Blog Post Assignment 1

Blog Post Assignment 1

by Xia Vue

        The person I have contacted for this interview was Samantha Xiongnhiathao. Samantha currently resides in Fresno, CA, and is employed part-time under Century 21 as a real estate agent. While living in Minnesota, she graduated from a two year program back in 2005. After completing all the necessary requirements, she successfully passed the state exam to earn her license in real estate. She’s currently working on her Bachelor’s Degree to eventually attend a medical school.

Q: How did you get started in this field?

A: When starting college, my dream was enter a field that would give me the chance to help my community. There are some many choices in life, but my passion eventually led me to focus my education in the field of real estate.

Q: What was your educational background?

A: I attended college way back when I still lived in Minnesota. I have just moved here recently after getting my job at Century 21. But back in Minnesota, I took a two year course program and after graduating in 2005, I went through all the major state requirements and passed the state exam to achieve my license in real estate.

Q: What obligations does your work put on you outside of the actual job?

A: Since I’m currently working part-time, my work doesn't affect my personal life at all. It is stressful at times though. I’m able to work the hours I want and still maintain a social life with my family and friends.

Q: What was the most rewarding aspect of your job?

A: Personally, that would definitely be the satisfaction of serving the public.

Q: What is a “typical” day like for you?

A: That’s an easy one. Since I currently work part-time, my “typical” day at work is checking and evaluating paperwork and responding to any clients.

Q: What are some common entry-level positions?

A: Here at Century 21, the most common are secretary and paperwork filer positions. Most people usually start off with either these two. I did however start off as an assistant real estate agent though fortunately.

Q: What kind of skills and personalities is best suited for job/entry-level position?

A: Communication skills and experience. These are probably the two most important things an individual should have in order to be successful in this career. Being a real estate agent, you have to know how to communicate well with your clients. And if you have experience, you’ll most likely make less mistakes than someone who doesn't.

Q: What have you found to be a major weakness of new hires in this field?

A: I believe it’s lack of training and experience. All new hires are very competitive, which they should be. But it’s those who have experience that know how the business works and what it takes to be successful.

Q: How are employees evaluated?

A: We’re mainly evaluated based on how successful we are with clients and our commissioning. We when successfully make a sale, we earn 50%-80% of what the brokers make as commissioning. Whoever makes the most sales get a plaque and recognition, much like employee of the month.

Q: Are there any particular resources your company uses?

A: At Century 21, we use something called the National Realtor Association or M.L.S. These are our sources to find the information we need. However you do need to sign-up for an account on these websites and you have to have a license as well in order to qualify for it.

Q: Would you choose this career again?

A: If I had to do this all over again, I probably wouldn't  I like my current job, however I’ve always felt that real estate is a risky choice. I’m currently pursing my Bachelor’s Degree so I can attend a medical school. I think the medical field will be more beneficial financially to me and my family.

          Overall the interview was a complete success. It was interesting hear her background and the different positives and negatives aspects of being a real estate agent. Being a construction management major, I was able to relate to some of the similar constraints in her field. How well one does in the construction field really depends on their communication skills and experience. I’d like to take this time to thank her very much for her time and wish her the best of luck in her future endeavors.