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The work-from-home trend has been spreading across the real estate industry, with more agents reportedly seeking flexible work arrangements to better leverage on current market conditions.
Following the workspace shift brought about by the pandemic, back in February, the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that employed people were almost twice as likely to work from home at least once a week now (41 per cent) compared with pre-pandemic times (24 per cent).
Ultimately, more agents are finding the work-from-home set-up to be “the most efficient and cost-effective way of operating” their businesses.
In fact, @realty agent Vincent Davies said it trumps all other traditional streams of working in real estate, such as working with a franchise or owning a business with an office and staff.
“I was with a major franchise group but became disenchanted with their fees and the fact offices in the same group around me were not interested in working together for joint benefit,” he said.
“I have had my own business since 1999, and have run offices with salespeople, administration staff and property managers, but running a big office has its downfalls and so I decided to scale back.
“When COVID-19 hit, we all started to work from home and found we were productive and enjoyed the work/life balance.”
Mr Davies recently closed up shop and made the permanent shift to working from home, saying that “the days of people coming into an office for real estate services are well and truly gone, so I feel like this has been the right move at the right time”.
He explained that “working from home with no administration staff or office rent saves money, and we are saving time, too, as my wife, who does my bookwork, has nowhere near as much to do”.
“We now have a much quieter and more balanced lifestyle,” the agent highlighted.
With this new trend on the rise, real estate network @realty claims it has experienced a boost in membership to its co-branding program, which “allows full flexibility for agents to choose when and where they work”.
Nowadays, flexible work arrangements have ultimately emerged as one of the key reasons behind new agents joining the network, @realty CEO James Taylor said.
“There has been a definite shift in the industry since last year, with more people seeking an alternative to the structure of a franchise and office, and an opportunity to earn more,” Mr Taylor said.
“All of our agents have the opportunity to work from home and set their own business program with the support of our branding and resources.”
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