Building Your Real Estate Back-Office Support Team From a Call Center in the Philippines

The real estate industry faces a challenging transition period, from dealing with rising inflation and lower consumer spending to addressing trends like remote work. Adapting to the changes and improving flexibility and resilience will be critical for remaining competitive in these uncertain times.

If you want to get ahead of the competition, outsourcing can provide the advantage your real estate business seeks. In this article, we’ll dive into the different back-office support roles you can utilize to your advantage, the benefits of outsourcing, and best practices for beginning your BPO journey.

What Is Real Estate Outsourcing?

Real estate outsourcing is when realtors, brokers, agents, and firms offload non-core functions, from customer service and back-office roles to industry-specific services, to a third-party provider. 

By delegating administrative and support tasks to dedicated BPO professionals, you can lighten the workload of your real estate agents while improving productivity and cutting costs.

Real Estate Outsourcing Solutions You Can Delegate to a Call Center in the Philippines

Customer Support Roles

Whether you handle residential, industrial, or commercial real estate, customer service is essential to the job. Since purchasing (or selling) a property is a big decision and responsibility for anyone, many people may need proper guidance and support from their real estate broker.

Here are just a few of the customer service roles you can outsource to a Philippine call center:

• Customer Service Representative – Starting the process of buying and selling a property can be intimidating for many people. Thankfully, customer service representatives can help ease their worries. These offshore professionals answer client inquiries, help guide customers through real estate transactions, and provide general information about properties and services.

• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Specialist – Investing in CRM software can give real estate companies a comprehensive view of their clients by collating their transactions, purchase history, and other data. A CRM specialist can use this technology to track leads, manage follow-up calls, and increase conversion rates.

• IT and Technical Support – Most real estate agents, brokers, and firms have dedicated websites or apps that help them manage listings, coordinate transactions, and monitor properties on the market. An IT and technical support team will ensure that customers can receive help whenever they experience a technical issue with your website or app.

Administrative Support Roles

In the real estate industry, administrative support is crucial for brokers and agents to do their jobs quickly and efficiently. Instead of handling paperwork, doing data entry, and managing other back-office tasks, commercial and residential real estate firms can focus on managing buy-and-sell transactions and sealing the deal with clients.

• Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Running a real estate firm involves many moving parts, from building client relationships to coordinating property viewings. A virtual assistant can help brokers and agents easily handle everything by managing emails, preparing documents, scheduling appointments, answering client inquiries on social media, and even assisting with research and development.

• Data Entry Specialist – Real estate businesses handle a ton of data from different sources, including comparative market analysis reports, valuation details, sales documents, and contracts. A data entry specialist can make sure all of this information is organized and accurately logged into the firm’s database.

• Database Manager – Once a data entry clerk has uploaded all information into a secure database, the next step is maintaining it correctly. The right database manager is detail-oriented, attentive, and proactive in monitoring your real estate firm’s centralized data centers, helping you easily manage contacts, follow up on unfinished transactions, and build better client relationships.

Finance and Accounting Roles

Real estate companies handle various financial transactions when buying and selling properties. As such, they must closely monitor their firm’s finances to ensure they are actually making a profit. 

Through financial service outsourcing, they can minimize expenses while maximizing growth and overall profitability. Here are some of the roles they can outsource to a BPO providing these specialized services: 

• Billing and Collections Specialist – Sending and receiving invoices is essential to the real estate customer experience. With a billing and collections specialist, your firm can ensure clients receive accurate and comprehensive billing statements to foster seamless real estate transactions.

• Property Finance and Accounting Specialist – Residential, commercial, and retail real estate companies also need the help of qualified accountants familiar with the industry’s nuances. By working closely with outsourced accountants, property owners and managers can accurately calculate and report their taxable income and deductions while simultaneously finding ways to maximize profits.

• Mortgage Processing Professional – Not every client has enough money on hand to purchase a property. As such, they may need to apply for a mortgage before considering buying their own home. A mortgage processing professional can help these people find a property they can afford, handle their loan application, and help them close the sale. 

• Lending Operations Analyst – Since many clients use mortgages to purchase properties, real estate firms must monitor the status of these loans closely. A lending operations analyst reviews loan applications, records collateral, and processes loan payments.

Sales and Marketing Roles

One of the most significant challenges of running a successful real estate company is finding out how to market properties to the right target demographic and then seal the deal with a sale. This is where outsourced sales support professionals can be of service.

• Sales Associate – In the real estate industry, sales associates connect property owners with potential buyers and help negotiate a sales agreement between them. They also provide listing services and help the seller set a price for their property by performing market research and analysis.

• Listing Coordinator – To get a commercial, residential, or industrial building ready for sale, a listing coordinator is needed to help the seller present the property in the best possible light. 

Listing coordinators schedule appointments for interior decorators, photographers, maintenance specialists, and other professionals preparing a property for listing. They also handle the necessary paperwork, documentation, and marketing materials.

• Transaction Coordinator – Once a property has been listed, transaction coordinators will now be in charge of overseeing the buy-and-sell process. They will schedule appointments for potential buyers to view the property, prepare contracts, collect deposits, and handle all other administrative tasks needed to complete the transaction.

• Sales Administration Coordinator – To help real estate agents and brokers complete transactions, sales administration coordinators provide much-needed support. They answer client inquiries, monitor the status of listed properties, and even create marketing materials.

Property Management and Other Industry-Specific Roles

Managing multiple commercial, residential, or industrial properties is no easy task. As such, real estate companies need to know how to make the right decisions and investments. By working closely with consultants and other industry experts, they can improve profitability and manage their assets wisely.

• Property Consultant – Before purchasing a house, office space, or any other property, buyers must decide whether it will be a good investment. With property consultants, they can receive sound investment advice and gain needed assistance throughout the entire buying process.

• Leasing Consultant – A leasing consultant is the main point of contact for people who prefer renting a home (or other residential property) instead of buying one. These real estate professionals give customers information about available properties for rent, process applications and other paperwork, and prepare resident files and data.

• Project Manager – Project managers keep an eye on and guide the development of commercial, residential, and retail real estate projects. They coordinate with design and construction workers, handle budgeting, and supervise the entire planning and execution process.

• Property Manager – Not all owners have the time to oversee the daily operations of their properties, which is why they hire property managers to do it for them. These professionals handle maintenance, tenant screening, rent collection, and other essential duties.

• Asset Manager – To ensure property owners make wise investments, they hire asset managers to help them cultivate market value and grow their portfolios. These asset managers stay up-to-date on current economic and market conditions, real estate trends, and even political news to better guide clients in managing risks and reaping higher returns on investment.

Advantages of Outsourcing Support Roles for Commercial or Residential Real Estate

Now that you know the various back-office functions real estate firms can outsource, let’s discuss the benefits of utilizing these BPO solutions. Through real estate outsourcing, you can enhance your operational scalability and revert focus to your core business, all while keeping costs low. Here’s how:

Increased Flexibility and Scalability

Real estate is an industry that experiences constant fluctuations in customer demand. Economic pressures, market conditions, and emerging technology trends can shape whether organizations and individuals choose to invest in commercial, residential, or industrial real estate properties.

To thrive in this uncertain environment, firms must prioritize operational flexibility and scalability – which can be easily achieved with the help of an outsourcing partner. By working with a BPO, real estate companies can adjust their operations, scaling up or down depending on their changing needs.

Significant Cost Savings

In addition to increased flexibility, real estate firms that outsource their back-office operations can reduce costs by a significant margin. 

Instead of taking on the expenses of hiring and training workers, purchasing equipment, making infrastructure investments, or maintaining office space, firms can offload these costs to a BPO provider while still tapping into a wider talent pool. This way, they can return resources to their core team, maximizing profitability and growth.

Improved Focus on Revenue-Driving Departments

Your real estate agents, brokers, and other in-house staff can’t entirely focus on catering to potential clients and making sales if they have to perform time-consuming tasks like data entry, scheduling, or handling paperwork. By delegating these functions to outsourced back-office professionals, your firm can lighten your core team’s workload while maintaining performance quality and productivity.

Best Practices When Partnering With a Real Estate BPO

Outsourcing can offer your real estate firm many advantages, including saving time, money, and resources. However, before you make your final decision, make sure to follow these best practices so you can get the most out of your outsourcing agreement:

1. Identify your needs. What are the particular tasks your real estate team does that would benefit most from being outsourced?
2. Find a BPO provider that can provide the specific solutions you need. Are you seeking data entry specialists, project managers, accountants, customer support agents, or other industry-specific professionals?
3. Negotiate your outsourcing agreement thoroughly. What are your chosen provider’s roles, responsibilities, preferred communication methods, payment terms, and data privacy standards?
4. Align expectations as early as possible. What are your goals and expectations for your outsourcing team? Do you have KPIs and metrics you need them to achieve?
5. Communicate with them regularly. How often do you expect reports and updates on the progress and performance of your outsourced team? 

SuperStaff: Providing Comprehensive BPO Solutions for the Real Estate Industry

Facilitating real estate transactions, from buying and selling to property management and leasing, is no easy task. However, with the right outsourcing partner, you can create a more seamless experience for your clients without overwhelming your in-house staff.

At SuperStaff, we offer an array of BPO solutions that can help you unlock your firm’s full potential. From customer service and back office outsourcing services to data science solutions, we have everything you need to achieve your company goals. 

Contact us today to learn more about our real estate support solutions!