It’s too easy to overspend as a new real estate agent.

CloudCMA is only $30/mo! A Placester is $99/mo! Mojo Dialer is just $60/mo! (Note: I’m not sure exactly what these products are selling for at the moment).

That is already $2160/yr you are spending. That is 5.4% of the average agent’s salary. On just 3 tools.

You can see how spending can quickly get out of hand! As a new agent, you do need to consider a few things. But stick to just these few things until your burgeoning business blossoms.

What You Don’t Need

Paid Leads (Zillow, BoomTown, etc)

Go look up people’s feedback on paid leads on Facebook groups like Lab Coat Agents.

You’ll see anger. Disappointment. Outrage.

But I have a secret. Almost all the time, the problem is not the leads. It’s the follow-up.

Top agents spend literally millions a month on these leads, and crush them out of the park. But it’s because they have an airtight lead management system that they have built, iterated, and refined for their own personal style and market.

Until you have such a follow-up system in place, paying for leads will likely give you a negative ROI. Just don’t do it until you have a smooth-running machine that is generating closings already. Then you can consider adding some fuel to an already blazing furnace by paying for leads.

Leads are extra tempting because they’re supposed to make you money. If even just 1 out of 20 leads converts, it’s a positive ROI in many cases!

But that ROI is only achieved if you successful have the funnel to convert those leads and a very long timeline.

Don’t do paid real estate marketing until you have money you can afford to lose.

A Website

Wut??? Getting a website is, like, Real Estate Agent 101! It’s the first thing you do after getting your license!

That’s too often true. And the result is that most agents don’t put nearly enough thought into their website in the beginning.

There are some reasons you may not need a website, but chances are you will eventually.

I don’t think you need one right away though. Wait until you understand the business better. Wait until you’ve started considering and implementing your brand. Wait until you know how you are going to earn your business and lead generate.

Websites are one of the most common recurring monthly expenses for new agents, and can often be a money sink for something that may not be serving your business.

I personally had two different websites until, two years into the business, I finally made the website that actually served as the cornerstone of my brand. I wish I had done it sooner. But it’s not necessary that you do it right away.

That said, if you do have a business name or domain name in mind already, it can be worthwhile to go grab that domain now, even if you don’t turn it into an actual website until later.

Everything Not Included Below

My site’s primary purpose is software tools. I look at some of the coolest software stuff out there in real estate trying to look at the pros and cons that can impact your business!

It’s a cornucopia of fun! Back At You Media social media management! Email marketing with email automation and drip campaigns like Outbound Engine! Cool website chatbots with artificial intelligence like HelloAlex! Listing marketing like HomeSpotter! Referral platforms like ReferralExchange! Landing page toys like Cloud Attract! Open House gadgets like OpenHomePro!

Avoid it!

Firstly, you are still figuring your business out.

Secondly, you need to do a lot of this yourself the first time to figure out what works for you. Only once you have something working should you be trying to scale using software and outsourcing.

You need to run lean like a startup!

Speaking of which, I recommend the following business books when getting started as an agent, if you haven’t checked these out already.

Running lean and agile is the way to build a business in the 21st century! Lead with revenue!

Real estate is still an industry where you can make money before spending it.

What you Do Need

CRM

This is the information age.

Data is the new currency.

And your database is your business.

Literally, the value of your business can be measured on the size and quality of your database. It is your #1 biggest asset as an agent, and you can’t afford to leave it in Excel or post-it-notes.

A good CRM (customer relationship management) tool will both be a holding spot for this information, the place for your lead management, and numerous other functions at the center of your business.

“What’s the best CRM?” is easily the most asked question in real estate, and there are dozens if not 100s of options.

Chances are you are going to try out a few before slighting on one that you like and can stick with. So test driving them sooner rather than later is even more important.

Below are a few of the best options for newer agents on a budget that I would take for a spin and try out.

Document Storage

Legal requirements aside, you’ll bless your stars that all your business documentation is relatively safe in the cloud. Don’t trust your laptop to not go kaput.

Keeping organized in a smart way can also help save you time and headaches in the future trying to track down your business documents. Don’t be an agent clumsy with their documents.

And no – your brokerage’s back-office solution is not adequate. You need to keep your files in addition to your broker.

Below are a couple of the top options for cloud document storage.

E-Signature

It’s the Information Age. Have I mentioned that already?

Even Uncle Sam has come around to allowing e-signatures on contracts. Don’t be a dinosaur making your clients sign printed materials.

You need e-signature software. And you need it Day 0 as a real estate agent.

You may already have it if your broker or association have zipLogix or dotLoop. Both have e-signature features.

Accounting

Get an accountant. Seriously. Right away, if you haven’t already.

Real estate agent taxes are complex, and only get more difficult over time. IRS withholding requirements, mileage deductions, LLCs organization, Schedule C income are likely to be more than you can handle.

In addition to getting an accounting, you will want accounting software that can track your profit and loss as a Realtor. By far, one of my favorite real estate software products in any category is RealtyZam. It is incredibly simple, intuitive, cheap, and does everything a single agent or small team needs.

The alternative to RealtyZam would be QuickBooks, which is a more thorough solution, and probably better if you are a team or expect to have employees in the near future, and can also help track your mileage.

Phone Apps

You’ll now want to check in on your phone. Add all the apps you’ll need to be using as an agent. Most of these are free.

• Mortgage calculator
• Local MLS app / eKey ( searching and accessing homes on the go)
• CamScanner (easily turn photographed documents into scan-worthy PDFs)
• Mileage Tracker (deduct your mileage for taxes)
• eSignature app (DocuSign or DotLoop apps)
• Podcast Addict or Spotify (keep on top of the best Real Estate podcasts)
• Document Storage (DropBox, Google Drive – quickly access client documents)
• Evernote (quickly take notes on the go)
• Showing App (CSS or Showing Time – schedule, confirm, and reference showings on the go)
• Coach.me (forming good habits)

PDF Tool

I found extremely early on that working with pdfs is a basic task in a paperless real estate office.

I use Adobe Acrobat Pro to add contract execution dates, add our Information About Brokerage Services form to CMAs, combine pdfs into a single pdf, improve the quality of a scan, and other very simple functions. My life would be endlessly complicated on a daily basis if not for this $15/mo subscription.

The best thing is I can print anything to a pdf. That is invaluable.

Another Adobe product I use regularly, though is not necessarily integral depending on your business model, is Photoshop. I use Photoshop several times a week to create blog post covers, resize images to be website friendly, logos, social media content, market graphs, infographics, and more.

I wouldn’t recommend buying Photoshop right away unless you know exactly how you are going to need it in your business.

There are free pdf tools you can find online instead of paying for Adobe. I’m not an expert or proficient on these, so I will point you to another article here.

Extras

So, these are items you can probably get by without early on, but are worth considering.

Folio is a transaction management solution for real estate professionals that integrates with your Gmail and is free for up to 3 concurrent transactions.

You might also want to consider free project management software like Trello or Monday.com. There’s a lot you can do in the free versions. If you adopt something like agile methodology (which I recommend) for organizing your work then these will come in extra handy.

Broker Provided Tools

What your broker offers your business may affect the software you need.

Sometimes your MLS, local association, state association, or even the National Association of Realtors will have partnerships with tools that you can get either for free or at a discount.

Definitely consider these and use what you can for free until you need more.

Conclusion

Hopefully you’ve found this advice useful on your new journey in the real estate industry.

To recap, here are the real estate software tools I would get right now!

• DocuSign (or other e-signature software)
• DropBox (or other cloud storage)
• Free trials with several CRMs and then pick one (Realvolve, LionDesk, Contactually, Wise Agent, etc)
• RealtyZam (or other accounting software)