These soft skills have never been more critical considering the National Association of Realtors’ commission agreement and subsequent changes in regulations, writes OJO Labs CEO Chris Heller.
September means Back to Basics here at Inman. As real estate navigates the post-payment era with new commission rules, real estate professionals across the country will share what’s working for them, how they’ve adapted their systems and tools, and where they personally invest.
US searches for “new real estate rules” increased 250 percent in August due to changes to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) occupancy rules that went into effect on Aug. 17, according to Google Trends.
Because of those rule changes, which remove buyer compensation from multiple listings (MLS) and require a buyer’s agreement to be in place with clients before showing homes, buyer’s agents must negotiate their commissions with buyers. These changes may force commission compression, create a more competitive industry, and make it more difficult for Realtors to sell properties successfully.
According to Deloitte Insights, 92 percent of companies report that soft skills are more important than hard skills in today’s business world – especially as NAR reports 61 percent of home buyers they rely on real estate agents to help them understand the process.
To identify the most important soft skills in the industry, I wrote a new study for Agent Advice, “Key Soft Skills for America’s Real Estate Agents in 2024,” analyzed more than 9,000 US job descriptions to determine what soft skills agents needed to generate leads.
As the real estate industry prepares for the commission of the NAR commission and subsequent regulatory changes, let’s take a closer look at the four soft skills agencies need most today.
Communication is important
Communication is listed as the top soft skill for real estate agents in every state in the US. Realtors need to make sure they communicate clearly with their clients to navigate the new NAR changes.
Before working with clients, agents should communicate verbally and in writing what these changes mean for buyers and sellers so that everyone is clear on the next steps.
Motivation to stay on top of the changing world of the industry
Motivational skills ranked as the second most valued soft skill for agents, appearing in the job descriptions of 3,843 real estate agents.
Staying motivated to stay up-to-date on industry changes and practice will also continue to be an important part of the Realtor series.
The organization will be important in navigating NAR’s changes
Appearing in 40 percent of all job descriptions, organization is the third most important soft skill for real estate agents.
Understandably, Realtors may be concerned about whether and how the NAR changes will affect their income; we encourage them to stay organized and use their local and state Board of Realtors to get the right information on how to align their business practices with the new laws.
Negotiation skills are very important
Negotiation skills come in fourth place, listed in 39 percent of job descriptions, and will undoubtedly be the most important skill Realtors have in the new industry landscape as this soft skill becomes a necessity for negotiating agent compensation.
Improving negotiation skills is also a priority, as NAR reports that 46 percent of homebuyers rely on real estate agents to negotiate better sales contract terms.
Final thoughts
It is clear that real estate agents will need to focus on developing their soft skills in order to be set up for success, whether this is through their own research or paying for formal training from industry experts.
Developing skills will be an important part of navigating the new NAR changes in a highly competitive environment. Although it will be more work in the short term, it will pay off in the long run.
Chris Heller is a best-selling author and currently serves as the Chief Real Estate Officer at Ojo Labs. He also serves as a Consultant and Head of the Editorial Board of AgentAdvice.com. Connect with him on Facebook and LinkedIn.
