Real Estate Franchises

Real Estate Franchises - Well, during times of economic downturn, especially when its focus area is the mortgage and housing market, a real estate franchise may not seem like a good opportunity. However, that kind of belief is based on short-sighted reasoning. Like the stock market, the real estate market goes through ups and downs. The cycle is even fairly predictable within bounds of reason. At the end of the day, no matter how much gyrations the market goes through, people still need a place to live and set up business.

So, let everybody else panic and sell out. You just watch the prices and buy cheap. When the panic is over and the prices go back up, who’s going to be sitting pretty? You, that’s who!

Starting a real estate franchise is easier than you think. All you need is a basic office. Most of the work in realty is done on a computer these days. The real work is done in your brain, as you scour the area for sellers and buyers to match up. Be prepared for long hours in the real estate game; this is not a 9AM to 3PM job with a 2-hour lunch over nine links at the golf course. You will be continuously seeking to build up your listings.

To help more buyers and sellers find you first, you will also be focused on advertising. You’ll want to blanket the area with as much signage as you can afford. Because of heavy competition, you may also want to move. Territory is your chief desire, and if you are in an area that’s overrun with real estate businesses while another city has almost none, you’d be best served to move there. It is an unalterable part of a real estate franchise that you have to be close to the property you’re selling.

One big plus to real estate franchises is that they’re cheap to start. The initial capital and net worth requirements seldom get out of five figures, and the lowest run to $20,000. All of them provide training and promotional materials. However, most, if not all, require that you already be a licensed real estate broker or agent beforehand. Not that unreasonable of a request!

Realty is one of the businesses that are ideally suited to franchising. Since the business itself runs on paper and electronically, all they need is people who know what they’re doing. And since the business thrives on promotions and advertising, many franchisees banding together under one brand name can accomplish much more than the sun of their parts.

The biggest and most familiar brands, Century 21 and Re/Max, both offer franchise opportunities as well. Of course, they cost the most, but with the huge scope of both agencies spanning the globe, you certainly know what you’re paying for. Regardless, there are much smaller agencies which have a foothold established in a local area. Going with a smaller agency which has a stronger representation locally is sometimes a better prospect.