Work from home or office?

In 15 years as a Realtor, I have never gone to an office. I certainly went there occasionally to drop a check or pick one up, but other than that, I never had a reason to go. Now that I have my own real estate company, some people may have wondered if I would open an office and my answer is no. My question to them is what would be the purpose of doing so? Technology has advanced to where having a virtual office is all that is needed. I went paperless a few years ago and have been using Docusign for the past 8 years. For those of you who don’t know, Docusign is an electronic e-signature platform that I use to have all documents signed by my clients. The platform is very easy to use. An email is sent via DocuSign and once the client opens the email and clicks where it says “sign here” or “initial here” all paperwork is signed. I store all files is DocuSign as well, which allows me to be paperless.

I understand that there are some people that think if you don’t have an office that it somehow makes you seem less legitimate than some of my colleagues or competitors. However, nothing could be further from the truth. I am not going to boost my overhead by paying for office space because someone’s perception of business is from the 1990s.

The truth of the matter is the reason I never went to an office even when I had one is that I simply had no reason to go. If I’m working with a buyer, I meet them at the house they want to see. If I am working with a seller, we meet at their house so they can give me a tour. There is absolutely no need for an office. If you have experience and client best interest at heart, the rest does not matter.

I realize there are some that feel they need to go to an office to be productive. Many people just can’t work from as they claim they get to distracted. Fortunately for me I am just the opposite. Every time I went to an office, it seemed more like a social gathering than anything else. Nevertheless, everyone has to do what works best for them. I do think virtual offices will become more the norm in the coming years.