Summer in South Carolina is a prime time for home tours. If you’re a listing agent, you’ll want to take advantage of tourist season by hosting an Open House for each of your clients. It’s always helpful to schedule these events in conjunction with local community events, such as a county fair or food and music festivals. Keep in mind that an Open House is not only a valuable tool for helping to get the word out about a client’s home for sale. It’s also a great way for you (the agent) to generate leads, especially if you provide a quality sign-in sheet.

Remember, however, that if you generate 100 leads but don’t follow up on any of them, they’re useless to you. Avoid this problem by having a plan set ahead of time to reach out to every person who participates on your sign-in sheet. People tend to shy away from being the first one to sign something. You can resolve this issue by asking a few friends to attend your Open House so that they can each fill out the sheet. This way, when other guests arrive, there will already be a list of names, and people might be more inclined to sign it.

Increase participation by offering prizes or a raffle with an Open House sign-in

When one of your primary goals for having a sign-in sheet at an Open House is to generate leads, you must make it fun for attendees so they’ll want to sign. One way to do this is to offer prizes. For example, you can add a note at the top of the sign-in (or nearby) stating that filling out the sheet automatically enters the participant in a raffle.

You can draw names after the event and contact the winners. There might only be one winner or several, depending on whether you have multiple prizes available. The following list includes some great prize suggestions:

• Tickets to an amusement park
• Tickets to a local festival
• Tickets to a sporting event
• A welcome mat (for a new home!)
• Cash prize
• Gift card for home décor shopping

People love to win things, especially when it costs them nothing but their signature and answering a few questions to enter the raffle. Speaking of questions, don’t forget to include a few on your sign-in sheet.

Questions to ask on an Open House sign-in sheet

If you’re asking people to fill out a sign-in sheet, make it worth your while as an agent by asking questions relevant to generating leads. Here are a few examples:

• Do you think you might buy or sell home within the next three years?
• Do you have questions about this house or buying and selling a home in general?
• Do you currently have a home for sale?
• How did you hear about this Open House today?

The last question on this list is a great way to know if your advertising campaign for the event was effective. Answers such as “I saw a poster at the grocery store” or “A postcard came in my mail” mean you did a great job getting the word out to the community.

Always include contact information on a sign-in sheet

Make sure you have a basket of business cards right next to your Open House sign-in sheet but also include your contact information on the sheet itself. Also, remember to include space for guests to add their email or phone number (You might want to add a note promising not to share the information with other businesses).

Most importantly, don’t let too much time go by before reaching out to every person who signs the sheet. A well-designed sign-in sheet can help generate leads and some of those leads might become clients! If you haven’t obtained your real estate license yet, bookmark this page so you can return to this post when you’re ready to host your first Open House!

As a South Carolina real estate agent, it’s helpful if you follow purchasing trends. Such trends can also help you determine whether you’d like to focus your efforts and services in a specific niche. When monitoring purchase habits, one trend to look at is “age group.” In other words, is there a particular generation of people who are buying homes at a faster rate than other age groups?

The four generations that typically purchase homes are Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials (also called, “Generation Y) and Generation Z. If you’re a Boomer, you were born between 1946 and 1964. From 1965 to 1980, you were born into the Gen X era. Millennials (or Gen Y) came into the world from 1981 to 1994. Finally, if you’re a Gen Zer, your birthday falls between 1995 and 2012. Generation Alpha is the current generation, still too young to buy houses. Next, “Generation Beta,” will be born between 2025 and 2039.

Baby Boomers reportedly comprise most of the current real estate market

Although it wasn’t always so, current data shows that Baby Boomers buy more homes than any other age group. Interestingly, they also tend to stay in a home they own longer than other generations. A Boomer will usually live in the same house for at least 10 to 15 years before selling. Speaking of selling, however, Boomers also sell more homes than people from other age groups, which makes sense.

Right now, Baby Boomers make up approximately 39% of home sales in South Carolina and throughout the country. Which generation ranks lowest for home purchases? That would be Gen Z, who comprise a mere 4% of home buyers at this time.

Generation Z goes directly from a family member’s house to their own

An interesting sidenote regarding the home purchase trends of Generation Z is that they are known to go directly from living with family to moving out and purchasing a home of their own. This is a unique trend as there is no “in between” phase for this generation, where they leave their parents’ home but rent an apartment or house before buying.

Remember this about Boomers if you’re trying to sell them a house

According to this article, there are three key factors to remember when working as a listing or buyer’s agent for clients who are Baby Boomers. First, Boomers are a highly active group and are “young at heart.” They do not want to be treated as if they are elderly. Secondly, Boomers are a give-and-take generation who were raised to believe that customer service matters. In real estate, this translates to “They’ll scratch your back if you scratch theirs.”

If you treat your Boomer clients right, they will reward you—with referrals! They also expect stellar service, so you’ll want to be willing to go the extra mile if you hope to gain a loyal clientele from this generation. Use this helpful information about generational buying trends to help you succeed in real estate!

Perhaps your client was ecstatic to find the home of his or her dreams in a South Carolina community within less than 15-minutes of his or her new job. There are great schools nearby for the kids, and your client loves everything about the place. A purchase agreement is signed and earnest money offered. Then, all the “happy feels” turn to anxiety when your client realizes that he or she doesn’t want to go through with the purchase.

When can buyers walk away? If they do so, will they lose their earnest money? There’s no cut-and-dry answers to these questions. Every contract is unique, and that’s where you need to direct your client first—to the purchase agreement. Carefully review its terms. There are usually allowances for a buyer to back out of a deal, within reason.

Maybe the client’s new job fell through

It’s not uncommon for people to make plans in life only to experience a drastic turn of events that leads them down an entirely different path than the one they expected to travel. A buyer might have made an offer on a home in the town where he or she was planning to start a new job. Unexpected issues arise, and the job falls through.

Without the job, your client doesn’t need the house. This is an example of a legitimate reason to back out of a deal after signing a purchase agreement.

Did a mortgage loan fall through?

It sometimes happens that a buyer will obtain preapproval for a mortgage loan but fail to secure the loan when the time comes. If a lender issues pre-approval, it means clients have met the current requirements of that particular lender for a mortgage loan at that time. If pre-approval has expired and a client’s financial status has changed, it’s possible that he or she might be denied a loan.

The seller failed to disclose an important issue

Sellers must disclose information regarding their homes for sale, including known contaminants or environmental hazards, title, insurance or other legal issues and any structural defects or damage that exists at the time of the sale. Buyers can walk away from a purchase agreement if they have evidence to prove that a seller failed to disclose such information.

Will clients lose their earnest money?

Earnest money is a good faith deposit that lets sellers know clients are serious about buying a house. In some cases, by walking away from a purchase agreement, a buyer would forfeit earnest money. For instance, if a client waived an appraisal contingency and decides not to buy the house in question after it appraises for a lower value than the offered price, the seller could keep the buyer’s earnest money.

If, however, the seller failed to disclose information or violated the terms of an agreement in some other way, a buyer would be able to walk away from the deal without losing earnest money. Buyers often seek guidance from their real estate agents when they’re considering backing out of an agreement. When you earn your South Carolina real estate license, you must always be ready to assist your clients in making sound decisions.

Are you getting ready to start scheduling showings to potential buyers in South Carolina? If so, congratulations! That means you successfully made it through real estate school and passed your final exam! Now, it’s time to start building field experience, to dip your toes in unfamiliar waters, and test your skills. One of the many tasks you’ll be (hopefully) frequently carrying out is showing listings to people in the market for a new home.

Learning about real estate showings and actually leading one are two separate issues. The knowledge you acquired in real estate school will, of course, come in handy as you take your first steps to lead potential buyers on a tour. In this post, you’ll find an additional helpful checklist of things to keep in mind and do to have successful home tours.

Always schedule a pre-showing interview with your clients

Before showing houses to clients, it’s always best to meet with them ahead of time for a pre-showing interview. During this meeting, you’ll want to ask questions that help you refine your search. The answers your clients provide can help you determine which listings best fit their home purchase goals, as well as rule out houses that would be a waste of time.

For example, if your clients say that they must have a home with 3 or more bedrooms, it wouldn’t make much sense to spend time touring homes with fewer. A pre-showing interview can also help you establish a price range and learn whether your clients are looking for special features in a new home or have education or location preferences. The more you can learn during an interview, the greater chance you’ll have of helping your clients find the home that fits their needs.

Take a practice drive to a house before a showing

Yes, GPS makes driving in unfamiliar territories less stressful than it might have been before such devices existed. It’s still wise to take a practice drive to a home you have scheduled for a showing, so that you’re familiar with the route. Don’t forget that GPS or Google Maps are not always accurate.

If you rely solely on a global positioning device, and it leads you off course, you could wind up in an embarrassing situation. On the other hand, if you know the area and can quickly choose an alternate route, your clients will know they can depend on you!

Always offer your buyers an information packet about each home

It’s not uncommon for South Carolina real estate agents to have several showings in a day. As time passes, and you show more and more homes, details and information may begin to converge in your mind. You might forget the specifics about a particular house. Your goal should always be to present yourself as confident and capable.

You can do this by preparing packets ahead of time for your clients. Each one should contain helpful information about the listing in question as well as information about you. It’s also nice to include a writing tablet and pen for each person, in case they want to jot down comments or questions for later. Many agents like to provide neighborhood maps, as well. If you keep these tips in mind, your showings are bound to be a great success!

Earning a license to sell homes in South Carolina is a tremendous goal. You must work hard to study and master all the concepts that are relevant to the work you’ll be doing. A score of 70% or higher is necessary to pass the state exam and become eligible to apply for your sales license. Working your way through real estate school helps build your confidence.

Having enough confidence to establish a strong presence in your community, generate leads and seal the deal on some closings is another story altogether. In real estate school, you have instructors, fellow students, tutors and mentors to guide and support you. The time will come, however, when you venture out on your own to start your business. Confidence will be a key factor to your success.

Boost your confidence with these helpful tips

Some people are innately confident, while others must work to at it because it doesn’t come natural to them. The following list includes five ways to increase self-confidence, which can take your personal and professional life to a whole new level:

• Make daily self-nurturing a habit: Making healthy food choices, staying hydrated and getting an adequate amount of sleep can improve your mental, physical and emotional health, which, in turn, might make you feel more confident.
• Spend time with confident people: If you associate with confident people, you’ll become more confident as well. We tend to take on the characteristics and attributes of those who are part of our inner-circle.
• Rise to a challenge, every day: When you set goals and challenge yourself daily, you come to know your strengths and weaknesses and can learn from setbacks and rejoice in your successes. The process of rising to a challenge builds confidence.
• Think affirming thoughts: Harboring a negative mindset is counter-productive to confidence. Cultivate positive thoughts and self-affirmation to overcome self-doubt and become more confident.
• Develop a growth mindset: A love of learning and intentional efforts to build upon your natural talents and intelligence boosts confidence because you’re always learning new things, adding to your skillset and expanding your knowledge and abilities, placing you on a path to success.

Everyone’s journey is unique. Your style of selling South Carolina homes and promoting your business may be different from your competitors. Just remember that you do not have to be the same to be successful.

In fact, having the confidence to build your own brand and incorporate your personality and style into your business will enable you to stand out from other real estate agents and connect with your target audience in a way that no one else can.

When you think of selling homes as a career, you no doubt imagine meeting with clients, touring homes and signing closings—all of which are some of the most exciting parts of the job! A successful real estate career involves a lot more than the actual “selling” aspect of the industry, however. For example, South Carolina has its own real estate laws, which might differ from another state’s regulations.

Selling homes is a licensed profession, meaning that you must possess a state-issued license to market yourself as a real estate agent. In this state, you must complete 90 hours of pre-license education to be eligible to sit for the South Carolina real estate exam. As you discern whether this career would be a good fit for you, you might wonder what real estate classes are like. This post provides a basic overview.

Learning the principles of real estate

Agents must acquire a vast amount of knowledge before they’re ready to start selling homes. When you enroll in real estate school, class time will include learning the fundamental principles of the industry, including the topics shown in the following list:

• Fair housing laws
• Contracts
• Time management
• Disclosure policies
• Listing agreements
• Legal descriptions

This list includes a sampling of many issues that you will learn about in real estate school. The state exam consists of questions regarding South Carolina laws and issues, as well as a portion of the test with nationally-based questions.

Valuing and listing a property

During your pre-license education in real estate school, you’ll also learn how to assess the value of a property and list it at a fair and competitive market price. This is an important concept to master. Homes that are priced too high tend to linger on the market or not sell at all. As an agent, you’d then have to convince your client to lower the price, which often makes potential buyers think there’s something wrong with the house or property.

Learning how to price homes is a key to success as a listing agent. You’ll spend a lot of time in class reviewing current and past listings and learning how to differentiate between the houses that were priced right from the start and the ones that were too high or too low.

Discussions with real estate instructors

One of the most valuable aspects of real estate school is that it provides you with an opportunity to discuss a variety of issues with your instructors. At Real Estate School for Success, the instructors are experienced (and, in many cases, active) sales agents who bring real-world experiences into the classroom.

Time well-spent in real estate school lays the groundwork for a successful and profitable career. Just make sure you choose a school that aligns with your budgeting and scheduling needs, as well as your learning style and ultimate goals in real estate.

Being independent, self-motivated and ambitious may have been key factors that compelled you to earn your real estate license. Now that you’ve been building your brand and establishing a presence in your community as a successful sales agent, you might be feeling the itch to take your career to the next level. For agents, this typically means furthering your education to become a real estate broker.

Your feelings right now might be similar to the way you felt when you were deciding several years ago whether enrolling in real estate school was a good risk to take. You might be asking: Is becoming a broker a good fit for me? Is this the right time to go back to school? Do I have what it takes to be a good broker? Remember how you felt before enrolling the first time, and look how far you’ve come since then!

Determine if becoming a real estate broker is right for you

Earning a broker’s license takes time, effort and money, although choosing a quality real estate school can help minimize cost and enable you to get the most out of the time and effort you put in to completing the pre-license education requirements to become a broker. The following list includes basic questions to ask yourself to determine if this career step is a good fit for you:

• Why do I want to become a broker?
• Am I interested in mentoring inexperienced sales agents?
• Can I afford to stop selling?
• Do I have what it takes to build a successful team, recruit new team members and manage an office?

If you were easily able to answer these questions, you might be ready to take your real estate career to the next level by earning your broker’s license.

What are the South Carolina requirements for brokers?

State law includes a list of requirements that must be met to be eligible for a real estate broker’s license. Several of them are as follows:

• You must have your real estate license for five consecutive years.
• You must complete Broker A and Broker B pre-license education courses.
• You must pass the state broker exam.
• You must complete 150 hours of required education, which may include the 90 hours you completed to take the real estate exam.

After completing pre-license requirements, you’ll be eligible to sit for the South Carolina broker exam. If you score 70% or higher on the test, you may apply for your license and start building a successful brokerage!

Just think—if you enroll in real estate school today, you could have a license in your hand to start selling homes before autumn rolls around. After studying and working so hard to learn as much as you can and to pass your final exam, you’ll want to launch your business on solid ground. Tapping into the right resources can help you form a strong support network that, in turn, can help you build a profitable South Carolina real estate business.

Your network should include numerous professionals who play key roles in the real estate business. It takes time to get to know people and to connect with people you trust, whose work ethics you admire—people you’d be comfortable recommending to clients, and people you can count on to give you referrals, as well. There’s no reason to wait. You can start making connections while you’re studying to earn your sales license. In this blog post, you’ll find a list of suggestions for real estate professionals you’ll want to add to your network.

Home inspectors should be part of your real estate support network

The inspection process is an integral component of a home sale transaction. While you may, on occasion, when working as a buyer’s agent, have a client who chooses to waive a home inspection to submit an offer with no contingencies (which sometimes happens when there are multiple offers on the table and a buyer wants his or her offer to stand out from the others) it is somewhat rare. Good home inspectors who are reliable and timely are a great asset to realtors who are hoping to get to the closing table quickly.

Whether an inspection is taking place as a normal part of a home sale or clients are planning to have their home inspected after they move in because they’re waiving the contingency, it benefits you, as an agent, to be able to recommend home inspectors in your area. Take time to discover who the best inspectors are, and keep their contact information on hand.

Which mortgage lenders would you recommend to a client?

Without mortgage approval, a home sale can’t happen, unless a client happens to have the full amount needed in cash. Most buyers take out mortgage loans. As a sales agent, you’ll meet many buyers who are in the market for a new home but haven’t yet connected with lenders to seek mortgage loan approval. Get to know which lenders provide prospective clients with estimates in the most timely manner, who can offer the most cost-effective rates, and who can be trusted to successfully close a transaction and complete the approval process.

A client doesn’t necessarily have to accept your recommendation for a preferred mortgage lender. However, incorporating several quality lenders into your support network is never a bad idea.

Your clients might appreciate recommendations for movers

Another group to add to your support network as a real estate agent might include moving companies. Having a mover lined up can help expedite, or, at least prevent delays a scheduled closing. This also happens to be a niche where there are often dramatic differences in quality. Being able to provide recommendations to your clients for trustworthy, quality movers is a benefit to you as an agent.

Miscellaneous resources that help build a strong network

Your options are basically limitless regarding who you can add to your support network, especially as a newly licensed South Carolina real estate agent. In addition to the groups mentioned earlier, the following list includes several other professionals who may be willing to form a connection that can benefit your business as well as their own:

• Landscapers/contractors/painters
• Local hotel and restaurant owners
• Home appraisers
• Professional home stagers
• Financial advisers
• Architects

Forming a strong support network from the start builds a base from which you can grow a successful, profitable real estate business. Don’t wait until you have your license to begin making connections. Start now!

In every South Carolina industry, you’ll find some people who are a perfect fit for a certain type of work and others who would be much better off somewhere else. It can be frustrating to invest a lot of time and effort (and, sometimes, money) into a particular niche, only to later realize that you’re not cut out to do the job. Regarding real estate sales, for instance, it’s best to determine ahead of time if you have characteristics and attributes that would enable you to build a profitable business.

Every real estate business is unique, yet many real estate agents have certain things in common, which make them a good fit for the industry. If you don’t like the ideas listed in this blog post, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you should disregard real estate sales as a potential career. However, if you read this post and think real estate sales is something you’d enjoy, you're encouraged to research schools in your area to determine if you’d like to enroll.

Real estate sales involves more than direct selling

As a licensed real estate agent in South Carolina, you’ll be doing a lot of behind-the-scene work. Such duties might include writing listings, creating and sending out flyers, filing documents, drafting comparative analysis reports, updating blogs, websites and social media pages, and more. You’ll also make many phone calls, send text messages and emails, as well as schedule appointments, showings, open houses and closings.

While working in real estate sales may enable you to have more control over your schedule, you will no doubt be busy on most days. If you’re an energetic person who enjoys being on the go, you might be a good fit for the real estate industry.

You’ll spend a lot of time generating leads

To be successful at selling homes in South Carolina, you need a strong client base. To build your client base, you have to generate many leads. Lead generation can occur in many ways, but most agents start with their family members and friends. You can also generate leads while working in your community, volunteering at your child’s school (if you’re a parent) and in many other areas, as well.

You will help people achieve their goals 

If you are not a “people person,” it might be best to pursue work in another industry. A primary activity in real estate sales is interaction with other people. You will do it every day, in some form or other. Many agents say that helping people find their dream home is a rewarding business. If you think you have what it takes to turn a profit in real estate, you can enroll in a quality school and have your license in hand in less than 18 weeks.

If you’ve decided to become a licensed South Carolina real estate agent, you’ve got some work cut out for you in the months ahead. Choosing to enroll in a top-rated school is a key to success. Such schools typically have faculty members who are willing to go above and beyond to help you master concepts, share their own real-world experiences and impart valuable knowledge and wisdom to help you prepare for your real estate exam and for future success in the real estate industry.

Even with support from the best instructors, there’s always a risk that you may not perform well on your state exam. In fact, many people fail the test on their first attempt. There’s usually a reason for that. In this post, you’ll find some of the most common issues that can impede your performance when taking the South Carolina real estate exam. Being aware of such issues ahead of time may help you avoid them, so that you can score the 70% or higher needed to earn your license.

Take advantage of study guide resources for the real estate exam

One of the most common reasons people fail their real estate exam is lack of quality study materials. Some students think that their notes and assignments or quizzes they’ve taken in class are enough to help them prepare for the state test. Students who score highest on their state exams are those who make use of quality study guide materials. Such materials should include questions and answers regarding fundamental concepts, such as contracts, market analysis, disclosures, financing and more.

Not knowing what to study can result in poor test performance

Another reason to obtain quality study materials that are specifically designed to help you score well on your final real estate exam is that such materials are centrally focused on information and styles of questioning that you are likely to encounter on your state exam. You can have pages and pages of notes but if you’re not studying the right things, you may not achieve a passing grade when you take your final test.

Do you suffer from test anxiety?

If you tend to get so nervous that you can’t think straight when you take a test, you’ll want to learn more about how to reduce test anxiety before you sit for the South Carolina real estate exam. Test anxiety is one of the most common reasons people fail their state test on the first attempt.

Good study habits will help you score well on your real estate exam

Procrastination is not your friend when it comes to preparing for your real estate exam. Can you wait until the eleventh hour to study and still score a passing grade? Maybe, but waiting until the last minute to cram for the test can have disastrous results, as well, and increases the chances of scoring under the required percentage to pass the test.

With quality study materials, helpful instructors and strong effort on your part, you’ll not only feel well-prepared and ready to take the South Carolina real estate exam, you’ll be much more likely to pass the test with flying colors!