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How to Prepare Yourself to Launch Your Own Real Estate Business With San Antonio Real Estate Pro Brandi Cook

Brandi Cook is a big name in the real estate business for the north east side of San Antonio. A stay-at-home mom for years, she wanted to earn extra money to help ease the pressure on her husband so she got her realtors license and got out into the community to help people buy homes. Seven years later, she now owns her own real estate business and she’s not looking back. She sat down with host of the Local Talent podcast, Jason Setzer, to talk about the real estate business and what it takes to be a successful real estate entrepreneur.

See more shows with all kinds of entrepreneurs by visiting here: https://txlocaltalent.com/blog-2/

Get Ready to learn the real estate business…on the Job

Brandi learned real estate at an online college. She continues to study to keep her license current, but she underlines that much of her knowledge comes from learning on the job. As she tells Jason, it’s important for realtors to keep their hand in the game and to sell more than just a few houses a year. Real estate changes all the time and if you’re out of practice, you’re not going to get the best deal for your clients.

Part of learning on the job is also accepting the fact that you’re going to make mistakes. Brandi, admittingly, is no stranger to that! She appreciates her mistakes, because she learned from them and was able to pick herself up and move on.

Set Expectations with your family about your real estate business

Brandi works long hours, and her family had to get used to not having her around as much. She believes that it’s important to be available to your clients 24/7 because otherwise deals fall through. She tells Jason that she even takes calls from clients when she’s reading bedtime stories to her grandson!

If you want to be a good realtor, you need to talk with your family about the demands of the job and the impact it can have on your life. Brandi’s way to balance out her work and her family life is to take longer breaks away with her family outside of San Antonio so that she can disconnect and decompress.

Develop a Thick Skin

Once you’re a realtor, you will have clients who yell at you. You’re accompanying clients through a stressful time in their lives and there’s a lot about real estate that they probably don’t understand and like Brandi says, when something goes wrong, they blame you.

Brandi doesn’t let the shouting bother her because she knows that clients sometimes need to vent their frustrations. She tries to keep clients removed from the most stressful elements of the transaction so that she can keep her head down and get her job done.

Build Up Your Professional Network

As an entrepreneur, you should never underestimate the importance of having a solid professional network, especially in the San Antonio area. When Brandi started, her first clients were connections she had made on the farm and from a local professional club. Today she still doesn’t spend much money on marketing her business because many of her clients are referrals.

In contrast, her son recently got his realtor license but initially struggled to get his business off the ground because he didn’t have the same kinds of connections within the community. So to become a successful realtor, Brandi advises people to look around them and to invest in their relationships.

Don’t Expect to Make Money Straight Away

It can take a couple of months to start picking up clients. After that, a month or two to start signing deals, says Brandi. This means that if you’re just starting out as a real estate agent, you need to have savings to draw on as you establish yourself. Also, have a budget. Essentials such as signs, logos, leaflets, and office space are going to set you back. If you’re going into real estate without a financial cushion, you’re going to have a bumpy ride.

Do What Keeps You Motivated

Real estate can be tough. Brandi puts up with the long hours and the late night phone calls because she truly loves being a realtor. She puts her clients first and works hard to get them the best deal possible, and she surrounds herself with likeminded people who all share her attitude and work ethic. Brandi’s favorite part of the job is seeing photos on Facebook of families who she helped. Helping people out is the fuel that keeps Brandi going and should be the main goal of every realtor.

Subscribe to Local Talent: The Entrepreneur’s Handbook podcast for more funny and interesting interviews on business and entrepreneurship with Jason Setzer and his special guests.

You Can find Brandi by going here: brandicookrealestategroup.com

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