Real estate licensing should require blackbelt-level mastery

by Spencer Krull | Jun 5, 2025 | Industry, News Feed

Since the NAR commission suit settlement, buyer agents have faced new rules, new documents and a new normal. This month, Inman drills down on Today’s Buyers Agent with the fresh marketing strategies, skills and tools buyer agents are using to prosper in changing times.

Imagine if we licensed drivers the same way we license real estate agents; our roads would look like a bumper car track. 

I remember my first day as a real estate agent, wearing my jacket and tie, sitting at my desk, ready to get to work and thinking, “I have no idea what I am doing.” 

To clarify, I had learned the basics of prospecting; I had worked on my scripts for hitting the phones or knocking on doors, and even sitting open houses if another agent would give me the chance. I knew the basics of getting clients. What I didn’t know anything about, however, was what I was supposed to do in case someone answered a door that I knocked on and said, “I’d like to write an offer on the house across the street.” 

Practical training is a must

Though I’m a licensed broker in six states, with over 20 years of experience, I still had that same lost feeling each and every time I received a new license. I place the blame for agents’ lack of readiness squarely on most states’ licensing courses and educational requirements. 

As an illustration, let’s compare the steps necessary to get a real estate license with getting a driver’s license (something with which I have white-knuckled familiarity thanks to my 16-year-old). 

Driver’s license training is “skills-focused.” The coursework focuses on the useful, practical knowledge that a driver will use every day — things like what to do at a stop sign, how and when to signal, and whether or not one can cross a double yellow line to pull into a driveway or parking lot (something that sparks an argument almost every time I go to Costco). 

Real estate license training is much more scattered. For instance, instead of simply teaching that discrimination is illegal and providing a list of protected classes and people, real estate training and testing is equally focused on things like when different civil and housing rights acts were passed.

When a HUD tester shows up asking if the owner will rent to a person of color, I think it’s more important that an agent knows to say, “Of course,” and not “The first civil rights act was passed in 1866, but was undermined by the 1896 Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson … ” 

History is great, I love history, but when approaching a stop sign, I thank the DMV that my son knows to apply the brakes instead of looking at me and saying, “In 1954, the Federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices required that all stop signs must be red and octagonal.” (I would hazard a guess my insurance company is thankful, as well.) 

We need traditional blackbelts 

A karate instructor once told me that traditionally, students didn’t go out and buy darker and darker belt colors as their skills grew; rather, they wore the same belt, which started off white and darkened over time with experience. When it comes to real estate, it seems many agents “buy” a black belt as soon as they get their license, without having or seeking any practical experience. 

On the other hand, the aspiring driver gets their white belt when they pass the written test and starts to “darken their belt” with practical experience behind the wheel (with an experienced driver ready to grab the wheel one seat over).

It’s not until the novice driver has attained a degree of road competency that they are allowed to take a practical driving test, and upon passing, get to give their parents mini heart attacks any time they hear anything that vaguely sounds like metal hitting metal.

Which licensee is better prepared? 

Who’s picking up the slack on training?

That lack of actual skills-based education in real estate puts the burden of training on brokerages, and not all brokerages are created equal or up to the task. A friend from my licensing class went to a brokerage that provided her a mentor who drilled her on paperwork and procedures through practice listings, offers, counteroffers and repair requests.

My first brokerage paired me with a mentor who hadn’t done a deal in quite a few years and was more concerned with whether the coffee was fresh or from that morning, instead of whether contingencies were removed actively or passively. (Oh, and she got that one wrong on my first deal, and I was nearly sued.) 

Inexperienced karate students and drivers can cause serious physical damage; inexperienced agents can cause serious financial and even civil damages that affect their clients, themselves and their brokerages. 

Before getting a license, plumbers and electricians are required to undergo vocational training and years of apprenticeship; I am grateful for this system whenever I flush a toilet or turn on a light switch (especially if the light switch is in my bathroom). 

With so much at stake for a client buying or selling a home — something which is, more often than not, the largest and most significant financial transaction of their lives — I think the public deserves better than “off-the-shelf blackbelts.” 

If departments of real estate across the country were serious about their mission to protect the public, they would align licensing education and certification with actual practice in the industry. There would be tests on skills or mandated apprenticeships, and continuing education for renewal would reinforce these skills. 

But for now, I guess we’ll settle for tests that require an agent to know how many square feet are in an acre (43,560), or what year the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed (1990), instead of knowing how to write a counteroffer properly.

Writer’s note: The opinions in this article represent the author’s opinions and do not reflect those of Side. 

7 critical activities for effectively working with buyers in 2025

by Carl Medford | Jun 5, 2025 | Industry, News Feed

Since the NAR commission suit settlement, buyer agents have faced new rules, new documents and a new normal. This month, Inman drills down on Today’s Buyers Agent with the fresh marketing strategies, skills and tools buyer agents are using to prosper in changing times.

With buyer loyalty down and deals harder to ink, buyer agents need to up the ante if they wish to finish 2025 on a successful note.

It has been a tough year so far for buyer agents: Not only have the rules for buyer engagement morphed and shifted over the past year, but we are still dealing with inventory shortages, high interest rates, potential tariffs, significant shifts in the stock market, declining consumer confidence and more.

All of this has resulted in indecisive buyers who, if not properly nurtured, can turn on a dime and engage in an “out-of-the-blue” real estate transaction that excludes the agent who assumed they would be the “go-to” representative.

Although there is no guaranteed method of ensuring buyer loyalty, there are processes that will help increase the odds. Here are our recommendations:

1. Insist on a mandatory buyer consultation

Regardless of how you connect with a potential buyer — whether at an open house, internet lead, referral and so on — you need to help them understand that a mandatory consultation is critical for getting the homebuying process started.

We ask potential buyers to commit to a consultation that will typically last between 60-90 minutes. Because you only want to work with clients who are actually motivated to buy a home, if they refuse to meet, that is a signal that they are not the type of client you will want to represent. Rather than go into detail about what constitutes an effective buyer consultation, you can click here for a complete outline.

2. Demonstrate your value

Real estate agents, unfortunately, are now viewed as a commodity or even a necessary evil instead of skilled advocates such as attorneys or accountants. This slide in confidence has been dutifully earned, as aptly demonstrated in conversations surrounding the industry’s commission lawsuits. With a substantial percentage of agents doing little or no business, agent professionalism has taken a serious hit.

When something or someone is viewed as a commodity, the goal is to obtain their product or service as cheaply as possible.

If buyer’s agents wish to demonstrate their value and rise above the herd, this can be done in three ways:

• Have a written value proposition that clearly articulates your value.
• Have a number of client testimonials and references you can provide to a prospective client that will validate your value. Ironically, people will believe a third party they have never met more than they will trust a person sitting in front of them.
• Tell stories of past issues you have successfully resolved. While people may appreciate a written value proposition, a story will help connect to their emotions and, at the end of the day, people commit with their emotions more than logic.

3. Complete an exclusive buyer-broker agreement

If you do not have a signed buyer-broker agreement, then you have nothing. Because an agreement is now required in our state to show a single property to a prospective buyer, buyers are beginning to understand the need for formalized representation. Although some are refusing to sign and are utilizing open houses as a way to vet properties, there is growing acceptance among buyers to sign a representation agreement.

How that agreement is filled out, however, is everything. As soon as the realization occurred that buyer-broker agreements were going to become mandatory, we began training with scripts designed to overcome potential buyer objections. Like anything else, conversations concerning representation agreements have to be practiced to ensure success.

Although it’s relatively easy to get a buyer to sign an agreement to view a single property, the goal is to establish a meaningful and exclusive relationship with a buyer that will permit you to work on their behalf for as long as it takes to get them into a home and secure appropriate compensation for yourself.

4. Connect the buyers with a reputable lender

Although we will work with any lender the buyer chooses, not all lenders are created equal. Ideally, connect them with your in-house lender so you can monitor their progress more effectively. The lender will help determine their creditworthiness, verify deposits for down payments, confirm their ability to borrow and establish limits.

Once this is done, they will produce a pre-approval that includes the parameters you will need to know to set up property search parameters effectively. We will not show homes to buyer clients who are not pre-approved, nor will we set up tours for properties that are above their pre-approval limits.

5. Set up buyers on your app

Buyers have a habit of looking at homes in places that may not be helpful to you as their agent. Unless you actively work on setting them up for successful communication, you have no right to be surprised when they go off in a different direction and, depending on how your buyer-broker agreement is written, ink a deal with someone else.

To shift things in the agent’s favor, your clients should be directed to use your app. A robust app will not only be branded to the agent but also will link directly to local MLSs and provide full access to all available listings and notify the agent of the buyer’s activity, favorites and more. This knowledge makes it much easier for the agent to interject themselves into the process and proactively set up showings for homes the buyers have liked.

Further, in the case of robust CRMs, agents can:

• Set up customized property searches and market alerts for their clients based on their preferences (price, size, location, features and more). These apps frequently provide real-time access to MLS data, often more up-to-date than public portals, such as Zillow, Realtor.com or Homes.com.
• Have automated real-time communication and updates when new listings go live or when a listing they are following has a status change (price adjustments, open houses, etc.). Not only does the buyer receive the alerts, but their agent does as well, helping streamline communication and respond immediately to a buyer’s needs.
• Showing coordination. Depending on the app, agents can manage showings directly within the platform, so buyers get timely and efficient viewing opportunities.
• Collaboration and notes. Buyers and their agents can collaborate on favorites, leave notes and rate properties, which makes it easier to narrow down choices and stay organized.

6. Communicate, communicate, communicate

Do not make the mistake of setting your clients up on auto feeds and then waiting for them to communicate. If you have set them up with your app, then you can monitor their activity and reach out continuously to provide additional information, schedule showings and more.

7. Actively look for opportunities

Many agents in the past have been willing to let their buyers do all the work: They would set them up on autofeeds and then wait for them to raise their hand when they found something they liked. Agents that want to succeed in the current market are going to have to raise the bar.

Activities include the following:

• Go with your buyers to open houses they want to visit. Although some agents consider this a waste of time and effort, smart agents will understand that there is no difference between an open house they attend with their client and a private showing; each one is an opportunity to gauge your client’s interest and proactively act. If you are not with them when they see a home they like, you will be left guessing and may miss an opportunity to write an offer. Ironically, if they like a home they visited without you, you will need to go to the property anyway to represent them effectively.
• Take your clients to new builders. Do not wait for them to go on their own — if they drive by a builder’s development and sign anything without you present, your chances of getting a commission will be dramatically diminished. Even if your buyers state upfront that they are not interested in new homes, a quick tour of local builders may be all they need to ink a deal.
• Actively seek off-market opportunities. Many buyers want to live in a specific neighborhood due to access to local schools, commute, proximity to family, neighborhood amenities and so on. If no homes are available, then strap on your walking shoes, hit the streets, and knock on every door in that neighborhood that meets their criteria. You can also send out Golden Letters explaining your client’s need to live in that neighborhood. I am not advocating any brokerage practices or private networks that would violate the intent of the Clear Cooperation Policy: I am talking about buyer agents going out and actively looking for homes that might meet their client’s needs – properties that might otherwise not have gone on the market.

Times have changed, and if any given buyer’s agent wishes to succeed, they need to adapt to meet the new realities. Whereas markets in the past were significantly easier to navigate, actual work is required in the current market, and those who understand this and are willing to roll up their sleeves and dig in will be the ones who will ultimately build a successful business.