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Polk County, located in central Florida, offers a dizzying array of options for a mobile home buyer. As any mobile home real estate agent in Polk County will attest, the sheer number of mobile homes makes Polk County distinctive. With nearly four hundred mobile home parks, real estate agents have a lot of options to show a potential buyer.

Whether you are looking for a small park model mobile home on a lot in a park, or a more spacious model on a large acreage tract, Polk County has more locations to chose from than you will find anywhere else in Florida. Polk County, located between Tampa and Orlando along the I-4 corridor, currently holds over 34,000 mobile homes of all makes and styles.

Real Estate agents in Polk County are generally well-versed in the ins and outs of mobile homes as they compare to residential homes. Mobile homes constitute nearly one-fifth of the total home sites in Polk County, Florida. Because of this unusually high concentration, real estate agents in Polk County have to be more familiar with the differences, advantages, and disadvantages of mobile homes than their counterparts in other areas of Florida.

When in the market for a mobile home, it is important to choose a real estate agent familiar with both Polk County and mobile homes in general. Small details can have a major impact on the value of a mobile home. For example your real estate agent, if well-versed in mobile home construction, will know that there is a much larger difference between a 1993 built and a 1994 home than there is between, say, 1996 and 1997. 1993 is the year that Hurricane Andrew tore through Florida, destroying a huge number of mobile homes along the way. The following year, new housing codes were put into place, ensuring a higher quality of construction than the previous years’ model would afford.

Hiring a mobile home real estate agent does not relieve the buyer of the responsibility of understanding the local market in Polk County. A realtor, no matter how knowledgeable, cannot replace a home inspector or an appraiser. But working in conjunction with an informed buyer and reputable experts, the mobile home real estate agent can help ensure that there are no surprises when the buyer is ready to take ownership of their new mobile home.

To find potential mobile home real estate agents in Polk County, Florida, check your local yellow pages or search online. But be sure to ask questions to make sure they understand the local market and mobile home construction. By doing some homework upfront and checking the realtor’s knowledge before beginning your home search, you can be sure that you and your realtor can work together to find your new home.

With over 2 million real estate agents according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), becoming a successful real estate agent takes more than just a license and a knowledge of current laws and regulations.The first year drop out range estimated to be from 40% to 80% demonstrates that many real estate agents are not as successful as they could be and research suggests that 90% give up after 3 years. The following 7 tips may help you avoid becoming one of these statistics.

First and Foremost YOU are a business. Real estate agents work for a broker, but are independent, commissioned sales people. This means that you are a small business and must run your practice as a business. Again, remember you are a small business owner. Embrace a Planning Attitude. If you don’t have a plan, then you are on some else’s plan – usually the successful real estate agent’s. During the last 10 years, what I have learned as a performance improvement consultant or coach is that most people place more value in planning a trip to the grocery store or a vacation than planning their lives either professionally or personally. Research Your Market Plan. Since you, as the real estate agent, are responsible for your own expenses, do your research specific to your marketing plan within your strategic plan. Time spent in constructing your marketing plan is definitely well spent. NOTE: Remember a business plan usually is data driven, while a strategic plan identifies who does what by when. Establish Sales Goals. Using your strategic action plan, establish sales goals. If you are new to this industry, it may take 6 months before the first sale. HINT: Use the W.H.Y. S.M.A.R.T. criteria for goal setting. Create a Financial Budget. Budgeting is critical given the up and down of this volatile market place. Your financial budget should plan for your marketing costs, any additional costs such as education and your forecasted income. Make Managing Yourself a Priority. Building a business is not easy. You must learn how to manage yourself especially in the area of time management, ongoing real estate business training coaching continuing education units, and personal life balance. Real estate is said to be a 24/7 business much like any small business. However, it is important not to lose sight of your personal life including family, friends, physical health, etc. Find a Mentor or a Real Estate Coach. Going it alone is not easy. Take the time to find a mentor who can help you steer through some of the known obstacles and help you during the “peaks and valleys.” If you have the resources, you may wish to hire a real estate coach or an executive coach who specializes in small business help and sales.

Being an incredible sales person and entering the real estate market does not guarantee similar sales success. However, these 7 tips may help you avoid many of the pitfalls by not being one of the four real estate agents who quit within one year or one of the nine who give up after 3 years.

Have you ever wondered how your real estate agent gets paid? Sure, there is talk of commission, percentages, fees, closing costs- all of these are broken down at closing. But, what does he actually get? Surprisingly, you do not pay your agent a commission. Only a licensed broker can get paid a commission and he is the one who pays your agent. There are also a number of ways to divvy up the pay. The person who worked so hard to sell or find your house may not be making as much as you think. Here are some of the ways the money makes it to your representative:

A real estate agent works for a licensed broker or brokerage house. When he brings a client to the table, either for buying or selling, an agreement is signed between the client and the brokerage house. Typically when a sale is made, an average of 6% of the sale price is commission for the brokers. It is not always a straight split, but close to half, which goes to the broker representing the seller and the buyer.

Once the commission is divided up between the houses, the brokers then decide how much to pass down to the agent who actually did the leg work. This amount varies depending on experience, time with the company and the productivity level of the representative. A brand new representative may only get thirty percent of the cut where as a seasoned pro that brings in a ton of business, may get half or more of the proceeds.

Another option is that the agent gets all of the commission, but pays a monthly fee to the brokerage house. This is sort of a rent. He gets an office and uses the company name to back his reputation. This is an attractive deal to many representatives, because they pay the same amount every month, no matter how much they make. For new people to the business who have not built up a client list and do not benefit from word-of-mouth yet, the traditional split is usually preferable, because they may not make enough every month to make the set payment.

There are some factors that eat into the final profit made by the brokerage house and the representative. If the house is a franchise, there is a fee that must be paid to them out of every commission. Sometimes referrals come into play as well. If a brokerage house sends a customer to you, they will want a referral fee. There is a percentage that also comes out of the commission.

Typically, this commission is paid by the seller at closing. However, depending on the type of market, this is negotiable. Another negotiable point is how the commission is divided. If you are having a difficult time in selling, because the market is flooded with houses, you may want your representative to offer a bigger cut of the commission to the buyer’s representative. This may help close the deal.

So, as you can see, there is more to the payment than simply figuring 6%. After everyone else gets the money, your real estate agent is then paid the amount.