At Home or At the Office?

A few months back, I started a search for a new broker. Now, it is close to the end of the year and I have decided to stay with my current broker. I figure the option is always open to search for greener grass, just probably not in the winter, especially in Indiana. Our grass is usually buried in snow or turns a really strange straw like color. I’m thinking just before Spring would be good. I’m still not convinced there is greener grass; just a different shade of green.

 

In the process of searching for a new broker, I found many brokers believe the agent who shows up at the office everyday is the most likely to succeed. One broker even told me he believes the agent whose office is close to home outperforms his peers. Now, I am still working through all this knowledge and am not sure if the belief is based on accurate data or a broker’s hope the information will provide them much needed dollars for their office space.

 

Times have changed; most of our clients don’t even know where our office is located, nor do they care. We can meet them at the local coffee shop, their home, their office, a Title company, the lender’s office………just about anywhere. So, how important is a physical office, in a building, with your broker’s name on it?

 

In my previous brokerage, which is now one of the largest in the Southwest, most agents worked from home. We faxed or emailed all of our contracts, addendums and supporting documents to the office. They were uploaded to our online file and checked off by the broker. We knew before we went to closing if the office had a complete file. I never went to the office except to pick up a check; even that could have been mailed to me. I was happy with the system.

I am a bit of a loner, some say an introvert, as it pertains to socializing. I don’t need to know all the office politics, or the latest gossip. I don’t like the busyness of the hallways or waiting in line for a computer, fax, or printer. I find floor duty an absolute bore and a huge waste of time. I don’t need an office to make me feel important. I prefer my own company and the company of a few close friends. If I ever need to know what’s new in real estate, I have my friends at AG.

With the perfect office at home, why would I travel or pay for an office? I have everything I need; printers, scanners, three computers; I fax by email and have a back-up fax, just in case. Our new home has a built in office, with more filing cabinets and storage space than I know what to do with as well as work space for three computers. It seems I would be working double to have two offices.

 

I also have a team. Should a team leader have an office in a building where all the team files are in one place? Do I owe it to my team to be “in the office”? Could my home office serve the purpose just as efficiently? I really feel like there is more wasted time in the office than anywhere else in this business. I would love to know your thoughts. Do you feel you are more efficient in the office or at home?

I wonder, could I show up at the office in jeans and dance on my desk? I can at home 🙂