Special offer

Spam prevention
Rainmaker
989,652
Jennifer Mackay
Counts Real Estate Group, Inc. - Panama City, FL
Your Bay County Florida Realtor 850.774.6582

Not sure I would use the term Virtual as you describe - in fact that is illegal in FL - you must have a brick and mortar with a sign to be a broker in FL.

I would instead describe that as Tele-commuting which I have done for years

May 09, 2016 07:44 PM
Ambassador
6,393,154
Bob Crane
Woodland Management Service / Woodland Real Estate, KW Diversified - Stevens Point, WI
Forestland Experts! 715-204-9671

I suspect that there are several here in the Rain who never sell Real Estate but do very well collecting referral fees for work they pass on to others.

May 09, 2016 07:36 AM
Rainmaker
3,071,489
Tony and Suzanne Marriott, Associate Brokers
Serving the Greater Phoenix and Scottsdale Metropolitan Area - Scottsdale, AZ
Haven Express @ Keller Williams Arizona Realty

EXP Realty

May 10, 2016 10:04 PM
Rainmaker
2,220,323
Anthony Acosta - ALLATLANTAcondos.com
Harry Norman, REALTORS® - Atlanta, GA
Associate Broker

No

May 09, 2016 11:56 AM
Staff
1,685,353
Bob Stewart
ActiveRain - Mesa, AZ
ActiveRain

Have you ever heard of eXp Realty?

They have an entire franchise that is virtual. In fact, Brad Andersohn, formerly with ActiveRain and Zillow works for eXp now. It was started by a guy named Glenn Sanford. They have been growing pretty rapidly over the last two years. 

This is the highest level at which anyone in the industry is currently doing 'virtual' brokerage. Of course, in the locations where they have to have a physical office location, they have one......but all of their agents and brokers are set up to work virtually.

May 09, 2016 08:44 AM
Rainmaker
1,502,998
Ryan Huggins - Thousand Oaks, CA
https://HugginsHomes.com - Thousand Oaks, CA
Residential Real Estate and Investment Properties

Thanks for the clarification.  I commented on the blog.  I work virtually and my broker has since the late 90s... before there was the buzzword to describe it.

May 09, 2016 04:20 AM
Rainmaker
4,882,355
Richard Weeks
Dallas, TX
REALTOR®, Broker

Morris Williams. They do business in Fl, TX, and CA.

May 09, 2016 04:00 AM
Rainmaker
1,052,196
Candice A. Donofrio
Next Wave RE Investments LLC Bullhead City AZ Commercial RE Broker - Fort Mohave, AZ
928-201-4BHC (4242) call/text

When I worked for Prudential, I was an 'ePartner' and one of many 'satellite offices' all over the state. I met my broker once, when he traveled here from Phx to sign me. From then on, I worked from a home office (which face it, we all do anyway in some form) and emailed paperwork to a transaction coordinator for filing with the 'mothership'. The branding materials were provided digitally. Broker authorized commissions to be paid directly to the agents at COE, so no waiting--pick up at title company. I used the ePartner program as a model for my office. The Pru ePartner program was started 12 years ago and, by current standards, primitive. Now, there are complete virtual backoffices where file sharing is used . . . my office doesn't need all that because there is just me and another agent (she still sends me her files for 'official filing' to satisfy the DRE). But there is no reason why an experienced agent cannot flourish with a virtual office. The only time this can get wonky is if a newbie is not getting the supervision or support they really need. The other tricky part is dealing with a public who cannot 'walk in' to your office. That is a huge blessing, though.

May 09, 2016 03:58 AM
Rainmaker
797,457
Liz Wallace
Century 21 Sherlock Homes - Rockville Centre, NY
Broker C21 Sherlock Homes, Rockville Centre, LI, N

A lot of people on AR do.

May 09, 2016 03:55 AM
Rainmaker
5,868,472
Joan Cox
House to Home, Inc. - Denver Real Estate - 720-231-6373 - Denver, CO
Denver Real Estate - Selling One Home at a Time

Interesting, and probably are many not selling, but collecting fees.

May 10, 2016 11:03 PM
Rainmaker
7,835,407
Roy Kelley
Retired - Gaithersburg, MD

My  business was totally referrals for several years.

May 09, 2016 10:59 PM
Rainmaker
556,536
Greg Cremia
Shore Realty of the Outer Banks - Nags Head, NC

We gave up brick and motar 10 years ago and the only regret is not doing it sooner. We meet sellers at their house and pick up buyers where ever they are. I like not watching other agents profit from my maketing. 

May 09, 2016 10:29 PM
Rainer
21,291
Grace Hanamoto
Intero Real Estate - Sunnyvale, CA
Quality, Knowledge, Professionalism, Experience

California is full of virtual brokerages...Allison James, Morrison Williams, e-Broker, Area Pro.

They do offer great pricing, but not a lot of agent support, so its not for everyone.  If you're a seasoned pro (like 6+ years), have a great client list that doesn't care about your brokerage name, and you don't need a lot of "real time" support, this is the way to go. Also, you must be prepared to work within their parameters--no odd deals, no difficult clients, no challenges of any kind.

Otherwise, it may not be your cup of tea. There is nothing wrong with it, but it is definitely for a specific type of agent.

 

May 09, 2016 05:44 PM
Ambassador
3,164,269
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

no one I know personally.

May 09, 2016 03:37 PM
Rainmaker
4,319,419
Praful Thakkar
LAER Realty Partners - Andover, MA
Andover, MA: Andover Luxury Homes For Sale

Annette Lawrence , Palm Harbor, FL 727-420-4041 will check the post later.

I know couple of agents working successfully with VA in Philippines.

May 09, 2016 02:46 PM
Rainmaker
3,986,258
William Feela
WHISPERING PINES REALTY - North Branch, MN
Realtor, Whispering Pines Realty 651-674-5999 No.

I know of no one

May 09, 2016 12:02 PM
Rainmaker
2,362,701
Lise Howe
Keller Williams Capital Properties - Washington, DC
Assoc. Broker in DC, MD, VA and attorney in DC

I don't

May 09, 2016 11:54 AM
Ambassador
5,048,883
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

I didn't have a specific suggestion until I saw the response frm Bob Stewart 

I know Rich Cederburg at eXp in Albuquerque pretty well. i would talk with him

May 09, 2016 11:49 AM
Ambassador
3,727,873
Patricia Kennedy
RLAH@Properties - Washington, DC
Home in the Capital

I'm guessing the guy who sells three thousand houses a year probably has a virtual real estate practice.  But I don't know anyone who has one.

May 09, 2016 11:04 AM
Rainmaker
3,988,007
Debbie Reynolds, C21 Platinum Properties
Platinum Properties- (931)771-9070 - Clarksville, TN
The Dedicated Clarksville TN Realtor-(931)320-6730

My broker explored the idea of another level of agents that would be totally virtual. The concept was so new that he did not pursue it but I can see it would be a way of the future for real estate.

May 09, 2016 11:00 AM
Ambassador
3,345,091
Kathleen Daniels, Probate & Trust Specialist
KD Realty - 408.972.1822 - San Jose, CA
Probate Real Estate Services

I know many, including myself.  I've never had a need to meet a client at a brick and mortar office.  Never meet at my home. I meet sellers in their home. 

May 09, 2016 10:10 AM
Rainmaker
5,005,586
Dorie Dillard Austin TX
Coldwell Banker Realty ~ 512.750.6899 - Austin, TX
NW Austin ~ Canyon Creek and Spicewood/Balcones

Bob Stewart has the answer for you!

May 09, 2016 10:00 AM
Rainmaker
2,817,671
Debbie Gartner
The Flooring Girl - White Plains, NY
The Flooring Girl & Blog Stylist -Dynamo Marketers

I know several at eXp realty, including several from AR including Brad Andersohn, Rick Cederberg, Karen Highland.

May 09, 2016 09:16 AM
Rainmaker
4,434,127
Gita Bantwal
RE/MAX Centre Realtors - Warwick, PA
REALTOR,ABR,CRS,SRES,GRI - Bucks County & Philadel

Thanks for sharing.

May 09, 2016 09:15 AM
Rainmaker
5,772,575
Ron and Alexandra Seigel
Napa Consultants - Carpinteria, CA
Luxury Real Estate Branding, Marketing & Strategy

Annette,

I met two guys in Australia, who rented space only when needed for meetings in executive suites.  This service also a personal answering service. Every one worked from their home office. A

May 09, 2016 09:13 AM
Rainmaker
2,781,153
Richie Alan Naggar
people first...then business Ran Right Realty - Riverside, CA
agent & author

ActiveRain answers your question.......... Bob Stewart is your contact

May 09, 2016 08:37 AM
Rainmaker
1,239,801
Sam Shueh
(408) 425-1601 - San Jose, CA
mba, cdpe, reopro, pe

Most on auction (RE) are virtual and many are successful.....

They do get complaints that starting offer is too low to get the attraction and many home buyers do not check out the property before making bids.....

May 09, 2016 05:38 AM
Rainmaker
4,800,082
Gabe Sanders
Real Estate of Florida specializing in Martin County Residential Homes, Condos and Land Sales - Stuart, FL
Stuart Florida Real Estate

I have heard of such brokers, but I don't have any first hand experience with any.

May 09, 2016 04:39 AM
Rainmaker
1,622,432
Inna Ivchenko
Barcode Properties - Encino, CA
Realtor® • GRI • HAFA • PSC Calabasas CA

A lot of people, including many agents who work from home. 

May 09, 2016 04:00 AM