21 Things I Wish My Broker Had Told Me - Practical Advice for New Real Estate Professionals. Description:

21 Things I Wish My Broker Had Told Me : Practical Advice for New Real Estate Professionals. review:
2 stars (One piece of advice...avoid it - Elizabeth and Jameson Thottam) - This is lousy entry book for Real Estate professionals. Myself and my husband, Jameson Thottam (he used to work with Real Estate firms such as The Loan Page, Homestore and IndyMac Bank), have been dabbling in residential real estate and we found this book a horrible start in terms of teaching the core secrets (i.e., valuation, SEC II stat techniques, tax implications and flippying and insider trading tips of how to find/negotiate the best properties).



Trust us, Elizabeth and Jameson Thottam....we've been in the business for the last two years now and would not recommend this book.



-The Thottam family


5 stars (Great for Newbies) - This book is a great way for new agents to know what they are getting into. The book covers a multitude of issues that people outside of the industry don't know about including what to expect (and what not to) from your broker. There's very little detail in the book, but it's a great overview and, quite frankly, you'd be hard pressed to get all of the information about real estate into 10 books, much less one.



This is a terrific book for setting your expectations in a realistic place. It covers everything from planning your career change to how to hold an open house. I'd highly recommend it for new agents just getting started or for anyone thinking about getting started in the industry. I offer it as a suggestion to all the new agents I train.
4 stars (Very Good Book for New Licensees) - I am just got my license, and I can tell you, alot of the 'how to be successful in real estate in your first year' and from the various seminars I have attended, they all basically say the same thing - Market yourself, prepare for the rough patches, work, work, work to see results. Nothing really earth shattering or inspiring.



But I liked this book because of it's honesty. Alot of what you hear and read in other books, on how to market your self and get leads - this book breaks it down based on surveys from people who have been in real estate for awhile and are successful.



It tells you which methods they found to work, and how often the others did or did not work for them. Gives you a good idea of which way you want to go, instead of you trying to do doing everything you all at once and spending all that time and money- only to see minimal results.



It also talks about the ruts and dry spells real estate agents get into, and the reasons why as many as 70% of new real estate agents drop out in their first year, and how not to let that happen to you. It also points out some of the smallest (common) mistakes that you could make as a real estate agent - and lose your license!



All in all this is a good book for the new agent. I have been starting off slowly, learning as I go. And I can honestly say this book definitely parallels to some of the stuff I have already done, and just as the books said happened more than not-some of the stuff I did turned up very little to no results.



Wish I would have read it before I got started.