Dana Hollish's Blog

Did you hear it on the radio?

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 11:28:08 -0600

Happy New Year Buyer's Agents -

I am posting this question to all of you in hopes that someone in this group has found success on the radio. Particularly with spots that define EBAs and tell the listeners why they should use an EBA rather than any other agent. I thought I'd bring it here to see if there was anyone with a story to tell.

At the Buyer's Edge in Bethesda, Maryland, we are about to launch a radio campaign that defines and promotes Exclusive Buyer Agency. I hope to have success stories for you in the coming months.

I look forward to hearing about your successes (and failures) here so I can learn as much as I can before our launch.

Thanks,

Dana Hollish Hill

Did you hear it on the radio?

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 11:00:21 -0600

Happy New Year EBAs -

I am posting this question to all of you in hopes that someone in this group has found success on the radio. Particularly with spots that define EBAs and tell the listeners why they should use an EBA rather than any other agent. No one has responded to my requests on the NAEBA forums so I thought I'd bring it here to see if there was anyone with a story to tell.

At the Buyer's Edge in Bethesda, Maryland, we are about to launch a radio campaign that defines and promotes Exclusive Buyer Agency. I hope to have success stories for you in the coming months.

I look forward to hearing about your successes (and failures) here so I can learn as much as I can before our launch.

Thanks,

Dana Hollish Hill

You say McMansion, and I say Monster House...

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 11:16:32 -0600

One of my co-workers was trying to find out what terms other people are using when referring to McMansions and I thought this might be the perfect place to conduct a quick survey to see what kind of list we could generate. It might be interesting to see if different parts of the country have different terms,

I'll start and I hope you will add to my list.

McMansion, Hummer House, Monster House,..

Gas by Zip Code

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Fri, 23 May 2008 10:08:00 -0500

I received this info in an email and thought I would share it with my fellow agents. Driving clients to see homes has become very expensive. Maybe this will help.

Gas by Zip Code

This is pretty nifty. Just enter your zip code in the site below, and it tells you which gas stations have the cheapest prices (and the highest) on gas in your zip code area. It's updated every evening! Just click on the link. You will see a map of your area and then scroll down and you will get a listing of gas prices in your area with addresses and brands starting with the cheapest and going up.

http://autos.msn.com/everyday/gasstations.aspx?zip=&src=Netx
Be a good neighbor and pass this along.

So, are we in a Spring Market Yet?

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:46:43 -0500

Hello Montgomery County -

The other day I was in a shop and I heard some fellow agents making some comments about the state of our market. They were also comparing the market here to the market in DC and Northern Virginia which are also areas in which I work. I really thought they were off base, but was wondering what you thought.

In years past, it was easy to see when the spring market had arrived because of the change in inventory. Now, we have so much inventory in some areas that it is more difficult to tell.

Any thoughts from my fellow montgomery county real estate professionals? Is it spring yet?

Great article on Buyer Negotiations and Freebies

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 10:17:37 -0600

You may have already seen this, but if not it is worth a read. It may even be a great piece to forward to your buyer clients. He really spells out what we would all like our clients to know.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/beware-home-sellers-freebies/story.aspx?guid=%7B14D0CD77-0F21-47F3-B1B9-EC1F82CBD8A3%7D

Hope you find it useful!

Dana Hill

Free Home Radon Testing Kits Available to DC Residents

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 21:03:35 -0500

I recently found this site and thought I would pass this information along to all agents working with clients in DC. This link takes you to a DC Government Page page where the District Department for the Environment offers DC residents free home radon test kits.

http://www.ddoe.dc.gov/ddoe/cwp/view,a,11,q,494301,ddoeNav_GID,1458.asp

For more information and to get the free radon test kit, DC residents should call the Radon Hotline at (202) 535-2302 or click below to request your free radon kit.

http://www.ddoe.dc.gov/ddoe/cwp/view,a,1209,q,494350,ddoeNav,%7C31005%7C.asp

I hope you and your clients find this useful.

Dana Hollish Hill

Free Home Energy Assessment For DC Single Family Home Owners

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 20:19:05 -0500

The District Department of the Environment is offering Free Home Energy Assessments to residents of Washington DC who own a single family home. If you, or someone you know may be able to take part in this program, visit the following link to get more information.

This program is set to expire on September 30, 2007 so act now.

visit http://www.ddoe.dc.gov for all of the deatails or call The Energy Hotline at (202) 673-6750.

Agents servicing DC, spread the word to your clients! This is something many of my clients ask about and yours may be interested in as well. There is also info about free Radon Test Kits at this site. Enjoy.

Dana

Helping Clients Make Their Homes More Energy Efficient

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 20:20:13 -0500

I had a call from a client asking if we had a list of companies that conduct home energy audits. Though not on our company contractor list, I felt that as an Exclusive Buyer's Agent, this was something I should have readily available. I spoke with some of my old colleagues at the US Environmental Protection Agency and found the following links which may be useful to you and your clients. I asked my client to let us know if he likes the energy rater he uses so we can add them to the Buyer's Edge contractor list, but in the meantime, the first link provides certified home energy raters listed by state. The other links may be helpful to you or your clients if interested in a more self-oriented approach. If you have any experience with any of the energy raters on the list in MD, VA or DC, whether favorable or not, I'd sure appreciate hearing from you.

Directory of Home Energy Raters

http://www.natresnet.org/programs/providers/directory.aspx

Home Energy Yardstick

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=home_improvement.hm_improvement_index_tools

Home Energy Audits

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=home_improvement.hm_improvement_audits

How to be sure the seller really had a permit for that addition or renovation

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 16:15:13 -0500

I recently came upon a great website you may find useful if you want to check to see if there has been a building permit issued for some recent renovation in a home your buyer may be considering. It is a national site but you can search at the county level and I found it very useful in a recent Arlington, Virginia transaction.

The address is http://www.velocityhall.com/accela/ and it is very easy to use.

I know several people who are planning to list their homes...

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 19:59:29 -0500

I know several people who are planning to list their homes in the next few months, but as a true exclusive buyer's agent working for an exclusive buyer brokerage, I can not list their homes for them. If you are also an Exclusive Buyer's Agent (EBA) working at an exclusive buyer brokerage, I'd love to hear a bit about how you handle this situation.

How have you selected the agent to whom you refer your listings? Do you get a referral fee for sending them to listing agents? Does this agent let you know if an unrepresented buyer walks into an Open House for the referred property? Do you disclose that you will receive a referral fee to the person you refer?

Thanks in advance for any information you may share.

I know several people who are planning to list their homes...

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 19:58:43 -0500

Thanks in advance for any information you may share.

How to be taken seriously - online.

Dana Hollish Hill, GRI, Associate Broker (Buyer's Edge Company, Inc.) — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 14:41:57 -0500

Last year I had a potential client tell me he didn't select me because I didn't have my own website. I work in a small office so I had always thought our company website was enough. He said he couldn't take me seriously if I didn't have a web presence. I did some asking around and many of my clients were surprised that I didn't have my own site.

This really hit me because I do everything online. I worked in web development and internet marketing in a past life and if I were searching for a home - I would be searching online. So why wasn't I addressing my online audience?

I immediately put my site together. It was amazing how hard it was for me to put my face on things. I work as an Exclusive Buyer Agent and believe that we "Represent People, Not Properties" so I had never put my picture on any of my marketing materials.

In the end, I am very glad that I created my website. The process of sitting down and writing about my unique selling proposition was very exciting. Pulling it all together made me a lot more confident about selling my service. Now I just have to figure out blogging :)