The real estate industry is expected to grow by 2.8% annually by 2030, making it one of the fastest-growing sectors globally.
This growth opens many great opportunities for Realtors and real estate agents to expand their trade, and they should prepare as the industry becomes more competitive.
But it can also be a tough market to crack. A whopping 87% of real estate agents may end up leaving the industry within five years after not being able to fully establish their careers. It often comes down to not being able to overcome the initial challenges.
Four Challenges Real Estate Agents Face
As the real estate industry grows, so do these challenges. These will significantly impact Realtors’ and real estate agents’ operations. Here are the biggest ones that real estate professionals need to prepare for.
Getting Market Information
The right information is at the heart of any successful real estate operation.
Real estate professionals need a lot of information, including market prices, emerging trends, and even shifting regulations.
Gathering all that information on their own is already an effort. Additionally, they also have to sift through and organize everything for easier use. This work can also take a lot of time – time that is better spent using all that information to connect with clients and close deals.
Understanding Clients
Like any other business, real estate professionals’ success hinges on their knowledge of the clientele.
The main challenge is dealing with two groups of people: the sellers and the buyers.
These two customer bases often have vastly different needs.
Sellers need help in preparing their properties for listing and engaging potential buyers.
On the other hand, the latter needs help in scouting for properties that meet their requirements and negotiating the deal.
Agents should fully understand what these two groups want and arrive at a middle ground to address both groups’ needs.
Handling Back Office Support
Of course, running a real estate business isn’t just about getting clients and completing transactions.
Real estate professionals still need to deal with daily operational duties. This includes back office work like finance management, record-keeping, lead generation and marketing, and general coordination.
This can be a lot of work for small real estate firms.
The time spent on such tasks removes the opportunity to engage with clients more and hiring additional staff might not be a viable option in these situations.
Personal Burdens
Being a professional in an ever-growing and challenging industry such as real estate can ultimately take a toll.
According to studies, nearly 80% of realtors feel burned out within two years on the job.
This burnout is often attributed to several factors, including:
- Demanding clients
- Unpredictable schedules
- Rapid business changes
All of these can often make managing a good work-life balance difficult for real estate agents and realtors.
This is where getting help will be a good idea.
Virtual assistants are here to be that help.
They offer plenty of things that will aid real estate agents in their quest to serve clients better. It’s time to explore why getting these VAs will be a great investment.
Enter The Real Estate Virtual Assistant
Finding a solution for all these challenges is in itself hard. Real estate agents and Realtors need a solution that will help them effectively cover everything.
This is where real estate virtual assistants come in.
As their name says, these VAs specifically cater to the real estate industry.
They are very knowledgeable about the processes real estate professionals use in their business.
They can quickly join their team and get to work.
These VAs also bring some great benefits such as:
Cost Effectiveness For Real Estate Agents
Getting virtual assistants can be more cost-effective than hiring in-house staff.
For one, there is no lengthy hiring process involved. This saves on operational costs while helping real estate agents quickly expand their teams.
This cost reduction also extends to overhead costs.
Since VAs work remotely, there is no need to spend on additional office accommodation and equipment. All those savings can then be used for other business needs.
Access To Expertise
Real estate virtual assistants are already familiar with industry processes. That expertise is invaluable, as it provides agents quick access to the necessary talents.
But there is more to it than just the basics.
These outsourced real estate virtual assistants continuously train themselves in the latest real estate tools and strategies. For instance, Virtua Solution’s real estate VAs have received extensive training for Compass, one of the most popular real estate brokerage platforms. Such training ensures that VAs are ready to take on more sophisticated tasks that agents need to do.
Improving Efficiency
Beyond tasks directly related to the real estate agent’s operations, virtual assistants can help boost efficiency. VAs can take on various back-office tasks to free the real estate agent’s or Realtor’s main, in-house team.
These VAs also provide much-needed flexibility for the real estate agency. Since they already have the expertise, VAs can shift to different back-office tasks as needed. This helps the office adapt faster to various situations.
This flexibility extends to adapting to changing market trends. For instance, artificial intelligence tools are redefining various tasks like market analysis and personalization. Real estate virtual assistants are quick to adopt these tools into their workflow and have also strongly advocated these to client agencies.
Tapping Real Estate Virtual Assistants Right
To get the boat of these real estate virtual assistants, real estate professionals need to be strategic when working with them. The first order of business is bringing them in.
In the first place, real estate professionals need to be clear in their requirements. They should outline the real estate-related and general admin tasks they expect VAs to do. This helps them determine the best candidates to look for.
Beyond present work, agents should also map out any potential future work the candidate VAs can expect. This makes adaptability an inherent part of the job as VAs already have a clear idea of the possible job path and prepare. It also lets clients chart the business course.
Working With A Real Estate Virtual Assistant
To ensure an effective working relationship, real estate agents should have a comprehensive onboarding process for virtual assistants.
The onboarding should clarify the roles further and help the VA fully understand the unique work process the agency might employ.
At this point, the real estate agency also needs to lay the foundation for the shared culture it will have with the virtual assistant.
One path to take here is building a growth-focused relationship.
Here, real estate agents need to incorporate virtual assistants into their growth strategy. They should determine what roles assistants will play at each stage of the business. Agents would also want to consider what future career paths they can offer to VAs.
Another important component of this growth-focused strategy is learning and knowledge development. Realtors and real estate agents should make it easy for their virtual assistants to learn more about the latest industry and business developments and acquire new skills through effective knowledge sharing.
On the other hand, real estate professionals should be open to learning from their VAs too. They have considerable knowledge of process improvement and should be able to share ideas freely. Agents should encourage constant back and forth to facilitate the exchange of ideas.
Boost Real Estate Success With Expert Real Estate Virtual Assistants
Getting a real estate virtual assistant is not just about bringing extra hands to the office. These VAs offer more to boost business capabilities. They can help in crucial business expansion efforts, helping agents capture new markets and bring in more customers.
Virtua is here to connect you with these top-notch real estate virtual assistants.
We will match you with the agents that best suit not just your needs but also your business style – all so you can better position yourself to engage buyers and sellers and close more deals.
It’s time to head towards real estate success with expert virtual assistants.