Undeterred by the cooling housing market, strategic planner Stan Ross says it's a great time to enter the real estate profession.
Despite flattening prices and growing inventories of unsold homes, the board chairman of the University of Southern California's Lusk Center for Real Estate remains unapologetically enthusiastic. He says that starting a real estate career when sales are slow actually can be a good thing.
Ross explains his passion for the business in “Inside Track to Careers in Real Estate,” a recently published book that he co-authored with writer James Carberry.
In Southern California “there clearly is a slowdown in sales but the industry has not stopped,” Ross said. “There is a lot of opportunity for careers in real estate in lots of sectors: income-producing properties like apartments, office developers, industrial, retail, mixed-use in urban development.
“As far as agents, it could be a very unique opportunity for the best in the lot,” he added. “Your biggest issue is sales.”
Housing developers are examining their marketing strategies, he added. “They are looking for people who are really creative and enthusiastic. Obviously there are challenges.”
Published by the Urban Land Institute, the book deals with many aspects of real estate, including investment. “Sometimes in a weak market you can find opportunities to buy if you are very creative, especially if builders or developers are trying to sell off some inventory that you normally could not get,” Ross said.
Some people think of real estate as a fall-back career, but Ross calls it “a calling.” A certified public accountant by training, his experience includes working on mergers, acquisitions and reorganizations.
Despite his optimism, Ross encourages those contemplating careers in real estate to first do their homework. He suggests talking to brokers, property managers, project managers and other professionals. A good way to get a feel for the business is to attend the meetings of trade organizations, he said.