The Right Way to Move Brokerages | The Zebra Blog

The Right Way to Move Brokerages

There isn’t a week that goes by that one of my clients doesn’t email me to ask for a call to discuss moving brokerages. Real estate brokers are always intrigued when a new company comes to town or they hear about a colleague that recently moved.

Is the grass really greener at another brokerage or is the grass greenest where you water it? That is an expression that I have always lived my life by, both personally and professionally.When things seem too good to be true, they probably are. When your business or personal life seems to be in trouble, perhaps you haven’t been watering the grass beneath your feet. I have always found that almost anything is possible with a bit of refocusing and good old fashioned hard work.

If you are thinking about a move, I encourage you to first read my two past blogs on the questions you need to ask and how to find your right fit:

In the event you do decide to move brokerages you have many decisions that need to be made before you make that move and start that wheel turning. This is why if at all possible, I never encourage a move made in haste. Take some time and make the following determinations first:

  • What is your contractual obligation with your current brokerage? Will moving mid year cost you more than end of year? Do you have a buy out clause in your agreement? Is there a per transaction fee you must pay your current brokerage when you change brokerages? Will your current transactions stay with your current company?
  • How will you inform your database, both potential, and past clients about your move? What will you tell them about the reason you are moving? Remember, past clients probably did a transaction with you while at your current brokerage and they will be curious about why you are leaving.
  • How much will it cost to move brokerages and to change all of your marketing both online and print? How much will new signage cost? How much will it cost in terms of time or money to change all your materials? Will any of these costs be covered by your new brokerage?
  • How are you going to switch every online account you have? Who is going to do that for you? that is an incredible amount of work.
  • How and when will you inform all of your vendors and business associates of your move?
  • How will your processes change as a result of being at the new brokerage? Think about everything from having a place to meet with buyers to getting flyers printed and closing out transactions.
  • Will you have additional resources available at your new brokerage or fewer? For example, if you have someone who automatically orders signage for you or syndicates your listing when you get a new listing and you won’t have that at your new brokerage, have you taken that into consideration?
  • Will you need to make a change to your CRM? Some brokerages have a proprietary CRM which won’t be available at your new brokerage. Have you planned for this?
  • How will the sales meetings and tour fit with your schedule?

As you can see there are so many questions you need to consider before you actually begin your move. Before you make the commitment to move you need to think with your head not just your heart. This should be a business decision, not an emotional decision. Many emotional decisions are made in an instant while a smart business decision requires research and analysis. Take the time to do this if you are thinking of making a move. And remember the grass is ALWAYS greenest where you water it.

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