Why Agents Have Not Been Replaced By Tech

Nearly every industry imaginable has experienced drastic changes since the dot com boom of the 90’s.

Communication, exchange of goods and services, and labor have intangibly permeated through the digital membrane, taking work from the hands of skilled workers, and placing it in the pockets of masses. Assembly line and factory workers were the first victims of the beast that is technological advancement.

Since then, the rate of jobs that are lost to the beast grows exponentially. Telemarketers, receptionists, and phone operators are a thing of the past as computers, voice recognition, and speech synthesis got more sophisticated and allowed companies to implement these systems, making it harder for the receiver to know if they’re talking to a human.

Cashiers gave way to self-checkouts, bank tellers and clerks to ATMS, postal workers to automated sorting machines; The list goes on and on.

You may be wondering, “When will real estate agents be disintermediated? How much longer will I be relevant?”

Why Agents Have Not Fallen To Tech

This is especially troubling when you consider jobs very similar to real estate agent have been squashed by the beast.

Travel agents have been practically extinct for years. Consider the job description of a travel agent.

• They arrange travel for business and vacation customers
• Determine customers’ needs and preferences
• Plan and arrange tour packages, excursions, and day trips that meet their customers’ needs
• Find fare and schedule information
• Calculate total travel costs
• Book reservations for travel, hotels, rental cars, and special events
• Tell clients about what their trip will be like
• Give advice about local weather conditions, customs, and attractions
• Make alternative booking arrangements if changes arise before or during the trip

Sounds surprisingly close to handling potential home buyers doesn’t it?

Since they are so close in job requirement, why do real estate agents prevail where travel agents fall short?

What’s the difference between the two? The answer is simple.

Real estate agents handle loads of paperwork. Travel agents don’t.

Technology often allows people to bypass working with professionals and do what would be otherwise skilled labor by themselves.

However, the average transaction coordinator spends 12.5 hours doing the paperwork for every transaction. There’s no bypassing that.

Networking Vs. Paperwork

So, if you’re like many of the new real estate agents that have entered the industry, you’ve passed your licensing exam and you’re ready to start moving real estate.

You’re outgoing, hard-working, and likeable, as indicated by the large network of friends you’ve accumulated over the years who have all repeatedly praised these gifts that so seamlessly translate into the makings of a top producing agent.

They’ve patted your back, beaming with sincerity and told you time and again what a great agent you’ll be.

What no one did tell you, was how much paperwork is involved in a real estate transaction. You don’t want to waste your time in the tedious semantics of disclosure packets and escrow instructions.

You should be out at social events, handing out business cards, growing your network, and making a name for yourself, not cooped up in the corner cubicle of your broker’s office with your head buried paper and ink.

You didn’t become an agent to do paperwork, but there is a silver lining: If there wasn’t an obscene amount of paperwork to be done for each transaction, you wouldn’t have a job.

For newbies, we recommend to check this list of best online real estate schools.

Real Estate Transaction Efficienciy

You may see this as both a blessing and a curse.

Your job isn’t in danger of being disintermediated any time soon, but you will have to endure mountains of paperwork.

However, thanks to a new outsourced real estate back office service, you can maintain the job you were meant to do and let someone else do the part of it no one likes.

For a simple per transaction fee, a company like REBO will handle everything from Transaction Management to Commission Disbursement.

They focus on the mundane, but crucial, so you can focus on your clients and growth of your business. While you work hard to find the perfect home for your client, they are working day and night behind the scenes to ensure that all of your client files are taken care of.

Through the use of the latest online technology and with the industry’s best transaction coordinators, you can be rest assured that your agents’ documents will be well organized and on time.

Their process can also lead to reducing overall risk by making sure that all pertinent files are included on every single transaction. Whether you do one transaction per month as an agent or hundreds as a brokerage, their overall goal is to become an integral part of your business.

A back office software solution can save you and/or your agents time, handle all paperwork in a professional and reliable manner and reduce your overhead expenses.

They can also help you reduce overall risk by making sure that each and every transaction is processed efficiently in the same manner every single time.