Adapted from Radar via Babyrazzi | Suri Cruise + Maddox Pitt-Jolie
Today’s brats youth will one day become your future home buyer and home seller clients. Well, duh! But what does this have to do with what real estate agents should be doing today? Well, it got me thinking about my first experiences in the real estate market about a decade ago. Whoa. That sounds so long ago. Anyways……
Real Estate pro Vicki Moore, from San Mateo says, “The issue with speaking to any buyer is that an agency relationship may be created. As soon as a conversation with a buyer about a particular house becomes substantive, that agent is creating an agency relationship with that buyer. The agent is now legally liable for any information that is given to that buyer and now the agent has put them self at risk for being sued.”
Guy brings up an interesting question. From my prior experience as a real estate agent and broker in Manhattan, I would always ask if the buyer was being represented by an agent. If so, I would kindly ask them to have their agent contact me with those questions. As an agent, how do you handle this situation?
Today we added video commenting functionality to theTrulia blog. If you have a webcam, it’s a fun way to make your comment come to life. Text comments can be interpreted in many different ways. Often times, a reader may misinterpret the authors tone or message. In turn, they may leave a not so pleasant comment which can lead to a huge misunderstanding. We all know what can happen in this situation - real estate blog wars. So, can a video comment help make the dialogue more efficient and fun? I’m not sure but we’ll give it a try. Will you?
At Trulia we are always excited about new ways of visualizing data and have developed many applications, such as our Heat Maps, consumer real estate searches, Street View and of course Trulia Hindsight. In case you haven’t seen it, Trulia Hindsight is a unique way to visualize the building of cities via animations using the year properties were built to show the growth of streets, neighborhoods and cities over time.
It’s always nice when you find others who share the same passion for data visualization and mapping. We are extremely proud to have Trulia Hindsight selected to be included in the Intermedia Arts and Solutions Twin Cities exhibit W(e are) here: Mapping the Human Experience.
The multi-media exhibit allows people to explore data and information through rich visualization. Intermedia Arts explains the purpose of the exhibit as:
“Recent developments in technology are expanding the ways we communicate the concept of “where.” Online mapping and info-graphic applications are allowing artists, amateurs, and armchair cartographers to chart the intangibility of “place,” etching their own impressions, emotions, and experiences onto the physical world around them. Embracing this new paradigm, the artists in this exhibit are charting unique territories while working towards the development of an emerging visual language that connects place, moment, and emotion across varied scales. Where is expanding. W(e are )here.”
Here is what the Trulia Hindsight exhibit looks like:
In case you can’t see the screen in the photo, here is a close up video:
A big thanks for the folks at Intermedia Arts for including us and to Stamen Design who were instrumental in creating Trulia Hindsight and the Hindsight exhibit. If you are in Minneapolis, MN be sure to stop by and check it out. And for those of you who can’t make it to Minneapolis, you can always check out the online version of Trulia Hindsight.
Posted by Jamie, vp of product · April 23, 2008, 15:04 ·
Comments (3) »
Jennifer is a home buyer and seller on Trulia Voices who is thinking about becoming a real estate agent. She wants to know if now is the right time to get into the business and what skills she will need in order to succeed. These are fantastic questions with no magic bullet answers. I’ll share some my thoughts on this and if you’d like to add yours too that would be great.
So is it a good time to get into the real estate business? From my perspective, I don’t have a clear answer to that question. Just too many variables involved. It’s almost like asking, “How is the weather in the U.S. today?” It really depends on where your standing doesn’t it? So, what I’d like to do is share 3 tips that I learned when I entered the real estate business.
1. Spread the word - Before you even start taking your real estate classes, make sure you tap into your existing sphere of influence. Let everyone you know that you will be getting your real estate license soon. This includes informing all the people and businesses in your local neighborhood. You never know who might be in the market to buy or sell. This will prime your pipeline up and help you get a jump start. Because let’s face it, before you can become a superstar agent, you need to get your feet wet. Working with people that you or your sphere know will help you get over those awkward “green” agent hiccups a lot easier. This worked for me when I first started and it can work for you too.
2. Educate yourself - Research the brokerage models that are available in your local market. Don’t join the first one you see. Whether you choose a mom and pop operation or a national big box brand, find out what they can offer you and create a business plan. Then, make sure you have a mentor within your office that will help you learn the ropes. Watch them closely. Absorb everything they do and say. Let it simmer. Then digest. Apply what you feel comfortable with into your routine. Regardless, having a mentor is priceless. You will be amazed on what that course textbook did not teach you. Don’t get me wrong. By all means, continue to read real estate, marketing and technology books and trade publications. Knowledge is power. The more you know, the better you will be able to serve your clients.
3. Have some reserves - Don’t expect to be bringing home the bacon overnight. The real estate cycle is not an expeditious one by any means. You can go months before you generate any income. First you have to find a buyer and seller to work with. Then find a home for your buyer or a buyer for your seller. Then get into contract. Inspections. Etc……You know what I’m saying, right? So, depending on your financial situation and local market, make sure you have at between 3-9 months of cash in the stash. You need to live and take care of yourself and your family before you can take care of others.
Bonus:
Get Social - Home buyers, sellers and agents are online. They are having a two way conversation with each other. Engage them or someone else will. More on this in a follow up post….
Posted by Rudy, Social Media Guru · April 23, 2008, 12:04 ·
Comments (13) »
We meet great agents at every event we attend. When we met Coldwell Banker Previews International agent Richard Rawdin at the Coldwell Banker annual convention, we were especially impressed with his market knowledge and success. And when we learned that he’s only a couple years into working professionally as a real estate agent, we had to ask to ask him how he’s done it. (SPOILER ALERT: online marketing works!)
Luckily Richard was kind enough to sit down with us and let us film the conversation. To see his insight about what helps him be successful in the competitive Hamptons real estate market, check out the video!
Posted by Katie, marketing specialist · April 22, 2008, 04:04 ·
No comment »
If you’re a home buyer and have been wondering if now is a good time to buy, then this is the thread for you. We have home buyers, home sellers, renters and real estate agents all adding their 2 cents to the conversation. It’s quite informative as well as entertaining.
His question has received 107 comments thus far. Check out some of the comments within this massive thread below.
Chandler, a home buyer from Maryland said, “I’m a buyer in maryland, and I have learnt a lot from this thread. One new thing that I learnt was looking the futures. That was an excellent link and reasonable indicator of investor confidence.”
Roger, our very own housing bear offers 9 reasonable arguments for home ownership in a down market:
Good reasons to buy now:
You’ve found a house you absolutely love and you just have to have it.
You have a job or a hobby that would be well-served by structural changes to the average dwelling (say, a recording studio or a ceramic kiln or what have you), and you can’t do that with a rental.
Similar to (ii): you’re tired of rental white and you want to paint every wall in your home a different shade of chartreuse.
You have animals that make it difficult or prohibitively expensive to find a place to rent.
You’ve been evicted from an apartment during a condo conversion, and you don’t want that to happen again.
You can’t stand the uncertainty or interpersonal relations involved in having a landlord.
Gardening is your life and the only places available for that are single-family homes, which are very hard to find as rentals.
You want to run a business out of your home, with occasional client visits to your office, and most apartment buildings in your area prohibit that (I don’t know if this scenario ever happens, though).
You smoke and there’s a city ordinance against smoking in rentals; owning your home is the only legal way to indulge your filthy habit.
Real estate pro Paul Francis said, “There is an old saying with investors — “You Make Your Money When You Buy” and that’s true with real estate as well.”
Real estate pro Jer Collins said, “For most people Real Estate is a long term OWNERSHIP investment which goes through Cycles of ups and down similar to other investment markets.”
Zack is a home buyer who said, “I never believed in the “wealth is created in real estate mantra” until I bough a rental property and watched people write me checks every month for more than my mortgage payment on the place . Nothing more comforting than that - someone building equity for you. So go ahead and rent - you will make some landlord very happy - as rents in my area have probably gone up 10%+ over the past 24 months.”
Last Sunday, we visited an open house at 43 Love Lane in Brooklyn Heights, New York hosted by Adina Greenberg and Judy Sloate from Coldwell Banker Previews International. The idea was to capture a glimpse of what happens at an open house. The buyers showed up in force. Many traveling from Manhattan and other boroughs. Many people spoke to us but the majority were too shy to appear on film. Maybe next time we’ll be more lucky.
We had the opportunity to speak with John, the home seller, who was gracious enough to allow us to showcase his unique home. After hearing his personal reflections about living in the house and the neighborhood, it made the house feel much more homey to me. Every home and neighborhood has a story. John painted a perfect picture for me and I could envision what life would actually be like in that space.
Thanks to both Adina and Judy for allowing me to join them. They did a fantastic job with the buyers and were the consummate professionals. I know they had some interest in the home but no contracts have been signed yet. So if this home and neighborhood fall within your criteria, please give them a visit this Sunday as they will be holding another open house.
Best of luck to all.
Posted by Rudy, Social Media Guru · April 18, 2008, 16:04 ·
Comments (8) »
Webby Honorees, Nominees and Winners truly represent the best of the Web. They are but a small percentage of total entries and have been chosen by members of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences based on a number of creative and functional criteria.
Winning the Webby People’s Voice Award would be big time. It’s sort of like winning the People’s Choice Awards for the web…or even American Idol. We’re really pumped about the opportunity to win and we hope you are too.
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