A virtual assistant for realtors should start with the 3 jobs that keep your deals moving: lead follow up in your CRM, listing admin and client updates. You keep the conversations, the advice and every decision your license covers, and the assistant runs the steps around them.
You already know how to win a client. The trouble is that as a solo agent you are also the follow up system, the listing coordinator and the help desk, and the selling waits until the admin is done.
This post is for the agent without a team. If you lead one, read hiring a virtual assistant for a real estate team instead.
What can a virtual assistant do for a real estate agent?
A virtual assistant can run almost everything around a deal that does not need your license or your judgment. That covers your CRM, your calendar, your inbox, listing prep, client updates and your marketing.
The National Association of REALTORS® lists the same spread: scheduling, email, documents, client updates, market research, marketing and transaction support. The full task list, area by area, is in what a real estate administrative assistant does.
A solo agent does not need all of it on day 1. You need the few jobs that cost you deals when they slip.
When is a solo agent ready to hire a virtual assistant?
You are ready when the admin starts costing you deals, not just evenings. The signs are leads that wait days for a reply and clients who ask you for an update before you send one.
A second test: count the hours. If the work you repeat every week adds up to 10 hours or more, a 20 hour assistant gives you those hours back with room to grow.
Even Baklid, who grew a real estate team from 3 agents to 32, puts the first hire this way: "The first hire I always recommend is the one that gets you out of the things you should not be doing, but are doing right now."
Which 3 jobs should a virtual assistant for realtors take first?
Of all the real estate virtual assistant tasks, start with the 3 that sit closest to a deal. Agents are paid for closings, so hand over the work that keeps closings coming before the work that only keeps the desk tidy.
| First job | What your assistant runs | What you keep |
|---|---|---|
| Lead follow up in the CRM | Logs every new lead on their next shift, sends your written follow up messages on schedule, books calls into your calendar, keeps notes current | The conversation and the decision to take the client |
| Listing admin | Gathers the details, books photos, drafts the listing copy, prepares the MLS entry for you to review and submit | The price and the final approval |
| Client updates | Sends every seller a weekly update and every buyer the showing plan, from your notes and the feedback | Any advice on price, terms or negotiation |
Lead follow up comes first because it is the job a busy agent drops first. A lead who waits for a reply can call another agent in the meantime, and a CRM nobody updates turns your best source of business into a list you feel guilty about.
When those 3 run without you, add buyer intake, showing schedules and social posts. Paperwork from contract to close is a different job; transaction coordinator vs real estate assistant explains when to bring one in.
How do you hire a virtual assistant for real estate without a team?
Write the system down first, then bring in the person to run it. A solo agent who skips the first step ends up explaining the same follow up 5 times and deciding assistants do not work.
Even's view, in his words: "Systems first, then plug in the best talent. Get the system and the foundation right, and an assistant can do so much for you."
- Pick the first job. Lead follow up, in most cases.
- Write it as 3 parts. The trigger (a new lead arrives), the process (log it, send message 1, set the day 3 task) and the result (a call booked on your calendar). Even's rule: "Every system needs 3 parts: a trigger, a process and a result. A lot of people forget about the result."
- Record yourself doing it once. Your assistant turns the recording into a written process you review.
- Meet every day in the first week. Short check ins catch the small misses before a client sees them.
- Add the next job once the first one runs a full week without you.
With Skale Bak, the search is done for you: candidates are sourced and screened against your role, and you meet 3 to 4 finalists and pick the one who fits. How it works shows each step.
What tools and access does a real estate virtual assistant need?
Your assistant needs a login of their own to your CRM, a shared calendar, delegated access to your email and a shared folder for listing files. Give each tool its own login, never your password, so you can see and change what they can reach.
- CRM. Follow Up Boss or whichever CRM you use, with a user seat for the assistant.
- Email. Delegated access, with clear rules for what they send on your behalf. Giving a virtual assistant email access covers how to set it up.
- MLS. Access rules depend on your MLS and your brokerage. A simple way to start: you keep the login, and the assistant prepares the entry for you to submit.
- Money. Keep payments with you. Even is firm on this one: "I never recommend giving an assistant access to your bank details."
What should stay with you as the licensed agent?
Advice on price, contract terms and negotiation stays with you, and so does every decision a client relies on your license for. Which tasks an unlicensed assistant may do differs by state and brokerage, so ask your managing broker before you write the role.
The real estate administrative assistant guide covers the license question in more detail.
How much does a real estate virtual assistant cost?
Through Skale Bak, a real estate virtual assistant is $13 an hour, the same as every role. Most Skale Bak clients start at 20 hours a week, which is $260 a week, or about $1,127 a month.
| Package | Hours a week | Weekly | Monthly (about) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part time | 20 | $260 | $1,127 |
| Full time | 40 | $520 | $2,253 |
The cost depends on the package you choose. There is no placement fee and no setup cost, and you have a 7 day guarantee and 30 days notice, as set out on the pricing page. For how other ways of hiring compare, read how much a virtual assistant costs.
Where should a solo agent start this week?
Write down your lead follow up from the trigger to the result, on a single page. That page is your first system, and it is the job your assistant takes on day 1.
Get the system right first and the right person can run it. Your week goes back to the work you are paid for: winning clients and closing deals.
If you want the buyer and seller steps already written, take the free Buyer Process and Seller Process playbooks. They cover every step from first inquiry to the closing table and from listing to sold, ready to hand to an assistant.
Questions people ask
Which virtual assistant company is best for real estate?
Judge any company on 4 things: whether it screens for your role and lets you meet finalists, whether it helps you write your systems down, whether it replaces an assistant who is not working, and whether its price, guarantee and notice terms are written on its site. A company that only sends resumes leaves the hard part with you.
What is the best AI assistant for realtors?
AI is good at first drafts: listing copy, follow up emails, market summaries. It works best with a person who checks its work and runs it for you. Our post on virtual assistant vs AI shows which tasks go where.
Do virtual assistants for realtors work US hours?
Through Skale Bak, yes when you need it. Skale Bak makes sure the 3 to 4 finalists you meet are comfortable with, and prefer, working US hours, so you can set their hours around the times your leads come in.