Real estate agents have many irons in the fire. While the job can come with many perks, it also comes with its fair share of challenges. Managing a busy schedule can be difficult for everyone, especially real estate agents engaging with multiple clients, working on their own marketing, and so much more. Everyone could benefit from a few extra minutes. These time-saving tips for real estate agents will help you get the most out of your time.
Master your morning routine
The start of your day is just as important as what you do during the day. There are science-backed tips for creating a morning routine that works smarter, not harder. Wake up at the same time every morning. Irregular sleep patterns decrease productivity. While the freedom to “sleep in” is tempting, waking up at the same time every day will help make you feel more alert, more productive, and make it far easier to manage your time efficiently. Don’t touch your phone. Your stress hormones are highest in the morning, so don’t start your morning by obsessively checking your emails. Get moving. Exercising in the morning can improve your alertness, visual learning, and decision-making throughout the day. Even just five minutes of stretching or taking a walk can help!
Utilize time blocking
As an agent, you likely have the freedom to schedule your workday to align with your productivity. While creating this structure can be challenging, it also means you can choose when to tackle the most demanding tasks on your to-do list. All too often, busy agents resort to multitasking—which can hinder productivity and waste time. That’s why it’s so important to have uninterrupted work sessions each week (if not every day). Whether you’re going over contract specifics or updating your CRM, you’re bound to get it done quicker if you put away your phone, turn off your laptop notifications, and devote yourself to the task at hand!
An example of a typical week could look like this:
- Monday: Meetings, contracts, paperwork
- Tuesdays: Lead follow-up and second showings
- Wednesdays: Time off and appointments
- Thursdays: Lead generation and appointment setting
- Fridays: Lead generation and appointment setting
Set deadlines and schedules
I know what you’re thinking, “Isn’t time blocking a schedule? Why would I need to do both?” Once you time-block your week, you can prioritize tasks within your day. Setting deadlines isn’t just about giving yourself a finite amount of time to complete a task. It is also a way to monitor your time management. Setting deadlines and schedules can help you better organize and manage tasks and projects.
If the #1 rule of real estate time management is to always start with the tasks that are both important and urgent, the #2 rule is to make sure you schedule time for those tasks that are important but don’t have to be done urgently. Make a list of all the real estate tasks that you do daily, and put each one into one of four categories:
1. Do First
These should be the core tasks that directly earn you money, like cold calling, door knocking, managing Facebook ads, and responding to new leads and current clients. As the category name suggests, you should do these tasks first.
2. Schedule
Important but not urgent, you should schedule tasks like researching a new customer relationship manager (CRM), networking with listing agents, optimizing your website, blogging, and segmenting your leads.
3. Delegate
Here’s where it might get a little tricky for some agents. Delegating tasks is great if you have the help available. Many real estate agents take a hands-on approach to every aspect of the job. The best way to avoid burnout is by determining which tasks fall within your scope of expertise—and assigning those that don’t to others. For many agents, that means delegating administrative and marketing work to focus on what matters (their clients).
4. Don’t Do
These are the tasks that aren’t helping you at all. For most people, these will be social media-related. For example, have you spent an hour a day on Pinterest for six months with nothing to show for it? Probably time for a new strategy.
Take 5
The Pomodoro Technique suggests your brain can only focus on one task without wandering for around an hour. That means getting up and taking a quick break every hour and then returning to work will make you more productive. Rewarding yourself with time away from work when you complete a project to help avoid burnout.
Have a network of professionals you can count on
As a real estate agent, you have a lot on your plate. The good news? You don’t have to do it alone! Building meaningful connections is critical to the advancement of your career. Why not expand your reach with tactful real estate networking? Having a network of real estate investors, mortgage brokers, home inspection companies, and title specialists is essential to every real estate agent’s networking circle. Real estate investors need agents, so developing strong relationships with investors can translate to a steady business flow, securing your position in the real estate game. Having a mortgage broker in your corner can help seal the deal for your clients quickly and efficiently. In addition, home inspection companies are essential to the sale or purchase of a home. It can quite literally make or break the deal, so having a trustworthy home inspection company in your network can solidify your place in the real estate community. A strong connection with a title company can also increase your credibility as a real estate agent. Title companies are vital to protect both buyers and sellers by researching and ensuring the home’s title.
Use Technology
When life is busy, it’s easy to continue relying on how you’ve always done things. For many agents, that means neglecting to discover and take advantage of time-saving technology. It doesn’t have to be complicated. There’s no shortage of handy, easy-to-use tools that can shave hours off of your workweek, from advanced inbox filter settings to speech-to-text. If you’re struggling with a time-management challenge, chances are that there’s an online platform or digital technology out there that can make your life easier.
You might not be able to stop time, but you can manage it. By starting with a clear set of priorities for what you want to accomplish, breaking down your goals into actionable tasks, and using the suitable systems to leverage your time — you can stop racing against the clock and put time back on your side. Experts agree that not having an organized, structured system is the #1 mistake real estate agents make when managing their tasks and time.
Are you an agent who wants to work with an experienced, professional title company to help facilitate your real estate transactions? Reach out to the team at Trustworthy Title today.