It’s a well-known industry fact that over 80% of brand-new agents fail to build a long-term real estate career.

So what’s the real reason so many new agents quit in 5 Years? Well, it’s usually the accumulation of several challenges that pile up and an agent walk away. Real estate agents fail not only because of unexpected circumstances but because they don’t see them coming.

If you can’t avoid challenges, preparation for them is the next best thing. Understand why most new real estate agents fail so that you’ll never be one of them.

Know Your “Why”

Anyone who has spent even 10 minutes on Netflix probably has the impression that real estate is about being driven around town in a fancy car while answering million-dollar deal-closing calls

This glamorous image attracts many new young real estate agents into the industry before the real challenges of a career in real estate shove them out. Working in a fast-moving industry with low beginners pay, late nights, and fussy clients, mean that grit and a purpose are crucial to staying motivated.

There are many a hill to climb at the start of any new career endeavour, so having a real love for the job is a must. Leading agent, Lucaksz Kukwa, cites his passion for service as the essential step in becoming a successful real estate agent.

“When I came to the business, I was second guessing how do agents help people?…I started approaching it as if I was buying it…that’s where I bought all in and found my value proposition…but it took a few years.”

Have a Career Plan

Getting rich quick by being your own boss isn’t much of a plan. You’ll need a detailed roadmap to your desired career if you want to be successful in real estate. We’re not saying that you shouldn’t dream big. However, a dream without a detailed plan on how to achieve it is a recipe for failure.

Think about where you want to be in the next year, three years, five years and beyond. Whether or not you achieve the goals you’ve laid out within each time frame isn’t priority. What matters most is having an idea of how you’re going to get to where you’re going so that you to continue taking one step after the other.

Budget Correctly

Letting go of the consistency of a bi-weekly paycheque poses a new set of challenges that many are unprepared for. How many people do you know who receive a paycheque only once every three months?

It may take a while before you close your first deal. It’s essential that you have saved enough to keep yourself afloat for a few months while you build your network and gain experience. Take stock of all your current bills, including utilities, rent or mortgage, car payments, and business expenses, plus average added spending.

How many homes do you need to sell to reach your salary goal? What are your commission and split? Will you need to split a commission with a mentor? Take all of those factors into consideration before you start living the lavish life.

The Career Path is Just Not for You

It takes more than a real estate license to have a shining career in the real estate business. In addition to the fact that real estate often comes with plenty of new challenges and a slow start, there’s no one to let you off the hook. Maintaining a rich client base, generating leads, building your CRM, and more, all fall on your shoulders.

For many real estate agents, it’s the first time they’ll have to manage such a high level of responsibility. Nursing a real estate transaction can take months. Additionally, the failure rate is high and it can feel like a personal loss if you don’t have the strength to stick it out. The level of self motivation needed to make it from one sale to the next is not everyone’s forte.

Know How To Network

Networking is a skill that can be learned – it doesn’t always come easily. It’s a myth that extroverted people are the best at networking or socializing. To learn how to become a networking expert and command every networking event, read our article: 20 Foolproof Tips For Success At Every Real Estate Networking Event.

In short, it’s all about knowing yourself and using your best qualities to build professional and mutually beneficial relationships. A few smart techniques such as dressing for the occasion, conducting research on the attendees, and completing your contact card, paired with self-confidence, go a long way.

New agents who are able to quickly build a concrete network will find it easier sell and find homes for their clients, as well as complete all the little steps in between. Appraisers, accountants, staging companies, admin assistants, and other non-agent real estate professionals are just as important to network with as clients. These contacts make sure that your entire real estate business runs smoothly and predictably so that you ace each deal.

It’s crucial to learn more about all the different roles within a real estate team and connect with those professionals regularly.

Effective Real Estate Marketing

A well-planned marketing strategy is a must – especially in the early stages of your real estate career. Your real estate website will be the foundation of all of your digital efforts. Even when client discover you through print marketing, most will also Google you before deciding to finally contact you.

Your website is like a piece of online real estate that is completely yours. It’s where you can present yourself exactly as you’d like to be portrayed. No social media team can take your website away and there is no one to dictate exactly how it looks and functions.

AgentFire websites are developed especially for real estate agents, brokers, and teams with proven success. From approachable and visually pleasuring structures, to several targeted integrations made to generate leads, each section of our website is designed to make you stand out,.

There are several layers to an incredible marketing plan and it’s up to you what you choose to focus on. Your website, social media, print marketing, there are tons of evolving options for marketing your real estate brand. So many options in fact, that new realtors often spread themselves in, never honing down on a few key marketing techniques.

With a limited amount of time to dedicate to marketing, it’s always a better option to focus heavily on the networks where most of your target clients can be found. For example. if your clients are mainly young, single working professionals, Instagram is a platform worth your time. Spending hours tailoring your Facebook presence may not have as big of a payoff.

Finding the Right Mentor

Real estate is one of the biggest, if not the biggest purchases most people will make in their entire lives. It takes a tremendous amount of trust to put the search for your dream in someone’s hands. A great mentor can teach new agents not only how to build a new real estate business, but to build client relationships that will sustain their careers.

Without the right professional guidance, new agents find themselves learning through trial and error (quite an expensive way to learn a new skill). Check out this list of the Best Real Estate Coaches to give you an idea of what you should be looking for in a mentor.

Understand That Education Never Ends

Many new realtors forget about the layered, various skills that are necessary to get clients to get their new homes. It’s easy to get caught in the trap of running from one open house to the next or touring homes day and night. If you want to stay on top, there has to be space between the hustle and bustle to stay educated on what’s happening in the market.

In 2022, real estate moves faster than ever and it’s crucial to keep your eyes on your hyperlocal, state-wide, and national real estate market. This list of the top 43 real estate blogs will guide you through today’s best real estate online publications in the national and international market. Your local area likely also publishes a regular community newspaper that is worth a follow.

Like every skill, studying up in addition to practicing is the most efficient way to learn,

Many new agents feel that they are in the business to sell houses so they spend all of their time touring homes, going to open houses, and looking at homes online. In fact, every successful agent dedicates time to meeting with people, educating themselves on market conditions, and finding people to serve.

Lacking Lead Generation

Lead generation is the process of marketing to and attracting your future clients. It also includes retaining those clients. Your lead generation efforts aren’t complete without the strategies and technologies you’ll use to maintain positive relationships with clients.

A CRM that works well with all of your marketing efforts will make sure that you don’t lose clients soon after gaining contact with them. A well-organized and utilized CRM means that new agents can easily categorize contacts and prepare lists for future contact.

Two of the most popular real estate marketing techniques for client retention are your newsletter and blog. Your entire website makes it easy to publish impressive real estate content with minimal time commitment and full effectiveness. Through our Blog Assist Pro addon, our clients receive professionally written and customizable real estate blogs every week. Our CRM and Blog to Newsletter integration then takes you blog to make sure it’s distributer to exactly who is meant to receive it.

Move From Part Time to Full Time

At the start of their careers, many real estate agents pay the bills by straddling the corporate world and their budding real estate careers simultaneously. However, diluted focus leads to slow progress.

Get clear on how long you’d ideally spend at your current job and how much you’ll need to save in order to survive without it. Once you’ve got your ideal budget together, you can start planning for your full move into real estate.

Patience is Invaluable

The average person only purchases a new home once every 13 years. If you’re looking for instant success, real estate may not be the career for you. Each phase of client relationships takes time to build, and a large gap between sales doesn’t necessarily mean anything is going wrong. It could mean that things are going very right and you’ve found your clients a home they don’t want to leave.

This is the perfect time to step up your lead generation efforts and focus on improving networking or marketing. If you’re stressed out about a pause in business, you may prematurely get out of the game before it really takes off.

Wrapping up…

A career in real estate isn’t always the luxurious experience some new agents imagine. It takes work, patience, and an understanding of common career hurdles to finally experience success.

Even with a real estate license and the eagerness to get started, many agents quit before their career truly has a chance to take off. A large part of the battle is not being prepared for difficulties that may come along. If you can recognize and prepare for challenges ahead of time, you can stay out of the fiver year trap.

And if you want to dominate your hyperlocal real estate market, check out AgentFire’s Websites, #1 rated for several years in a row.

And the best part? You can try out all of its amazing features for free with our 10-day trial.