Agents: Consider the benefits of employment
Letters to the Editor
By Inman News, Friday, April 23, 2010.Re: 'Crackdown on independent contractors' (April 19)
Dear Editor:
Great article. I am surprised that it is being viewed negatively?! All agents should be embracing the fact that as an employee, we would be eligible for a 401(k), health insurance benefits, workers' compensation and unemployment compensation, not paying self-employment tax, and the list goes on!!!
It would also cut out a lot of agents who are not serious about the industry! I think the National Association of Realtors needs to listen to both sides of the issue before lobbying!!!
Lisa Linn
Long & Foster Real Estate Inc.
Yardley, Pa.
Dear Editor:
I feel that we are independent contractors; however, my prior company did not treat me as such. It is one of the reasons I changed companies. I do not want to be told what brand of home warranty, inspector or attorney to use.
In other fields, independent contractor status is being abused. Therefore, the rules should be revised. It probably won't hurt us -- it may even help weed out low producers or casual dealmakers, thereby raising the bar.
Susan Robertson
RE/MAX Executive Realty
Mooresville, N.C.
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Submitted by Ruthmarie Hicks on April 23, 2010 - 2:31pm.
Careful what you wish - you just might get it. I was an employee (slave) for many years. Many who have been independent contractors a long time fail to recognize that these days employers will invade every inch of your life. We complain about clients calling us late at night or on weekends. We can fire a client- an employer - not so much. Work no longer ends at 5 PM - it creeps into our nights and weekends. Employees are "owned." I don't want to be thought of as a commodity or a piece of property.
Yes, the benefits are great - but they come at a very steep price. Agents who have been IC's for many years do not recognize how much of an upper hand an employers have and how few rights employees have under our current system.
Submitted by Ileri Ogunfiditimi, REALTOR® on April 23, 2010 - 10:46pm.
Ruthmarie, I agree with you. I was in a similar situation where the brokerage firm with which I was affiliated still treated its affiliated agents like employees although they were 1099 ICs and receiving no employee benefits. When I left that firm, I made sure to seek out a brokerage firm that offered agents a business opportunity as opposed to a J.O.B.; a brokerage firm that understood that agent IC's are self-employed business people and wasn't threatened by that; a firm that would be a business partner and facilitate the growth of an agent's real estate practice by providing resources, tools, and support. Not a firm looking to take advantage of its agents because of the bottom line. I found what I was looking for with my current broker-sponsor.
And like you said, agents really don't realize how good they have it. Agents have the opportunity to create a small business with equity that meets their personal expectations and goals. As independent practitioners, agents (especially REALTORS(R)) are able to choose their practice areas. They're able to be creative and design a business and career according to their personal interests, oftentimes, without restrictions from a sales manager, boss, or "senior" colleague.
I don't get it. Why enter an industry that promotes and offers opportunities to become self-reliant; personal and business freedom; entrepreneurship; individualism; and financial independence; just to go back to being an employee where you're told (in most cases) what to do, how to work and where, and stuck on a hierarchical ladder with no control over pay increases or promotions?
As ICs, we control pay increases, promotions, the assignments we accept, the clients we accept, etc, etc. To be fair, there are benefits to being an employee. But I'm not in favor of an industry-wide agent-employee model. Agents that are looking for an employer-employee relationship should either seek out brokerage firms offering that, transition to their broker's management staff, or create their own brokerage firm using that platform.
Ileri Ogunfiditimi, REALTOR®
Ileri Ogunfiditimi, LLC/Jobin Realty
7825 Tuckerman Lane, Suite 201
Potomac, MD 20854
Direct Dial (240)403-3400, Ext 742
Direct Fax (866)283-7840
Email: ileri@ileriogunfiditimi.com
www.ileriogunfiditimi.com
www.jobinrealty.com
Submitted by Tyler Webb on April 25, 2010 - 4:53pm.
The view of the employee model expressed above is laughable.
If the goal is to "raise the bar" in the industry and become a "profession" we need to tighten up the entry requirements and build a business model that puts customer service at the forefront. That will require telling some people in the business what to do . . . like get lost!
The reality is that a significant percentage of present agents would not be hired by a company focused on building a profitable team of customer focused agents.
That does not speak well for our public image or our "professionalism".
Tyler Webb
Associate Broker
Champion Realty
www.recrab.com
@recrab