Business Networking with Other Real Estate Agents.  Aren't They My Competition?

You may have heard of the expression, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. At first glance, many real estate agents may view other agents as competition. In your area, there are probably a few names you always see who seem to sell everything in town. How did they achieve this recognition and success? Perhaps from your POV, particularly as a newer agent, you may think these listings seem to just fall in their lap effortlessly. I can say that while this may be true now, those agents went thru a lot of networking, relationship-building, and straight hustling to get to where they are today. 

I was a brand-new agent in Cincinnati in 2006. I watched in awe while the veteran agents were on their Blackberrys and cumbersome full headsets running in and out of the office, stacks of files and documents in hand all day long. Meanwhile, I was sending out hand-written postcards to my sphere of influence (which I may add was a shortlist back then) and making frequent trips to Starbucks to make it look like I was out doing something. I wondered what their secret sauce was. They were all so busy all the time! I wanted what they had-consistent business. Now with tens of millions of dollars of real estate sales under my belt, I can attest to the importance of networking with your fellow Realtors. Let me explain how this will benefit you…

MENTORSHIP

As a rookie agent, you will want to befriend the high-producing agents in your office. It would be unlikely that the top agent in another brokerage will share their trade secrets with you. However, your real estate colleagues in your brokerage are all working towards a common good. Offer to host an open house for them. It’s a win-win for both of you. Most top producing agents don’t have time to host open houses but would be beyond grateful to have you facilitate their open house. You get to build a trusting relationship with that agent and also the opportunity to pick up new buyer clients for yourself! Most high-volume agents are willing and welcoming when it comes to helping newer agents learn the steps it takes to achieve the future success that they have now attained. Don’t be afraid to ask questions! 

POCKET LISTINGS

This is important now more than ever due to the real estate inventory crisis we are in. This goes not only for fellow agents in your office, but more so for real estate agents working for other brokerages in your area. Let’s say you picked up some new potential buyers who are preapproved and ready to purchase. You have looked high and low, formal listings, For Sale by Owners, and everything in between to no avail. You just remembered that you attended a real estate “lunch and learn” to earn some continuing education credits. While there you had made casual small talk with a friendly Realtor from ABC Realty. Maybe you even exchanged business cards. Now is your chance to call that agent and ask if perhaps they know of a 3 bed/2 bath in Anywhere, USA that is getting ready to be listed. Just recently this happened to me and though the agent didn’t have anything coming on the market, another Realtor in his office DID have something that was due to be listed in a few weeks. That 2-minute call resulted in my clients being the first ones to see the listing before it hit the market. Now they are happy homeowners who didn’t have to suffer through the struggle of multiple offers and bidding wars. See, those free Realtor events are worth going to after all. 

REPUTATION

Establishing professional relationships and building rapport with other agents strengthens your reputation in the industry. If you are rude to agents via email and or phone calls, this will not help you with future dealings. If you have a reputation for writing sloppy offers with ridiculous demands and contingencies, this too will affect how other agents perceive you. Conversely, if you consistently stay communicative throughout the transaction with the other cooperating broker, only work with qualified buyers to give peace of mind to the other agent, and write clean, strong offers, this will encourage other agents to want to work with you. That way, in a multiple offer scenario, the cooperating agents will be willing to work with you. You will be known for being a pleasure to work with and that is what both agents and their clients come to expect in a financial transaction of this magnitude. 



Establishing and maintaining best practices in your real estate career with both your clients and fellow agents will earn respect in the competitive world of real estate. It’s not every man for himself or survival of the fittest. It’s truly proving that you are at the top of your game in every facet of the deal, both personally and professionally.