residential
nov + dec
B US I N E S S I N TELL IGE N CE FOR THE CR S PROFE S S IONA L
2014
THE
SPECIALIST ALSO IN THIS
ISSUE
what’s a good neighborhood? helping first-time buyers restarting after a move
LIVING FOR THE
CITY
Homebuyers are ditching the suburbs for the conveniences of urban life
improve your search results office space: is it worth it? asking clients for referrals
THANK YOU. Pillar To Post Home Inspectors is celebrating our twentieth anniversary this year and our relationships with the real estate community lie at the very heart of our past, present and future. It is impossible to build a world-class company and brand without a meaningful connection between the company and its customers and to deliver on a brand’s promises every day and every time. Our promise continues to be to provide you and your clients with an extraordinary level of professionalism and service in home inspection and to deserve the trust and loyalty you place in us. And as we celebrate this landmark in our business we look forward to working with you in the future, and to the responsibility and accountability we hold as the easiest to work with and finest home inspection company in North America. Thank you from all of us at Pillar To Post. Sincerely,
Dan Steward, CEO Pillar To Post
1-800-294-5591 pillartopost.com
contents 18
LIVING FOR THE
Nov 20 Dec 14 vol. 13, no. 6
features
22
WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?
Today’s homebuyers want walkable neighborhoods that offer relaxed access to nearby amenities and a real connection to the community. By Donna Shryer
Homebuyers young and old are fleeing the suburbs for the city. Knowing why can help you make noise in the urban market. By Matt Alderton
26
TAKING THE PLUNGE
Tips from the trenches on working with first-time homebuyers. By Gayle Bennett
CHANGE OF SCENE 30 With hard work, patience and perseverance, CRS agents who relocate to rebuild their business can enjoy a new level of success. By Regina Ludes
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contents
Nov 20 Dec 14 vol. 13, no. 6
departments 4 VANTAGE POINT
By Ron Canning, CRS
5 SHORT LIST
What homebuyers want, affordability data and what’s inside the mind of a seller
9 COOL STUFF
Stand out from the crowd with these holiday season client thank-you gifts
16
10 SMART SOLUTIONS
Simple SEO basics can help you improve your search results By Gwen Moran
9
12 INSIDE TRACK
12
Many REALTORS® have ditched the traditional office in favor of working at home or on the go By Daniel Rome Levine
14 WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY
Clients like to refer good agents to other buyers, but how should agents ask for those referrals? By Clare Curley
16 PEER TO PEER
Bradley Cohen, CRS RE/MAX, Concord, North Carolina
34 WORK + LIFE
Absolute Value: What Really Influences Customers in the Age of (Nearly) Perfect Information, by Itamar Simonson and Emanuel Rosen
+
Reviewed by Allan Fallow
Top 5 winter travel destinations Whether you prefer snow or sun, check out these popular winter getaway destinations
inside CRS 37 NEWS FROM THE COUNCIL
Take a new CRS course before the end of the year; plan ahead for Sell-a-bration® 2015 in February
48
40 CRS CONNECT 45 YOUR HOME
Holiday staging tips and how to check your HVAC
48 ASK A CRS
Advice from the country’s top agents
Correction: An incorrect telephone number was included in the Peer to Peer article featuring Maura Neill, CRS, in the September/October 2014 issue of The Residential Specialist. Contact Maura at 404.919.5565.
ON LY A T TR S MAG. C OM THE RESIDENTIAL SPECIALIST ONLINE Visit the new website at trsmag.com to access the digital edition of The Residential Specialist.
SELL-A-BRATION® VIDEOS Access video recordings of tips from CRSs attending last year’s Sell-a-bration®.
+ BARGAINING CHIPS
On what aspects of a home are urban buyers willing to compromise? Read more from the cover story at trsmag.com.
B US I N E S S I N TE L L I GE N C E F OR TH E CR S PR OFE S S I O NA L
Coming Next Issue ... ■ Meet the New CRS President The Residential Specialist introduces the new CRS president, Dale Carlton, CRS, through an insightful Q&A session.
EDITOR Michael Fenner mfenner@crs.com 800.462.8841 2014 COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY PANEL Moderator: Clark Niblock, CRS Co-Moderator: Lois Cox, CRS 2014 COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY PANEL MEMBERS Darlene Price Bailey, CRS Richard Bradford, CRS Gretchen Conley, CRS Clyde Cooper, CRS John Cotton, CRS Geri Kenyon, CRS Michael Maher, CRS Colleen McKean, CRS Michelle Rosenkoff, CRS John Stark, CRS Darlene Stouder, CRS Patricia Tasker, CRS Marylea Todd, CRS Kristin Triolo, CRS Beverlee Vidoli, CRS CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Matt Alderton Gayle Bennett Clare Curley Daniel Rome Levine Regina Ludes Gwen Moran Donna Shryer OFFICERS: 2014 President Ron Canning, CRS Chief Executive Officer Lana Vukovljak 2014 President-Elect Dale Carlton, CRS 2014 First Vice President Janelle Pfleiger, CRS 2014 Immediate Past President Mary McCall, CRS
PUBLICATION MANAGEMENT 847.205.3000 www.glcdelivers.com Publishing Manager Phil Malkinson Art Directors Scott Oldham Ivette Cortes Advertising Manager Michael J. Mrvica M.J. Mrvica Associates, Inc. 856.768.9360 mjmrvica@mrvica.com The Residential Specialist is published for Certified Residential Specialists, General Members and Subscribers by the Council of Residential Specialists. The magazine’s mission is: To be a superior educational resource for CRS Designees and Members, providing the information and tools they need to be exceptionally successful in selling residential real estate. The Residential Specialist is published bimonthly by the Council of Residential Specialists, 430 North Michigan Ave., Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611-4092. Periodicals postage paid at Chicago, IL, and additional mailing offices. Change of address? Email requests to crshelp@crs.com, call Customer Service at 800.462.8841 or mail to CRS at the above address. The Residential Specialist (USPS-0021699, ISSN 1539-7572) is distributed to members of the Council as part of their membership dues. Non-members may purchase subscriptions for $29.95 per year in the U.S., $44.95 in Canada and $89.95 in other international countries. All articles and paid advertising represent the opinions of the authors and advertisers, not the Council. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to: The Residential Specialist, c/o Council of Residential Specialists, 430 North Michigan Ave., Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611-4092. COPYRIGHT 2014 by the Council of Residential Specialists. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
crs.com
■ Referral Madness Learn how to cultivate your referral base from the ground up as well as how to refresh an existing referral base. ■ Business Planning In an industry where transaction volume can be uneven, what do you do in the peak season to help plan for the slow season? ■ Money Matters Learn how to develop knowledge and relationships so you can help your clients locate sources for sound financial advice.
PLUS:
Using the right video tools can help you market yourself and your listings.
Would you like to be a source for a future story in The Residential Specialist? Send an email to mfenner@crs.com
to be added to our potential source list. To see a list of the topics we’ll be covering, check out the magazine’s 2014 editorial calendar online at crs.com.
Who on your team could benefit by receiving a personal copy of The Residential Specialist? STAY INFORMED The Council of Residential Specialists provides superior education, exceptional networking opportunities and critical resources. The Council’s flagship magazine, The Residential Specialist, delivers the latest industry trends, success stories and proven strategies to grow your business. To subscribe for yourself or a colleague, call 800.462.8841. Note: Members of the Council of Residential Specialists receive the magazine as part of their member benefits.
[vantage point]
from the desk of Ron Canning, CRS, 2014 president
ESSENTIAL
I finished my inaugural speech last November by saying: “Let’s make 2014 an amazing year.” And I believe it has been nothing short of amazing for CRS, marked by tremendous growth and change. The Council launched several exciting new initiatives over the past year that have put the organization on more solid footing and positioned it for long-term success. CRS launched One-Day Essentials, a new series of classroom courses that covers the fundamental skills that REALTORS® use throughout their careers: negotiation, team-building and lead conversion. So far, the courses have been presented in nearly 30 cities since they were introduced last spring. The Council also introduced its Leadership Training program so CRSs at any stage of their careers can earn the credentials to lead their chapters, CRS national, local REALTOR® boards and civic organizations with greater confidence and effectiveness.
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progress
As a result of a Presi“ The Council dential Advisory Group launched several that convened in Chicago exciting new last March, the Council is changing its membership initiatives over model to better address the past year the needs of its members. We are also working to that have put the identify the day-to-day organization on skills necessary for our more solid footing Designees to achieve success and give the and positioned Council further guidance it for long-term about needed educational offerings and membersuccess.” ship requirements. Other programs are taking shape. CRS Legends continued its success with two new one-day events in 2014. We celebrated our second annual CRS Week in September with chapter events and free webinars, and now we are gearing up for the annual twoday education conference Sell-a-bration® 2015 on Feb. 16–17 in Las Vegas. One of the many highlights as CRS president was my visit to Madrid in May to speak at a meeting of top real estate professionals and to pin most of the 82 new CRS Designees there. Working closely with the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, staff and many chapter officers and members throughout the year also has been incredibly gratifying. While my term as president has ended, I will continue to work with members and national and chapter leaders to keep the Council at the forefront of our industry. Wishing you success in 2015, and thanks for an amazing year!
school COLORS
[short list]
Football Saturdays bring many college alums back to their old stomping grounds. Livability.com ranked the best college towns for students and permanent residents alike, based in part on livability, jobs, housing affordability, availability of rental units and
+ industry headlines + statistics + trends
1
[Ames, Iowa]
2
4
6
IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY 7 [Champaign, Illinois] 8 [Charlottesville, Virginia]
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
walkability. A town’s recreational, nightlife and entertainment options (restaurants, bars, theaters, bike trails, parks, concerts, etc.) were also factored into the study, along with the likelihood that college students might stay after graduation.
[Logan, Utah]
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY [Fayetteville, Arkansas]
3
5
UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS [Moscow, Idaho]
UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO
[Oxford, Ohio]
MIAMI UNIVERSITY [Tempe, Arizona]
ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY
9 [South Bend, Indiana] 10
UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME
[Hattiesburg, Mississippi]
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI
ROSY RETIREMENT
Homebuilder confidence in the market for homes aimed at buyers over the age of 55 rose in the second quarter, as the index that tracks it posted its highest second-quarter reading since the inception of the study in 2008, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). It also marks the 11th consecutive quarter of year-over-year improvements. “One of the factors contributing to the positive signs in the 55+ housing market is the slow but steady increase in existing home sales in the last three months,” says NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. “The 55+ market is strongly driven by consumers being able to sell their existing homes at a favorable price in order to buy or rent in a 55+ community.” 20 14
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Not surprisingly, the kitchen ranks as the most important feature for buyers considering a new home, according to the PulteGroup Home Index Survey. Nearly 30 percent of Americans say they consider the kitchen to be the most important area when choosing a new home, followed by the master bedroom at 22 percent. “As consumer confidence improves and the appetite for homebuying increases, consumers today aren’t just looking for the biggest house on the block. They’re looking for more efficient use of space and a greater area allocated to ‘workhorse’ spaces, like the kitchen,” says Ryan Marshall, executive vice president of homebuilding operations, marketing and sales for PulteGroup, Inc. “Homebuyers want unique features and amenities and will do what it takes to find the home they truly want, even if they have to pay more for a move-in-ready home.”
[short list]
KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL
A GROWING MARKET HOMEOWNERSHIP DECLINES
Market numbers in context
WHAT’S TRENDING
+ industry headlines + statistics + trends
A REALTOR.com study finds that the national housing market is growing stronger, with median list prices up 7.6 percent in June compared to last year. Month-over-month price acceleration was slower compared to April, however, and housing inventory is similar to June 2013 levels. But homes in June sold 5 percent faster than last year. “National housing trends are masking some of the excitement we’re seeing in individual markets,” says Jonathan Smoke, chief economist for REALTOR.com. “June data shows monthly inventory picking up in markets already experiencing price increases and fast property turnover. These dynamics will extend the buying season to later in the third quarter.”
The U.S. homeownership rate slipped for the ninth year in a row in 2012–13, edging down slightly to 65.1 percent, according to a report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The number of homeowner households also fell for the seventh straight year with a drop of 76,000. These declines are the smallest reported since 2008, suggesting that the bottom may be in sight. But homeownership rates for all age groups between 25 and 54 are at their lowest point since recordkeeping began in 1976, while homeownership among households aged 75 and older is near a record high.
FINANCIAL MATTERS
Eighty-eight percent of homebuyers financed their recent home purchase, according to the NAR Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers. Among those who financed their home purchase, buyers typically financed 90 percent. The share of first-time buyers who financed their home purchase was 95 percent compared to 86 percent of repeat buyers. More than half of homebuyers reported they have made some sacrifices to afford a new home, such as reducing spending on luxury items, entertainment or clothing. Twenty-four percent of buyers reported the mortgage application and approval process was somewhat more difficult than expected, and 16 percent reported it was much more difficult.
IN SUMMARY… Median home list prices have risen over the past year by
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6
7.6%
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Between 2012 and 2013, the U.S. homeownership rate declined by
0.
35%
88 %
of homebuyers financed their most recent home purchase.
A POOR SHOWING
The number of people who live below the federal poverty line ($23,492 for a family of four in 2012) remains stuck at a record high. But increasingly, poverty is moving from the inner city and rural areas to the suburbs, according to a study by the Brookings Institution. That’s a significant shift compared to 2000, when the urban poor still outnumbered suburban residents living in poverty. Between 2000 and 2012, the number of people living in distressed neighborhoods grew by 5 million. The concentrated poverty rate — the share of poor residents living in census tracts with poverty rates of 40 percent or more — had reached 12.2 percent in 2012, up from 9.1 percent in 2000. This trend indicates that an increased share of poor individuals today face the “double burden” of not only their own poverty, but also the disadvantages of those around them, the study asserts. And while concentrated poverty still remains highest in cities, suburban poverty is growing fastest. Between 2000 and 2012, the number of suburban poor living in distressed neighborhoods grew by 139 percent — almost three times the pace of growth in cities.
COUNTING counties
One-third of U.S. counties analyzed by RealtyTrac are less affordable now than they were in 2000, a company report finds. The report calculated both the percentage of median income needed to make monthly payments on a median-priced home in each county in May 2014, as well as the historical trend in each county’s income-toprice affordability percentage going back to January 2000. “The good news is that none of the nearly 1,200 counties we analyzed for the second quarter has regressed to the dangerously low affordability levels reached during
the housing price bubble, and even if interest rates increased 1 percentage point, only 59 counties, representing 2 percent of the U.S. population, would be at or above bubble levels in terms of affordability,” says Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “But the scales are beginning to tip away from the extremely favorable affordability climate we’ve seen over the last two years, with one-third of the counties analyzed — representing 19 percent of the total population in those counties — now less affordable than their long-term averages.”
AND WHAT ABOUT THOSE PESKY KIDS? RealtyTrac released a scorecard ranking the most-affordable and the least-affordable housing markets for members of Generation Y (born after 1980) in the U.S. Not surprisingly, counties in California and New York take the top five spots on the “least affordable” list.
1
5
Los Angeles County
3
Kings County (New York)
1
San Francisco County
2
Cumberland County (North Carolina) MOST AFFORDABLE
2
New York County
LEAST AFFORDABLE
4
Bronx County (New York)
Richmond County (Georgia-South Carolina)
3
DeKalb County (Georgia)
4
Duval County (Florida)
5
Philadelphia County
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88 %
of sellers were assisted by a real estate agent when selling their home.
[short list]
47 %
reported they reduced the asking price at least once.
+ industry headlines + statistics + trends
59 %
36 %
purchased a newer home than they’d owned previously.
Recent sellers typically sold their homes for
97 %
of the listing price.
INSIDE THE MIND OF A SELLER
The NAR 2013 Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers gives some key insights into what today’s typical seller is thinking when it comes time to move. For example:
HEAD ABOVE
Less than 20 percent of all homeowners with a mortgage were in negative equity, or “underwater,” in the second quarter, according to a recent report from Zillow. While 8.7 million homeowners still do find themselves owing more on their mortgage than their home is worth, the rate of negative equity is expected to fall to 14.9 percent by the second quarter of next year, Zillow projects. Negative equity has fallen for nine consecutive quarters as the housing market has recovered and home values have risen. The effective negative equity rate, including those homeowners with 20 percent or less equity in their homes, is 34.8 percent. While approximately one-third of all homeowners do not have a mortgage and own their homes outright, 11.9 percent of all homeowners are in negative equity. Generational factors play a role in who is underwater: 19.6 percent of millennial homeowners with a mortgage are underwater, compared to 18.7 percent of Generation X homeowners and 10.9 percent of baby boomers.
water
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of sellers offered incentives to attract buyers, most often assistance with homewarranty policies and closing costs.
13%
of recent sellers had to delay or stall selling their home because the value of their home was worth less than their mortgage.
PRICED OUT
A report from the National Association of Homebuilders finds that in 2014, a $1,000 increase in a home’s asking price leads to “pricing out” about 206,269 households. The magnitude of the impact of this phenomenon varies across states and metro areas based largely on their population, income distribution and new-home prices. Often hidden in median new-home prices is the cost of local and national government regulations. NAHB research shows that, on average, regulations imposed by government at all levels account for 25 percent of the final price of a new single-family home built for sale. Every time a local or regional government raises construction costs by, for example, increasing the price of construction permits or impact fees, the cost of building a house rises.
gift
[cool stuff]
HORSE
acquisitions on a theme
HOT TODDY
$
9.99
Mobile devices get a workout, and it can be tough to keep the screens of tablets, smartphones and computers smudge- and dust-free. The portable Pocket Toddy cloth folds up in a small package that can attach to a keychain or backpack. Its microfiber design helps eliminate dirt, dust and smudges, and it features a plush side to clean and a silky side to polish.
toddygear.com
The holiday season provides a great opportunity for REALTORS® to send a small gift to thank current and past clients as well as the related professionals who help get a real estate transaction closed. But if you want to stand out from the crowd, sending a simple refrigerator magnet calendar might not do the trick. Thankfully, there are other innovative gift options, and they don’t have to break the bank.
STEM-FREE
Stemless wine glasses have become increasingly common both at restaurants and at people’s homes. They are easier to store — and less likely to get knocked off of a coffee table or countertop during a holiday cocktail party. A set of four of these customizable wineglasses from eCorporateGifts.com might become something your clients use all year long.
32.50 for 4
$
e-corporategifts.com
29.95
$
$
35.00
FRESH TREAT
152.95 for 12 $
SNACK TIME Garrett’s Popcorn has been an institution in Chicago since 1949, and Oprah Winfrey gave the brand great notoriety when she declared it one of her “Favorite Things” in 2010. A Shorty Pack gives you a collection of 12 one-quart tins filled with Garrett Mix — a blend of caramel corn and cheese corn — that you can give to clients, colleagues and business partners. garrettpopcorn.com
TABLE PROTECTION
There’s no shortage of sweet treats during the holiday season, so a fresher, healthier choice may be a good option to help your client gift stand out from the crowd. The Holiday Star Daisy fruit bouquet from Edible Arrangements features a bounty of fresh fruit, including cantaloupe, grapes, honeydew, pineapple and strawberries.
Holiday get-togethers leave some homeowners scrambling to find enough coasters upon which guests can rest their cups of good cheer. Personalized slate coasters from Gift Tree offer a solution. Made of smooth slate stone that soaks up condensation from the glass, these sturdy, 4-inch by 4-inch coasters protect tables and countertops, and a velvet backing prevents scratching. Complimentary monogramming lets you personalize the coasters for your client. (Sold in sets of four.)
ediblearrangements.com
gifttree.com
FLORAL NOTE
A lush red and green poinsettia is the traditional holiday plant that brightens any room. FromYouFlowers.com’s offer includes the plant, same-day delivery and a personalized message.
27.99
$
fromyouflowers.com
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[smart
solutions]
streamlining your business through technology
GET
found
Simple SEO basics can help you improve your search results. By Gwen Moran
Effective search engine optimization (SEO) is a moving target. Just when you think you’ve mastered what it takes to boost your rankings, search engine algorithms change and you’ve got to figure out what works all over again. And it’s important that you do so: According to the 2013 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers, 92 percent of homebuyers used the Internet as a source of information and 43 percent found their first home on the Internet. So, it’s critical that your online presence and listings are easily found. The good news is B Y T H E N U M B E R S that there are some tried-and-true SEO % tactics and tools that of will help boost your homebuyers used the visibility online, says Internet as a source of information and 43% SEO expert Conrad found their first home O’Connell, search on the Internet. engine marketing 2013 National Association of REALTORS Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers director, InterCoastal
92
®
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Net Designs, Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, who works with REALTORS®. Integrate some or all of these methods into your online marketing efforts and watch your results improve.
Use a Unique Domain
Brian Icenhower, CRS, CEO of Keller Williams Realty Kansas City North, says that one of the most important things REALTORS® can
do is to have their own website. While many brokerages offer free websites that are listed under their own domains, having your own URL that you own and host yourself and to which you drive traffic over time is an asset — and one that search engines will rank higher than if you have a subdomain. Another benefit of owning your own URL is that if you move to
another real estate company, you’re not starting all over in your SEO efforts with a brand new site. Icenhower also recommends that REALTORS® build multiple websites, perhaps one for themselves and then one about the areas they serve. For example, one domain might be www.JohnSmithRealtor. com while the second site could be www.JerseyShoreEvents.com.
Icenhower recommends looking for social media groups on Facebook and LinkedIn that relate to your area. Participate there and include a link back to your website on your social media profile. This will help you reach people who are interested in the area you serve and drive them back to your website.
Write Good Meta Tags
important, O’Connell says. While there’s no “magic number” when it comes to the number of times a keyword should appear in a blog post or in copy, it is important to include them. While good writing generally tends to avoid repetition, including your keywords — such as location, topic and general words like “real estate” or “REALTOR®” — is a good idea, he says.
Each page of your website layout has an area where you can write a Stay Informed title and description to indicate that Websites like SearchEngineLand. Icenhower recommends posting page’s content. Leonard says these com, SearchEngineJournal.com little about real estate and more meta tags are an important and and Moz.com are just a few good about the area. Make your website often-overlooked way to boost your places to help you stay abreast a valuable information resource search engine ranking. Write them of SEO trends, search engine about the area you serve. Video and to be specific to your real estate algorithm changes and other images also help search engine rank. business. Leonard says his include important aspects of SEO. Book“If you’re providing the public words like “real estate,” “REALTOR®,” mark them and check in two or with information about the Lake “San Antonio” and “homes.” O’Conthree times a month to find out Watson area, for example, you nell recommends that your title tags what’s new. might include information about not exceed 60 characters. Descriphiking trails, marinas — anything tions can be longer. Gwen Moran is a writer based in Wall Township, people who are interested in the New Jersey. area will click on. That makes you Know the Truth the expert,” Icenhower says. About Keywords Check out Search Engine Optimization Bob Leonard, CRS, an associate There’s a great deal of mythology For Dummies by Peter Kent for more SEO strategies. broker with RE/MAX Associates around keywords, but they are still in San Antonio, Texas, updates his sites about three or four times a month. He says it’s also important to have a good IDX solution, which allows homebuyers to find listings on your site. By doing all of these There are a number of good tools available to help you maximize your SEO and determine what types of content things, his search engine rankings are attracting readers or viewers. A few of these include: are impressive. “If you search Google for ‘RE/ MAX in San Antonio,’ even though I am not the broker/owner here and I’m not the owner of the office, you’ll get my website before you will get RE/MAX Associates,” (www.moz.com) (google.com/analytics) (yoast.com) Leonard says. “And I think that’s Moz offers free tools that allow you to This powerful tool tells you Yoast offers a number of plug-ins just because my website has been research and compare backlinks with about site traffic, how visitors for WordPress to help you determine up for some time and I’ve been competitors, track day-to-day changes navigate your website, how how effective your keyword use updating it regularly.” in your Google rank and check your engaged they are and where is and how to optimize site titles, business listings on various sites. Moz they’re from, among many and make other improvements Integrate with also offers premium tools for powerful other metrics. Available in free to your site. Available in free and Social Media SEO and website improvement. and premium versions. premium versions. In addition to linking your social
Create Content People Want to See and Read
THREE (FREE) TOOLS YOU CAN USE
media profiles back to your site,
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[inside track]
what’s trending in real estate
out OF THE OFFICE Advances in technology have enabled many REALTORS® to ditch the traditional office in favor of working at home or on the go. By Daniel Rome Levine
When she first started in the real estate business back in 1993, Hope Downey, a CRS in Mobile, Alabama, would go into her office every day in order to make calls and use a desktop computer, copier or fax machine. Now, she spends less than two hours a week in the office, typically to turn in paperwork, check on files or to attend a meeting or class. Thanks to advances in technology, she doesn’t have to be there every day. The office doesn’t even have landline phones. A receptionist there routes incoming calls directly to agents’ cell phones.
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“Now, because of technology, my office is wherever I happen to be,” says Downey, an associate broker with Better Homes & Gardens Generations. “It has completely changed the way we do business and where we do it. In our dayto-day jobs, there’s really no reason for us to go into an office.” For real estate agents, technology has turned the concept of a traditional office on its head. Working on a laptop or tablet in a coffee shop or at home makes more sense than getting in a car and commuting to a brick-and-mortar office. Telecommuting, a work arrangement in which an employee works from home or some other location several days a week, is a fast-growing trend. Between 2005 and 2012, the number of telecommuters increased nearly 80 percent to 3.3 million people, or 2.6 percent of the U.S. employee workforce, according to an analysis of Census Bureau data by consulting and research firm Global Workplace Analytics.
Collaborative Workspaces
For the last six years, Tracy Brower, director of Performance Environments and Living Office Placemaking for global office furniture maker Herman Miller, and author of the book Bring Work to Life, has been studying how office space is utilized. She compares the idea of workers coming in to a traditional brick-and-mortar office every day to an infamous relic of history. “For some companies it was like the Berlin Wall: build it, shut employees in and control their movement,” she says. “Now, technology has freed workers to work just about anywhere, causing organizations to reevaluate the role of their physical workplace.” Brower sees offices transforming from places where people sit at individual desks in relative isolation to places where they gather and collaborate more informally. This means setting up office floor plans that foster casual interaction and feature lounge seating, stools and tall tables, or even coffee bars that make it easy for workers to stop and chat and compare notes on the go.
Renting Office Space
Penny Boyles, CRS, owner of Properties in Carolina in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, knows all about being on the go and the impracticality of going into an office every day. She works a seven-county rural area around Winston-Salem and spends most of her time in her car staying connected to clients and colleagues through technology. When she meets clients, she does so in their homes, or, if they are coming in from out of town and looking in the rural areas, in hotel lobbies, restaurants or coffee shops. Boyles and the four other agents on her team work from their home offices and stay in touch by email, text messaging and phone. “Everything we do as real estate agents is online, from our MLS to all our forms,” says Boyles. But that doesn’t mean Boyles is ready to cut ties with office space altogether. When she started her own company in November 2013, after 20 years working mostly for traditional brokerages, she decided to rent 140 square feet of office space in Winston-Salem so she would have a place to hold training sessions and biweekly meetings with her team and to meet with those clients who preferred the formality of an office environment. “We can’t let
technology take over completely,” says Boyles. “I’m still a people person who needs that one-on-one interaction with others. I think it’s important to have our own space where we can get together and meet face to face.” Boyles says the office space also comes in handy for those clients “who are still a little old school and think you’ve got to meet in an office,” she says. “Having a prominent Winston-Salem office address also increases our credibility that we are a ‘real’ real estate firm. We tell clients we can spend our money marketing their properties instead of paying high overhead — Tracy Brower, director of for class-A office space.” Performance Environments and Living Office Placemaking for global office Renting a small office on her furniture maker Herman Miller own certainly makes economic sense. Boyles is paying less than a third for her space, which includes Wi-Fi and utilities, than she did for her monthly fee when Read more she worked for a large, national franchise firm about using and was also working from home. remote virtual assistants “What a huge difference,” says Boyles. “It’s just at crs.com/ a no-brainer for us.” community/
“ NOW, TECHNOLOGY HAS FREED WORKERS TO WORK JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE, CAUSING ORGANIZATIONS TO REEVALUATE THE ROLE OF THEIR PHYSICAL WORKPLACE.”
assistancewanted.
Daniel Rome Levine is a writer based in Wilmette, Illinois.
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strategies to grow your business
GETTING THE Clients are often happy to refer good agents to other potential buyers. But how should agents ask their happy customers for those valuable referrals? Nov Dec
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word out By Clare Curley
As an instructor based in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, one of the many courses Mark Given, CRS, teaches is Building an Exceptional Referral Based Business (CRS 210). Although his students are practitioners, Given notices they are reluctant to ask clients for referrals. “Most agents are just hoping and praying that people already know they want and need referrals,” he says. They tend to prefer more passive techniques, like printing requests for referrals on the back of their business cards. “But you have to be proactive,” Given says. REALTORS® have many opportunities to ask clients to spread the word about their services, from the listing interview to the moment a sale closes. While referrals accounted for 21 percent
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of all business in 2013 according to the 2014 National Association of REALTORS® Member Profile, that number is much higher for some agents. Certainly, you shouldn’t do anything that makes you feel uncomfortable. CRSs who count on word-of-mouth advertising say they begin the process by building trust and offering exceptional service, but they also develop a referral-generating system based on instincts, timing and techniques that work for them.
How to Ask
Sven Andersen, CRS, a RE/MAX Leading Edge Team Leader in Winchester, Massachusetts, stays in touch with hundreds of past clients and community members by hosting various annual social events. Despite his 15 years of experience, he shied away from asking for referrals until last year. What changed was a call he made to a former
client to invite her to his annual client appreciation party. At the end of the call he asked her if she would mind referring him to others. She did, and as a result of that call Andersen listed an $850,000 house in Winchester and another in Arlington. “It was an aha moment,” he says. “When I ask for the business, people actually give it to me.” Knowing that customers can be put off by direct requests to plug their business, CRSs often find subtler ways to encourage their contacts to achieve the same effect. Also a Broker Associate, Given, for instance, keeps a list of his top 50 business-producing contacts and places several calls a week to foster friendly relationships with them. Without directly asking, he allows his contacts to bring up referral possibilities and start the conversation for him. Sometimes he’s more direct. Based on advice from a successful CRS colleague, Given began inserting language into buyer and seller agreements, provided that they had previously worked together. It asks: “At least once if not twice, while we are working together, someone will mention in conversation that they need or will need the kind of service I provide. When that happens, and if you feel comfortable with it, would you recommend me, give them one of my cards and then give me a call to let me know that you recommended me?” He leaves them business cards to enable the process. But Given also cautions agents to run any new contractual language by their company owner to ensure that it is both legal and appropriate.
referral generating system STAY IN TOUCH
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ASK FOR REFERRALS!
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BUILD TRUST
There are independent third party companies t hat can call and ask for testimonials.
TYPES OF REFERRALS:
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CL A P P R E CIA IEN TIO T N SHOW
When it comes to newer media, CRSs are finding client video testimonials effective as a means of building trust among strangers. Katie Hesse, CRS, with Coldwell Banker West Shell, was working in Cedar Falls, Iowa, in 2011. Inspired by a Web developer she met at a CRS convention, she uploaded four videos to her website containing buyers tips and numerous client endorsements. After moving to Cincinnati in 2014, Hesse stared receiving calls from buyers in her new location who had seen her videos online.
education for details.
Clare Curley is a freelance writer based in Chicago.
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Best Mediums
As consumers “ Since I have been more increasingly base proactive, my referrals purchasing choices on have gone up dramatically.” online reviews, CRS agents have also found —Mark Given, CRS instructor, Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina various ways to nudge clients to post positive reviews on sites like Yelp or Zillow. Carl Medford, CRS, with Prudential California Realty in Castro Valley, California, says his team sends out emails to let clients know that a review would be appreciated; the email also describes steps to guide them through the review process. Once a transaction closes, they send multiple requests and often follow up with a call. Sometimes they also have an independent third party call and ask for testimonials over the phone. “We get a lot of clients off Trulia because of the testimonials,” he says. Still, Medford’s most successful tool is a monthly newsletter that he mails to about 1,100 families, which he says generates a quarter of his referrals. Also a real estate industry columnist, Medford includes inspiring stories about Learn more his family in the newsletter so that recipients by taking the can refer someone they feel they know. Building an Exceptional Cus“It’s amazing how the universe works,” says tomer Service Given. “When you plan and then you act, things Referral Business course happen. If you don’t ever create a system — (CRS 210). then it’s just luck.” Visit crs.com/
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ÄClient Ä video testimonials ÄOnline Ä reviews on sites like Yelp and Zillow ÄWord Ä of mouth
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RE/MAX, Concord, North Carolina
BRADLEY COHEN, CRS Has the designation proved useful to you? Yes, it has. I’ve made contacts all over the country. It has paid off tremendously from a networking perspective. I’ve networked with the other people in my class at Cape Cod. Those folks know I’m based in Charlotte and they have sent referrals my way. I haven’t actually closed any business with those referrals yet, but it’s great to have them anyway.
What first interested you in becoming a CRS? When I first got started, I was inspired by the broker in charge of the company where I worked. It had a small, elite group of brokers and they always seemed to get the best referrals. I started taking CRS courses in 2007–2008. I did most of the courses, then I stopped because my business started to quickly grow. What prompted you to complete your coursework? When I attended the RE/MAX convention, I ran into some of the CRS folks and they said, “You only have one course to finish up! Just do it.” So, even though I’m in Charlotte [North Carolina], the first available class I could attend was in Cape Cod. I flew up there in this awful blizzard and took the last class I needed. It was great.
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Have you made other good contacts through CRS? Sure. I go to the state CRS meetings in Raleigh and we talk about what the differences are in the various markets within the state, and we share information. If you are a CRS agent, you should stay involved. Attending CRS meetings and conferences is really valuable. What are your best methods for bringing in clients? I use social media, email and direct mail, but I rely mostly on one-on-one, face-to-face contact. For instance, if I have a good lead, I’ll take lunch to his or her entire office. And I have a lot of repeat clients. Now that I have been in the business for a while, I have A-list clients who have sent me good leads. I have been able to close six or seven transactions from one of those A-list clients.
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They must really appreciate your customer service. Oh, yes. The main thing about customer service is keeping people informed. I make a point of calling clients on a weekly basis, even if I don’t have anything new to report. It reassures them that you have their purchase or sale on the front burner. Also, I’m a huge sports fan. I sometimes take clients with me to games. I have season tickets for the Hornets, the Carolina Panthers and seats two or three rows behind home plate for the Charlotte Knights. A lot of my clients really enjoy those games. That’s a tried-andtrue way to help ensure client loyalty. Is that the kind of treatment that will prevent clients from turning to self-serve real estate websites? I don’t really think of sites like Trulia and Zillow as competition; for one thing, not all of their information is accurate. I make sure that I show clients the value in having a REALTOR® and CRS working for them. It makes a huge difference having our kind of knowledge base available to them.
Bradley Cohen, CRS, attended the National Championship Game at BB&T Ballpark where he often takes clients to see the Charlotte Knights. In 2014, the Knights led all Minor League teams in attendance numbers and the ballpark recently received LEED green-building certification.
What advice would you share with REALTORS® who are considering getting their CRS designation? Be sure to take a class somewhere away from your home base. I probably won’t take any more classes in Charlotte or even in my state because the networking opportunities when you get out of town are terrific. I learned that from my blizzard trip to Cape Cod. Even though it costs a little more in terms of money and time, you’ll make it up with new contacts, new friends and new business.
Bradley Cohen, CRS, has been a REALTOR® since 2005, and achieved his CRS designation in 2014. He can be reached at 704.688.5000 or Bradley@BradleyCohen. Visit him at www.bradleycohen.net.
Photo: Mitchell Kearney
[peer to peer]
profiles of people to watch
“I m a huge sports fan. I sometimes take clients with me to games. I have season tickets for the Hornets, the Carolina Panthers and seats two or three rows behind home plate for the Charlotte Knights. A lot of my clients really enjoy those games.�
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Convenient to job
58 % FACTORS INFLUENCING URBAN BUYERS’ NEIGHBORHOOD CHOICE
Convenient to airport
7%
Quality of school district
19%
Source: National Association of REALTORS®, 2013 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers
Convenient to entertainment/ leisure activities
32%
Convenient to friends or family
36%
Homebuyers young and old are fleeing the suburbs for the city. By Matt Alderton
In December 2013, former television and radio reporter Cari Shane gave herself a long-coming Hanukkah present: After 23 years in the suburbs, she sold her house in Potomac, Maryland, and bought a downtown home in Washington, D.C. Located in NoMa, a transitioning neighborhood on the fringe of Capitol Hill, it’s the home she always wanted but could never have. “I grew up in Manhattan, right in the middle of the concrete jungle. But when I got married and had my three kids, we moved to the suburbs,” says Shane, 49. “Living in the city again was always my goal, so when my two oldest went to college, and my youngest ended up changing schools, I moved almost overnight. I got divorced about three-and-a-half years ago, so it was my way of getting back to who I used to be.”
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Shane isn’t alone. Across the country, people old and young are engaged in a historic urban migration that’s turning buttoned-down business districts into thriving live/work communities. For REALTORS® who recognize the trend, it’s a unique opportunity to grow both their business and their city, each of which promises to swell with an infusion of new homes and homebuyers.
Urban Interest Increasing
Among homebuyers who purchased a home between July 2012 and June 2013, 16 percent bought in an urban area, according to the 2014 National Association of REALTORS® Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends report. It might not sound like much, but urban interest is clearly growing. The National Association of REALTORS® 2013 National Community Preference Survey, for instance, found that 28 percent of Americans want to live in a city, up from 19 percent in 2011.
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F O R
T H E Overall affordability of homes
42% Convenient to shopping
29%
Quality of neighborhood
64% Home in a planned community
4%
Availability of larger lots or acreage Convenient to schools
8
%
20 %
Convenient to health facilities
12 %
Design of neighborhood
26 %
Convenient to parks/recreational facilities
27
Other
%
5%
Knowing why can help you make noise in the urban market. The trend bears out further in individual cities, according to the International Downtown Association (IDA), a trade association representing urban planners, developers, architects and other urban advocates. In 2013, it published a report documenting downtown growth in America’s 150 largest cities between 2000 and 2010. In nearly all of them, it found, the downtown population grew by double digits. “Urban centers are now competing on equal footing with suburbs as preferred places to work and as regional, choice residential neighborhoods,” IDA concluded. Although millennials are responsible for much of the growth, more and more of their downtown neighbors are baby boomers. In fact, a 2013 analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by online real-estate brokerage Redfin found that between 2000 and 2010, more than a million baby boomers in the nation’s 50 largest cities moved from homes that were 40 to 80 miles outside the city center; in
the same period, a similar number moved to homes within 5 miles of downtown.
‘Everything’s Waiting for You’
Petula Clark was ahead of her time when she released her hit single “Downtown” in 1964. As many Americans were migrating to suburbia, Clark extolled the virtues of the city center. “Things will be great when you’re downtown,” Clark sang. “Everything’s waiting for you.” Everything is, in fact, waiting for you, according to Shane. “I could write a book on why I love the city,” she exclaims. “I love it because there are so many amenities at your fingertips. Whether it’s jumping on a city bike and biking a mile or two to a ballgame, going to a museum, attending a wine tasting or eating at a local restaurant, you can do anything you want to do — and you can do it all without getting into a car.”
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“ BUYERS WANT TO CONNECT WITH A PROPERTY ON AN EMOTIONAL LEVEL. TELLING A STORY HELPS YOU CREATE THAT EMOTIONAL CONNECTION.”
WHERE THE BUYERS ARE
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Source: National Association of REALTORS®, 2014 National Association of REALTORS® Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends
In fact, nearly a third (32 percent) of urban “Houses are a lot of maintenance,” says homebuyers purchased a home in the city Estridge, who specializes in the downtown because of its proximity to entertainment and Washington, D.C., market. “When your chilleisure activities, according to the National dren are grown, you no longer need all the Association of REALTORS’® 2013 Profile rooms in your house … so maybe it makes of Home Buyers and Sellers. Other factors sense to move into a condo downtown. Also, influencing their choice included convenience walkability is very important to them, as they to shopping (29 percent), convenience to parks are tired of driving everywhere as they had to and recreation (27 percent), and convenience do in the suburbs.” to public transportation (20 percent). Because urban real estate often requires sac“A lot of people I work with are moving rifices — according to the National Association downtown because it’s a walkable neighborof REALTORS’® 2013 Profile of Home Buyers hood and because it’s close to things,” says and Sellers, 23 percent of urban homebuyers Katie Hesse, CRS, of Coldwell Banker West compromised on home price, 21 percent on Shell in Cincinnati, where redevelopment home size, 21 percent on home condition and is rampant in downtown neighborhoods 15 percent on home style — knowing why clilike Over-the-Rhine, a long-dodgy historic ents want to move downtown in the first place district that’s at the center of a major revi—Katie Hesse, CRS will help you prioritize selection criteria. talization. “I’m actually one of those people. Understand their lifestyle: KnowI just moved to downtown Cincinnati from ing how your clients want to live is the best Cedar Falls, Iowa. I moved across the country to be closer to way to determine where they want to live. “People who are family, but I wanted to be downtown because it’s an exciting in their 20s or 30s … are looking to be in the most vibrant place to be.” areas, where they’re close to nightclubs, shopping and [public transportation],” Estridge says. “Older people tend to prefer Selling the City neighborhoods that are safer and more established.” Homebuyers may be flocking to the city, but that doesn’t Clients’ interests and resources are important parts of the mean they’ll flock to you when they do. REALTORS® who equation. A boomer who’s interested in culture, for instance, want a piece of the burgeoning urban market must therefore might want to be near museums or close to restaurants. On work hard to differentiate themselves, according to citythe other hand, a millennial who doesn’t own a car will savvy CRSs who say urban buyers are most attracted to real probably need to be near transit. estate agents who: Know the city intimately: For urban buyers, the characGrasp their goals: Buyers who move downtown ter of the neighborhood often is just as important as the quality typically have very specific reasons for wanting to do of the home. For that reason, the most successful urban REALso, according to Melinda Estridge, CRS, principal of The TORS® typically are those who know downtown neighborhoods Estridge Group at Long & Foster Realtors in Bethesda, well enough to be both a real estate agent and a tour guide. Maryland. Take boomers, for instance, many of whom are “You need to be able to drive a client around for 15 minutes empty-nesters with a desire to downsize both their house and show them where the parks are located; where the two and their car. or three hotspots for restaurants or shopping are located; where the secret neighborhood BY THE NUMBER S hangout for coffee is located; where the library is located, or The homebuyers who are most heavily the post office; and what route favoring urban areas tend to be younger. they can take to work,” says Age of Homebuyer Sher Powers, CRS, owner of Location of Home Urbane Residential Specialists 33 and All Buyers 34 to 48 49 to 58 59 to 67 68 to 88 in Nashville, Tennessee. Younger In addition to knowing the 53 % 55 % 56 % 50 % 51 % 47 % Suburb/Subdivision neighborhood as it looks today, 18 % 16 % 17 % 17 % 19 % 24 % Small Town you should know how it looked yesterday and how it will look 16 % 19 % 16 % 16 % 12% 13 % Urban Area/Central City tomorrow, according to Hesse, % % % % % % 11 10 10 14 11 8 Rural Area who often uses property his3% 1% 1% 3% 7% 8% Resort/Recreational Area tories and development maps
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Ford Field: ifmuth; West Canfield: Andrew Jameson
Detroit has experienced a revitalization of its downtown area. From left, the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit; a view of Ford Field from downtown; and historic residences in the West Canfield section of Midtown.
restarting motor city
More and more people want to live downtown. To get them to move there, cities are taking an active role in downtown redevelopment. A perfect example is Detroit, which is in the midst of a major renaissance, according to Katharine Czarnecki, director of community development at the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC), a state organization whose mission includes urban and community development. “The transformation here is astounding,” explains Czarnecki, who says redevelopment in two Detroit neighborhoods, in particular — Downtown and Midtown, where the residential vacancy rate is just 2 percent — has catalyzed a citywide revitalization effort. “[Downtown buyers] want walkability, a range of housing options, culture and recreational activities. We’re trying to leverage all those things to move the needle forward.” Demand alone isn’t enough to make urban cores thrive. To transform downtowns from blighted to booming, cities must follow Detroit’s lead by taking a 360-degree approach that includes: ÄÄ Development: To grease the wheels for redevelopment, MEDC has a program known as Redevelopment Ready Communities®, whereby it helps local governments encourage redevelopment by increasing transparency and streamlining the development process. ÄÄ Recreation: It’s not enough to give people places to live. You also must
give them things to do, according to Czarnecki, who says Detroit has begun offering free entertainment — for example, live music, movies and art exhibitions — at city parks in the summer. ÄÄ Public spaces: Every vibrant city has dynamic public spaces, whether it’s Central Park in New York, Boston Common in Boston or Millennium Park in Chicago. With that in mind, MEDC recently launched a campaign that will give matching funds to community groups that raise money with crowdfunding to help them infuse Michigan cities — including Detroit — with more green space. ÄÄ Safety: Because Detroit’s negative reputation hampers downtown growth, law enforcement, government and businesses are collaborating to fight crime and improve safety, Czarnecki says. ÄÄ Transportation: People who live downtown demand affordable, convenient public transportation. In July 2014, Detroit therefore commenced work on the M-1 RAIL streetcar, a 3.3-mile circulating streetcar in downtown Detroit that eventually will be part of a larger public transportation system. Concludes Czarnecki, “If you’re going to encourage people to live downtown, you need to understand that there’s more to the city than just working and living. You have to take a holistic approach to urban development, and Detroit is a very good example of that.”
to create narratives that help her market downtown homes lived in an urban area, my suggestion is to knock on doors based on their past or future. “Buyers want to connect with a and talk to the people who live in the area,” Powers says. “If property on an emotional level,” Hesse says. “Telling a story they’re not comfortable, it’s important to not press them, but helps you create that emotional connection.” rather to find out what their goals are and determine how to Neighborhood knowledge is so important to urban buyers accomplish them — perhaps in a neighborhood 10 minutes that it often pays to specialize in a specific area, and to be from downtown that feels more suburban but is still in an physically located there if possible. “I’m a huge proponent of urban overlay.” geographical farming,” says Estridge, who claims REALTORS® City living isn’t for everyone. However, it will always be for benefit from both word of mouth and search engine traffic someone. “Urban cores have been eroding for decades, and when they have a niche. “There are a lot of agents in Washing- finally we’re seeing people coming back,” Hesse concludes. ton, D.C., who are known for a certain area. They do very well “There’s always going to be a downbecause their social circles and open houses are there, they do town; as long as you can keep the Check out the 2013 NAR targeted mailings there and they usually own a home there.” excitement going, there’s always Profile of Home Appreciate their reservations: Unless they live going to be a steady stream of buyBuyers and Sellers for more downtown already, buyers may have reservations — for ers who want to live there.” information instance, about safety, noise, traffic or other urban nuisances. about urban moving trends: It’s important to listen to their concerns, address them and, Matt Alderton is a Chicago-based freelance writer bit.ly/1toUx57 if necessary, show them alternatives. “If a client has never specializing in business, travel and technology.
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Today’s homebuyers want walkable neighborhoods that offer relaxed access to nearby amenities and a real connection to the community.
By Donna Shryer
If considering a theme song for the majority of America’s current homebuyers, crank the volume on that 1966 top pop tune These Boots Are Made for Walkin’. According to the National Association of Realtors’ 2013 Community Preference Survey, 60 percent of respondents favor walkable neighborhoods with a mix of houses, stores and businesses all within walking distance, rather than communities that require driving between home, work and recreation. In many cases, respondents said they’d willingly sacrifice home and yard size if it meant living closer to daily destinations, like the kids’ schools, public transportation and work. Biking, reports Dede Carney, CRS, with Keller Williams Realty in Greenville, North Carolina, is often used interchangeably with walkability. “I have more and more homebuyers wanting to live within biking distance of work. They don’t want to get in the car at all. That certainly narrows down the neighborhoods I can show them. But with the advent of geographical MLS searches, technology makes it easy to find neighborhoods with specific amenities and locations within a 3-mile radius of employment, a certain school or recreational facilities — whatever is most important to the homebuyer.” In other words, REALTORS® are no longer selling homes — they’re selling neighborhoods. And many
of today’s listings already reflect this move, with more marketing emphasis placed on neighborhood amenities than lot size.
Destination Lifestyle
The caveat is that desired neighborhood amenities — all those places homeowners want to be near — are not a onesize-fits-all proposition. For some, it means a revitalized Main Street in a friendly suburb, with shops, restaurants and parks an easy stroll from home, and where sidewalks roll up at 8 p.m. For others, neighborhood amenities point to a bustling urban environment with galleries, boutiques, comfy coffee shops and energized nighttime activities. “It used to be location, location, location. Today, I think it’s lifestyle, lifestyle, lifestyle,” explains Betty D. Kerr, CRS, with HomeSmart Professionals in Palm Springs, California. “You have to look at how a client lives life! Do they play golf or tennis? Do they want to bike to work? Do they love the nightlife? Do they need acreage for horses and motorbikes? Finding a neighborhood that fits the client’s lifestyle is one of the most important ways I help my customers.”
Neighborhood Watch
For Al Allegue, CRS, with Pinnacle Real Estate Group in Biloxi, Mississippi, “It’s always about selling the neighborhood more than a house.” That’s because he and his team cater to different clientele. For example, there are clients who want to be within walking distance from — if not on — the Gulf of Mexico beaches, and there are also elderly veterans who need to be near the VA Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System.
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dwelling points
To boost client trust and emphasize the fact that Pinnacle Real Estate Group understands the unique amenities that distinguish neighborhoods, Allegue’s team creates relevant home brochures and online videos. “We not only feature photographs of the home, but also a local map that shows the home’s location in relation to amenities associated with the home’s neighborhood. And when showing a property, we drive a route that allows us to point out how near these amenities are to the home.”
City Planning
attributes and focus on location — because neighborhood amenities very much affect a home’s price. The client may need to consider homes that need a little work so they can afford to be located exactly where they want to be located.” In another example, Kerr refers to her Palm Springs clients who seek seasonal, upscale homes in gated golf communities. “The extra security of a gated community is important because these people may only use the home six months a year. But that security increases a home’s asking price. So again, I have to help the client look beyond the house and put a value on the amenities that come with the home.” The price value of neighborhood amenities isn’t restricted to urban areas, Allegue adds. “Here in Biloxi, we see a cost increase of about 5 percent on listed homes within walking distance of the water or nearer to the VA hospital and our four military bases. That increase jumps nearly 30 percent for beachfront property. A 2,000-square-foot, four-bedroom home with water access will sell on average for $475,000. Take the same home inland and you may only sell it for about $350,000.” Over in Greenville, North Carolina, Carney hasn’t seen neighborhood amenities affecting housing costs, but she is experiencing something equally as appealing. “Neighborhood amenities are affecting time on the market, with the most sought-after neighborhoods selling faster.”
Moving to urban locations, the hippest hot spots are typically the most walkable neighborhoods, and bidding wars for property in these areas are common. The challenge is keeping up with the gentrification that surrounds long-established, desirable neighborhoods. In New Orleans, for example, gentrified neighborhoods are popping up quicker than you can say, “Welcome home.” “The energy and momentum is moving into the city rather than the suburbs. But you do have to localize it,” explains Michael Zarou, CRS, with Latter & Blum in New Orleans. “If the client wants walkable access to coffee shops, restaurants, boutiques, bars and museums, these amenities make me think immediately of Magazine Street — a 70-block stretch that runs from downtown to uptown. It’s hopping, but property prices are high and they go under contract right away.” Changing Paths So for the under-40 crowd who wants all the amenities The 2013 Community Preference Survey makes it clear that of Magazine Street but can’t quite afford it yet, Zarou helps more people today place increased importance on living in a clients expand their search area, maybe swerving over to community that is “at the center of it all,” with 44 percent (up Freret Street, a 15-block stretch in uptown New Orleans and 10 points since the National Association of REALTORS® 2011 less than a mile from Magazine study) of respondents preferring Street. “In the last five years, this neighborhoods where walking is neighborhood’s transformation has easy and errand and commute times been unbelievable,” Zarou says. “I are short. That said, properties off can market the amenities as compa- Dede Carney, CRS, with Keller Williams Realty in Greenville, the beaten path still have appeal, rable to Magazine Street, but with North Carolina, says that REALTORS® can help potential with the Survey stating that 55 permore affordable property prices. I’m homebuyers create a priority list of desired amenities — and cent of respondents want to live in watching other neighborhoods, too. thus pinpoint the neighborhood that fulfills those priorities — by a place that’s “away from it all.” My clients already know the ameniconsidering the client’s generation. “Here in Greenville, I find Keying into homebuyers who ties they want before we meet, but that millennials are more concerned about being near entertain- prefer a step away from city they don’t always know the areas ment and parks, and within walking distance of our greenways, amenities, Allegue goes straight to just about to turn the corner.” because they’re often runners or bicyclists, and they like to be acreage. “The further north you closer to nature or where they unwind.” go away from Biloxi, the more The Price of Perfection However, adds Betty D. Kerr, CRS, with HomeSmart Proland you can get. I’m talking about Because neighborhood amenities fessionals in Palm Springs, California, REALTORS® shouldn’t homes on 3 to 4 acres with a can change from county to county, discount baby boomers. “A lot of Palm Springs citizens — many fishing pond and plenty of space city to suburb and even street to of them retired baby boomers — want to be right where the to raise and ride horses. To some, street, it’s vital that clients underaction is. I’ll suggest looking outside the city, no more than these properties may be off the stand how certain amenities affect 7 miles, so they can get more for their money, but they say, beaten path; to others, it’s the pera home’s value, Kerr stresses. “When “Nope, I want to be walking or biking distance from the street fect place to call home — and still location is uppermost on a client’s fairs and restaurants.’ And people are willing to pay more for only about a 10-minute drive to wish list, sometimes I have to help prime Palm Springs housing.” shopping, the hospital, entertainthem look past a home’s physical ment and beaches.”
NO GAPS HERE
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BY THE NUMBER S
THE GOOD ‘HOOD %
The National Association of REALTORS® 2013 Community Preference Survey reveals the following preferences in neighborhoods and where people want to live.
60
prefer a neighborhood with a mix of houses, stores and businesses that are easy to walk to.
86
%
value privacy from neighbors when choosing a home.
75
%
of small town and rural residents would still live in a rural area if they could choose any place to live.
42
%
complain that there are too few shops or restaurants within an easy walk of their house.
Walking into the Future
Foot Traffic Ahead, a 2014 survey conducted by Smart Growth America in conjunction with George Washington University School of Business, takes a look at America’s top 30 metro areas. In the final analysis, according to Geoff Anderson, president and CEO of Smart Growth America, “Cities that want to thrive in our new economic and demographic realities will need to find ways to create and support more of these dynamic, productive walkable
districts that are in high demand.” As elected officials and developers alike get behind this walk into the future, REALTORS® might want to market their listings’ pedestrian-friendly amenities whenever possible — and drive Find information about more business. your specific neighborhood at walkscore. com.
Donna Shryer is a freelance writer based in Chicago.
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taking the
plunge Tips from the trenches on working with first-time homebuyers.
Betty Kerr, CRS, handles historical norm of 40 percent, rentals and sales in the but still a sizable chunk of the Palm Springs and Yucca Valley market. These homebuyers areas of California. She often might need a little more time, gets calls from people looking expertise and help making a to rent, but she turns them into final decision, but if all goes happy homebuyers. well, they could be clients — and By Gayle Bennett “If they are going to be here sources of referrals — for life. three to five years, which most of them are, and they call me looking for a $1,000 Before the Hunt rental, then I can get them into a home,” says As with any client, the relationship with a Kerr, with HomeSmart Professionals. “Then potential first-time homebuyer begins with a their money can be used as an investment conversation. Why are they looking to buy? instead of just throwing away $1,000 a month.” Are they ready to make this big decision? Recently, a man named Michael came to her During this initial conversation, Courtney looking for a new rental. He was on a fixed Phelps, CRS, an associate broker with Reilly income and needed to stay near his current rent REALTORS® in Austin, Texas, says he’s not of $450; he didn’t think buying was a possibility. focused on sharing his track record and history. “I have him in a home with a mortgage “They don’t care how much you know until payment of $400; all his utilities brings it to they know how much you care. It’s more about $480–$490, and he doesn’t have to worry about getting information from them. If you show moving again,” says Kerr. “He was never a home- that you want to work in their best interest, you owner and now he is. You should see the smile can help them make an informed decision on on his face.” whether they want to rent or own.” First-time homebuyers made up 38 percent But before they start lining up houses to of purchasers in 2013. That’s a bit below the go see, savvy agents make sure their clients
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service minded
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BY THE NUMBER S 100%
Gen Y comprises the largest share of firsttime homebuyers at
76 % 50%
and the largest share of homebuyers overall at
31 %
are pre-approved for a mortgage. It is crucial for buyers to know how much house they can afford before they start working with an agent. “Sometimes people say, ‘I just started looking so I’m not going to get a pre-approval yet,’ and I don’t go down that path with them,” says Rosemary Reed, CRS, with RE/MAX Crossroads in Akron, Ohio. “I stop them from the start and say, ‘You really need to be pre-approved before I start unlocking doors because otherwise, I’m setting you up for possible disappointment,” because they could end up looking at houses they can’t afford to buy. However, Reed does spend important time with clients before they get pre-approved. She gives them a notebook with all the information they will need at the different stages of the home-buying process. “We do it every day, so we don’t think about how overwhelming it is,” she says. “When I sit down with them, I show them a flow chart. Their eyes get so wide when they see all of those steps. I say, ‘We aren’t even going to talk about all of these things, but it’s great to have this binder with you and you can refer to it along the way.’” Similarly, Kerr has a 35-page e-book she got from her lender that explains the whole process to first-time homebuyers. “I tell them to highlight it and if they have any questions, we can go through them together.”
Care and Feeding
0%
Source: NAR Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends, March 2014
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Once first-time homebuyers are pre-approved, the fun begins — showing them houses. Some REALTORS® find that, on the whole, firsttime homebuyers take more of their time. Not Reed. She says they generally take less of her time, particularly compared to a new-to-her move-up buyer who didn’t have a great experience before. “Sometimes I feel like I have more proving to do with people who’ve been through the process before.” But her first-time homebuyers often apologize if they don’t find a house on the first try. “I call it the House Hunters mentality,” she says, referring to the three houses the HGTV program shows buyers deciding between. But some first-time buyers have a case of the perfect-house syndrome, which can drag on the process. Peggy Bouchard, CRS, with RE/MAX Commonwealth in Midlothian, Virginia, tells her first-time homebuyers that they aren’t going to find the exact house in their heads or on The Residential Specialist trsmag.com
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“ I start getting all these emails of all these wonderful houses they found on Zillow. So I ll go through the first couple of homes, and of course, they are under contract, never listed, whatever. And then I ll say, You re not going to look at Zillow anymore. ” —Rosemary Reed, CRS
their Pinterest boards. They don’t always believe her at first, but she says it’s important to plant that seed early. And Reed is frank with clients about what they can afford. If what they say they need in a house is exceeding their pre-approved limit, she advises them to start prioritizing their needs or else there won’t be much to look at. “Is it important to have granite countertops or is it important to be in one of the best school districts in the state?” she’ll ask clients. In Austin, Phelps often first shows his clients houses that are a bit below their price point, say a $240,000 house to the couple who’s preapproved up to $300,000. “If I’m showing them the $240,000 good-value house, it helps them feel more comfortable. They start to think, ‘This guy gets paid more if we spend more money on a house, and he’s telling us it’s in our best interest to stay in our comfort zone.’ It adds to the feeling of trust.” Furthermore, he says, “People who feel comfortable at the higher end will pull you to that price point.”
Tech Issues
Not all first-time homebuyers are younger, but many of them are. According to the National Association of REALTORS®, in 2013, the typical first-time buyer was 31 years old. This generation of buyers — called Generation Y or the millennials — comprises the largest share of homebuyers at 31 percent and the largest share of first-time buyers at 76 percent, according to NAR data. Having grown up with the Internet, younger clients are very comfortable searching for
service minded
houses online. But, it’s not just younger clients: According to NAR data, 42 percent of homebuyers start the house hunting process by looking for properties online. This is great before they’re working with a REALTOR®, but can be messy after they team up with a REALTOR®. Reed sets up accounts for all of her clients on her company’s portal, where they gain access to new listings as they are posted. She tells them that this is better than anything they can find on their own, but not everyone believes her. “I start getting all these emails of all these wonderful houses they found on Zillow,” she says. “So I’ll go through the first couple of homes, and of course, they are under contract, never listed, whatever. And then I’ll say, ‘You’re not going to look at Zillow anymore.’” Bouchard also often navigates this issue with first-time homebuyers. “First-time homebuyers,
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BY THE NUMBER S
NOT GETTING OLDER, JUST WETTER Age of the typical firsttime buyer
31
Age of the typical repeat buyer
52
Source: NAR Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends, March 2014
especially the younger ones who are doing their work online, have a hard time letting go of the control of being the master of everything Realtor.com, Zillow and Trulia have.” On their first outing, these clients will often choose the houses they want to see from their own research. Bouchard goes with it. “What they find is that once they get Buying a house is likely the biggest purchase a first-time homebuyer has ever to the neighborhood or the made. It shouldn’t be a seat-of-the-pants decision, but some people really property, it doesn’t look and struggle to take the purchasing plunge. smell like they thought it was Peggy Bouchard, with RE/MAX Commonwealth in Midlothian, Virginia, develgoing to look and smell. Then, oped a quick and easy system to encourage first-time homebuyers — but really they begin to say ‘Is there it works on anyone — to make some decisions with every house they see. anything better?’” Of course, She asks them to rate the house from 1 to 10, telling them that she needs she’s already picked out some to give this information to the listing agent. At first, she often encounters better listings for them to see resistance. “They’ll dither as long as you let them.” But she presses them for a immediately. number before they go on to the next house, assuring them that they can revise It’s a process, but once their ratings at any point. This way, when the first house was a 6 and the second first-time homebuyers trust was a 4, they’ve decided that the second house is off the list of possibilities. their agent, it goes beyond that “I’m willing to give anyone the time they need, but I’ve gone from weeks of first sale. The happy first-time looking at properties to two or three outings,” says Bouchard. “And they are every homebuyer is not only a potenbit as happy with the home as they would be if it had taken them weeks.” tial future move-up buyer, but also a new source of referrals.
degree of difficulty
Gayle Bennett is a writer and editor based in Washington, D.C.
Read more about generational first-time buyer trends in this NAR report: bit.ly/1rLOPIZ.
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practice
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With hard work, patience and perseverance, CRS agents who relocate to rebuild their business can enjoy a new level of success. By Regina Ludes
Linda LaFleur, CRS, didn’t plan to uproot her entire life in Sioux City, Iowa, to move to Cleveland in 2005. But when her husband — a successful illustrator — was offered an opportunity to work in a studio there, LaFleur didn’t hesitate to relocate her family and her business. It proved to be a smart career move. But the rebuilding process came with several hurdles along the way, including time away from the business to help her son during a serious illness and seven weeks caring for her daughter after a spinal fusion surgery. “It can be tough when you don’t know the agents who could help while I was away. It wasn’t until 2008 that I could put in the hours needed to really ramp up my business,” LaFleur says. REALTORS® are used to helping clients relocate from one city to another, but what if they are the ones who are moving? CRSs who have successfully rebuilt their careers in a new city say the decision to uproot their entire lives and make a fresh start somewhere else takes courage and a lot of planning. But if agents are prepared to work hard and focus on the business basics, such as networking, marketing and business
planning, they can enjoy the same level of productivity and success in their new location.
Planning for Success
Before launching her business in Cleveland, LaFleur took time to familiarize herself with the area. “I would drive around the different neighborhoods and intentionally get lost so I could find my way back home,” LaFleur recalls. She was hired at Howard Hanna as a personal assistant, which helped her learn about the local market and develop relationships with other REALTORS® in the company. “Howard Hanna was a regional powerhouse. They have the top market share in all the communities they serve, and their reputation helped me get a foot in the door with clients,” LaFleur says. After she got licensed in Ohio, LaFleur did everything she could to get herself known. She hosted open houses to meet buyers, took on overflow business from other agents in the office and she canvassed the neighborhoods on foot to meet local residents. LaFleur also got involved with Kiwanis and BY THE NUMBER S Chamber of Commerce, and joined a Nearly business networking group where she met Americans moved plumbers, electribetween 2012 and 2013. cians and contractors. Source: U.S. Census Bureau
36 million
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Taking a Leap of Faith
After 18 months, her hard work paid off. She was so overwhelmed with business that she stopped canvassing the neighborhoods. “You have to stay the course even when things aren’t happening. Just keep networking and it will eventually work out,” LaFleur says.
From the moment Arlene Kelly, CRS, stepped foot on Hawaii’s sandy beaches in 1995 while working for a cruise company, she dreamed of living there permanently. Several years later, she and her husband were making annual excursions to
you’re moving where? According to a recent study by United Van Lines, Oregon was the top state for inbound moves in 2013 while New Jersey had the most outbound moves. Southeastern and Western states are drawing the most new residents due to better business incentives, industrial growth and relatively lower costs of living. States in the Pacific Northwest are attracting young professionals and retirees who want amenities such as public transit, green space and the local arts and entertainment scene.
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Ne w
York
W e s t V i r g in i a
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e C o nn
c t ic
ut
visit each island. Before one such trip, however, a cancer diagnosis prompted Kelly and her husband to take a leap of faith and move their entire lives from Philadelphia to Oahu. The couple bought a condo there in 2002, but it took two years to tie up loose ends in Philadelphia before they got settled in 2004. “We said, if it doesn’t work out, we can always move back to Philadelphia,” Kelly says. After passing the state licensing exam in Hawaii, she joined Realty Executives Oahu on Waikiki. The office’s location on a busy street generated a lot of walk-in traffic, mostly from island visitors who wanted to buy investment properties or vacation homes, and some of those individuals became long-term clients. “Working in the hubbub of a larger city will expose you to more clients. It’s an easier approach for those who are new to the area and want to grow their business,” Kelly says. It took a couple of years for Kelly to build name recognition through referrals, networking, postcard mailings and her volunteer work in the community. She also became involved with the Rotary, Chamber of Commerce and a Hawaii real estate investors group. Eventually, Kelly and her husband opened their own full-service brokerage in Kapolei specializing in investment and vacation properties and providing property management services. “People got to know us through our involvement with these organizations and they appreciated our own experience, as real estate investors,” says Kelly, a broker with Ola Properties. Learning the Hawaiian culture and language was never an issue, she adds. “You have to respect and appreciate the culture and not try to change it.” But Kelly says there are a
perfect practice
few things she still misses about her old life in Philadelphia, including the many friends she left behind “and the Philly Cheesesteaks, great Italian food and Trader Joe’s.”
Social Connections
Darci Gillespie, CRS, began her real estate career in 2004 in Crested Butte, Colorado, a small resort community of 2,500 residents. She was a top-producing agent in 2011 when she decided to move back to her hometown of Seattle for a change of pace and to be closer to her brother and his family. “Leaving a successful business and starting again from ground zero was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” recalls Gillespie, who is with Windermere Real Estate/Northwest. Gillespie turned over her Colorado clients to several agents whom she trusted, rented a U-Haul and moved into a condo she owns in a Seattle suburb. While the housing market was still depressed in 2011, Gillespie took the time during the downturn to rebuild her network and work on her business plan. She says it took at least one year to get her business off the ground and another year after that before she generated a steady
WHY PEOPLE MOVE
Some 35.9 million Americans moved to new homes between 2012 and 2013, representing 11.7 percent of the population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Nearly half (48.0 percent) moved for housing-related reasons, followed by 30.3 percent who cited family reasons and 19.4 percent for employment.
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stream of business. “ A real estate agent To build her client base, she can t look like they re reconnected with old friends and colleagues, and developed new new to town. Pay attention, relationships through social groups read local newspapers and like Meetup.com, which allowed ask a lot of questions.” her to indulge her interests and meet people at the same time. “I — Karen Eddinger, CRS enjoy skiing and biking and have made many connections, and ultimately clients, through these average of two classes per week. activities,” Gillespie says. “If I don’t “I was used to knowing what I was have to be in the office doing doing because I had been licensed paperwork, I’m out meeting clients since 1973. When I moved to Seatfor coffee or dinner. Real estate tle, I felt like a new student all over is still a personal business, and again. There were so many things no matter how great technology I did not know, and I had to train is, personal connections are still myself,” Eddinger recalls. important,” she says. She got a job as an REO buyer’s Her CRS connections were also agent for a Keller Williams agency helpful. Not long after moving back and later volunteered with the local to Seattle, a CRS agent gave her a CRS chapter as an area rep. “Being referral after finding her profile in involved in professional associathe CRS online directory, and she tions helped me connect with other says she has received at least five agents,” says Eddinger. referrals from other CRSs since She also spent hours studymoving back to her hometown. ing the city’s history, geography, For agents who are considering neighborhoods and even the relocating, Gillespie advises them sports teams. “A real estate agent to focus on one or two things that can’t look like they’re new to town. they do well. “It’s easy to get overPay attention, read local newspawhelmed with all the things you pers and ask a lot of questions,” think you should do. Focus on one Eddinger advises. Despite the thing that you excel at, whether it challenges, she says relocating to is blogging, networking or video Seattle was an incredible oppormarketing. You can’t do everything.” tunity that reinvigorated her real Gillespie says. estate career. It takes courage, patience and Re-Educate Yourself perseverance to uproot your entire After relocating to Seattle in 2009, life when moving to a new city. But Karen Eddinger, CRS, with RE/MAX REALTORS® who are willing to on the Lake, has completely adjusted work hard to build their network, to her new lifestyle. After she left her market themselves and implement hometown of St. Louis to be closer their business plan can find sucto her daughter who was starting cess, no matter where they choose a family, it took Eddinger nearly a to plant roots. year to close up her business and sell her home, learn the Seattle housing Regina Ludes is a freelance writer based in market and get licensed in the state Chicago. of Washington. Learn more about how to build a new Eddinger began the rebuilding business by taking Business Planning and Marketing for the Residential Specialist (CRS process by immersing herself in 200). Visit crs.com/education for details. real estate education, taking an
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resources for learning & leisure
GOOD READS
TWILIGHT OF THE
brands
Our new ‘socially intensive information environment’ lets consumers more accurately predict the actual experienced quality of goods and services before they purchase them. Reviewed by Allan Fallow
Absolute Value is a relatively turgid book, but there’s one section in it every REALTOR® absolutely must read: In Chapter 13, “The Future of the Absolute,” co-authors Itamar Simonson and Emanuel Rosen retrace the creative thinking that led to the birth of three especially innovative websites — Farecast, ABSOLUTE VALUE GoodGuide and What Really Influences Zillow. Realizing they Customers in the Age were utterly in the of (Nearly) Perfect dark about certain Information common aspects of by Itamar Simonson life, the developers and Emanuel Rosen, of these sites crafted HarperCollins, “technological flash232 pages, $27.99 lights” that enabled them to illuminate such formerly dark corners as the best time to buy a plane ticket, the safety of various household products and the
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probable value of houses for sale. In the case of Zillow, write Simonson and Rosen, co-developers Richard Barton and Lloyd Frink were both in the market for new homes and therefore “struggling to figure out how much they should be paying for the houses they saw.” Barton and Frink collected comparable sales figures from a website run by their local county government, then entered those into a spreadsheet and “started analyzing how much the houses they were considering were actually worth.” Over time, the two men expanded and extended that exercise into the website Zillow.com, which today estimates the “price of a house or an apartment based on recent transactions in a neighborhood.”
The Information Age
I don’t normally read the sourcing notes to a book as academic in nature as Absolute Value, but in the case of Zillow, I’m glad I did: They reveal a finding by Steven Levitt
and Chad Syverson that “homes owned by real estate agents sell for about 3.7 percent more than other houses.” The source notes also pointed me to a YouTube video about the genesis of Zillow (whose cited URL has unhelpfully expired), as well as to a Bloomberg Businessweek article on “Why Redfin, Zillow, and Trulia Haven’t Killed Off Real Estate Brokers.” If you find yourself grappling with some of the larger forces that Simonson and Rosen detail in Absolute Value, such as the new primacy (some would say tyranny) of online reviews, two working papers cited by the co-authors may help you articulate your value proposition to prospective buyers — or simply reassure you of the contributions you bring to the table: 1) “Do Real Estate Brokers Add Value When Listing Services Are Unbundled?” (nber.org/papers/ w13796.pdf) 2) “Market Distortions When Agents Are Better Informed: The
Value of Information in Real Estate Transactions.” (nber.org/papers/ w11053) Remarkably for a book that spends so much time dissecting the dramatic rise of crowd-sourcing, social media and interpersonal influence — and the concomitant rapid decline of product branding, loyalty and positioning — the authors’ Zillow case study has a happy(ish) ending: “[P]eople have not stopped using real estate agents with the rise of Zillow and similar services. Despite the fact that brokers can be expensive[,] sellers still want the hand-holding, assistance, assurance and expertise of brokers. The same is true for buyers who usually want help negotiating such a big transaction. However, the nature of real estate decision-making has clearly changed in the past few years. Buyers are much more informed and less susceptible to certain influences than they used to be 10 years ago.” But it’s not merely in the realm of real estate that today’s buyers are increasingly impervious to those “certain influences.” Simonson (a Stanford marketing professor) and Rosen (author of The Anatomy of Buzz) explain how the instant availability of peer reviews about personal electronics, for example, allowed an upstart Taiwanese laptop company named ASUS to reach fifth place in worldwide PC shipments in 2012. They toss off the startling statistic that 30 percent of U.S. consumers now begin their online-purchase research at Amazon. And they cite a Nielsen survey of 28,000 Internet users in 56 nations, which revealed that online customer reviews have become the second-most-trusted source of information about consumer products. (The first-most-trusted source? Personal recommendations from family and friends.)
Knowledge Is Power
YO U M I G H T A L S O L I K E …
The upshot of all this is not just better decisions by consumers, but faster ones, too. The stark jump in a buyer’s ability to assess the absolute value of a product — what the co-authors somewhat pedantically dub “the acceleration of uncertainty resolution” — has sped up not only the adoption, but also the rejection, of new goods and services. I can’t dispute the authors’ arguments about the plummeting power of brand equity and traditional marketing messages. I simply wish they had used many more real-world examples — and far less discussion of research methodologies and customer segmentation — to make their points. Despite having been drawn to Absolute Value by James Surowiecki’s admiring take on the book in The New Yorker, I turned its last page feeling like I could have stopped reading after this crystal-clear statement of the authors’ purpose in just the third paragraph: “Review sites, shopping apps on smartphones, an extended network of acquaintances available through social media, and unprecedented access to experts and other sources all mean that many consumers today operate in a radically different, socially intensive information environment. In a world where consumers enjoy complete access to informed experts and various information services, where they can instantly read the opinions of previous users, it’s much easier for consumers to predict their likely experience with a product or a service — it’s easier to know the absolute value of things.”
THE ORGANIZED MIND: THINKING STRAIGHT IN THE AGE OF INFORMATION OVERLOAD by Daniel J. Levitin [Dutton Adult] 512 pages $ 17.60/hardcover The author examines brain science to suggest new methods for managing the way you deal with information. THE VIRGIN WAY: EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT LEADERSHIP by Richard Branson [Portfolio Hardcover] 352 pages $ 18.94/hardcover Richard Branson shares lessons learned from over 40 years of building Virgin Group. ESSENTIALISM: THE DISCIPLINED PURSUIT OF LESS by Greg McKeown [Crown Business] 272 pages $ 12.73/hardcover Why doing less may allow you to be more productive. TALK LIKE TED: THE 9 PUBLIC-SPEAKING SECRETS OF THE WORLD’S TOP MINDS by Carmine Gallo [St. Martin’s Press] 288 pages $ 13.43/hardcover Advice on public speaking from people who have presented at TED, a renowned forum for presentations about new and innovative ideas.
Allan Fallow is a magazine writer and book editor in Alexandria, Virginia. You can follow him on Twitter @TheFallow.
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G E T T I N G AWAY F R O M I T A L L
resources for learning & leisure
winter
WONDERLANDS As the holidays approach, many people are making plans for a winter family vacation. Whether you choose to visit sun and sand or snow and ice, these popular destinations and book ideas might help you make it through a long winter.
1
KAUAI HAWAII
gohawaii.com/kauai
This is the oldest of the Hawaiian Islands, geologically speaking, and it’s known as “Hawaii’s Island of Discovery.” From the beaches on the south shore near Poipu to the rugged Waimea Canyon and the lush Napali Coast, it offers something for everyone.
2
sanibel-captiva.org
This vacation destination in the Gulf of Mexico near Fort Myers offers the classic SANNIBEL winter getaway activities: ISLAND golf, tennis, fishing, biking, FLORIDA snorkeling, boating and, of course, the beach.
3
BANFF ALBERTA, CANADA banff.ca
Nestled in the Canadian Rockies near Calgary, Banff offers the fun that many winter-weather fans love: skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, snowshoeing and more.
4
SEDONA ARIZONA
visitsedona.com
Just 120 miles north of Phoenix, Sedona is home to remarkable red sandstone formations whose appearance changes as the sun rises and sets. Hiking and biking trails abound.
5
vilaswi.com
Cross-country skiing, ice fishing, sledding and snowmobiling draw people to the North Woods of Wisconsin every winter. It’s also within striking distance of Big Powderhorn Mountain, near Ironwood in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, which offers good (for the Midwest) downhill skiing.
VILAS COUNTY WISCONSIN
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YO U M I G H T A L S O L I K E …
INTO THE WILD By John Krakauer [Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group] 224 pages $ 9.75/paperback The true story of a young man who hitchhikes to Alaska and finds himself outmatched by the elements in the wilderness near Mt. McKinley. THE BULLY PULPIT By Doris Kearns Goodwin [Simon & Schuster] 912 pages $ 17.93/paperback The history of Roosevelt’s friendship with Taft and the muckraking press who pushed them for policy reforms.
THE CATCHER IN THE RYE By J.D. Salinger [Back Bay Books] 288 pages $ 8.29/paperback Winter is a central theme in this classic. After all, where do the ducks go when the pond in Central Park freezes? THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH By Ken Follett [Signet] 983 pages $ 5.99/paperback An epic tale about the construction of a massive cathedral in MiddleAges England.
inside
CRS news from the council
BUILDING
essential skills Take a CRS One-Day Essentials course before the new year
It’s never too late to brush up on the key skills you need to succeed in real estate. The Council of Residential Specialists’ new educational courses, CRS One-Day Essentials, focus on the key performance-related skills REALTORS® need to take their business to the next level. “Our goal was to create a program that would deliver education focused on skills and strategies critical for a real estate agent in their day-to-day business,” says Mary Beth Ciukaj, vice president of professional development at CRS. “The tactics and strategies taught in these courses deliver an immediate benefit to any agent, whether they are new to the business or a veteran CRS.”
The program’s three different courses are being held in locations across the country through December 2014. Check crs.com/ one-day-essentials for course locations, dates and registration. Frances Marcou, a REALTOR® who attended a CRS One-Day Essentials course in Nashville, Tennessee, says it was, “absolutely worth the time spent in the classroom.” Debbie Hewitt, CRS with Lifestyles Realty in Nashville, Tennessee, agrees. “Great information. I love taking CRS courses as I feel that the subject matter is always pertinent to what is going on in our real estate market.” Don’t miss your chance to take one of the One-Day Essentials Courses before you finalize your 2015 business plan.
Course 1 Converting Leads into Closings
Course content covers all aspects of a successful customer interaction experience — attraction, first contact, needs analysis, incubation, conversion, closing and beyond. Course 2
Win-Win Negotiation Techniques
Learn key strategies to help you identify the interests of another party in a negotiation, prepare for negotiations and create a game plan, and respond to any issues that may arise during a transaction.
REGISTER TODAY CRS Designees pay just $130 per course, while non-members pay $160. Bundled course pricing discounts can also save registrants 10 percent off two courses or 20 percent off three courses. Each course is eligible for eight CRS Education Course credits toward the CRS Designation. These eight-hour One-Day Essentials courses will run from approximately 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. with a onehour lunch break. (Lunch is not provided.) Exams will be administered on-site during the course. To register, call 800.462.8841 or visit crs. com/one-dayessentials.
Course 3 Building a Team to Grow Your Business
Learn strategies for delegating and outsourcing tasks to help agents focus on activities that make them the most money.
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inside
CRS
news from the council
GAINING
the edge
Sell-a-bration® will kick-start your year in Las Vegas
As you look ahead to 2015, what are you doing to help generate more business, build more relationships and close more deals? Sell-a-bration®, the Council’s annual education event, is a great place to start. Now is the time to make plans to join hundreds of your top-producing peers at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel and Casino Feb. 16 – 17, 2015. For nearly 30 years, Sell-a-bration® has brought together the best practitioners in residential real estate for topical educational sessions, excellent networking opportunities and professional camaraderie. Attendees leave the event armed with fresh ideas, valuable professional contacts and a renewed commitment to their business as they begin the New Year. The conference kicks off with a bang on Feb. 16. Noted real estate strategist, visionary and best-selling author Stefan Swanepoel will open Sell-a-bration® with a keynote speech, The Future of Real Estate. He will focus on explaining and demystifying the change, innovation, threats and
REGISTRATION PRICING CRS DESIGNEES/MEMBERS Standard Rate $ 599
NON-MEMBERS Standard Rate $ 649
Group Rates are also available.
CRS will hold a one-day, pre-event educational program on Feb. 15. Pricing for the eight-hour course is: CRS MEMBERS NON-MEMBERS $ $ 130 160
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For information about Sell-abration® 2015 and to register, visit crs.com/ events/sella-bration, or call customer service at 800.462.8841.
“ I LOVED THE REFERRAL WORKSHOP. I HAD ALMOST AN ENTIRE NOTEBOOK FILLED WITH NOTES FROM THE EVENT.”
opportunities that face REALTORS® as they return to the event year after year. Attenbuild successful careers. dance at both days of the event also makes Swanepoel is a leading expert in the real agents eligible for 16 CRS Education credestate industry. He has been an agent; a its toward the CRS Designation. broker/owner; president of a global real estate “I loved the referral workshop. I had franchise; a REALTOR® association executive; almost an entire notebook filled with an MLS president; a dot-com CEO; and a connotes from the event,” says Dawn Kent, sultant to hundreds of real estate companies. CRS, of Coldwell Banker in Greenville, “We encourage agents to seize upon this Wisconsin, who attended Sell-a-bration® opportunity to learn from one of the real —Dawn Kent, CRS 2014. “They were all amazing speakers; estate industry’s most knowledgeable and they far exceeded what I expected!” dynamic speakers,” said Tony Priore, CRS vice president of Maytha Shaffer, CRS, an independent broker/owner in marketing and communications. Swanepoel will also provide San Diego, also attended the 2014 event. “As a new CRS a special Real Estate Trends summary in a PDF format that Designee, it was my first Sell-a-bration®, and I thought it was will be distributed to all attendees. awesome — very educational and enlightening. The speakers Sell-a-bration® 2015 will have more than 30 educational were all so different and gave a suggestion or idea for every opportunities — all focused on one task: to help you “gain type of personality.” the edge” on your competitors. You’ll learn from top industry Smart REALTORS® know that education and networking experts who will introduce you to best practices that can can improve their improve your business now and in the future. The conferfortunes as they strive For more information about ence will also feature an expanded exhibit hall where you to serve their customSell-a-bration® sponsorship and exhibiting opportunities, can gain first-hand experience with the products and serers better and win new contact Stephanie Crain, CRS vices our sponsors offer. Sponsors include RealPro Systems business. There’s no director of business development, at 312.321.4452 or and Cutco Closing Gifts. better place to do that scrain@crs.com. Sell-a-bration® has proven so valuable that many attendees than at Sell-a-bration®.
www.wcr.org
CRS
connect expand your network
YOUR CRS
network
Kimo Smigielski, a CRS with Sandwich Isles Realty CONNECTION in Honolulu, focuses on working with clients in East PERFECTION Oahu, but after 24 years in business he found that some of his clients needed referrals elsewhere on the island. “In order to service my clients to the highest and best standards that I give all of my clients, I decided to reach out to a fellow CRS that focuses on West Oahu. Going through the CRS directory, I found Shelly Nakasone, CRS, with RE/MAX Honolulu, and reached out to her to see if we would be a good fit for each other,” Smigielski says. “After emails and phone conversations with Shelly, I found myself to be truly blessed to have her as a referral for all of my clients that need a West Oahu specialist,” Smigielski says. “We have successfully closed on one transaction together and we are currently working together with another client.”
SOUTH
SOUTH
MIDWEST Welcome to the tranquil beauty of the
BLACK HILLS of SOUTH DAKOTA Proud home of
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE
RAPID CITY, SD
Duane Hosek, CRS
Honest-Skilled-Motivated-Full Time
605-391-8424
duanehosek@gmail.com www.duanehosek.com
SOUTH
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Leading the way in South Florida Real Estate
Gary Lanham President & Broker CRS, CIPS, ABR, ePRO 954.530.8198
www.lanhamassociates.com
SOUTH
SOUTH
SOUTH
ABR, CRS, SRES, GRI, CDPE
Lance Jason Broker Owner
www.BocaRatonCondoFinder.com
Re/Max Premier offices in
Realty For Baby Boomers, LLC
Ashburn, Fairfax and Leesburg
561-290-9866
Direct: 703-999-6535 Office: 571-210-SELL
lisacromwell@remax.net www.LisaCromwell.com
Specializing in Greater Boca Raton Ocean Front Condominiums.
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Serving Northern Virginia and the Dulles Tech corridor
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WEST
WEST
WEST
Selling Lake Tahoe, NV for 25 years.
Craig Zager I Love Referrals! Sell phone: 775.901.4663 craig@CraigZager.com
www.LakeTahoeAgent.com
WEST
NORTHEAST
CANADA
Your referral source for the greater
Pittsburgh
area
I help clients make the Wright move Nancy Wright, ABR, CRS, GRI
RE/MAX Realty Brokers 5608 Wilkins Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15217 OFS: 412-521-1000 x170 CELL: 412-508-0040 nancywright@remax.net
CRS
CLASSROOM COURSES
CRS 103 — Mastering Positive Change in Today’s World
CRS classroom courses earn either eight credits (for 100-level, one-day courses) or 16 credits (for 200-level, two-day courses) toward the CRS Designation. CRS courses listed below take place from Nov 10, 2014 – Dec. 31, 2014. For more up-todate listings, visit crs.com.
CRS 120 — Converting Leads Into Closings
CRS 121 — Win-Win Negotiation Techniques
NOV. 20 — HERNDON, VA. [Virginia CRS Chapter]
NOV. 12 — ORLANDO, FLA. [CRS]
NOV. 12 — DALLAS [CRS]
800.462.8841
Instructor: Mike Selvaggio, CRS, CCIM
800.462.8841
(804) 264-5033
NOV. 19 — MADISON, WIS. [CRS]
NOV. 12 — ORLANDO, FLA. [CRS]
800.462.8841
800.462.8841
Instructor: Mark Given, CRS
Instructor: Chandra Hall, CRS
Instructor: Chandra Hall, CRS
Instructor: Mike Selvaggio, CRS
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CRS
connect expand your network
CRS
CRS 200 — Business Planning and Marketing
CLASSROOM COURSES
NOV. 17–18 — BRENTWOOD, TENN. [Williamson County Association of REALTORS®]
NOV. 12–13 — SPRINGFIELD, MO. [Greater Springfield Board of REALTORS®]
615.771.6845
417.883.1226
NOV. 18 — ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. [CRS] 800.462.8841
Instructor: Mike Selvaggio, CRS, CCIM DEC. 4 — SAN DIEGO [CRS]
Instructor: Robert Morris, CRS, CRB NOV. 19–20 — INDEPENDENCE, OHIO [Cleveland Area Board of REALTORS®] 216.901.0130
Instructor: Chuck Bode, CRS
800.462.8841
Instructor: Lee Barrett, CRS CRS 122 — Building a Team to Grow Your Business NOV. 20 — HOUSTON [CRS]
CRS 201 — Listing Strategies NOV. 17–18 — MEMPHIS, TENN. [Memphis Area Association of REALTORS®] 901.685.2100
Instructor: Jackie Leavenworth, CRS
800.462.8841
Instructor: Lee Barrett, CRS
DEC. 8–9 — ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. Triple Play REALTOR® Convention [New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania Associations of REALTORS®]
DEC. 2 — SAN ANTONIO [CRS] 800.462.8841
Instructor: Chandra Hall, CRS
888.818.4922
Instructor: Jackie Leavenworth, CRS
CRS 202 — Effective Buyer Sales Strategies
Instructor: Rich Sands, CRS CRS 210 — Building an Exceptional Customer Service Referral Business NOV. 12–13 — BATON ROUGE, LA. [Greater Baton Rouge Association of REALTORS®] 225.761.2000
Instructor: Ed Hatch, CRS, CRB NOV. 17–18 — HEMET, CALIF. [Southern California CRS Chapter] and [Southwest Riverside County Association of Realtors] 951.894.2571
Instructor: Mark Given, CRS NOV. 18–19 — BELLEVUE, WASH. [Washington CRS Chapter] 866.556.5277
Instructor: Frank Serio, CRS, CRB
Elective Courses Elective courses vary in length and credits earned toward the CRS Designation. Please visit the CRS website for details at crs.com.
STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULATION The Residential Specialist (USPS# 021-699, ISSN# 1539-7572) is published (bi-monthly) six times a year by the Council of Residential Specialists. The annual subscription price is $29.95. The mailing address of both the publication and the publisher is Council of Residential Specialists, 430 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60611-4092. The publisher is the Council of Residential Specialists, and the Editor is Michael Fenner. The owner of the publication is the Council of Residential Specialists. There were 29,824 copies of The Residential Specialist published in September/October 2014; the average for the preceding 12 months was 31,611. The paid/ requested outside-county mail subscriptions
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for the September/October issue were 28,338; the average for the preceding 12 months was 29,625. 461 free copies were distributed by mail in September/October, and the average number of free copies distributed during the preceding 12 months was 838. 1,025 copies of the September/ October issue were distributed outside the mail (to classes, membership kits, etc.), and the average number of free copies distributed outside the mail for the preceding 12 months was 1,148. 300 copies of the magazine were not distributed in September/October (office use, leftovers), and an average of 300 copies were not distributed from issues in the preceding 12 months. The percent paid/ requested circulation in September/October 2014 was 95.9 percent, and for the preceding 12 months it was 94.6 percent.
HELP REPORT DESIGNATION MISUSE
The CRS Designation is one of the most prestigious in the real estate industry, and CRS Designees work hard to achieve it. It indicates to buyers and sellers — and to fellow REALTORS® — that agents adhere to the highest standards of professionalism in the industry and are committed to continuing their education. To protect the integrity of the Designation, the Council encourages Designees to report any suspected misuse of the Designation to the Council. Whether a case of misuse is an honest mistake or a deliberate misrepresentation, the Council takes every offense seriously, as does NAR. Its Code of Ethics prohibits REALTORS® from misrepresenting their status as members or Designees of NAR’s Institutes, Societies or Councils. If a REALTOR® is found to be misusing the Designation, chapters can take that member to the grievance committee of their local board. “CRS Designees are held to a higher standard than the typical REALTOR®, so the Council works hard to protect the Designation that they worked so hard to obtain,” says Colleen McMahon, CRS vice president of member and volunteer services. To find out if another agent has the right to use the CRS Designation, use the “Find a CRS” tool on www.CRS.com to see if they are a current Designee. If you believe an agent is misusing the CRS Designation, please contact crshelp@crs.com or call customer service at 1.800.462.8841.
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SHARE YOUR EXPERTISE
Would you like to be a source for a future story in The Residential Specialist? Send an email to mfenner@crs.com to be added to our potential source list. To see a list of topics we’ll be covering, check out the magazine’s 2015 editorial calendar online at crs.com.
[resources]
reach out to the experts who made this issue happen
PERSONALIZE, REPRODUCE AND MAIL THIS NEWSLETTER TO YOUR CLIENTS
EDIT Living for the City Melinda Estridge, CRS The Estridge Group Long & Foster Realtors
Taking the Plunge Courtney Phelps, CRS Reilly Realtors
courtney@reillyrealtors.com
info@estridgegroup.com
Katie Hesse, CRS Coldwell Banker West Shell
katie@katiehesse.com
Sher Powers, CRS Urbane Residential Specialists, LLC spowers@realtracs.com
Cari Shane Sasse Agency
Peggy Bouchard RE/MAX Commonwealth
peggy@peggybouchard.com
Rosemary Reed RE/MAX Crossroads
ro@RealtorRo.com
Betty D. Kerr, CRS HomeSmart Professionals
bettydkerr@gmail.com
carishanedc@gmail.com
Leave YOUR HOME as is, or personalize the newsletter by adding your photo, logo, address and phone number to the mailing panel.* You can also substitute any article in the newsletter with one of your own. Edit the newsletter e lectronically by downloading the Microsoft Word version at crs.com/ yourhomenewsletter. PLEASE NOTE: The images featured in the YOUR HOME newsletter may only be used within the PDF version of the newsletter. These images may not be reproduced or republished elsewhere outside of this newsletter format. CRS members are free to re-use the text of the articles contained in the newsletter, however.
REPRODUCE
Do it yourself with your office copier, or take the newsletter or electronic file (in addition to your photograph and any information you want inserted) to a printer who can prepare and reproduce the newsletter for you.
DISTRIBUTE
Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Change of Scene
dedecarney@kw.com
Karen.eddinger@gmail.com
Dede Carney, CRS, Keller Williams Realty
Karen Eddinger, CRS RE/MAX On The Lake
Al Allegue, CRS Pinnacle Real Estate Group
Linda LaFleur, CRS Howard Hanna Real Estate
Michael Zarou, CRS, Latter & Blum,
Darci Gillespie, CRS Windermere Real Estate/Northwest, Inc.
Betty D. Kerr, CRS HomeSmart Professionals
Arlene J. Kelly, CRS Ola Properties
al@alndee.com
mzarou@latterblum.com.
BettyDKerr@gmail.com.
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LindaLaFleur@howardhanna.com
darci@windermere.com
Arlene@olaproperties.com
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MAIL. If you photocopy YOUR HOME or use it “as is,” please note that it is designed to be folded in a Z fold with the words YOUR HOME facing out on one side and the mailing panel facing out on the other side. Postal regulations require that Z folds have three closures (tabs or tape) — one on top in the center and two on the bottom. For your convenience, we have placed asterisks (*) where the closures should be. Be sure to check with your local mailer or post office to make sure you have prepared your mailings properly. ELECTRONIC FILE. Attach the customized newsletter file to an email to your clients or create a Web link to the file on your website. Consult your webmaster or technician to make sure the file is prepared correctly for these purposes, since these basic instructions will vary by person and system. * This newsletter is for the exclusive use of CRS members.
your *
home N O V/ D E C 2 014
Tips and tre nd s for homeow ners, buyers and sellers
HOLIDAY staging tips
You may be trying to sell your home during the festive holiday season, but that doesn’t mean you have to forgo the holiday decorations completely. Just don’t overdo it, say the staging experts at Frontdoor.com. Instead, stick to a few simple decorative touches, such as a pinecone centerpiece or an evergreen wreath. Avoid religious themed decorations, which may turn off potential buyers. Avoid using decorations that might clash with your current color scheme. For example, if the décor in the living room is
blue, silver and white, choose accessories that complement that color scheme, such as blue glass ornaments and silver or white candles. Use accessories to draw attention to the home’s best features. Hang a few tasteful ornaments from the mantel to showcase an elegant fireplace or hang an evergreen garland around the bay window. Keep inflatable characters in storage while your home is on the market. Instead, use simple string lighting to showcase a fir tree in your front yard. Make your home extra inviting by lighting a fire in the fireplace or turning up the heat a couple of degrees on chilly days. Offer tasty treats like hot apple cider and fresh-baked cookies to create a welcoming environment. With a little creativity and common sense, you can enjoy the holidays while trying to sell your home.
THE HEAT IS ON
As the weather gets cooler, it’s a good time to check your HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) system to make sure it’s operating properly. While it’s wise to have your HVAC inspected by a heating professional every fall and spring, you can increase the efficiency of your system by following these simple maintenance tips from American Home Shield.
Now: Use a high-efficiency pleated filter with an electrostatic charge
that works like a magnet to grab the tiniest particles. Replace the filter every 90 days and check it monthly. If it looks dark and clogged, change it, and if you have pets, you may need to change it more often. Keep the air-conditioning unit free of leaves, pollen, grass or branches that can interfere with its future efficiency. Make sure there is at least two feet of space cleared around outdoor units.
Monthly or Seasonally: Inspect the insulation and
refrigerant lines monthly. Before winter sets in, replace the humidifier filter and turn on the water.
Annually: Replace the battery in the car-
bon monoxide detector. Walk around the exterior of the house and check that outdoor AC units and heat pumps are on firm and level ground. Pour one cup of bleach mixed with water down the AC condensate drain to prevent a buildup of mold and algae, which can clog the drain.
Always: Keep at least 20 percent of a home’s registers
open to avoid putting unnecessary strain on the HVAC system. Following these simple tips can prolong the life of your HVAC system and help you be prepared for whatever the winter season may bring.
BROUGH T T O Y OU B Y Y OUR A GEN T, A MEMBER OF T HE C OUNCIL OF RE SIDEN T I A L SPECI A L IS T S
Tips and trends for homeowners, buyers and sellers
heart-healthy
NEIGHBORHOODS
Living in a friendly neighborhood may be good for your heart, according to a recent study by psychologists at the University of Michigan. In fact, the more social connections you have among your neighbors, the less likely you are to die from a heart attack. The study analyzed the social connections of more than 5,000 adults in urban, suburban and rural areas over a fouryear period. Researchers controlled for factors like age, race, income, marital status, education, mental health, optimism and other known health-risk factors associated with heart attacks, such as diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure. By the end of the four years, 148 of the individuals studied had suffered a heart attack. Maintaining friendly relationships with your neighbors may be good for your health because neighbors are more likely to check on each other and notice any potential health problems, share resources and health information, and lend money. They can also offer emotional support, which can be a buffer during times of stress.
OV
E REFER RA LS!
IL
SAY YES TO CRS EQUAL HOUSING
Conversely, other studies have shown that negative aspects of a neighborhood can have a detrimental effect on a person’s health. For example, living in areas with violence, noise, poor air quality and access to too many fast food restaurants can have a negative impact on a person’s health. Further, a study at the University of Pennsylvania finds that living in areas with abandoned buildings can lead to isolation and hamper social relationships, which can lead to poor physical health of residents who live nearby. Being helpful and neighborly is not only good for your health, it’s good for the health of the neighborhood.
Buying or selling a home can seem like an overwhelming task. But the right REALTOR® can make the process easier — and more profitable. A Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), with years of experience and success, will help you make smart decisions in a fast-paced, complex and competitive marketplace. To earn the CRS Designation, REALTORS® must demonstrate outstanding professional achievements — including high-volume sales — and pursue advanced training in areas such as finance, marketing and technology. They must also maintain membership in the National Association of REALTORS® and abide by its Code of Ethics. Work with a REALTOR® who belongs in the top 3 percent of the nation. Contact a CRS today.
DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO IS THINKING ABOUT BUYING OR SELLING A HOME? PLEASE MENTION MY NAME. This newsletter is for informational purposes only and should not be substituted for legal or financial advice. If you are currently working with another real estate agent or broker, it is not a solicitation for business.
OPPORTUNITY
*
*
CRS Webinars
Hundreds tuned in to snag great tips and techniques from these best-selling CRS webinars. It's not too late for you. ALL of our webinars are recorded and available on demand. Watch them wherever you want, whenever you want! Visit www.crs.com/webinar-rec to see our full library of on demand webinars.
PRICING PER RECORDED WEBINAR: CRS Designees . . . . . . $10 CRS Candidates . . . . . . $15 Non-Members . . . . . . . $20
ON DEMAND
ask a
CRS advice from your peers
Q:
YO U R B U S I N E S S
What are you doing professionally to distinguish yourselves from others?
“ Being a CRS and letting others know about it. There is no better time than now to promote the designations you have. A lot of agents have trimmed back on expenses by not paying dues. Use [your Designation] to your advantage.” Matt Yeager, CRS Key Realty Columbus, Ohio MattYeager@Realtor.com
“ I belong to a group called Cyber Professionals. We meet twice a year and exchange ideas on the latest and greatest in the business of real estate. Great group, great ideas.” Bunny Mostad, CRS Coldwell Banker Westport, Connecticut bunny@bunnymostad.com
“ I’ve been doing a weekly real estate radio talk show for nearly 20 years on a local station … it totally separates me from the pack. Our local newspaper offered me a real estate column, which appears in the local Sunday paper. I get a whole page and have been having fun sharpening my old journalism skills learned at college eons ago!” Mike Kelly, CRS Keller Williams Realty Santa Rosa, California mike@mikekelly.com
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ATTN: DESIGNEES EXPAND YOUR REFERRAL OPPORTUNITIES
PLACE YOUR ONLINE DIRECTORY ORDER TODAY! Purchase additional city listings and banner ads to increase your exposure in the number one place where CRS Designees find their referrals — the FIND A CRS Directory at CRS.com.
ADDITIONAL CITY LISTINGS – $25
5 NEW banner templates just added
BANNER ADS – $250 Be a featured agent for a specific city search with a banner ad that links to your website. Create and upload your own banner for $250 or choose from a number of pre-designed ads for an additional $50.
.
.
As a CRS Designee, you get one complimentary listing in your office city, but you can dramatically increase your odds of being found in the online directory by ordering additional city listings for $25 each.
SECURE YOUR SPACE NOW! Log into your CRS account at crs.com and select the link in the right sidebar that reads, “Place Your Online Directory Order Today.” For questions, call Customer Service at 800.462.8841 or email us at crshelp@crs.com.
.
All online directory listings and banner ads will run for one year from the date they are posted. If more than one designee purchases a banner ad in the same city, the ads will rotate, so each designee receives equal exposure. You will receive a reminder email when your additional city listing or banner ad is ready for renewal.
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.
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ONLY THE BEST RISE TO THE TOP To get ahead, you must find ways to continually add value to your business, and Sell-a-bration 2015 is designed to help you do just that.
REGISTER NOW
速
Attend this live, 2-day premiere event, and you will learn essential skills and proven strategies that will help you gain the edge over your competition. Choose from over 30 educational sessions led by industry experts. Work the crowds to make connections with your colleagues. Explore our exhibit hall to get insights into the tools and products that can improve your business practices.
After Early bird 11/10 pricing ends 11/10
CRS members . . . . $575 Non-members . . . . $625
$599 $649
Don't forget to register for our preconference one-day course on Feb. 15 CRS members . . . . . . . . . . . $130 Non-members . . . . . . . . . . . $160
Register at crs.com/sellabration Additional discounts for groups of 5 or more! Call 800.462.8841 for special pricing.
FEBRUARY 16 - 17, 2015
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PARIS LAS VEGAS LAS VEGAS, NEVADA