Join our Newsletter

Frequently-Asked Questions by new real estate agents

Are you planning to be a real estate agent? Below are some frequently–asked questions and answers that can help you make the right decision for you.

1. How to choose which brokerage company to join?

When you join a real estate brokerage company, the main criteria to consider are the following:

1. How many years have this company been on the market.
2. How many branches/offices does this company has?
3. What is the reputation of this company on the market? Mainly in terms of remuneration to their agents: are they fair? Do they pay their agents on time? Do they give the right trainings to new comers?

For example, JSK Real Estate prides itself for its 10 years on the market. It has established itself as a leader in the Lebanese market being the only brokerage company in Lebanon with 5 agencies across Lebanon. The team spirit is one key advantage in JSK. Agents are always paid on time and always their fair share of commission. It’s well-known that the best real estate company to work for in Lebanon is JSK Real Estate.

2. Why should you be part of a real estate team?

When you join a real estate team, the team leader most likely sells a lot of houses and will have a very high commission split. New real estate agents need training and mentoring to learn the business and become successful. The more training an agent gets, the more deals they will do, and the more money they will make.\

3. Can I be a real estate agent as a side job?

You may decide to start as a real estate agent on a part-time basis. You are maybe thinking of this to be a side job for you. Out of experience, the reality of things is that this is a very demanding job with many activities such as farming, property visit, Listing, calls, showings, negotiations leading to deal closure. This is really a full time job and while it gives you the advantages of flexible working hours, you more often than not find yourself working beyond 9am to 6pm. Even when you are chilling with friends or having a nice dinner or an early drink, the topic of real estate finds its way in your discussion and you end up discussing real estate topics in majority of your waking time.

Bottom line, you may start this as a side-job, but for you to succeed you have to move eventually into a full-time job as real estate agent.

4. How is a real estate agent remunerated?

Real Estate brokerage companies charge their clients a commission – which is usually a percentage of the sale price or of the rent price. In Lebanon, commission fees charges by real estate companies are normally 2.5% from Buyer side and 2.5% of Seller side (total 5%). In case of rent, the commission fee is usually one-month rent fee.

Real Estate agents split commission with the real estate company. As an example, 25/75 commission split means 25% of the fee goes to the agent and 75% of the fee goes to the brokerage firm. The brokerage firm normally cover the rent of the different agencies, the benefits of the agents (such as mobile allowance, medical insurance), the marketing expenses, the call center and many other expenses needed to operate a real estate company.

Successful brokerage companies devise an ascending commission split to agents depending on targets they meet – in order to incentivize agents to make more deals. Example the commission split can from 25/75 to 30/70 once the agent reaches target of sales agreed upon and then it can go up further to 35/65 once the agent reaches a higher target and so on and so forth.

5. Am I expected to bring my own clients when I join real estate brokerage company?

Real Estate agents want to choose the best brokerage firm to join. One of the key criteria to look for is the brokerage company presence online and their marketing strategies. At the end of the day, as a real estate agent you are being paid a commission split with the company. As such, the company ability to send you qualified leads that you can treat to reach a closure is extremely important.

At JSK Real Estate, as an agent you are not expected to bring buyer clients. The company designs and executes a top-notch marketing plan and will send you buyer clients on daily basis. You job would be to call those clients, understand their request and match with listings you have to prepare for the showing. You will be following up with those clients and guiding them through the process from showing to offer negotiation until closure of the deal. Getting those buyer clients is however the responsibility of the company itself.

You will be asked however to perform continuously farming, identity new properties for sale and for rent and bringing new listings