Hiring the Right People

Introduction

Hiring in a real estate business isn’t just “getting help.” In most brokerages and agent teams, the wrong hire costs you more than salary. It costs you leads, listings, client trust, and weeks of momentum. So you need a hiring system that works like a funnel: bring in the right people, filter out the wrong ones early, and then train so they can perform fast—without you constantly fixing mistakes.

In this module, you’ll use the Talent Funnel for real estate roles: Hiring, Training, and The Repellent Job Ad. The goal is simple: only suitable candidates make it far, and your onboarding turns them into reliable team members quickly.

Concept

Think of your hiring funnel as three stages that reduce risk at each step.

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Hiring

In real estate, “role fit” matters as much as skills. For example, an appointment setter or showing coordinator who can’t handle rejection, reschedules, or client communication will create problems immediately.

Your first job is to attract candidates who understand the day-to-day reality of the role. That means your job ad should clearly describe:
- What they’ll do weekly (tasks, volume, and pace)
- The client-facing expectations (tone, responsiveness, professionalism)
- The non-negotiables (showing window adherence, follow-up speed, documentation)
- The performance standard (what “good” looks like in your system)

Real-world real estate scenario: You’re hiring a Buyer Appointment Setter. A generic ad might say “must be motivated, fast learner, great communicator.” A better ad says: “This role makes 80-120 calls and texts per day, follows a script, logs every interaction in the CRM, and books appointments within set SLAs. You will hear ‘no’ often and you still stay polite and consistent.” That filters out people who want vague “sales” roles and keeps those who can handle structured outreach.

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Training

Training is where you protect your lead flow and your brand. Real estate clients can feel the difference instantly. New hires must learn your exact processes: how leads are handled, how follow-ups are timed, how you document, and how you communicate.

Your training should include:
- Process training: step-by-step walkthrough of your scripts and workflows
- Tools training: CRM, dialer/texting, email templates, scheduling tools
- Role play: realistic calls for objections, no-shows, and “not ready yet”
- Quality checks: audits of call logs, message replies, and CRM entries

Real-world real estate scenario: You hire a Listing Coordinator. Their first week isn’t “figure it out.” They need onboarding that covers: how to collect seller docs, how to track tasks in your deal pipeline, what to say when a seller asks for pricing changes, and how to schedule photographer + sign installation. If they learn your standards early, you avoid listings stalling due to missing steps.

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The Repellent Job Ad

A Repellent Job Ad is a smart filter. It doesn’t discriminate—it tests attention to detail and commitment. The trick is to make the “requirements” real, not trick questions.

A strong Repellent Job Ad in real estate often includes a small, specific instruction that mirrors what you care about operationally, such as:
- Requiring a keyword in the subject line
- Requiring a short explanation of their availability to work showing days
- Requiring a completed mini-task (ex: draft a follow-up text to a no-response lead)
- Requiring them to confirm they’ve read the whole ad by answering 2 simple questions

Real-world real estate scenario: You’re hiring a Showing Coordinator. Your ad states: “Subject line must include the word ‘SCHEDULE’ and your first message must confirm your willingness to handle last-minute showing changes. Answer: ‘What do you do when a client is late by 15 minutes?’” Candidates who don’t follow instructions self-select out—exactly what you want when reliability is the job.

Conclusion

The Talent Funnel helps you build a real estate team that doesn’t slow you down. When you write role-specific hiring ads, train to your system, and use a Repellent Job Ad to filter for commitment and detail, you reduce expensive mistakes. Over time, your team becomes consistent, your clients feel cared for, and your business keeps closing deals even when you’re busy.