Field Guide to Personal Assistants

(Updated March 2007)

In today's hectic and high-powered world of real estate, you may feel that there are not enough hours in the day to get the job done. That's where the personal assistant can be of use. But how do you hire a real estate assistant? What job duties can they perform? The following articles, books, and audio-visual materials may help to clarify some of these issues for you. (K. Janisch, Information Specialist)

Contents: 

What Can A Personal Assistant Do For You?  |  Personnel Issues  |  Books, eBooks & Other Resources


Characteristics of Personal Assistants

15% of REALTORS® use at least one personal assistant

49% of personal assistants are unlicensed

51% of personal assistants are employed part-time

68% of personal assistants work exclusively for one REALTOR®

Source:
2007 National Association of REALTORS® Member Profile, (National Association of REALTORS®, 2007).

What can a personal assistant do for you?

Personal Assistant Tool Kit, (REALTOR® Magazine Online, n.d.).

Working Together, (REALTOR® Magazine Online). 

Are You Ready for an Assistant?, (REALTOR® Magazine Online, n.d.).

Why You Need a Personal Assistant, (www.articlesbase.com, n.d..).

HELP WANTED: Personal Assistant Needed, (Wisconsin Real Estate Online, Jan. 11, 2007).

Personal Assistants - What They Can and Cannot Do, (www.wcr.org, n.d.).

Roundtable – Behind Every Top Producer Is An Assistant, (California Real Estate, Aug. 2006).

Assist me please! Hiring an assistant can change your workload and your productivity, (California Real Estate, Apr. 2003).

Licensed or Unlicensed: What’s the Difference?, (California Real Estate, Apr. 2003).

The Power of the Personal Assistant, (Realty Times, Mar. 21, 2003).

Assistant insights, (REALTOR® Magazine, Feb. 2002).


Personnel Issues

Staying a step ahead, (REALTOR® Magazine, Nov. 1, 2006).

Personal Assistant Q & A, (REALTOR® Magazine, 2006).

Real Estate Professional Assistant Course, (Real Estate Buyers Agents Council, 2005).

Personal assistants: Learning to Excel, (REALTOR® Magazine, Feb. 2002).

How to Recruit the Right Assistant, (Realty Times, May 11, 2001).

Personal Assistant Advisor: Hiring: How and How Much Should I Pay Them?, (REALTOR® Magazine Online Exclusives, Personal Assistant Q&A).

Personal Assistant Advisor: Management: Should I Have My Assistant Sign a Contract of Employment?, (REALTOR® Magazine Online Exclusives, Personal Assistant Q&A)


eBooks & Other Resources

eBooks.realtor.org

The following ebooks and digital audiobooks are available to NAR members:

Be a Kickass Assistant (Adobe eReader)

Books, Videos, Research Reports & More

The resources below are available for loan through Information Central.  Up to three books, tapes, CDs and/or DVDs can be borrowed for 30 days from the Library for a nominal fee of $10.  Call Information Central at 800.874.6500 for assistance.

Become a mega-producer real estate agent: profit from a licensed assistant, (Mason, OH: Thomson South-Western, 2005). HF 5438 H42b

Real estate assistants: a guide for risk management, (Chicago, IL: National Association of REALTORS®, 2001). HF 5438 N16rm

How to hire and train a personal real estate assistant
, (Sacramento, CA: Roger Butcher, 1997). AUDIO CT617

The real estate assistant as a profit center
, (Newport Beach, CA: Monica Reynolds Seminars, 1997). AUDIO CT616

The professional assistant: a guide to success for real estate assistants
, (Chicago, IL: Real Estate Education Co., 1996). HF 5438 R33

Multiply your success with real estate assistants, (Chicago, IL: Real Estate Education Company, 1994). HD 1375 R22ms

Boost your business. How to find, train and work with professional assistants, (CRS Residential Specialist, Jan./Feb. 2005, p. 36-39).

Tell your agents to avoid these three common mistakes when hiring assistants, (Real Estate Broker's Insider, Feb. 15, 2004, p. 5-6).

How to hire--and keep--an assistant: Look for the right qualities, pay well, (Real Estate Broker's Insider, Jan. 1, 2004, p. 6-7).

Field Guides & More

These Field Guides and other resources in the Virtual Library may also be of interest:

Field Guide to Real Estate Office Policy Manuals

Time Management for Real Estate Professionals

Field Guide to Ideas for Success

InfoCentral Blog

 

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The inclusion of links on this Field Guide does not imply endorsement by the National Association of REALTORS®. NAR makes no representations about whether the content of any external sites which may be linked to this Field Guide complies with state or federal laws or regulations or with applicable NAR policies. These links are provided for your convenience only and you rely on them at your own risk.

 

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