Real Estate Agent Job Description

 Real estate agents liaise between home owners and buyers to conduct the sale, purchase or rent of properties. They work for brokers and play a major role in assisting people buy or sell residential, commercial or industrial property. They keep and maintain an up-to-date account of property listing and other relevant housing information to stay abreast with properties available on the real estate market. They subscribe to several listing services to advertise and market properties up for sale. They also contact property and market properties up for sale. They also contact property owners to obtain information regarding a property.

As part of their responsibilities, estate agents present sales and purchase offers to clients for consideration. They advise them on property rates, legal requirements and general market trend. They also interview clients to determine their property preference or specification. Usually, they prepare a list of properties that best match the needs and requirements of clients. They visit and inspect properties in order to establish precise property value. They also proffer recommendations to clients on properties that best suit their budget and preference.

Most estate agents oversee the preparation of closing statements, purchase agreements, representation contracts and other necessary documents required for estate trade. They conduct negotiations between property sellers and buyers to establish price and other terms of sales. They also liaise with pest control operators, home inspectors etc. to ensure the terms and conditions stated in a purchase agreement are met prior to the closing of sales.

In fulfilling their role, real estate agents oversee the closing of property sales, they ensure payment is complete and appropriate documents signed. They maintain contact with clients to offer them real estate services/products and assist with the resolution of issues. They also provide consultation services to clients to recommend strategies for the speedy sale of property. They often conduct training programs for junior/trainee sales agents to enhance their sales skill. This job position requires at least a high school diploma, state license for practice and an aptitude for sales. Qualities needed for the job include persuasion, interpersonal skills and problem-solving skills.

Real Estate Agent Job Description Sample

Given below is a sample of the job description usually handed real estate agents by most employers:

  • Act as liaisons to conduct real estate trade between property buyers and sellers
  • Present sales offers to clients as well as bid on available properties
  • Carry out investigations to determine client credit status and ability to complete payment
  • Inspect properties to appraise its value and estimate the worth on the property market
  • Interact with clients to identify their requirements and proffer recommendations on properties that best suit their budgets
  • Assist home sellers in promoting their buildings on property listing services to attract clients for purchase
  • Prepare and deliver sales pitches to clients in order to secure real estate contract
  • Provide clients with a list of properties available for sale to assist them in making choice selection
  • Conduct price negotiations between property buyers and sellers to ensure a fair bargain for both parties
  • Provide clients with a tour of residential, industrial or commercial properties to showcase and explain property features
  • Carry out investigations to confirm clients have clear property titles
  • Provide appropriate reply to client's enquiries concerning property appraisals, financing, maintenance etc.
  • Examine property premises to recommend maintenance measure required to improve the face value
  • Assist clients in evaluating mortgage options to obtain the best rate and terms
  • Attend conventions, conferences and seminars to improve existing job knowledge and expand personal network.
If you are a recruiter needing the best real estate agent to hire, you can use the sample job description above in making one for your company, for use in hiring and assigning duties to the successful candidates.

How Do You Select The Best Property Management Software

 Property management can be a challenge, especially without the right tools. Getting the right software program is very essential in helping you streamline the process of handling your growing business and to keep it organized. More and more companies are eliminating paperwork by choosing software solutions that can handle all important functions including management of documents. But then how do you go about selecting the best property management software for your business?

Step 1 - Start by focusing on what you need

Avoid choosing software that is an overkill or under-kill for your business. It is important that you evaluate exactly what you need the software program for; you can separate office accounting needs from property management needs to cut costs of the software program. Consider whether it is important for the system to help you with tenant background checks, liability and asset accounting and budgeting so you do not waste your time on a solution you really do not need. Whereas you do not want to go overboard when choosing the system, you also do not want to end up with a program that cannot handle the most basic things for your business. It helps to at least ensure that the management software you settle for can automatically post management fees, rent and late fees, maintain separate ledgers for tenants and owners, easily update information via a friendly interface, handle different property types without additional module buying and deal with bank deposits and checks.

Step 2 - Check all important features

There are so many features that may not be that critical to the management process of the property, but they will prove to be valuable on your software. Some of the features that can make a difference in your system include reminder features to help track appointments, pop-up lists of owners and tenants owing you money, features that help check tenant info for log back payments and credit references, automated rent amount updates, automated account updates and other. The more you are able to do with the program the better the convenience you stand to enjoy running your property business.

Step 3 - Confirm support, reliability and reasonable pricing

Most property management software companies fail in offering the needed support. Some may even compel you to pay for software updates to enjoy technical support, whereas others may offer free support for a limited time frame and start charging for any support beyond that. Choose a support plan you can fully trust in and rely on. On the same line, you should take the mandate to check for any hidden costs when buying the software. Ask as many relevant questions as possible and read as much as you can about what you stand to gain using the solution before making the final purchase. It helps to choose a software program that is easy to install and use and one that comes with a comprehensive inbuilt help file. Keep off programs that require you pay for updates and research.