A lot of things have changed in the real estate business in the past 25 years. One thing that has not changed is that many real estate salespeople and even brokers don’t have their own homes at retirement, let alone any savings or plans for where they should live without any income. A lot of these folks just work past retirement – they really have no choice. But when all is said and done and their careers are over, when they are simply prevented by age from doing any more work, what becomes of them?
Real estate people are entrepreneurial by nature. They are enthusiastic, filled with ideas and a zest for life and work. They have powerful energy and creativity and they love to go full-on for the good of their clients. For a lot of them though, when it comes to themselves, not so much.
There’s lots of money made in real estate sales but there are many in this business who are not big money makers. Go ahead and shake your finger and carry on about how they should have been saving through the years for their retirement but spare me the indignation, because a lot of these people never made enough money to save anything.
You know these people. They are great people. They are inspiring to be around. They have energy, heart and soul to give to others in spades. They are also the people in the industry who usually dedicate themselves to charity, community work and the good of all around them.
For these people, and I am telling you there are many, it is just not in their nature to plan for themselves. I know very few entrepreneurs that do. You remember the old saying, “When you’re fighting off all the alligators, it’s hard to remember that you were originally there to drain the swamp.” When you’re chasing a deal and you are just barely making enough to survive through the day, it’s hard to think of creating a savings plan for the future. Most people in real estate have no grand pension plan like workers at a large company. They don’t have anything like the gold plated benefit packages that government employees have. They are their own businesses. When they get the golden handshake after a career in real estate, there is no buy-out and there is no income plan. There is only a handshake.
I have a humble suggestion about how to help these folks and other seniors in Canada. Unleash the power of your real estate associations to lobby for a home for all.
Right now our provincial governments have the most responsibility to help seniors get housing. They are frustrating to deal with. They sure aren’t Realtors. Have you ever tried to work with one of these provincial agencies for someone in your family? I can guarantee you that if you call these places you will be told that you have to talk to a different person than the one that you are talking to on the phone and you will be told that this person is either on holiday or “away this week”. These are government workers after all. It is no different, in fact it’s worse, at the agencies that are supposed to help seniors at the federal level.
I think the real estate industry can step up to the plate and help every senior in Canada in need of a home. I believe that our provincial real estate associations and CREA can act as champions for our aging population. They can’t do it of their own volition but they can do it if they receive direction from their bosses. That would be you.
Can you imagine the formidable power and ability of Canada’s real estate associations in taking on these government agencies to help get senior housing? Boy I think they could put some real pressure on these people to take action. Make no mistake, your real estate associations are really good at what they do, so you should ask them to do this.
It is not just funding that is the issue. We need to make what we have now to work better! I believe that CREA alone, with the structure, creativity and the tenacity they have could really go to bat for all of Canada’s seniors and along the way, get help for our own retiring real estate seniors. Help them do it.
In order to act they need direction from their members. I put it to you. Give them that direction!
Heino Molls has been the Publisher of REM, Real Estate Magazine (formerly Real Estate Marketing), since 1989. Previous to REM, he worked as an executive at the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB), and at the Toronto Star. Contact Heino by email or call 416-425-3504 x2.
