Founder and CEO of Eview Real Estate Partners in Victoria, Manos Findikakis knows everything there is to know about opening and managing a real estate business. He recently even wrote a book about it - How to Open and Run Your Own Real Estate Practice.
Manos has well and truly mastered the Dark Art of Salaries and Bonuses for sales staff and it is his view that you don’t have to own the business to reap the rewards.
Agents and their assistants can earn good money if their pay is structured correctly. He explains, “People overcomplicate real estate. They think they have to generate $1m worth of revenue to obtain an income of over $200,000.”
Manos does not agree. He says, “If you’ve got a great leadership and great support from your principals and, more importantly, administration team, then earning over $200K is very achievable without having to work 60, 70, 80 hours a week.”
Manos sees three ways that an individual can be paid. He says, “We’ve actually got all three in our organisation.”
“A fixed salary,” says Manos, “is one sum for the whole year and will remain that sum regardless of the turnover and regardless of the activities.”
In this scenario says Manos, “A staff member is paid a slightly lower fixed salary than a staff member on a fixed salary but that person can also earn incentives on a per deal transaction, depending on what they get involved with and whether they’re a buyer’s agent or helping with generating listings.”
Manos believes that if you go with incentives, “A fixed dollar amount is far easier to calculate and for people to understand. If you have an agent prospecting for leads and those leads convert to listings, I truly believe a fixed fee is the most equitable way to reward that person plus it is also the easiest way from an administration point of view as well.”
Furthermore, says Manos, “If an employee knows that if he or she generates two new listings and they sell, he or she knows that a further $500 or $1,000 per success sale for that listing will go into his or her pocket. It’s very easy to organise and if they generate an extra 20 of those per year, it’s an extra $20,000 to their base salary.”
Manos’s preferred option is when you provide a salary and a percentage bonus on the overall income of the group. Manos believes that this option brings a team together and focuses everyone on a shared goal and outcome. The more the team works together and the harder they work – the greater the result for everyone. He says, “When you have multiple team members working as a team they all push for the same goal. They make sure that every transaction, regardless who listed it or regardless of where the lead has come from, is followed to the letter.” Win, win!
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