On various socially-oriented portals such Trulia.com and ActiveRain.com, Realtors vie for business by trying to be the first to answer questions posed by buyers and sellers or by writing blogs. Others champion old ways, like hosting Sunday open houses where they can chat in person with prospective customers and convey the knowledge and enthusiasm that may lead to business. Others are Twittering. Still others are Door-Knocking. Those are but a few of ways that today's real estate agents and the public interact in a world full of choices.
As we all hunker down in this distressing economic climate and reach out for the familiar, the buyers and sellers among us are thinking more deeply about who they know and trust. We've all got the Bernie Madoff blues. Collectivelly, we're looking for people who won't deceive us, but will tell it like it is.
The lesson of the Madoff fiasco for those who lost their life savings is that what they were asking for -- money growing on trees -- was too good to be true. Many have even said so. But they did not think through the thought and were shocked when reality set in.
I read an interesting article recently in which Mark Lesswing, chief technology officer for The National Assn. of Realtors, predicts housing consumers will increasingly identify trust as a primary goal in their relationship with an agent -- reflecting what is happening in the world at large. "Households [already] keep lists of vendors they prefer to work with...compiled through direct experience or as referrals from friends," he says, and also predicts that gettting on the consumer's "good list," will prove key to a meaningful relationship. Vendor Relationship Management (VRM) is a two-way street well worth walking.
As a Realtor, I'm entrusted with advising sellers about preparing and pricing a home. I -- and I'm also speaking for my team of great agents -- adhere to the belief that honesty and truth are the best tonic to what ails us right now, in real estate and elsewhere. For our Team, the primary goal of VRM is to have the right mix of information and empathy to fit every client need and to filter it through the here and now.
Whom to choose when you are selling? You, Mr. Seller, have a number in your head and you say you need to get it. But is it real? Should you list with the Realtor who promises what is just not promisable, given market changes and buyer caution -- and reward him because he "loves the house" or "understands the house" -- concepts mostly based on estimating the highest listing price? Or, do you open yourself up to market trends and substitute the "need to get" number in order to get the real one without resorting to the lamentable position of chasing the market?
These days, when I offer a range in which a seller should feel confident about actually selling, the result is that the highest asking price is then inflated still more. Okay, I'm thinking to myself, is it worth it...and I don't mean worth it monetarily...to take that listing and, in time, start hacking it down? Will the seller be with me on this? Will stats and experience mean anything?
I've found, unfortunately, that the answer, right now, often is NO. She said: "Roberta, I've gotten every explanatory email you've sent, as well as your very nice phone messages explaining the realities of the market..." Okay, yes, I took a listing that in my heart I knew would never sell at that price. Rationale? Good visibility? Pretty house? Maybe get some buyers by having the listing? All told, just not worth it. After too few showings over too many months, where no amount of marketing, advertising, personal good will could move that property, we agreed to part. "We need to try something new," she said. And in my heart I knew -- knew I had done myself no favors.
As I said before: As a Realtor, I'm entrusted with advising sellers about preparing and pricing a home, with honesty and truth. Lesson learned.
