Ilda Zaloshnja
"And what are you, realtors you are.
In Italy I only go to sign, the agency does everything "
"I work in Italy too, why don't you give it to me? Eee, I sell here myself ..."
Leaving aside the general attitude of Albanians towards foreigners, often justified, according to which they know everything and make the golden egg, while we do nothing, this statement made me think. I have been fighting for many years against the term "realtor" and the deeply negative coloring with which this term has coated these 3 decades the essence of our industry and our daily work.
But what is a realtor?
In my imagination it is a man of a certain age, dressed in a time-worn suit and with a hat (not hats) on his head, at best with a bag in his arms, at worst with a notebook in his armpit, where he has written down the names of owners, property near or in front of it, which wanders the streets and cafes, trying to sell something. Every honest effort to do business is more than respectable, but this figure is already overcome in time because for a long time, it is being treated stronger and with a more defined profile, another professional figure in real estate, she of real estate consultant. Someone means yes only the name changes!
In fact not! It is not simply a matter of more beautiful or bombastic terms, enough to make you feel good.
Nor is it a matter of having a dignified office where you develop your business and offer a service in respect of the client and his money.
It is not a question of having a website either, where anyone, from the sofa of the house, can start their search to find the house they need ... as a reminder, until 10 years ago nothing like that existed !
And I am not even talking about taxes that are paid regularly, as a business registered and legally recognized!
No, all of these are secondary, to what a real estate consultant actually does.
Not far from a few days ago, during a training I was conducting for my new "realtors", we talked at length about the difference between being just a service salesperson and a consultant.
We educate you on the steps of a process that you have probably never violated before. We advise you on the choices you need to make. We offer you solutions and also solve for you many small and big problems related to transactions of these levels and sizes.
And to do this, we have acquired some knowledge, which makes it possible to give our expertise, with conviction and self-confidence, to anyone who needs it. We know the real estate market at our fingertips, we know the areas, prices, problems of each building or builder, the latest developments in areas that add or devalue an existing property, thus giving us the opportunity to advise our buyers in the right way.
We are one of the few lawyers, even when we do not have such a degree, as we know deeply every legal aspect related to property and protect you from fatal mistakes, which have happened endlessly in the past, precisely because you trusted a realtor, or because you have taken such a step totally alone, without any help or knowledge.
We are financial analysts who, knowing the market well and its trends for the future, advise you on making potential investments with profit and value growth, as the best economists would do.
In the end we are psychologists and above all, professionals with a lot of patience, because we stand by you with a smile and understanding, knowing that your conviction to take the final step towards selling or buying, is related to personal emotions, life plans and growth projects, that in the end we are all people, each with his own features and nature and who needs more time, who for more financial security, who for more support ... we do not get bored, nor when to justify a mistake of yours, insult us, since the best way of defense is attack, we are always there, ready to start every day from scratch, in a market where there are no rules, where everyone knows everyone and as we turn our backs, the queue behind our buyer tries to avoid us to save that desolate commission ...we understand them all and still continue with conviction to lead every day and step by step, clients who then become wonderful friends, towards a difficult process and more unknown to them, such as buying a real estate.
None of us have really been given the opportunity to do his job properly, maybe because of a lack of trust, maybe because of circumstances, maybe more for financial reasons but what would I not give for an opportunity like that agency in Italy ..., even to prove I know how to do it like that, maybe even better!
