5 Essential Tips for New Real Estate Agents in Israel

The longer I am in the business, the more I see how there are just too many real estate professionals who entered this business for what they perceive as easy big-money commissions. While running a real estate business can be fun, exciting and be a very satisfying career, a lot find out the hard way that it takes a lot of work in being successful.

In this post, I’ve gathered the top 5 essential tips to consider when becoming a real estate agent and how to start your business the right way.

Have questions? Great! Feel free to comment below or drop me a line!

The easiest part is getting your license. Now, I know many new real estate agents trying to fit into the real estate field in Israel will perhaps disagree with me, as the Israeli real estate license exam can be difficult and somewhat stressful for Olim Chadashim trying to push their new careers forward in Israel. But in reality, while many people stress out over studying for the exam, where in fact their focus is really on the wrong end of the problem.

Pay attention to these 5 essential tips, as passing the exam gets you your license, but it’s far from enough knowledge to be successful in becoming a real estate agent for the long haul.

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1. Have a backup income source:

What most new real estate agents don’t take into account, that it is a business where your monthly income is entirely dependent on the amount of sales you make a month, that is of course, if you do close a sale, and that can take time. There’s a lot involved in a real estate transaction, and your success in closing a sale has a lot to do with your knowledge and experience.

Unless you have solid connections who are ready to buy an apartment, you can go for months without an income and that must be taken into account.

My suggestion is either have some money saved up to make it for four months or more without a commission, or keep your day job for a while.

While becoming a real estate agent part time may not have been your plan, nor is it ideal when trying to establish your business, you need to focus on maintaining a steady form of income in order to keep going while you get your business started.

2. Get a mentor or sign up for real estate training:

Passing the Israeli real estate license exam isn’t what you need for success when becoming a real estate agent. It’s simply a milestone in order for you to practice working in real estate. You need a lot more to make it in this business and the second MOST important thing that you need for your success is training.

There is much to learn about the real estate business and how to build your brand, and while some perceive it to be a sales job, it’s not all about “selling.” You’re going to need to understand and explain market prices and trends, different types of real estate, the process of selling, buying, renting and so much more. Not to mention killing it in real estate marketing, which takes up 80% of the job!

At the end of the day, you’ll feel much more capable knowing that you’ve taken such an important step towards building your business, especially in such a highly competitive business, and having mentoring or guidance to help you build a realistic plan to begin with, will go a long way in being successful.

3. Choose a market niche for your real estate business:

Selling is hard, and as a real estate agent, the challenges are even greater simply because repeat customers are few and far in between.

One great business strategy to consider when building your real estate business, is specializing in a niche market and becoming the authority in that market.

Whether you decide to solely work with buyers, sellers, or an exclusive buyer category,  a geographical area or a type of property,  recognizing the different opportunities out there and narrowing your real estate marketing focus by selecting a niche that appeals to you, you’re branding yourself as an expert, making it easier to attract your target audience.

4. The Holy Grail to your success – Start out right with online marketing:

In today’s digital world, businesses have to evolve and react faster than ever before and there are no shortcuts.

92% of clients use the internet to either house hunt, look for a brokerage or an agent, or put their apartment up for sale online. This strongly indicates the need for an established online presence, and your website is the face and looks of your business in the digital world.

Although, a real estate business is a location based business, in order to succeed and attract clients – you simply NEED Internet marketing in today’s real estate world and your online marketing efforts should be at the top of your priority.

That’s not to say you can’t succeed with referrals through past businesses, however, your website and social networking is essential to get a foothold with today’s buyers and sellers.

5. There’s More to Being a Real Estate Agent Than Just Getting Your License:

For most future real estate agents, the Israeli Real Estate License Exam turns out to be less fearful than they anticipated. The rude awakening comes later, when they don’t find that easy income in the first few months.

I can’t stretch this enough, as there’s a lot more to this business than just obtaining your license; matching people to properties is one aspect of it (and a big one, as this is the money time for us) but on top of the obvious, such as being reliable, honest and most of all professional, you need to have a solid plan and stick to it!

Have some money saved aside or maintain another source of income, establish an online presence and build a realistic marketing strategy to build your business down the road. But the real face to this business, really comes down to some good old hard work – create contacts, build your professional network and list of clients, know your preferred geographical area like the palm of your hand, and most importantly, know who your clients are, so ultimately you will know how to attract them and cater for them.

It’s a professional business and the more serious you take it from start, the easier it will be for you to get a foothold and build your business and brand.

It won’t happen in a day, and most certainly don’t expect to close a deal so early up in the process. As I’ve already mentioned, there’s a lot involved in a real estate transaction, be it  a sale or a rental, and you need to keep in mind that there’s a lot of money involved, other people’s money, so make no mistakes – if anything goes wrong – you’ll be the first to blame.

Sales transactions are a lot more complicated so avoid being asked basic buyer / seller questions you can’t answer, as it could cost you both the name you’re trying to build for yourself and the client. Learn everything there is to know about a real estate transaction, both from a sales and rental point of view.

Rental transactions are less complex, but that’s not to say you shouldn’t take the time to understand the ins and outs of what it involves, and don’t assume that every prospect that contacts you knows how the rental market works here in Israel.

The same goes for sales. Once you feel confident enough, move on to sellers and buyers, but your most important goal is to keep on being professional and work hard to find the keys to success to keep up with your game.