Being a real estate agent or broker is stressful. Working in a fast-paced industry with constant pressure to perform can take its toll. If you’re drowning in a pile of paperwork that needs filing, this can be even more of a headache.
One way to reduce stress and feel more in control is to keep your real estate documents organized. In fact, being well-organized can give you a competitive advantage as it fuels your productivity.
Organized files also reduce time-consuming tasks. Think about what it’s like to try to find client information in a pile of unsorted paper clutter.
Being well-organized and having a system for your real estate files can help give you more time to focus on closing deals and earning the commission you deserve.
In this article, we discuss how real estate professionals can manage files and stay organized to maximize productivity. We’ll also share our top productivity tips to make your job less stressful.
4 Ways to Organize Real Estate Files
Now that you know why it’s important to stay organized, let’s look at how to organize real estate files within your brokerage:
1. Adopt a single filing system
Many brokerages spread documents and tasks across various platforms, apps, and software. They also often involve paper files.
Keeping up becomes even more chaotic when you’re working alongside another real estate business to close a transaction.
Not having a single place to store important real estate documents and manage tasks makes it harder to deliver seamless client service.
You’re also more likely to lose track of the deliverables associated with closing a transaction and ensure that all requirements are met on time.
In the event of an audit, you’ll no doubt have to try to pull all of your files from different sources and devices.
The easiest and most effective way to stay organized is to use end-to-end real estate transaction management software that stores and manages all your important documents.
Look for a solution that allows you to upload documents, contact data, notes, and other critical pieces of information so that everything needed to close transactions exists in one place.
It’s also essential to look for a tool that includes unlimited cloud storage as, over time, costs to store your organized files can grow.
Having a single system for all your information also reduces the number of administrative steps involved and eliminates potential mistakes that often occur with filing cabinet systems.
2. Use custom checklists
Throughout every transaction, a real estate professional must create, sign, collect, and review countless documents. This becomes even more work when you’re handling multiple properties.
It can be hard to keep track of all this, especially when the types of property, locations, and sales each require specific documents that differ from sale to sale.
Custom real estate checklists are a precise and effective way to ensure your files stay up-to-date and organized throughout the transaction closing process.
As you receive each document and complete each task, a custom checklist of action items makes it easy to distinguish between completed and incomplete tasks quickly.
A real estate transaction management system like Paperless Pipeline lets you create custom checklists and automate them based on the details of each deal. It can also help ensure that you have all the documents you need for each part of the transaction process.
3. Use digital tools that work on the go
It’s no secret that organizing real estate data and files is time-consuming for brokers and agents.
The nature of the real estate industry requires agents to be out of the office a lot, but their paperwork usually gets filed back at their desks or by the office admin upon their return.
This disconnect often lends itself to a haphazard way of managing tasks, notes, and documents.
One easy way to reduce bottlenecks and confusion is by employing a transaction management system that allows employees to deal with digital files anytime and from anywhere.
This means that uploading and attaching documents to files is convenient, while on the go and as soon as they are received.
As one example, Paperless Pipeline’s real estate organization tools help ensure proper processes from anywhere in the world. Our features also allow users to upload documents to a digital folder by email from any device.
4. Manage your emails
A flooded inbox can be as overwhelming as physical file folders, especially if you don’t have a system to organize your emails.
Most email apps allow you to set up filters, labels, and separate folders to categorize your messages and implement your own organizational system. You could do this by client, transaction stage, or urgency.
You can also archive older emails that you no longer need but may need to reference in the future.
Another strategy is to use email templates for common responses. If, for example, you find yourself sending similar emails for property inquiries, you can create templates that you can copy and paste instead of having to write out a new email each time.
You may also want to spend some time unsubscribing from unnecessary newsletters you no longer read, as these can quickly clutter your inbox.
👉 Pro Tip: Use Email Plugins for Efficiency
Consider using email plugins like Boomerang for scheduling emails and pausing your inbox, or FollowUpThen to remind you that responses are needed. These tools can help you make the most of your email organization.
Implementing a management system for your emails keeps your inbox more focused and allows you to work on one thing at a time, organize your files, and stay organized.
4 Quick Tips for Productivity and Managing Your Time
Now that you’re on top of filing your real estate documents, let’s look at some simple ways to stay organized, boost your productivity, and better manage your time as a real estate professional:
1. Use a digital calendar
Whether it’s iCal or Google Calendar, a digital calendar can help you keep track of your appointments, showings, open houses, and even important transaction deadlines.
Using a calendar can also help you implement time blocking, which is a system where you break your day up into chunks and then assign a particular task to each block of time.
Don’t forget to block out some time each week to handle administrative tasks like filing, uploading documents, and capturing information.
👉 Pro-Tip: Time Block Breaks
If you’re using time blocking, ensure that you block out a bit of time each day for breaks. To reduce the stress involved with working in real estate, breaks are essential to your well-being and to prevent burnout.
2. Try productivity platforms
Apps like Trello and Todoist can help real estate brokers and agents prioritize their most important tasks to ensure they get everything done on time.
These task management tools make it easy to keep track of critical due dates to ensure every aspect of a transaction is handled correctly before closing.
Having a pen-and-paper to-do list may work, but using a productivity platform designed to help you manage your tasks is far more effective.
These platforms typically allow you to set reminders for certain deadlines, assign tasks to your team members, and manage workflows.
3. Use customer relationship management (CRM) software
Using a customer relationship management (CRM) platform can help you keep all your client data in one place. It also means that anyone who needs to access information about a client can find it in this centralized system.
Having a CRM also results in better service, which could get you closer to closing a deal. For example, if a client calls you and you’re unavailable, someone else from your team can assist them, as they have access to all the relevant information and a history of your interactions with them.
A CRM like Cloze not only helps you manage and store client information but also links your email, social media accounts, phone records, and calendar in one place.
This keeps all your communication on one system, enhancing your productivity as you don’t have to check several apps at once constantly.
4. Schedule time for emails and calls
It’s difficult to make time for phone calls and emails when you’re meeting with prospective clients or running an open house.
A helpful organization tip is to block out time in your calendar to address all your incoming communications.
Setting aside an hour or two a day to respond to emails, calls, and messages can help ensure you communicate effectively with your clients and team without getting bogged down by endless notifications.
The Ultimate Filing and Organization Tool for Real Estate
Paperless Pipeline can help keep brokers, real estate agents, and transaction coordinators organized while automating every aspect of the transaction process.
Our software is your all-in-one productivity, checklist, and document management tool, reducing the number of apps in your tech stack. It also helps you manage your files efficiently—even while on the go. This keeps you on top of things and ensures you’re always audit-ready.
With Paperless Pipeline, you’ll never miss another critical due date as you can create customized checklists that ensure you get every transaction task completed on time and with the right documentation.
With a tool like ours in place, you can focus on what you do best: delighting your clients, closing deals, and earning commission. All while spending less time trying to organize your files and paperwork.
You can try Paperless Pipeline for free by signing up for a trial. You’ll get to experience how our system is the ideal tool to keep your files organized and give your productivity a boost.
