A developing trend in the real estate business is How To Create a Real Estate Sales Team. Presently, the Florida Real Estate Commission Rules only allow brokers to supervise agents. But real estate agents can ethically, legally, and properly create a team under the supervision of a primary agent.
What is the Benefit of a Real Estate Sales Team?
A Real Estate Sales Team can be a powerful tool for brokers and experienced agents. It can provide invaluable guidance and mentorship to less experienced real estate agents. So a Real Estate Team is not a bad idea, but the FREC Rules do not allow an agent to supervise another agent. Only brokers are allowed to supervise agents under those Rules.
Creating a Real Estate Team
Prior to creating a Real Estate Team, you should make sure it will be the correct business move for you.
Do you have enough lead volume to make it work?
The primary factor on whether to build a real estate team is whether you have enough volume to warrant a team. Do you currently have so many listings and transactions in the pipeline that you’re not keeping up with new leads?
A good benchmark is 40 transactions per year with 50-60 transactions being the limit for most individual agents to handle on their own.
Are you ready to be a team leader?
There is a HUGE difference between being a solo top producer and managing a team. Many agents do not realize what it takes to transition from a top agent to a top team leader.
Setting Up The Right Systems For Success
The very first step when building a real estate team is to set your revenue goals and then work backward to determine how many leads a team members you’ll need in order to fulfill your revenue goals.
As a team leader, your primary job will become lead generation. You will need tools and systems in place to manage the incoming leads and keep your team productive.
Here are some key real estate systems to setup to get you started:
- Business Plan and Goals
- Vision, Purpose, and Brand
- Marketing and Advertising
- Database and Referral System
- Customer Relationship Management Software
- Listing Inventory and Farming System
- Buyer, Escrow, and Transaction Management System
- Accounting Software
- Lead Generation and Follow-up Systems
- Internet, Blogging, and Social Media Marketing
- Financial, Productivity, Profitability Reports, and Forecasts
You will probably not need to have all of this in place for a two-person real estate team but as you grow so must your systems.
How Do I Document My Agreement with Other Agents?
You can create a Real Estate Sales Team with two levels of agreements. The first level is with the agents who will be members of the Team. The second level is between the broker and the team leader and team members.
The first level by and among the team members covers the commission split and the roles of each party. Commission splits are well-established in the real estate industry. These commonly occur when the buyer and the seller have separate agents. In that case, each agent usually takes half of the sales commission. In the Real Estate Sales Team model, team members can share their commission with the members and team leader.
The team member agreement should also define the role and the relationship of each party. It may also include provisions like noncompete and nondisclosure arrangements to protect the integrity of the Team.
The second level agreement with the broker is a three-party contract including the team leader and team members. Its purpose is to document the supervision of the broker and address the commission split arrangement by and among the team.
Where Can I Get a Real Estate Sales Team Agreement?
Real estate agents know that real estate transactions in Florida must be in writing. So they recognize the value of a properly prepared legal contract. A skilled and experienced attorney should draft the Real Estate Sales Team agreements. The underlying purpose of the contracts is to document the team relationship, protect business interests, and create a benefit for all team members. A poorly drafted agreement may be unenforceable. The effect of that may undo the entire operation and create more problems. For example, noncompetes are strictly interpreted under Florida law. Only an expert lawyer will know how to create a solid and enforceable noncompete.
Are you looking to create a Real Estate Sales Team? Let us help you! We can properly craft the documents necessary to structure the relationship. As a real estate agent, your reputation and your skill in developing and securing new listings is the core of your business. You can benefit from this structure and should have it done properly to avoid problems. Call us at 561-838-9595 or send us an email at hello@newpathtitle.com to get started.