How I Built My Successful Real Estate Career From Scratch

All right, we're live. Say hello, Jessica. Hi, everyone. What's going on? How you doing? Good to see you. She's wearing the Coal Banker blue. Hello, everybody. My name's Alex Vidal. I'm the Regional Vice President for Coal Banker here in Dallas-Fort Worth, and you are watching episode 124 of The Closer Club. First one of the year. Started the year off crazy busy, 170 coaching sessions. We had this small ice storm last week, which is when we wanted to kick it off. But we're here today with Jessica doing episode 124. You ready? Awesome. I can't wait. Now, I'm going to share with them the story real quick of how you ended up at Coal Banker. Sure. Can I? Yes. All right. Really cool story. Real quick. Jessica is a top producer from New Jersey. I'm not going to steal her thunder, but she moves to Dallas-Fort Worth. She's interviewing with Coal Banker, and she's interviewing with a competitor. Tells me, breaks my heart, tells me, I'm signing up with this competitor. Now, I happen to know that Jessica and I have a mutual friend in common named Mike Ferry. You may have heard of him. I phoned a friend, called Mike, and I said, Mike, I really need your help right now. Sure. What's up? I go, Jessica Nelson, signing with a competitor. Jessica, if you can, real quick, where are you when you get the phone call from Mike? You don't have to name the company. Yeah. I'm sitting in the office of the competitor, and I'm beginning to sign the papers. I actually was going to be taking over the luxury division for them, and coaching their agents, and helping them to take over that sector of the market. Mike Ferry calls me. It's a 702 number. The only reason why I pick it up is I actually had a transaction that I was doing in Vegas at the time. Our first paycheck here together, actually. I answer the phone, and I think it's something with my deal blowing up, but it's Mike Ferry. If any of you are familiar with him, it's almost like the voice of God if you're in real estate calling you. I'm shocked. I'm like, Mike? Okay. He says to me very politely, he said, here's what you're going to do. I'm like, okay. You're going to put down your pen. You're going to get up. You're going to say thank you, and you're going to leave. Then you're going to drive up to the park cities to Coldwell Banker, and that's exactly what I did. Here she is. Now, you got licensed in Texas when? October 22nd. Okay. She's brand ... October 22nd? No way. October 22nd. That's my wife's birthday. Very cool. It's good luck. It starts at 1022. Absolutely. Okay. Jessica Nelson's with a company called Liberty Realty in New Jersey. We've met via real estate in Miami. She does a lot with developers. Finds herself in Texas, October 22nd. I'm going to show you guys her sales board in a minute. Jessica, how long were you in the business in New Jersey? I became licensed in 2014, so technically we're going on seven years now. Seven years. You've now been in Dallas since October, so November, December, January, February, four months. How many deals are on that board right now? We've closed seven. We have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine in our pipeline, and then four we're putting on the market in the next seven days. She's brand new to Texas. Did you know anybody here when you moved here? No. I don't know a single person. Not one person. This is why we're doing the show. I'm going to read off some numbers to you. 242, 445, 200, 265, 308, 785, 850, 1.7, 325, 235, 419, 300. Big or small, you crushed it, not knowing a soul. There are a lot of people, and by the way, we're in a super tight listing market. We are. A lot of these were listings. You moved to Dallas. It's your first day licensed. What did you do? I door knocked. When the inventory is really tight like it is right now, you're competing with people who are related to realtors, people who are married to realtors sometimes, and you have to find a way to stand out. Everyone's calling expires. Everyone's calling FISBOs, and you have to do that if you want to make money in this business. It's very important, but if you want to really make headway when it's difficult like this, you got to put knuckles to door. You have to get in front of people. You have to show them the level of aggressive that it's going to take to win that listing because they don't believe you when you tell them. They believe you when you show them. There's a big difference in that. You're saying that telling them is on the phone. The showing is at the door. Yeah. You're out there physically doing it, right? When people are calling, they're like, oh, you're reading a script. I heard 10 other people say the same thing. This is stuff you guys are running into, right? People hanging up on you. Oh, you're the 10th realtor to call me today. How many realtors have knocked on their door? How many? Not many. Okay. Let me ask you this because some agents are looking at this and saying, okay, great. I knock on the door. Whose door am I knocking on? I personally started with ... I looked through the inventory of my office, and our office happens to have a lot of banner record-breaking sales, so I picked out a few of them. I did my market research on the MLS, and if you guys need help with that, feel free to reach out to me, jessica.nelson at cbrealty.com. I can help you do the research, but I picked out a few real banner sales that were something to talk about that I knew the neighborhood would be excited to hear. I made a just sold flyer. No, don't worry about it. So it looks like this. Okay. So they know the house. They drive by it. They see the numbers. Usually people don't realize how much these homes are being sold for because the market is so hot. So that's exciting. They're reading it. And then on the back, I write a handwritten letter. Hey, just wanted to let you know, we helped your neighbor close this property in 38 days from listing to closing. We still have three very disappointed buyers because you had multiple bids. And if you're thinking about selling, we can bring one of these buyers to you to make you an offer. And if you write it, if it looks like it's handwritten, people read it. Can I see that? I haven't seen this one yet. So this is actually how I got my first listing here in Texas. And then from there, I was like, you couldn't get rid of me. I was all over that neighborhood, just listed phone calls, write letters. And then I started to take more listings in that same neighborhood and did the same thing everywhere else that I got listings ever since. Okay. So the script at the door is we sold this in a nutshell. Our team sold this property up the street. We had three disappointed buyers or X number of disappointed buyers. Would you have an interest in selling your home? Yeah. Okay. So if you have a Mike Ferry script, you can use the just sold script. Just make it a little shorter because you're in front of them. So just get to the point. Got it. So did you just knock on those or did you go after for semi-owners and expired still? I went after for sale by owners and expires by phone. And if I couldn't get them their attention by phone, I did show up and knock on the door. Okay. What are you saying at the door for an expired? And by the way, if you notice, I have zero questions. I know Jessica really well. And I already knew what direction I wanted to go in. And I didn't prep her for any of this. So here you are, you're at the door of an expired. What do you say? So I use the same script I do on the phone. I know their name already. So they're kind of like how do you know my name's Timmy? Okay. Hey, Alex, thank you for answering the door. How are you today? I'm doing great. How are you? Awesome. Well, I just wanted to stop by. I'm sure you guys are hearing from 20 realtors a day, right? We are. Has anyone else knocked on your door? You know what? You're the first person. Awesome. Well, the reason why I'm here is I wanted to show you the techniques that have helped my other clients to get their home sold. Do you have 15 minutes for me? Not right now. I'm busy. I'm on a conference call for work. Sure. I appreciate that. What would be the best time for us to get together? I have an opening in my schedule tonight at six, or I could do tomorrow at noon. Which would be better for you? Can I be difficult? Okay. I don't know what we're going to do. Not really sure. All these realtors are calling us. I'm not sure what we're going to do. Absolutely, Alex. So you guys aren't sure if you want to stay or if you want to sell? Correct. Okay. When you first put this home on the market, where were you guys planning on moving to when it sold? We were probably going to move to Rockwall. Get on the water. Awesome. How soon did you guys want to be in Rockwall? By the summer, because I want to enjoy the lake, especially after last week's frozen tundra that we had here. Okay. So you want to be there within three months, it sounds like. Great. So you guys were on the market for $785,000. If I could bring you $785,000 within the next 30 days and get you to Rockwall, is that something that would work for you and your family? How would you do that? The other guy could do that. That's exactly why I want 15 minutes of your time tonight or tomorrow. Boom. I loved it. I didn't even know we were going to role play. Sweet. Okay. So that's turned into, to preface this, all right, brand new to Coldwell Banker. Sorry. That's great. Brand new to Coldwell Banker, but let's be real, brand new to DFW, right? Brand new to DFW, didn't know a soul. The formula to success was pick your office success stories, door knock that. From there, in addition to that, cold calling expires in Fizbo's, and in the event that they did not answer or return your call, you then went and knocked on their door. Yeah. So to answer your question very directly and make it, was it keep it simple, stupid? Yeah. The kiss philosophy. You have to ask at least 25 people a day, whether or not they want to move. However you ask. Okay. For me, when I first started here, I was trying to talk to 50, just because it is a numbers game. And from there you have to become, as like Grant Cardone says, a professional stalker. So there's a difference between being harassing and annoying and trying to give people the best service possible. So expireds were failed by their previous realtor. Either their previous realtor didn't have the courage to tell them the truth, or they just didn't have the skills to produce the results. So your job is really to get 15 minutes of that person's time and show them how you can do something different and how you can help them. And like I have four clients right now that literally cried to me at closing and were like, you saved us. We were in trouble and we didn't think we were going to sell this home. And when you get those clients, they're going to give you all their friends and family. That's right. That's how you get the snowball going. Now I want to preface something. You have to speak to 25 people, not make 25 phone calls, unless all 25 answered the phone. And you can't just speak. You have to ask for the business. So one thing I've noticed here in Texas, and I mean this very respectfully, where I come from and where he comes from, it's a very expensive place to live. And unless you really go out there every day trying to make it, you're not going to. Texas is a place where you can have a nice life without making a lot, a lot of money. You can, you know, comfortable. One of the reasons a lot of people move here. Yeah, it's a great thing. But if you're going to be a realtor, you have to get comfortable with asking for business. And I under, and it's not rude. You're not being disrespectful because if you believe that you're the best person to help them, you're just helping that save them from a bad experience. Does that make sense? Absolutely. And I think what's interesting is I remember I had sent out those company wide emails every Sunday. Well, one is fact versus fiction. And how many realtors govern how they do business, how they transact in business, how they prospect for business, not based on actual fact, but based on fiction, like, oh, I don't want to seem pushy. And when you ask them, well, it seems like a lot of people have told you that you're pushy. No, nobody's told me that. I'm just, I'm just thinking that I am. And they're basing it. And what you're saying is, hey, that's not really your, that's fiction. You're not being pushy by asking. Absolutely. That's the story they're telling themselves in their head. Yeah. Okay. So we know how to find the listening because everybody's how do we get a listing in the market? We just had a great off camera conversation about how the winter storm may or may not affect the listing market in the near future, the next 30 days or so with homes that were coming on the market that may not be coming on the market because of damage, homes that were on the market that may be coming off because of damage. So who knows what it's going to look like? So one of the most common things I'm hearing now is I know my house is going to sell in an hour and I know it's going to get 30 offers, right? I heard a story this morning on our Plano sales meeting call. They had 20, I think it was like 20 offers on the property. Our agent offered on a $500,000 property, $550,000 cash, 10% over, 30 day close, two month lease back for free. And they took another offer. Wow. Okay. So it shows you how crazy the market is here. So how do you handle a seller that says, I can do this on my own because I know I'm going to get 20 offers. Like how are you handling the commission objection? You know, that's a good question. So I always feel that the stronger the presentation and the better your prequel, the less you have to deal with that. And I always tell people commission will not be the reason we decide not to work with each other. Oh, commission will not be the reason we decided not to work with each other. I got it. So the prequel is a series, it's a preface. So Jessica does coaching with two, who I think are two of some of the best coaches in the industry. One being Mike Ferry. The other one, can I mention the other one? Aaron Novello, both of whom have been on the, have been guests on this show before. Aaron's a beast out of Plantation, Florida. And so they're advising you to essentially ask a series of questions prior to going on the listing presentation, correct? Absolutely. Okay. How many questions on average? You don't have to share what the questions are because I think those are proprietary to Mike Ferry and Aaron Novello, and it's only fair to them that we keep those in your toolbox. But how many questions more or less are you asking? So about 17. 17 questions. How long does that process take? The prequel is longer than the appointment. The prequel is anywhere from 30 minutes to 45 sometimes. On the phone? Wow. And the presentation itself? 15 to 20. Wow. Also, I know Mike has the 20 minute listing, or is it 15 minutes? I can't remember what number it is. Wow. Okay. You're at a point now, you have a team under you, right? When do you hire your first assistant? So I had an assistant hired, and then I felt that they weren't going to be able to handle our volume. And at this point, I've been working with my coaches to find a solution. And that's always an ongoing process. For every single team? Yeah. So let me ask you this, at what point in your business, and we're going to wrap it up with one more question after this, sorry. And I didn't mean to put you on the spot like that. But at what point did you get that you felt you needed the assistant? What was the tipping point that you said, I need an assistant? I think anyone who's doing volume needs an assistant. And if you plan on doing volume, you should get one before you even do it. Define volume. Production over like 20 deals a year. 20 deals. So more, yeah, you're right. Because you can do one $10 million deal. That's a lot of volume. But if you're doing 20 transactions, got it. So I do have a transaction coordinator, which is working in that capacity for me now. Got it. So what does the transaction coordinator do for you? They prepare all the listing paperwork. They do all the contract to close details, HOA. They really handle the minutiae and documentation so that I can go out and sell. So you hear across the board, we talked about Nelson Gonzalez off the camera or whatever, their secret sauce is they spend very little time doing the minutiae. They figure their highest and best use is client facing. Absolutely. And they hire to the rest. All right. Absolutely. Last question. And you're off the hook. A book, podcast, or TED Talk recommendation for the audience? Gosh, well, my my go to book is always Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People. In sales, you are going to deal with all different types of personalities and people going through different phases in their life. And that book really helps you to understand how to connect with people in a genuine way that's going to make a difference. That's a Bible to me. The Forty-Eight Laws of Power, I think, is an excellent book for people to read. Forty? I've never heard of it. You're the first person to ever mention that one. OK. Yeah. All right. There you go. Anything else? I would listen to Aaron Novello on Instagram a lot. He gives amazing content for how to close, what to say on the phone. So if you're new to the phones, I would literally just copy what he's saying because you will get appointments. And if you notice something about Aaron, and this is something that stands out, he'll say a line. And after he says the line, the smile on his face is huge. He's smiling as he's talking. He videotapes himself prospecting and he posted. He's a machine. He's actually been on the show twice. He was on the show in the very beginning. And then when the pandemic first started, we brought him on virtually. It was like right at the beginning because him and I were like, do we do it in person? Do we do a split screen? You know, all that stuff. Jessica, this far exceeded my expectation. There's a lot of nuggets. I think you're an inspiration to a lot of realtors who there's a lot of realtors moving here that are just starting out. By the way, just so we don't make any excuses like, oh, she's got it easier or whatever. Single mother. Yep. How many kids? Twins. They're 10 years old. 10 year old twins who are not like passive kids. They're based on what I see. They're in cheer. There's competitions all the time. My daughter is cheering with cheer athletics, which was amazing. She was able to get on that squad. The other daughter is volleyball. And then she's going to be playing softball at the Texas Glory. And I have absolutely no childcare. So this is juggling a lot of balls in the air. There you go. No excuse, guys. All right. I'm going to go turn the camera off. Any parting words for the audience? How do they find you, Jessica? Let's go there. Sure. So my Instagram is at thelonestarunicorn. Feel free to follow me. I am always happy to help anyone who's looking to grow your business. The biggest piece of advice I can give you is to tune out everything around you. Control your environment. When I first started here, people told me, oh, you're going to have to wait six months until you get your first listing. Be patient. I didn't want to hear any of that. I hit the ground running. I made my phone calls. As long as I got my 50 contacts a day, I was going to make money. And you will, too. As long as you do your contacts every single day and believe in yourself, there is nothing stopping you. There you go. And I'm just going to show, because this is what she stares at, at her chair right there, the number 50. And I don't want to show people the addresses. I want to make it really quick. Look how cool that sales board is. All right. See you guys later.