With more than 1,300 Realtors in the Greater Victoria area — and a limited number of homes listed for sale — how does a new real estate agent compete in a tight market?
Rose Root just might have the answer.
Root was recently named MacDonald Realty’s Rookie of the Year. Based out of the company’s Sidney office, Root has turned her energy level to her new career as a Realtor — and has been rewarded for it.
The basis for her success over a relatively short period of time, she said, has been her willingness to do the little things — and the big things — for her clients.
Whether that means helping someone declutter their home before putting it on the market, or going as far as repainting or replacing counter tops.
“I was always taught to go above and beyond and not to expect anything in return,” she said, noting that while she receives commissions on her sales, the extra work she puts in, is typically on her own dime.
That work, she explained, ranged anywhere from staging a home for the sales market, painting and cleaning, to even a tear down and remodel of a dated kitchen.
And it’s all work that she does herself, or with a little help from friends.
It’s an energy that Root comes by after growing up on the Saanich Peninsula. Her family is from the area and her aunt owns the Deep Cove Market in North Saanich.
After going though a big change in her life, moving herself and her six-year-old son into a new home, Root also made a career change. She said the Realtor’s course typically takes a year, but she completed it in two-and-a-half months. That energy and focus is now translating itself in her work.
“When I had dealt with Realtors in the past, they’d pound in a sign, list a property on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and they were gone.
“That’s not how I work.”
That Rookie of the Year trophy Root has is testament to that. It’s a work ethic she has had all her life — at age 12 she found a part time job to help pay for her first bike.
Still, the current real estate market is very competitive.
Root is hoping that her energy and hard work will outlast a time of low listings, being fought over by a large amount of real estate agents.
Root started her new career in April 2016 and has already seen various market fluctuations on the Peninsula and around Greater Victoria.
While she admits she’s still relatively new, she said she expects the market will reach a plateau when it comes to housing supply and prices.
The Peninsula, she continued, remains a bit of an insulated marketplace, where homes are still affordable in comparison with many other areas.
Brentwood Bay, for instance, has more affordable homes in prime locations for growing families.
Sidney, too, has changed over the years since she was younger and growing up there.
“Sidney is so unique,” Root said. “It has grown so much, but there’s still that homey feel to it.”
North Saanich, however, sees homes that are typically among some of the highest-priced in the region. It’s a market that caters to specific clientele.
Going into her second spring in the real estate business, Root has noticed the market activity picking up this year.
Competition for listings will be high again — and that’s where she hopes her reputation as a hard worker will get he the nod for new clients.
“It’s the little things that you can do, that some other Realtors might not want to do, that will get you ahead,” she said, adding that hard work can often lead to a better selling price in the end.
She recalled her first listing — a home in North Saanich’s Deep Cove area. Root said she made many trips to the landfill in order to declutter the place.She cleaned walls, repainted some areas and even washed rugs.
“I’m quite happy to work for my commission,” she laughed.
“You’ve got to reveal the potential (in a home), for potential buyers,” she continued.
“You’ve got to expose the good things about your home. I’ve always had a good eye for that and am taking that skill and putting it into a real estate career.”
