By: Erik Hare
This is my 52nd post here, marking one year of the Sundays Off for Teresa program. To celebrate this milestone, I’m going to write about myself. Well, more accurately, I’d like to add a little perspective to the dust-up over the idea that there are too many REALTORS by telling everyone about my own experience as an independent contractor.
I am a professional writer. This means that I make my living by telling other people’s stories in ways that are useful. The art of this is finding the hook – that shimmering theme which lifts the black and white jumble of words into a voice at the back of the reader’s mind. Once I have their attention, I provide something for the heart and arm and brain – a bit of passion, a dollop of reason, and a call to action.
The most lucrative way I do this is as a grant writer, telling an organization’s story for the purpose of raising money from a foundation or government agency. I also do technical writing, blog writing, newspaper reporting and some editing. All of this is done one gig at a time as an independent contractor.
In many ways, grant writing is not all that different from what REALTORS do. We are both independent contractors in the business of making money for people by shining the best possible light on what they have. Just as a REALTOR might stage a house, I often consult on small organizational improvements that help make the story I have to tell more compelling. But once you get past the core of what I do, there are amazing differences between my job and the typical REALTOR.
For one thing, I do a lot of other things for a few bucks here and there. Newspapers and blogs don’t pay very well, and web content providers in particular seem to have little understanding of quality (let alone the desire to pay for it). I do this work mainly to get my name out in the world, not for the money. There are a lot of people that need a writer but many don’t have the ability to pay for it. As long as I get credit, or if I can structure the way I charge based on their securing a grant, I’ll be happy.
It’s all about what the clients need and how they might be able to pay me for what I do. Flexibility is the key, because someone who needs grant writing help today might need their story told for public relations or other reasons later. Organizations that might have trouble affording a writer appreciate it when I take some risk based on my skill; that loyalty creates repeat business when they do have some scratch.
REALTORS, on the other hand, all seem to work in about the same way. They may specialize in condos or one neighborhood, but they all have a similar way of getting paid. Despite the fact that they have tremendous knowledge of what properties are worth and how to borrow money, they have almost no role in home renovation and the big wad of compliance issues which scream for a professional advocate. Some will do market analysis for clients, but rarely is this made into a package that can be sold on its own.
What is my point? If I tried to be a writer the same way most REALTORS operate, I’d be broke. I have to chase down organizations that no one else is interested in, creating a whole new market. I have to be flexible in how I charge based on ability to pay. I must understand my clients even better than they know themselves at times, and provide an array of services that meet their needs. It’s not just about what I can do, it’s about what I can do for my clients. I love new clients, too (hint!).
Do we really have a problem with too many REALTORS? Or is it possible that they need to be more creative about what they do, opening up new markets? A bit of both, I would think.
I created a new career for myself out of my own odd perspective and a love for braiding the English language into a story. It’s not much compared to an understanding of a local market’s intricate details. REALTORS have a lot of very valuable expertise that they can charge money for – if they can offer more than what they do today. If a guy like me can make a living off of less, you can see that a bit of imagination can make all the difference.
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Thanks Erik, you are the best. As for new markets and creativity . . . state license law doesn’t allow for much of that, neither do the Realtor associations. But there are some niche markets and markets available to those of us who have brokers licenses.
Hey, T, you’re supposed to have the day off!
I understand that there’s only so much you can do under the law, but … rather than tell us on what appears to be a weekly basis that 40% of all realtors are going to be keel-hauled, why not lobby for some constructive changes?
I realize this may not be a good idea, as I am an outsider. But I’d like to consider some of the possibilities, is all. A few law changes here or there and perhaps the excess is only 38% of all realtors … who knows, eh?
I wrote two posts about it. It just happened that MAR wrote about it once and then got a lot of flack so they wrote again. Big mistake. To be honest some of the problems are caused by the business models that real estate companies use to make a profit. These models may be profitable but I question how well they serve the consumer or people like me who work with consumers.
Curse you Erik Hare! Just when I thought I had a clue about this web 2.0 thing combined with less financial liquidity in the markets, you throw out this “Hare-brained”
(sorry, could not resist) post about how we operate at our core. I have posted before about how the revolution in Real Estate will never be the discounters until there is acceptance by the consumer of some of the risk we as real estate agents assume in the transaction. You have got me thinking about this value proposition again. Thank you.
Thomas:
Naw you rule! I’m just some clown throwing pies from the outside. It just seems really weird to me how staid the real estate world is at times, even when there are obviously big changes at foot.
I can’t say how it’ll all shake out for you, but I can say how it went for me. I only hope that it helps all of you who are interested in the next whatever-it-is think it through.
(but I am available as a consultant for a small fee … )
There is more in this mix than agents and consumers. Lets not forget about the big real estate companies that profit hugely from our current system. How much value do they add? They keep recruiting, burning and churning and make the most profit off of the newest agents.
Too many REALTORS? In general, I have to say yes. Not enough really good ones? Again, I have to say yes. The good ones deserve every bit that they are paid when helping someone buy or sell. This is a much more difficult line of work than non REALTORS realize – if you do it right.
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