go Green” you will realize the DIRECT benefits of a Green Home or lifestyle.

1. Increased comfort and Environmental Quality – With energy efficient heating and cooling not only is the air quality better but it is more evenly distributed combined with the reflective roofing and Low E widows it maintains whatever temperature you are looking for.

2. Lower Operating cost and More durable – With these systems in place your utility bills will be lower and do to the effeminacy the systems last longer and are low maintenance

Please see my older post about Thinking Green is you are in a home or looking at a buying per-existing home that is not Green.

First things first – For those of you that are new to blog’s and blogging here is a brief description of what a “blog” is; Blog (a contraction of the term “Web log”) is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketches (sketchblog), videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting), which are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging, one which consists of blogs with very short posts. As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs.[1]With the advent of video blogging, the word blog has taken on an even looser meaning — that of any bit of media wherein the subject expresses his opinion or simply talks about something.

Like most people that are addicted to the internet if you spend enough time online you see most anything the good, the bad, and sometimes the really bad. However, I love to read about real estate – The trends, what’s new, new marketing ideas, and new laws; just anything to do with real estate. In my “web surfing” I have come across many, many blogs on real estate and I was astonished on the content of some of these Blog’s. I would go through them and 75% of the “posts” in the blog had NOTHING to do with Real Estate. Now some people may read this content, but I started thinking “If I was looking for an agent to sell my property or some advice on buying a piece of property would I filter through a blog filled with food recipes, pictures of animals, and other nonsensical posts?” Well knowing how short my patience and attention span can be I knew the answer was NO!

That is when I decided it was time to start my own blog… And I said to myself whatever I do I am going to keep my post about Real Estate. So I called my website designer, Michael Hasty with Inkhaus Media Design Group, and said “I want a Blog” Michael then replied “I told you two years ago that you needed a Blog”. So hat in hand I went to his office and proceeded to explain what my idea of a blog would be. As always he took my idea and made it 100 times better with the creation of www.MyrtleBeachHomeBlog.com Michael used his web design skills and created my blog in Word Press… And the rest is history – Now it has not been easy I have struggled through a lot of my post and found it difficult to sometimes find stuff to write about but every post on my site has something to do with Real Estate. Sometimes I may cheat a little and post a new listing that I have, post an interesting article on real estate that I read, or even take a portion of an older post and re-post it – But it is about Real Estate.

In my blog www.MyrtleBeachHomeBlog.com you will find information on all facets of Myrtle Beach Real Estate; Green Building, Why now is a good time to Buy in Myrtle Beach, Tax Laws, 1031 Tax Deferred Exchanges, Golf Course Living, and the list goes on. Please don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter on the right had side of the page – I send a twice monthly news letter with great information on new properties for sale, discounted room rates in Myrtle Beach, Realtor promotions, and other valuable information.

Call or e-mail with any of your real Estate needs 843-222-2672 -- jason@jasontellis.com

With the Fall Season approaching, now is the perfect time to buy Myrtle Beach real estate. Not only is it a Buyer's market, but a purchase before the end of the calendar year allows you to declare your new home as your primary residence (for those moving to the beach full time) and enjoy the benefits of a lower Real Estate Tax Bill.

Legends Real Estate has some awesome existing homes and some beautiful new construction home almost complete. Click HERE for a list of available homes.

Legends and Sago Plantation have some GREAT homesites available... Call or e-mail for a list of available inventory. Remember you can always Buy Now and Build Later... There are also some very attractive Model Lease Back opportunities available.

For those of you not familiar with a Model Lease Back here is how it works - First find a Builders home you like, Second purchase it from the Builder, Third the Builder then leases back from you for a set period of time, Fourth once lease is over you move in your home. It is that simple... This is a perfect situation for those planning to move in the next 2 to 5 years. You enjoy today's prices not tomorrows - You have the Builder helping pay for the home (Lease payments) - You know the home will be taken care of - These are also great for a 1031 Tax Deferred Exchange (the selling of one piece of investment property and rolling the monetary gain, Tax Deferred, into the new home)...

As always please call or e-mail with any questions about how to start your Coastal Living Experience - 843-222-2672 jason@jasontellis.com