By Dinah Eng

Being a successful real estate agent requires knowledge of people, properties, and a legal process that’s often hard to understand.

With falling home prices, and difficulties in getting jumbo loans in the upper and middle tiers of the market, being on top of the game is more important than ever, especially, given the mounting data. For instance, C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index for existing, single-family detached homes in February 2008 was 14.3 months, compared with 8.2 months for the same period a year ago. The index indicates the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate.

• “When you get into this business, you’ve got to see yourself as a business owner, so act like a CEO,” advises Joyce Bartel, a sales representative with Coldwell Banker/San Mateo-Downtown. “Set up a business and marketing plan, and get acquainted with your team—your broker, your lenders, your termite inspectors, etc. Inspectors are really important as a referral source.”

Other tips from Bartel:

• Develop a specialty. Do you feel most comfortable with first-time buyers? High-end buyers? Condominium owners? “I started with ‘for sale by owners’ [FSBOs] and expired listings,” Bartel says. “I used to give them a packet with a little gift, to introduce myself.”

• Know your inventory. Make a list of five new properties in the territory you want to work every day.

• Be respectful of other agents. “If you’re bothering them, or being rude, they won’t want to do business with you,” Bartel says. “Look at other agents as you would a client. Meet with them for a cup of coffee, and share information.”

• Make listing presentations that sell your expertise. “Drive the area and know the comps,” Bartel says. “When you go to the listing presentation, have your own bio, information about the transaction, the extra things you’ll do (like staging), forms, and letters of recommendation. At the end of the presentation, help them decide how much the house is worth, based on comps. If you believe the house is overpriced, have a contingency plan ready.”

• Know the transaction process. Transaction management systems can be found on the Internet, including C.A.R.’s RELAY™ and one developed by Bartel called “The Transaction.” Most brokerages have checklists you can also reference.

Jean Provence, broker associate with Schankle Real Estate in Monterey and president of the Monterey County Association of REALTORS®, says it’s important to develop mediation skills. “Don’t speak with words like ‘we’ think,” Provence says. “You’re the mediator between the buyer and seller. It’s not your house. Solve problems without acting like you’re one of the principals.”

Other tips from Provence:

• Have an intake consultation before taking on a client, whether you’re representing the buyer or seller, to find out what the client’s needs and wants are.

• “It’s about the client, and not the commission,” Provence says. “Too many REALTORS® are desperate for the commission. If you do the right job for your clients, they’ll tell everyone they know about how good you are, and that’s how the referrals will come.”

• It’s okay to fire a client if you’re not hitting it off. Refer the client to a more compatible agent, and get a 20 percent referral fee without the pain of dealing with someone you really don’t want to work with.

• The deal’s not closed until it’s closed. “There are at least 100 reasons why a transaction will not close, and that’s where we earn our money,” Provence says. “Getting a house into escrow is easy. Getting it to close is the hard part, so don’t go out and start buying things until the deal

is really done.”

• Don’t let any objection derail the deal. “You have to be creative in your thinking,” he says. “Maybe the buyer does a lease-option for three months until the person can qualify for a loan. It may not be about the asking price. Maybe it’s about leaving the washer and dryer. Part of the fun is figuring out how to do the deal.”

Make sure that your own financial house is in order, too, says Nancy Donahue-Jones, CAE, RCE, CEO of the Southwest Riverside County Association of REALTORS® in Murietta.

• “In this market, you need something to fall back on, so have at least six months of reserves,” Donahue-Jones advises. “Get an accountant and follow his or her advice.”

Other tips from Donahue-Jones:

• Seek out professional training courses, such as the CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) and GRI (Graduate Realtor® Institute) classes offered by the National Association of REALTORS®, which teach the nuts and bolts of the business.

“Our association offers quarterly legal sessions and free WINForms® training,” she adds. “WINForms® is the product C.A.R. provides all California REALTORS® so that they can do all transactions online. Everyone gets a clean copy, which makes the transaction a lot more professional.

“If training is not available in your office, seek out classes that are offered by associations, title and escrow companies, or Freddie Mac. The business changes constantly and education is an investment you need to allocate annual resources for.”

• Find a mentor. Attend office meetings, listen, and look for someone who complements your personality and working style.

• Spend time learning the MLS, and don’t wait until you get a transaction to look at it.

• Advertise wisely. Find Internet outlets that may be less expensive than using direct mail or newspaper advertising. See if your brokerage does any advertising on behalf of its agents.

• “Create your own Web site, and look at Craigslist or MySpace to see how they market themselves in these areas,” Donahue-Jones suggests. “When you go out to eat, leave a tip and your business card. This is a people business, and you have to promote yourself everywhere you go.”

Regardless of market conditions, Donahue-Jones says new agents can create a successful career for themselves by following through on leads. “There’s always a need for buyers and sellers, so if you look at the glass as being half full, you’ll be successful,” she says. “It’s all about your attitude. Agents need to know the nuts and bolts of the business, and this slower market allows them to learn things early on. To me, it’s always a good market.”

Dinah Eng is a Los Angeles-based real estate writer.