145: Moving into my New Real Estate Brokerage
I started Blue Steel Real Estate last week. It has been an exciting and slightly stressful process. We opened earlier than we thought we would open, but everything has worked out extremely well, and I am glad things happened the way that they did. On this episode of the InvestFourMore Podcast, I talk about the move, the process, and how everything has gone so far.
Why did we have to move early?
I was planning to move on June 1st, but my broker asked me to leave early. I did not know this, but it appears to be common practice for brokers to fire agents when they find out they are leaving the company. I have talked to a few other brokers who started a new office, and they had the same thing happen to them. I was given 10 days to leave the office, which ended up being April 6th. We managed to get everything set up with the Real Estate Commission in Colorado in those ten days, and we opened on April 6th.
You can see the full article I wrote on opening an office here.
What is involved in opening an office?
Luckily, I had extra space in the commercial building I just purchased for my temporary office. I am remodeling my permanent space, but it will not be ready for at least another month. It was quite the process getting everything moved over, getting a printer, and everything else needed for an office. I actually worked for a few days without internet! We had a hotspot tethered off a phone. You can see both units in the video below:
Why am I starting my own real estate brokerage?
I did an entire podcast on why I started my own brokerage. Because I bought my own building it makes a lot of sense to have my own office. The numbers on the building make sense even with two spaces vacant. My partner and I wanted to rent the vacant units but knew they would need a little bit of work first, or we would have to provide a lot of tenant improvements. I was able to move in at a reduced lease rate because I needed minimal tenant improvement completed. I could move in right away (one space had been vacant for 6 years), and I can keep an eye on the building. I can save a lot of money over other brokerages because I am paying myself rent. I will actually be paying less money for 4,500-square-feet of office space versus what I was paying my broker for three offices.
Conclusion
It has been a little crazy with the move, but in the end, I am glad we had to leave early. It forced us to start our company sooner, and it has been a really fun experience. I cannot wait until the new office is ready and we can move into our permanent home!