Real Estate Agent

Eva: Hi, I'm Eva Wintle with Harcourt Hamil Reality in the Wairarapa. Today I’m going to be showing you what it’s like to be a real estate agent. Come and join me.

Well a real estate agent helps people in the process of buying and selling property. As a real estate agent I work for the vendor and selling their property. We host open homes on their behalf, private viewings. We organise sale and purchase agreements when there’s someone that wants to buy the property.

We also help the buyer find the property that they want and we help them in the process of buying it.

As a real estate agent no day is ever the same. We don’t work nine to five. Our hours are very flexible. We tend to have a bit of a structure so it’ll be team meetings in the morning, paperwork and admin, calling buyers, follow up call-backs from open homes…

Hi Jacquie, it's Eva Wintle calling.

…any reports that we have to do. We then have the afternoon which we keep open for any private viewings, appraisals, that sort of thing. So it’s working around your buyers and vendors and being able to work for them in the times that suit. That may be at seven o’clock at night or it could be at 8am in the morning. It really depends.

Perfect, okay I’ll book that in.

For a house to come to market we have to do a market appraisal on the property. We then sign a listing agreement. From there we can start marketing the property. The property will have photos taken. It will then go live to the internet and in print media. We will then start to begin to bring buyers through. We will do private viewings, open homes and that will all happen until the property is sold. Once we have someone that is wanting to place an offer, we can then begin the negotiation process.

What I love about this job is the flexibility. You get to see some amazing properties. I love the creativity that you get when marketing a property. I love being able to come and interact with different people all the time. Some of the people you meet are fantastic. Dealing with people is a big part of what you do in real estate. You are dealing with different people’s emotions and different scenarios, so it’s just being aware that it’s not always about selling property.

So to become a qualified real estate agent you have to complete your papers. You then will apply for your license. You can basically start selling property as soon as that license has been accepted. You do have to renew your license annually.

As a real estate agent you’re an independent contractor. You’re contracted to the company that you will work for. So you’re essentially your own boss. That’s where you’ve got to be very motivated, and self-driven. You don’t get paid until you sell a property. So you’ve got to work hard, and you’ve got to put in the effort. What you give is what you get.

At Harcourt we’re very heavily supported with many training opportunities. Every Thursday we have sales training. We also have many webinars and courses. Even though you’re an independent contractor you still have other agents helping to guide you. You also have a fully equipped admin staff that help to give the best experience to your clients possible.

Awesome thank you so much.

Client: Awesome.

Eva: This role would definitely suit someone who is a big people person. Someone who is very confident, self-driven and motivated for sure. Getting to put that sold sign up on your property and putting a smile on your purchasers' and vendors' faces, it’s a really great moment. It makes the job so worthwhile.