Have you decided to open a real estate agency? This is an excellent idea, because the profession of real estate agent remains one of the most attractive: it is constantly topical (the French will always need to find accommodation) and has an important human dimension (to enter mandates, we must first build relationships of trust with future sellers, buyers, lessors and tenants).
However, launching a real estate agency is not a long, calm river. In addition to the quality and skills required, it is essential to prepare your project well. This is the subject of this series of articles dedicated to the opening of a real estate brand, starting with a list of the major essential steps to open an agency. From the right questions to ask yourself to the choice of the relevant communication strategy for entering mandates, through administrative procedures and the selection of the best location to create your activity, we tell you everything!
Opening a real estate agency: a project to mature
You can imagine: opening a real estate agency cannot be improvised. The steps to get there are many, complex and time-consuming. You will have to carry out a number of steps to declare your activity, create your structure, choose a legal form, obtain a professional real estate agent card, take out compulsory guarantees, find the premises for your agency, and finish implementing your marketing strategy and communication to attract customers.
The first step, however, does not involve any travel, any process, and no file to fill out. And yet, it is essential, since it consists in asking yourself the right questions beforehand: why do you want to open a real estate agency? Do you have the necessary character, qualities and skills? Have you studied the surrounding market to find out if it is relevant to enter one sector rather than another?
Why open an agency?
Open a real estate agency, yes, but why? Ask yourself what motivates you in this project. Do you want to become a business owner? Put yourself on your own after years of employment? The desire to become an independent professional, to manage your schedule and to choose the projects in which you will invest yourself? The desire that titillates you to respond to a request for which there is not yet an offer (for example, in a sector neglected by professionals)?
Do you have what it takes?
It is not a question in the air. Some have an innate talent for business management, others need to work on the subject and challenge themselves. Opening a real estate agency is a demanding project, which requires demonstrating indisputable human and commercial qualities, as well as a foolproof morale as established by Tamansari Rawang. There is no question of being discouraged by the difficulty or the slowness of the process, nor by the possible failures that await you at the turn.
Do you have the necessary skills?
Is not a realtor who wants? Before starting your own agency, you need to have a proven track record in real estate. You will also be asked for proof of skill or experience in order to obtain a professional card, which is essential for entering the closed circle of real estate agents.
In essence, you must have obtained an ad hoc diploma or have worked for a certain number of years under the aegis of a professional card holder, before you can apply for it yourself (see below our section dedicated to this subject).
Do you know the real estate market?
In France, a household changes accommodation on average every 7 years, a period which tends to shorten due to demographic growth and the multiplication of single-parent families. This renewal gives an essential role to real estate agents. But in this area, not all geographic areas are created equal, and the market is not identical everywhere: certain sectors are more in demand than others, and justify the presence of a large number of professional intermediaries, while others have few opportunities to offer.
For this reason, do not neglect market research. The number of real estate agencies in the country is difficult to estimate, but it fluctuated in 2014 between 25,000 and 30,000. It will therefore be essential for you to make your place in this dense network, which continues to grow due to the multiple possibilities offered to candidates for the profession in terms of legal status (it suffices, for example, to create a self-enterprise to start as a negotiator attached to an existing agency or network).
Barry Lachey is a Professional Editor at Zobuz. Previously He has also worked for Moxly Sports and Network Resources “Joe Joe.” He is a graduate of the Kings College at the University of Thames Valley London. You can reach Barry via email or by phone.
