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Welcome to the Commission Queen podcast. Commission queen is for women real estate agents that are craving success and want to do things differently. We talk all things manifesting money, and of course, real estate. I'm your host, Bekkah, Marie. And just like you, I'm a real estate agent. I went from struggling to get clients to making over six figures consistently, while working 15 hours or less each week. And now I coach women like you on how to do the same. Listen for real life examples and tips in every episode on how to massively increase your income and find your freedom with ease. You're here because you're ready to change your life, your business and your financial status. So let's do it. Hey, gorgeous queens. Let's talk about brokerages. Where should you go? What should you look for what's important? Does a brokerage even matter? Does the big name matter? We're going to talk about it all in this episode. And I want to say something up front. This is not at all a recruiting episode. I may mention some names, but I usually never even share which brokerage I'm with. Because I'm not about recruiting like I know a lot of real estate coaches, their main thing is recruiting. I'm not I'm here to help you find what works best for you because I believe it's super individual. When I first got into real estate, the first brokerage that I chose so I probably interviewed like three or four. And the first brokerage I chose was a very, very small, independent brokerage 100%. And I chose it because the owner of that brokerage said that they would train me and pay for my license and all of this stuff. So I was like well, I might as well start there. But I will tell you guys I'm not going to say their name because I don't want to put them on blast. The name and the branding was horrible. It's absolutely horrible. If you want to message me and know what it was called, I will tell you because it's hilarious, but I don't want to share with the whole world. Anyways, I thought you know what, it doesn't matter about the branding or whatever, I'm just getting started. And you know, I don't really want to pay all of the monthly fees and all of those things. So I started with them. And within just a few months I found out okay super not a good fit. Then I went to a another brokerage that hired me on a, like an actual big agent hired me on to be a showing agent. And this person was with a really big name brokerage. Basically, they trained me a little bit and then did not use me at all. That's a different story for another time. So finally, I made my way to big name brokerage, which became my home for the next like almost five years of my real estate career. About five years into my real estate career, I switched to a another brokerage. This one was a little bit more of the big name. However, it did not even exist in my state. So it was the very first brokerage of this kind in my state and I was the first you know, one of five agents that joined this brokerage. So throughout my 10 years, I have definitely had my fair share of different types of brokerages. In fact, I have even interviewed so many more of kind of that five year mark, when I was switching, I was looking at other brokerages of where I could go. And I really got to know an interview each different type of brokerage. So I feel very confident on speaking on this topic. The first question I want to address is, does the name even matter? Does the name of the brokerage, whether it be a big name, or a an independent brokerage? Does it matter?
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My advice on this is if you are building a business that is referral based, and you have people like your business is really coming from your sphere from your past clients. If you are really doing the work in your business, the name does not matter at all, like the type of brokerage you're at, does not matter at all. This was a big worry for me when I was making the switch because I was going from a very big well known brokerage to one that people in my market did not know at all. When I was telling my broker at the time that I was moving. I wanted to do them the courtesy and let them know I'm so grateful for everything that they did. But I sat down and let them know that I was leaving. They really pushed that pain point hard. Like nobody knows that brokerage name. And then name really, really matters and they were giving me different numbers of types of business and the amount of business that they were doing versus other brokerages. I kind of got in my head for a while thinking about that. And then I realized, you know what I'm working with just my people like I am referral based. And so if people are coming to me to work with me, it's because they know me, it's not because they care about who I work with. And I remember telling, like, my lender and my title company and everything, the people that refer me a lot of business. I remember telling them, Hey, I'm switching over to this new brokerage, you know, does this change anything? And they were like, awesome, great. They did not care. They did not give it a second guess. And every single business I did after that listings, buyers, I told them, hey, I'm switching, and they didn't care at all, like, that means nothing to them. They were like, oh, cool, congrats. So it did not affect my business at all. And in fact, when switching to this new brokerage, they had a different fee structure. And so when I was able to look through what the different fees were, and the breakdown, I could look and say, okay, even if it were true, that I would miss out on X percentage of business, just because of the name, which is not true. But as the broker was saying, if I missed out on X percentage of business, because the fees were different, I was still making the same amount of money. So why wouldn't I switch? If I was not happy, and I was looking for something different? Why would I switch. And even if I was doing less deals, if I'm making more money, that's what mattered to me at the time. If you're already in business, and you work a lot with referrals, or however you get your business, if you're already getting business, and you are looking at a switch and brokerages absolutely do it, the name does not matter. If you are brand new to the business and you're just starting out, then it can be helpful to be in a bigger name brokerage.
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So you have that support. And already that know like and trust factor with the brand at least. So if there is a brand or brokerage that is in your area that people totally know that it's taking over the market in that area, it will be helpful because people will know that you're already with the brand that they know, like and trust. So they can translate that into, you know, yes, you're working with them. And so they know like, Okay, you're legit, I don't think this is necessary. But if it's something that makes you feel more confident, then definitely do that. When you're evaluating where to be which brokerage to choose, figure out what's important to you, this is going to be different for every single person. So that's why I'm never like, oh, yeah, everyone should go to this one brokerage, I think that everybody is super individual and unique and what they need. So if you're a person who absolutely is gonna be, you know, using a lot of technology, or you're gonna be really needing a website, or you are all about CRMs, or you do this on your own, like, if you're a person who loves to do all of your own stuff, like create your own website, whatever. Maybe you're gonna go to different brokerages. So one person that doesn't know anything about technology, it may be helpful for them to go to a brokerage that has technology available for them. So it's like plug and play and easy. And for someone who's super good with technology, it maybe doesn't matter to them because they're going to be good with it in whatever they are using. So they don't necessarily need that plug and play technology. The tools that a brokerage gives you can be so helpful and really amazing. So can definitely be a selling point. However, like one thing that's really big that brokerages will really sell you on is a CRM, each brokerage usually has their own CRM, especially if it's a bigger brokerage, the smaller ones usually don't. But if it's a bigger brokerage, they will provide you with a CRM, which is amazing. And definitely take advantage of that. In the beginning, when you want to save some money, however, you always want to create your own CRM on a different platform. Because in the case that you do switch brokerages, and even if you are so happy with your brokerage right now, you don't know in the future, like I was super happy with my brokerage for a really long time, until I started to desire a switch. So if you are going to switch, you don't get to take that CRM with you. You want to ask them if you can take it with you. Like if you were to switch, how much would it be per month to take the CRM with you. But a lot of times, you won't get to take that CRM with you. So then you're gonna have to start over from scratch. And even if you never switch brokerages, it's very possible that your brokerage will suddenly switch the type of CRM or type of technology that they are providing, they might get a better offer, or like a different CRM better, and then they're gonna start to implement that. And then you're back at like that square one again. So write out a list of what's important to you in a brokerage? Is it going to be those tools and technology? Is it the training that they provide? Is it really the fee structure that comes down to who has the best fee structure? Is it just totally about the people? Is it about the location, what is important to you, if you're at a point in your business right now, where business is good, and you're really just looking at cutting the fees, but you don't want to leave all of the tools and technology and things that the brokerage really pushes? I would ask yourself, how much you're using the tools and things that they're giving you or the trainings that they're doing. Ask yourself, how often are you using them? How much of a like ROI return on an investment, are they getting you and if they're not really something you're using on a regular basis, that is really helping your business, then just scratch it out. Like it doesn't matter if you're not using it. So yes, those things are like cool and sexy. But if you're not using them, and they're not really helping your business, that's okay. Like, if you run your business super lean, which I do, like, I'm don't use a lot of technology, I
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don't use a lot of tools, or like my website, I don't use any of that. So I don't really need it. It's just that added thing that people tell you that you maybe need to use. But of course, you can have a successful business without that. So maybe you're looking for a brokerage that is 100%, or free base. One thing I will say if you choose to go with 100% brokerage, that's usually those are really small, and maybe not quite as well known. Choose one with good branding, you want to be proud of the brand that you're repping. So choose one with good branding, if you are going to a place that is just has a weird name and a weird logo. And you know, you're almost embarrassed to like show that you're repping them. Don't go to that one. I mean, go to one that you feel proud in repping that brand, because it's going to be on your signs and your cards and especially with your sellers, like your listings, they want to feel proud having you as their agent slash the company that's selling their house. And if you've been an agent for a while, you know there's there's there are those companies where you're just like, I have never heard of them, and they've got a wacky name and weird branding. And you almost inevitably think that the agent doesn't really know what they're doing, because they're from this random brand. The other thing you want to ask yourself is, how important is it that I am in the office and that I like the office people? Well, first of all, if you are a person that loves the office and loves to go into the office, it is so important to choose a place that seems to have really good vibes really good people that you actually want to be around. If you are a person like me, that does not care about going into the office very often. It doesn't necessarily matter as much of the culture and the people that are there. But I still think that that really helps. So I barely ever go into the office. And I did this with my old brokerage, my old brokerage would always kind of make comments about it that were almost bleak, bordering negative. So then when I did go into the office, it was like, I got these like negative kind of sarcastic snarky comments about how I'm never at the office, and I'm always traveling. And so with my new brokerage, I absolutely love the people. And I just made it really clear to them, like, Hey, I'm never in the office, I travel a lot. And that's my MO but I love you guys. And it has nothing to do with the office. And they know that and they support that like every time I come in. They're like, hey, when's
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your next trip and like excited and telling, asking where I've been. And so I just really, really appreciate that. So I think more than anything, I mean, branding is important. But more than anything, you want to have the support in your brokerage unless you are a super super seasoned agent, which you're probably not listening to this if you're like 20 years into the business. But if you've been in the business for less than that, you still have questions. I mean, even 20 years into the business, you'll probably still have questions and things that come up and ways that you want to connect with your people. And so it's so important to have that support of your brokerage, specifically of your broker have the support staff that is there at your brokerage. You want them to be people you are excited about going to with questions and things you need help on, and things that you sometimes need done. The culture is so important and brokerages will seriously throw that phrase around all the time. And it gets kind of annoying. But it is important to like the people that you're working with, because essentially, right they are your co workers. And so you want to choose a good office, even if people in different areas are like, Oh, I absolutely love Keller Williams, I absolutely love REMAX and it's so amazing. They may be really, really love their culture in their office, and you could go to a different office of the same brokerage, and have a completely different experience. So just know that I mean, it's the different people that make up the offices in every space. Okay, so what about fees? What about splits, let's get into that. fees, and splits are not the end all be all of how you should choose your brokerage. However, definitely always run the numbers in whatever you're doing run the numbers of the amount of projected business you plan to do. And what that breaks down to be in the fees so that you can look at what your net income will be afterwards. So I went to this brokerage that was really fancy. And I absolutely loved everything about their branding, I loved everything that they were doing. And they gave me an offer. And it was even a lower offer, meaning in a good way, like lower fees than they give new agents that come in. And I looked at it, I ran my numbers over and over and over again. And it just didn't make sense for me. Like I would have to do additional deals in order to just pay for the fees. So even though they were beautiful and amazing, and I loved everything about it. It just didn't make sense for me. Now you get to choose like if you're a person that wants to do a million deals, and it doesn't really shake out to be that much different, then that's why I'm saying like it this is different for every single person. And I want you to choose the best brokerage for you. So really look at what is important to you. How does it break down for you always run your numbers on those things? And not only run your numbers, but yes, you get to negotiate. So in every single brokerage interview that you do, negotiate, ask for a different fee split asked for a different monthly fee. And sometimes they'll say no, but sometimes they'll say yes. So it makes sense to at least ask. Now let me talk to just the new agents for a second. Here's like if you're wondering, okay, just tell me what to do. Tell me what to look for. I will give you a list. Okay, here's the list. One, find a brokerage that has a mentorship program, I think this is huge. Even if there's not already a program in place. Ask them if, if there's like a mentor that you could connect with. And usually what that entails is you give them part of your commission for the first couple of deals. But that helps so much I have been I mean, that's how I started, I started with a mentor. And that helped a lot. And I also have been a mentor. And I can see what a difference that makes versus just trying to do everything on your own. So if you're brand new, and you're trying to figure out where to go, go to the brokerage that has a mentorship program and make sure it's like legit, or make sure your mentor is legit, because like I said, I thought I had a mentor in my first brokerage that I went to, but he ended up being like a no show half the time, so it wasn't helpful. Second thing to look for is do they have training? Do they have training for you as a new agent? And how often is that training? Who does the training, that will be another key piece to your growth in your real estate career. Next, choose a brokerage slash an office that you feel like you can know like and trust that your clients can know like and trust and that you really enjoy the culture. So for this, I would say go to their team meeting or go to one of their trainings prior prior to even signing on to joining their brokerage, go to a couple things. Get to know the people at the office and see what the vibe is see how you feel about it. And if that's a place that you want to hang your license. Next, ask them what tools and technology they will give you. So in the beginning tools and technology is really helpful to a new agent, having those things being provided having training on them. That's going to be really helpful for you in the beginning. As well, if they don't have a lot of tools and technology, find out what the fees and the splits are compared to a another brokerage that does have a lot of tools and technology. So if there's a brokerage that has training, and they have mentorship, and they're like really great and everything, but they don't have a lot of tools and technology, if their fees are significantly lower, and you don't necessarily care about the tools and technology that may be a good fit, or vice versa, like yes, you really want that tool technology. But there's splits and fees are a little bit higher than choose what is best for you. Always ask for negotiation on the splits and fees. And write out a scenario of what you'll have to end up paying them per year on a projected of like what you expect to do. So if you expect to do 10 deals your first year, what does that look like in the breakdown? Now, bonus points, I'm not going to put this on as like your brokerage must have or should have this, but definitely bonus points goes to a brokerage that has a lead sharing program, so where they have some sort of way that they're bringing in leads, and you have the opportunity to work with them. And then if you close them, you give them X amount of that closing, then definitely that's a huge bonus because as a new agent, you may not have as many sales in the pipeline. So having that lead program can be really beneficial to you in the beginning. Last thing I'm going to say on choosing a brokerage, which should be an obvious thing, but just make sure that you're choosing a broker slash brokerage that is ethical, one that is known for their integrity. One time when I was thinking about switching brokerages, I almost almost switched to a brokerage with a broker that did not have high integrity, I didn't necessarily realize that when I was switching over until I started to talk to people about it and got their feedback on what they knew about the brokerage and found out this person slash brokerage was really doing some unethical things and that is a no go I do not want to ever put my name with a place that does not have high integrity. So you want to make sure that wherever you're choosing is going to be another great reflection of you as a realtor, gratitude and abundance Queens thank you so much for joining me today. If
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you love this episode, hit the subscribe button and share a review I so appreciate every one of you. If you're not already following me on social media, you can find me at commission queen and go to commission queen.com To browse products and get more free content
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
