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Many recently graduated real estate agents decide to leave the profession early in their careers.
“It is hard to find a healthy work-life balance, as many young real estate agents do not receive adequate help to gain a foothold in the profession,” says Mats Lövgren, lecturer at the programme in real estate brokering at the University of Gävle.
After a long and successful career as a real estate agent, Mats Lövgren teaches at the Real Estate Brokering Programme, and he is the first non-active real estate agent who has been invited to the very popular pod “Sveriges bästa mäklare.” The episode deals with how the transition from student life to professional life actually works and why so many, after a very short time, decide to leave the profession they chose.
“The most common reason why they leave,” Mats Löfgren says, “is that is hard to find a healthy work-life balance. Irregular working hours and the fact that is hard to draw the line and call it a day play a part here.
Moreover, he tells us that the in this line of business leadership tends to be problematic. Typically, businesses are small with few employees (the average office contains five people), and there is little time to take care of new employee.
“For this reason, many new employees do not receive adequate help to gain a foothold in the profession. Nobody gives them the tools they need,” Mats Lövgren says.
When he started working, many new employees started on commission-only jobs, but he made employers in the business aware that some kind of basic salary was needed.
“The greatest difference today, if we compare to what it was like when I started in the profession, is the competition. Today you have to sell yourself; it’s all about personal branding. We used to sell property, but today we sell our services, so to speak.”
To take long-term measures against poor leadership, they have included a new module in the 5th semester focused on leadership in sales organizations.
Mats Lövgren points out that he feels that he is a more important actor in the field today when he represents the programme than when he was active as a real estate agent.
“The line of business listens, we are moving forward, but too slowly.”
One positive thing, according to Mats Lövgren, is that graduates from the programme are very attractive for other employers. Rather than remaining unemployed on leaving the profession, students are employed by real estate companies and banks, by the Swedish mapping, cadastral and land registration authority or the Swedish Tax Agency or work as consultants for real estate companies.
“The interest in our students is huge. Students are contacted by potential employers already when they start the programme,” Mats Lövgren concludes.
Mats Lövgren, lecturer at the study programme in real estate brokering at the University of Gävle.
Phone: 070-605 44 82
E-mail: mats.lovgren@hig.se
Text: Douglas Öhrbom
Photo: Anna Sällberg
