Why You Should Have a Real Estate Mentor

Reasons to Have a Real Estate Mentor

Finding the right real estate mentor is an essential part of becoming a real estate agent. While not required in all states, mentors are well-worth the effort that goes into finding one. Here are some of the best reasons to have a mentor when starting a career in real estate.

Mentors Have Experience

The whole purpose of working with a mentor is to learn from their experience, and any agent or broker who qualifies to serve as a real estate mentor is bound to have plenty of experience to offer. Learning from this experience can provide new agents with a lot of value. Real estate mentors can offer tips and advice that they have learned from years on the job. They can also help the agents avoid pitfalls or mistakes they might have fallen victim to themselves early in their own careers.

There is no better teacher than personal experience, but learning from someone who is experienced themselves is a close second. By passing on everything they have learned throughout their careers, real estate mentors can help new agents become accustomed to the ins and outs of the job on a much more accelerated timeline than they would otherwise be faced with.

Mentors Improve Your Chances of Succeeding as an Agent

Working as a real estate agent may not be as challenging as some careers, but that doesn't mean that everyone who aspires to be a real estate agent will have a successful career. The burnout rate among real estate agents is so high that many real estate companies make an effort to hire many more agents than they need on staff because so many new agents don't end up making the cut.

Thankfully, working with a mentor can significantly improve a new agent's chances of developing a successful real estate career. By serving as a source of guidance, real estate mentors can help new agents avoid many mistakes that might otherwise sink their career aspirations. Real estate mentors can also help new agents develop an efficient and effective process that will help them avoid becoming overwhelmed by the job.

Mentors Can Help Create Connections

In most careers, who you know is every bit as important as what you know — and real estate is no exception. Inside connections with other professionals in the industry and inside connections with potential clients offer new real estate agents an incredible amount of value. Of course, forming these connections is often easier said than done. A real estate agent can go to school to learn all of the information they need to know to succeed in their career, but building a network of connections isn't always so straightforward.

That said, any agent or broker who has been on the job long enough to qualify as a real estate mentor is bound to have formed a lot of relationships in the process. By introducing the agents they mentor to these connections that they've made, real estate mentors can provide new agents with a beneficial head start when it comes to building their own network of connections. From helping new agents climb the career ladder by connecting them with the professionals who make such decisions to helping new agents get a foothold within their community, working with a mentor willing to introduce new agents to their connections can be beneficial.

Mentors Can See Mistakes Before They Happen

Costly mistakes are rarely forgotten, and any good real estate agent knows that it's never acceptable to make the same mistake twice. While it's certainly important to learn from one's mistakes, avoiding those mistakes in the first place is the far more preferable option.

Thanks to their years of experience on the job, real estate mentors are typically able to spot potential mistakes before they happen and help agents avert disaster. No matter how well-educated a new real estate agent might be, there are still bound to be some mistakes they overlook due to a lack of experience. By learning from the experience of their mentor, though, new agents are often able to avoid such mistakes and their costly consequences.

Mentors Can Keep You Motivated

There are a lot of ingredients that go into the recipe for a successful real estate career, but a high degree of motivation is certainly one of them. Since what an agent earns is directly determined by their job performance, self-motivation is a great indicator of success in the real estate industry.

Even the best self-motivators, though, can often benefit from a little outside motivation. In addition to pushing the agents they mentor onward and motivating them to excel, great real estate mentors can also help new agents avoid burnout by providing valuable advice to make their jobs easier. Staying motivated while everything is going smoothly is much easier than staying motivated when one is struggling to keep their head above water, and a good mentor can help ensure the early stages of a new agent's career go as smoothly as possible.

Not all real estate mentors are great motivators and leaders of men. If an agent can find a mentor that exhibits these qualities, they should consider themselves quite fortunate. With that said, even the mentors who aren't natural motivators can still help agents avoid burnout by providing the guidance they need to perform their jobs more efficiently and avoid stress-inducing mistakes.

Where to Find a Real Estate Mentor

Few things will benefit a new real estate agent more than working alongside a qualified mentor. Finding a real estate mentor, though, isn't always an easy process. Remember that mentors don't gain nearly as much from the transaction as the new agents they take under their wing. With that being the case, most agents will need to search within their established network of relationships to find an experienced agent or broker willing to serve as their mentor.

If an agent has already secured a job at a brokerage, searching for a mentor within their new office is their best place to start. For agents who are still searching for both a job and a mentor, local networking events can be a great opportunity to find both. Agents can also leverage personal or professional relationships with real estate professionals if they have any. Lastly, more and more new real estate agents are now using social media as a tool for connecting with potential mentors. While in-person networking still offers much more potential for success, the convenience of reaching out to potential mentors online makes it an option that is often worth exploring.

Find a Mentor to Help You Become a Great Agent

From helping new agents spot and avoid potential mistakes to helping keep them motivated and inspired to succeed, working with a real estate mentor offers agents that are just beginning their careers a wealth of benefits. While finding a qualified and willing mentor can often be a challenge, it is almost always well worth the effort.