Murrieta CA Real Estate Blog - Stefan West

Richmond American Homes Menifee Buyer Agent Co Opt Negative Experience - Warning!

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:15:48 -0500

I wanted to take a moment to share my very negative recent experience with Richmond American Homes in Menifee California and with the local Regional President Leonard Miller. Mainly, I want other agents in the area to learn through my experience so they can protect themselves and their clients.

I brought a client in to show a furnished model in the late February. My clients were challenging as I had already put them in two other homes that they subsequently cancelled. They seemed to really want turn-key so I couldn't do much better than a fully furnished model. They loved the place but the price was high for the size and we calculated the payment a few different ways (with the builder agent) and it was a no go.

Afterword, we then found another house and they loved it. Well shortly after getting them in the 3rd escrow - right before our inspection - they had some marriage difficulties, apologized, and said they needed to stop looking for the summer and focus working together. Overall, very nice people but struggling a little bit. I respected that they wanted to wait until after Summer.

I later find out that within 4 months of me registering them in the place, they closed on the model I showed them. Not a matching model - the exact home! I called the builder and the sales agent confirmed that I had registered them and didn't understand why I wasn't contacted or paid. I dug deeper to find that after showing the unit, the builder later increased incentives to pay down the loan rate to 3.25%, had my clients come in while cutting me out of the communication completely - even though I was clearly in their system.

The clients did a VA loan so they must of done the contract in May and I was clearly in the system as the source or the client, etc. Not a contact from them. Speaking to the agent, she contacts the manager who says that in order to get paid, we need to re-register our clients every 30 days! I hadn't been told this and I have never had a builder operate under that policy. Has anyone heard of a broker co-opt you have to register every 30 days?

After being turned down for any information about reservation date and contract date, I contact the Regional President who proceeded to put me on speaker, listen to my complaint and then consistently challenged me in a very condescending and mocking manner (my opinion - to the point I asked him directly if he was talking down). He insisted I should of been in better contact with my client - after I told him the situation - he said I obviously couldn't close a deal and his sales staff could. It was an amazing conversation. He then promised he would just as hard on his sales staff "researching" the issue.

His research came back totallying all of one email from a sales staff again challenging me from "coming out of the woodwork" when this all closed with a VA loan within 4 months on the exact home I showed them! It doesn't appear he looked too deep but he sure had some speaker fun at my expense. Again, they have ignored my request for reservation and contract date information. So I am pursing this with their registered broker for Southern California based out of Redlands. They wouldn't provide me the license number or contact, only confirm it after I pulled it up - DRE violation. I am also contacting CAR, the DRE, and the parent corporation MDC Holdings. Any people experiened in dealing with a similiar situation, please advise any other avenues.

It is clear in their own system I am the procuring cause and yet they have treated me like some person looking for scraps. I am furious and wanted to let people know my experience to for reference in the future. In my opinion, their registration system and sales staff obviously didn't try to protect my client relationshiop in anyway and seemed to have actively cut me out on the very unit I tried to sell. I will update this blog as I get more information but if you walk a client in their tracts, please keep this post in mind when thinking the system is built for your protection.

I have worked with so many builders and this is the worst experience I have had by far. While I will never put my own preferences above my clients, I will work diligently to avoid all Richmond American Homes developments and what I believe to be very unethical business practices. I don't understand the point of a registration system when they are going to market better deals after you show and cut the agent out at the same time. I walk in a client, register them and in 4 months they close on the house I show but I don't deserve a advertised co-opt?

I would love to hear any similiar experience with Richmond American Homes as I put together my information for the local realtors, CAR, and DRE.

Thanks!

Stefan West

Head's up! Get your knowledge base up or "no success for you!"

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:56:31 -0600

It has been a while since I have taken time to visit Active Rain and my blog. The real estate landscape is changing in so many manners right now. I have been taking time to work on my business, client base, and integrating my business for the year ahead. Obviously, we have the tight lending, massive foreclosures, and shortsale issues to deal with. Add into that the banks consolidating and the federal actions to stimulate the economy and a massive drop in interest rates (yeah!).

However, the landscape is also changing as our business transforms itself in relation to both technology and the players involved. Not long ago, everyone and their brother became a real estate agent and that really impacted our market and our service level. Overall, I think consumers suffered because as a whole, our level of service and experience came significantly down with new agents all over the place.

Now, many of those agents are washed out of the business AND experience counts and more importantly is needed again for a much more complicated and intense real estate world. I see the same players in the game who had the ability to weather the storm and used their skills to find business and success where others couldn't.

One aspect of finding that business led yours truly to Active Rain. Where many people folded their tents, the long term experts found great technology outlets like Active Rain, learned short sales, got involved in REO listings and thereby created success by working harder.

In consideration of that, it seems that perhaps the biggest change in real estate is probably technology. The REO phenom will move on at some point. The traditional marketing will always have merit to it because this is a people business. But how many of us just two years ago used the internet as much more than a website or electronic business card?

I see so many agents that still do and still don't get it. There is so much change in real estate from a technology standpoint now. And it is imperative to learn so you can be successful. How many people have learned SEO, utilize Craigslist or Youtube? What about multiple websites or electronic flyers, web feedback on listings, or a myriad of other technologies to work? How many people use pay per click or Homegain, Realtor.com, or whatever services are out there?

When you consider all these things in light of two to three years, we have fundamentally changed how real estate works and how people look for real estate across the board. And with my first blog post in quite a while, I would urge new and old agents alike to get involved fast. Because there is a new category of agent (look at Active Rain) that understands these technologies and will prosper significantly while you are left behind.

There is no better place to start then here at Active Rain. This is perhaps one of the best tools to learn and apply all this new technology to increase your business. I thought I was doing pretty well but in just 20 minutes I learned several new things that could significantly help my lead flow. So take a look around and get started!

Temecula and Murrieta Real Estate Clients Finally Listening to Advice!

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 10:15:14 -0600

In the midst of a difficult time in the Temecula real estate market, there is one thing I am thrilled to report - people are finally listening to the advice and valuing experience. Whenever a market booms, every person in the world jumps in.

When Temecula and Murrieta CA real estate starting posting US leading growth, the amount of real estate agents and loan officers exploded. Buyers didn't think you needed to care who helped you. Good experience in the industry was shunned for a family or friend in the business.

New loan people were stealing away business from established people that actually took seriously the giving of advice and long term outlook of things. While, I don't do loans, I saw way too much craziness in that environment and have stuck with my loan team throughout. And my team is still here, helping my Temecula, Murrieta, Menifee, and Wildomar home buyers by explaing and offering the programs and long term planning that best work for the client.

BTW, For Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar and Menifee home loans, I highly recommend Mark Woelky of PRMG (www.markwoelky.com). I have always felt he put the client's interest first and often gives advice that often costs him business today but is in the best interest of the client.

Over the last three years, I have told all of my Murrieta and Temecula real estate clients to contact me before they look at new housing tracts, change their loan program via refinance, or have family moving here. I did this because of the dangerous nature of the market and I take my job of protecting my clients seriously.

However, for the last three years many of my clients didn't listen and now I am getting the phone calls I have dreaded. I have clients that:

Altered title by adding family on.
Co-signed loans for family on new housing tracts.
Got into terrible loan refinancele situations.
Bought new homes while upside down in a current one.

The sheer amount of people that refinanced into bad loans really frustrates me. I have also been very frustrated by builders in Temecula and Murrieta who sell people into high tax rate homes and then undercut the very people they sold to! If you are even considering buying a new home in Temecula or Murrieta, please talk with an EXPERIENCED broker first or you are playing russion roulette. Believe me, the builder's sales people aren't going to stop you from poor decision making!

But I am glad to say the Temecula real estate market is finally changing. We are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel. The professionals, like myself, who have experience and a passion for the people we work with are more in control. With that control comes the responsibilty of doing the right thing over a quick deal.

And new and old clients are truly starting to appreciate working with a Temecula real estate expert again and giving them credit while taking their advice. I truly believe that this is the first step in a recovering market!

Homegain, any good for actual leads that turn into sales?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 10:57:05 -0600

I have received a couple emails on this now and have to admit it is getting me curious. Anyone enjoying the "new" AgentEvaluator program?

In a tough market, I am all about pushing forward and have continued to do so. My website (http://www.stefanwest.com/) is stronger and better placed then 90% of my competitors. I continue to add to my business by go after loan traffic and referring it to lenders who in turn refer me business.

So I am definately about expanding and pushing harder in a down market. Due to loan conditions, I just assume that we need more contacts for each future sale since less qualify, etc.

But I have stayed clear of the Homegains of the world, finding that I can get leads on my own. However, at say $29.95 a month plus 27% (ouch) of the commission, it seems more fair and possible. Anyone have any success with this program? Any experience and insight would be great!

I am reading through it now but I don't think the leads are exclusive.

Stefan

Temecula Murrieta Real Estate and MLS Online, Great Placement But Getting Clients?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 16:36:00 -0600

I joined this community and worked diligently on my website because I truly believe that the majority of Real Estate searches start on-line.

However, now that I have built a solid website, done some fundamental SEO, gotten good placement, and leveraged ppc, I am finding that the people contacting me want to use my knowledge but work with another agent.

I have people hit my site all day and I do get some clients from it. But the majority of people have been eager to use my knowledge, service, etc. Then suddenly they disappear and work with another agent, whom they intended to the entire time. Usually their agent is family or a friend.

I have literally had a recent client let me take them out several times, get excited about a Murrieta home, arrange to meet me to write it up, and never show up. I didn't hear from them for 2 week and then he wanted my help again. I don't think I could use people like that, knowing that their time is their living. This guy is completely guilt free and he isn't alone. I know some of that is just "real estate being real estate" but I definately see it much more frequently from online leads.

So, while I do get some business from my site - feel free to check it out www.stefanwest.com. I often wonder how other agents feel about web leads, establishing an internet presence, etc. I am still in the process but my site gets a decent amount of traffic.

Anyone out there with some opinions, advice, or similiar experiences?

To me it just seems that people window shop online, get you to help them and take that information and experience back to an agent that has done nothing for the client. Anyone out there with a dominate website position over the last couple of years have a good method of lead management you care to share?

Thanks

Stefan

Handling Menifee CA Short Sales

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 11:11:02 -0500

As an update to my Halloween post, I am off to my 3rd short sale appointment in Menifee in the last 3 days. What makes this situation so tough is that not only is the ability to sell the homes severely restricted by the banks and their processing time. But actually sharing painful information with the client is not a joy either.

For example, this home I am visiting today is in Menifee Lakes. It is right around the standard 3 bed, 2 bath 1500 square foot home. There are 39 competing properties in the 4 map codes of the community. What is worse, is many of the properties are fully banked owned or still in the hands of the owner who has enough equity. And the average price is the mid-200s! This market is in free fall.

So, no I have to convince 4 parties on what it will take to sell this house: current owner in distress, the future buyer, bank #1, bank #2.

Since a short sale is the least desirable for other agents to show (banked owned, or traditional both much better), I will need to convince the owner to make the price aggressive to say the least. Meanwhile with this many competing properties, the floor will continue to go down. Can you imagine people buying in Menifee Lakes, a once premier community for $190,000 -$220,000? That is just a scary price drop!

Menifee in particular is suffering badly right now due to an incredible over-supply of homes on the market. There are over 500+ homes on the market in the area and unfortunately I see rougher times ahead. The same is true for Murrieta (although Murrieta is much larger than Menifee and offers more services, etc.)

So, this interview should be interesting as I will be doing this potential client a favor but using a twelve-gauge shotgun of logic and showing him the market. But I can't imagine it will make for a fun meeting in anyway. However, our market is changing. Lately, I have been hearing that agents are charging people upfront 1% or flat fees just to take on a short sale. Anyone else seeing that?

I am writing this so people can see the activity of the short sale and also realize that while you can try to avoid showing them to clients, your clients will find them anyway. So if you don't know how to deal with short sales, get cracking!

Its Halloween and all through the Temecula day, short sales call are coming my way!

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:54:34 -0500

Wow!

I didn't need any more proof that the market we are in is tough. But this week I received three calls for short sale listings. That seems abnormal and concerns me since we already have such a high supply of homes on the market.

I also heard something else that surprised me. It seems that many agents are even starting to charge a flat fee to take on the listing. I am not sure who these agents are but two people mentioned speaking with an agent, one of which wanted $2500 to take on a short sale listing.

I know a lot of agents avoid these, but I am curious about my fellow Active Rain members thoughts on the subject. I realize that short sale listings can be brutal, I am dealing with two closings right now. But it seems wrong to me charge someone a flat fee when you can't guarantee you will close the deal prior to foreclosure.

Now add in the current and future complications of obtaining a loan. Right now, one short sale deal I have is struggling with a 20%, Full Doc borrowor getting approved. The bank is examining everything and have delayed the close twice now!

I just thought I would shoot this out and share my thoughts on what I am seeing. Plus, you have to like my rhyme..just kidding. I love Halloween!

Stefan

6 Months of SEO - Where am I at now?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:14:23 -0500

It has been a while since I have updated my SEO quest. The reason I document it is perhaps my experience and ramblings will help others.

The last time I posted I left off about setting the foundation. My foundation has been extremely helpful to my success and I now number very well for all my keywords. There are plenty of keywords that are 2nd and 3rd page but I believe the majority are top 10.

Last I looked I command 3 or 4 #1 spots in Google and actually several more that I don't even know about. I just learned about another today when I check the keywords info coming into my site. However, while being number one is nice, I am still remaining focused on my major keyword terms. I have scratched the top 3 spots several times and each time I have seen a definate uptick in my phone ringing.

Lately, my work has been mainly to obtain links and learn how to get GOOD links over just average junk. It isn't easy at times but as you research getting links, you will find plenty of strategies. There are literaly thousands of link directories. You can supply information to companies for a link. I have even indulged in a few authority blogs for the specific communities I am involved in.

The ironic thing is, it is easy to get weak links. But by focusing on the links that matter the most, I help myself immensly. The other day I was contacted by a TV show, nationwide to possible be on air for a real estate update on Riverside County. They have seen my name come up repeatidly as an authority voice in my area, so they rang me up. I am now getting requests for a couple of places for specific information that their readers are asking for.

These links matter because they actually lead to things. In the event that Google really starts to dissect links in the future, my links will not only hold water, they will have additional and long term value. When I first begin getting these links I did some directories and anything I could just to get on the internet map so to speak. However, I stopped doing that months ago as I have learned more about it.

So my advice for this blog report - if you have your keywords mapped out, your on-site optimization complete, and a road map to expand your webpage, you need to start working on links. Make sure to use your keywords in your anchor text of course and when creating links, try to make partnerships that matter in the long haul for you. The Menifee CA blog I have been doing has been easy, fun and eventually will win a client for me in the future, if not more than one.

Another thing I may have forgotten to mention is tracking. I personally don't value website stats unless I have a couple months of activity to look at. So get your stat tracking up early and make sure you put the scripts on every page on the site. I personally use Google Analytics, Statcounter, and Hit-tail. I haven't bothered too much with hit-tail but I wanted to give it six months of information gathering. So start the clock ticking now!

I am also migrating my site to a new version of www.superlative.com template. Let those guys know I sent you if you decide to give them a go :). I am pretty nervous about this because I am doing pretty well SEO-wise, but I think this will expand my success in the long term. So, I have them working on site conversion for me now and will also be integrating a new MLS interface in an effort to increase my returning visitor percentage and to get things moving into an Auto-drip campaign. I am sampling different programs and will be happy to share my thoughts once I have seen the results a bit.

Yahoo continues to ditch my marketing and SEO efforts for some reason. While I number perhaps 20 or so top 10 Google spots, Yahoo has me for only a few. MSN on the other hand is my friend and I am thrilled to have stuck at #1 and #2 spots for my major keywords. I look forward to the day that I make a come back in Yahoo, but with Google controlling 60% of the market, I am pretty happy :).

I am getting a lot of Temecula, Menifee, Wildomar and Murrieta Real Estate Home Buyers via my website!

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:58:23 -0500

After putting a lot of time and effort into my website, I am starting to see a significant increase in traffic for Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar, and Menifee. Of course these areas are my main markets and I study up on them every day so I tend to add information for local business on their sites, etc. Lately, I have often been asked to help with community blogs, sites, articles, etc. Which I love to do since it is yet another way to educate interested home buyers and sellers out there.

Until recently, I hadn't really seen much response from these, nor did I expect it. However, it seems like just taking the time to put together some information for these areas, things I do everyday but never really bothered to highlight, makes a difference in web rankings. I think I better learn more about tying my blog to my website lol.

Just the other day I had two people contact me about buying foreclosures and short sales on homes. I am getting known in the area for that type of deal because I think it often is the best price to quality ratio for new home buyers if they have the patience. So it seems like making sure you put your experience down in some electronic format, which is very easy to do, can yield a lot of exposure.

This new blog I was invited to help on by owner, Menifee Real Estate Blog 24/7, is a lot of fun and unlike other "copy and paste" agents on there, I enjoy just sharing with the community my ideas, experiences and market outlook. Although he has other agents contributing, he keeps pushing ideas out to me and says my writing is more fun to read and he wishes I would do more. So I like the feedback even if it is helpful for his blog, it is still nice to hear :).

So I strongly encourage people to have fun with blogging. I haven't really tried to integrate it into a SEO tool, I am working on completely re-doing my DRIP marketing stuff right now. But this is on my to do list and in the mean time, I will just enjoy sharing my career and experience with others.

Just wanted to drop a note and say to watch out for those "once a week" type situations where you can get great exposure by offering a free and thoughtful service!

Stefan

Drip Campaign Software or Solution - What do you think is best?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:05:45 -0500

Hi guys,

I am looking into a better DRIP system. I am currently checking out several and just wondered if some of you have a system that you feel you can just rave about.

No matter what solution I go with, I will be putting time into it and getting it customized. But I really need to do a better job here and since things are a little slower, now is the time to get this set up right.

So what suggestions do you have or solutions do you use that you feel has really worked out well? I would like a system that obviously see contacts individually, has multiple campaign categories, has developed content to get started right away (I can change as I go along), and has good statistical reporting.

I really appreciate any advice and ideas you may have. I am getting quite a few leads a day off my site and realize in today's climate it will be important to hold their attention over a longer period of time.

Thanks!

Stefan

4 Months of SEO Learning Pt. 2

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 10:22:15 -0500

I am a lazy slouch! I keep getting involved in Real Estate stuff instead of coming back here to my blog! There are a lot of client "time wasters" out there right now and with the market the way it is, I have to invest the time because you never know.

I will say that although I get more activity on my site and talk to more people, I also get a lot of people that really aren't serious or just want to use my expertise and probably already have an agent they plan to use. I have often wondered about the 80%+ start looking on the internet for real estate. I believe THAT part is true, but I wonder what percentage actually do business with an agent on the Internet.

A couple years back I got something like 7-9 deals of my website at a cost of about $200 a month in strategic PPC keywords. The year before that, 5 deals. Now, I am in a much more visible position on the web and while I do get good traffic, have only seen one deal so far this year. I know the market is a big part of this but still it is disappointing.

I will say that having a good, solid, and demonstratable web identity is a wonderful selling point for listings. It really makes the pitch much easier and other agents can't compete against that too well.

Well, last I left off was about tracking software. For the short quick peek, I use Statcounter and I just looked today and so far I have about 170 unique visitors to my site this month and 320 page views. I like to focus on unique visitors but I also was getting about 10 returning visitors.

As I talked about last time, getting a keyword list is paramount in my opinion. Then, I move on to on page optimization. I know I put a lot more work into this then was needed. But I am optimized for many of my best keywords and I believe it has helped immensly. I learned very quickly how to write content that encapsulates many of my keywords while having excellent flow. This has helped me in so many ways. There are a lot of sites that I rank underneath for a specific keyword, BUT I usually rank MUCH better than these same sites in almost all the other keywords I have selected.

I get more exposure and also, as I add links, I will eventually over take these sites I believe in their prime spots. I believe in strongly working on my entire SEO body, not just the biceps so to speak. I am getting hits from things I never even imagined because of good on page optimization.

Also, on page optimization has helped me learn more HTML aspects that help in articles, additional pages, clickable table design and a full fledged understanding of my website. I strongly urge you to invest the time and create a basic model of your site that you want to work with, and then build it.

Use the KISS (keep it simple stupid) principle. I have a model that I haven't even completed yet, but work a little towards it each week. I want to have 4 main city pages for my keywords, my main page, a referral / link directory, about me area, MLS (of course), Testimonials, and community information.

That is pretty straightfoward and with the city pages, you can work on them until they are ready and then turn them live. I plan to do optimization for the main page first and foremost and then start working on links. Meanwhile, as I discover things I like about a city, I just write it down and put it in my to do file. When I work on that page, I incorporate the idea and build that page to be targeted just at THAT specific keyword. I build it to last but very simple to use.

Lately, I have been working on links and it is time I got back to my city pages and also working on links directly to these pages. I will see how this works in the near future as the search engines start to catch up with what I am doing. I just need to dedicate more time to it. I have been holding off because a new template technology is available from Superlative that could be VERY helpful in SEO activity.

That's it for today. Basically, I am suggest that you build a fantastic keyword list and then work on your on page optimization first! That way, your optimization will start working for you right away and teach you what you need to know so you can maximize your link strategy. It is nice to do one thing right that can stand on its own for a bit, then the next thing. Linking and all the other off-page stuff is hugely important but you want to have your house in order first. Off-page stuff is a constant process and it is very tough to go back and tweak something when you are already getting good rankings.

4 months of SEO Learning - What has it done for me, what did I learn? Pt. 1

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 12:09:13 -0500

Well, I started working more diligently on my website (www.stefanwest.com) over the last four months. My goal was to learn SEO a bit and start investing more time in my website, thereby reducing my dependance on PPC (Pay per click) keyword marketing.

I started this process because I saw my PPC getting more expensive per click every month but less clicks coming in. I was literally paying more and getting less which was very frustrating. I expanded my keywords, researched long-tail (cool concept btw) and started to work on my page. If I could get traffic for free, even if it cost me money in short term, money I was spending on PPC.

So, I tracked my traffic to my site at around 10 people a day. Which isn't much but I am in Real Estate not affliate sales :). On a good month, I was getting about 300 visitors to my site a month. Anyway, I also reduced all my keywords down in Pay per click and spent some money on software to start tracking and learning with.

I then researched the heck out of all my keywords and started building a focus list (perhaps a future blog here). This was a massive help. I had done this before BUT with PPC you can focus on anything while with organic your website has to drive the placement. Thus, keyword identification is very important, especially if you use a template website like I do. I eventually worked out a few main keyword phrases to target as my 1st tier and expanded a 2nd tier of keywords which were valueable variations of the main ones. This created quite a list to work with which was fantastic in helping me re-organize my site. I did this by researching search traffic patterns using the old Overture keyword traffic tool.

Meanwhile, I was reading up and learning about SEO and every source of information kept pounding me about getting links. I understand that SEO is about links but I wanted to set a foundation. So I worked on website optimization so I could learn it and really set the ground for good search engine results. I used the phrases I identified and worked them into text, pages, etc. I didn't do anything too spammy because it wasn't needed. The keyword phrase research had given me a great place to draw from that wasn't over the top redundant. In fact, it helped me so much in placement in less common areas.

Anyway, once I optimized my site I felt good about learning how to do it, understanding most of it, and of course really putting some time in to learn how to affect these changes on my template site. It wasn't hard, I just never really bothered before and doing this was invaluable since now I am snugg as a bug working on my site. What is even better is the way I chose to do it was more time intensive than a lot of the SEO experts suggest but ideal for Real Estate.

BTW, I am sick of hearing people call me up and offer to get me top 3 spot placement for some good sounding real estate phrase that in reality is not targeted by people and easy to obtain. The other day, some SEO company called to say they could get me the top 1-2 spot for a keyword phrase for $800 and then $30 a month to maintence it. The phrase got maybe 70-90 searches a month and was a 3rd tier keyword on my list. With my new understerdaning I realized I could do it myself probably in a couple days of work but honestly didn't value the phrase - so I never bothered. (Fast forward to now - I just checked it and I am #2 and #7 on Google, #1 and #2 on MSN, and lost in the shuffle on Yahoo at #15. This is for a phrase I don't even track. I am going to add it right now to my great keyword tracking software lol - Done!) I got this result from good optimization and keyword targeting!

The minute the search engines saw my site after optimization I saw a bump in activity. The visits had gone down but within a week, I was getting around 3-5 new organic (search engine-non paid) visits a day. That meant my efforts, completely free of charge were bringing in an at least a extra couple of people a day. While pay per click was going through the roof at over $2+ a click! That is when I realized that I really needed better tracking of placement, visits, etc. The statcounter package provide by my website company was great, but I needed a better.

Guess what? Google Analytics (http://www.google.com/analytics/) is free and wonderful. Also Google Webmaster tools is great and free as well. You can even link Analytics to your Adword account. I also used http://www.hittail.com/ to start tracking long tail keywords just for an additional reference point. I am just letting hittail build information for me so I can use it in the future for now. My initial work was pretty solid and hittail has confirmed that. I have also added Google to the majority of my webpages so I can see traffic patterns. This was so easy to do and yet yields invaluable information. It is a great feeling to wake up each morning to a new lead or at least see a result from your work! I use my keyword tracking software everyday just to keep current and doesn't interfere at all in my daily workings. But it sures gives me a boost when I move up!

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I have a lot to put on the blog but will need to do it in parts. I apoligize, but I would rather share as much as possible that others may find usuable than cut it short. I will post more in a couple days.

The TRUE benefit to high Google Position?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 11:14:59 -0500

I am just curious to the expert SEO agents out there about the true benefit to your business. If we all had product purchase type websites, I get it. But I have talked with several brokers that have excellent position and they say it helps more with listings than obtaining buyers which I thought was interesting.

My goal with my SEO work is both. I am currently working on ideas to create more "stickiness" to my pages as a result of my buyers goals. I am starting to enjoy good position and better traffic but now I need to make it work for me.

How do you leverage your SEO results? Do many you use them to lock in listings, showing top position on engines to your clients? Or do you see realisitc leads that turn into something? When I used PPC effectively and before Yahoo pretty much ruined Overture for me, I did pretty well with that. Of course the market was burning hot as well :).

So I thought I would find out what benefit other agents get out of it. I see a lot of websites set up by SEO guys to funnel, refer, or sell leads to agents as well. What buyer benefits or marketing leverage do you get from your site?

I had one agent tell me that if you can get 2-3 top 3 positions in Google in a high density home buying area, you could see substantial lead flow. However, a lot of the leads are junk but some are gold.

I look forward to your thoughts.

Stefan

Short Sales, bad service, tough market - Will the "REAL" professionals please stand up?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 12:22:24 -0500

(Ok, I just posted this long winded and somewhat ranted on a post. Since I spend so much time on it and offered a couple links to some articles, I figured I would make it available on my blog as well.)

Well the Riverside County market is in a major crunch right now and Short sales are the word of the day. I have one of these going myself and am getting lots of short sale experts calling me on it. I have had the property since last October and my clients never admitted (or even realized if they are to be believed) that they had a pay option arm.

So, while I am trying to sell their home, they are using option #1, trying for an aggressive market price, and losing equity everyday. Now, I know these people well and care about them, but it is frustrating since they priced the house 30k higher than what I told them point blank it would sell for. Meanwhile, they ate through 15-20k in equity and now need to either sell via short sale or be foreclosed upon. Unfortunately, this is very common.

Now, I see a lot of issues regarding short sales on here. Am I upset with my clients..yes and no. They should never of used such a loan and didn't contacted me about it which is my fault too. We ALL should be spending time educating our clients about the loans and practices of aggressive loan brokers. But we can't make them listen. I have written a couple of articles on this which you are welcome to use AS LONG AS YOU GIVE ME CREDIT AND MAINTAIN THE LINKS IN THE ARTICLE TO MY SITE. I say this because I take a lot of time to write my articles and have found people stealing them left and right while putting their name and site on it. So now I track them all in a myriad of ways.

Anyway, the article I wrote discussing Loan Program importance can be found here: Picking the right loan in Temecula CA.

A more recent article I wrote regarding the new time in the market and the importance of solid real estate representation can be found here - In Today's Market, using a Professional Broker is Paramount.

These articles work in conjunction since I was ticked about both issues. Now back to the topic of Short Sales. I find that no matter what, you do the best for your client and I believe that often times Short Sales are better for future credit repair as they are not full blown foreclosures. Also, you have some negotiating ability with the bank on how things will be reported. But I truly hate what short sales do to the surrounding community and people who bought the homes. Personally, I also think putting the shark investors on the bloodied bank people is just fine since the banks really started this mess.

The banks are the most responsible for this situation since they offered the products and even had sales reps guide the hands of mortgage brokers to work around the safe check points for loan approval. The loan guys often pressed people into these loans because they made more money - again the banks fault for creating incentives to rip people and put them into irresponsible loans. And the owners are to blame for not realizing or understanding what they were signing. So what can we do about it - how about much better communication, involvement, and long term cilent investment?

All this points to is that we, the long term professionals, have to start making a difference again. It was hard to make a difference during the boom. Agents grew on trees and practices got very fast and loose. People are now hurting because of it. That is why I wrote these articles (and many more to come) because we are in a position to earn back the respect and trust of our clients who often didn't appreciate or care what a real estate agent (commodity) thought. Imagine trying to be a stock broker during the dot com boom. We still see the effects with all the discount brokers now because people viewed investment professionals like joke commodities since anyone could make money during the boom. Can you say Zip realty, Homegain, Soccermom, or part timer?

I honestly do not think real estate agents and brokers deserve the status and lack of respect we often get shown in the marketplace. However, many agents slammed people into deals using pet lenders and then hit the bars and bought new cars, etc. I think a lot of agents took the easy money and didn't stand up to their own clients or networks on things such as loans, long term viability, investment value, and the best purchase strategy. I know I did and it cost me a deal or two and 3 to 4 different lender relationships, but it was worth it. One of the two deals it cost me has already come back with the "I should of listened" bit.

With many of the shaky people leaving the business (washout) we need to step back up and start building a solid foundation, one brick and a time for our clients. If you want to be in this business for the long term, that is what we need to do. Now people are demanding the best agents to sell their homes, worrying about working with a true professional versus the friend down the street. We should make sure to stand up and start pushing our networks to bring the very best to us clients for the long term. And also, we should stand up to our clients and insist that we are professional, and rather than dive through hoops for their business, they should respect our skills (as long as we are worthy of that respect) and understand they are hiring a top gun to help them through this market.

I still see too many newer or less professional agents aiming to please their clients while actually hurting their investment value by not standing up for themselves. Guess who the client blames then? - The agent that didn't stand up for themselves on their pricing views, etc. I just turned down a listing (the third one this month) because the owners wanted top dollar, limited viewing schedules, and mass marketing investment on my behalf if I wanted to win their business. I said no, explained my position professionally and after a short period of time have since been thanked for my candor and hired by two of them. I didn't tell them what they wanted to hear, I told them what they needed to hear.

We need more and more of that in this market. I joined this business to help people grow and watch their families enjoy the benefits of a home and long term investment thinking. I stay close to my clients and will always work hard to put their needs first since that logic invests in my business log term. I hope as we go through this market cycle we have agents that can commit themselves to their clients more and we can start to regain the reputation we used to enjoy.

Sorry for the sliding rant lol. I am working on a Sunday (no-no) and the family wants my time. I try to be a professional dad too!

Stefan

Temecula CA Real Estate Expert

Short Sales and bad service. Will the "REAL" professionals please stand up?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 12:18:50 -0500

So, while I am trying to sell their home, they are using option #1, trying for an aggressive market price, and losting equity everyday. Now, I know these people well nad care about them, but it is frustrating since they priced the house 30k higher than what I told them point blank it would sell for. Meanwhile, they ate through 15-20k in equity and now need to either sell via short sale or be foreclosed upon. Unfortunately, this is very common.

Anyway, the article I wrote which discussing Loan Program importance can be found here: Picking the right loan in Temecula CA.

The banks are the most responsible for this situation since they offered the products and even had sales reps guide the hands of mortgage brokers to work around the safe check points for loan approval. The loan guys often pressed people into these loans because they made more money - again the banks fault for creating incentives to rip people and put them into irresponsible loans. And the owners are to blame for not realizing or understanding what they were signing. So what can we do about it? How about much better communication, involvement, and long term cilent investment.

All this points to is that we, the long term professionals, have to start making a difference again. Things got very fast and loose and people are hurting because of it. That is why I wrote these articles (and many more to come) because we are in a position to earn back the respect and trust of our clients who often didn't appreciate or care what a real estate agent (commodity) thought. Imagine trying to be a stock broker during the dot com boom. We still see the effects with all the discount brokers now because people viewed investment professionals like joke commodities since anyone could make money during the boom. Can you say Zip realty, Homegain, etc, etc.

I honestly do not think real estate agents and brokers deserve the status and lack of respect we often get shown in the marketplace. When anything happens that big, it is simply a change that we have to deal with. However, many agents slammed people into deals using pet lenders and then hit the bars and bought new cars, etc. I think a lot of agents took the easy money and didn't stand up to their own clients or networks on things such as loans, long term viability, investment value, and the best purchase strategy. I know I did and it cost me 3 to 4 different lender relationships, but it was worth it.

I still see too many newer or less professional agents aiming to please their clients while actually hurting their investment value by not standing up for themselves. Guess who the client blames then? - The agent that didn't stand up for themselves on their pricing views, etc. I just turned down a listing (the third one this month) because the owners wanted top dollar, limited viewing schedules, and mass marketing investment on my behalf if I wanted to win their business. I have since been thanked and hired by two of them. I didn't tell them what they wanted to hear, I told them what they needed to hear.

Sorry for the sliding rant lol. I am working on a Sunday (no-no) and the family wants my time. I try to be a professional dad too!

Stefan

Temecula CA Real Estate Expert

To blog or not to blog

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 18:38:21 -0500

I have to admit, I feel very strange on this. I never thought I would be using a blog. But there are some great ones on Active Rain so far that I have read and enjoyed. But I have no clue what I am doing lol.

I see lines that say tags, graphics, etc. I thought myself self as a technical person and I am lost on this stuff. Still, I will give it try since there are so many helpful people here. I also want to reach out to all my clients and enjoy a more casual environment with them. Is this a method to doing that?

How much fun is it to blog? Also, I would love to get some opinions on my website. It is a current work in process and is located at www.stefanwest.com. I hope I can look back at this blog in a week and think how basic and silly I was to be freaked out by it lol.

Stefan

Should I learn SEO or should I hire a pro?

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 18:22:25 -0500

I see a lot of agents here that do their own SEO marketing. I am reading also a lot that seem to do some and outsource others. I am working with a Superlative Template site that I am taking a lot of time to customize - www.stefanwest.com. I am in the midst of learning a lot on SEO and working on several decisions.

What would your advice be? Ideally, I would like to learn it so I can deal with it on my own and fully understand my site and its placement. However, I am just not sure how much time that takes at this point. I am in a very competitive area is So. Calif and like to think I am more tech savvy then most agents.

I would appreciate hearing your thoughts. Right now I feel like I am in an ocean of SEO and trying to decide which way to swim. Ultimately, I want to get a strong percentage of my new clients from my website. I have in the past but it is time to push it to the next level.

Thanks for taking your time and help me out.

Stefan

Newbie Here - Hi all - Recommendation on SEO software

Stefan West Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee CA Real Estate (West Realty) — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 11:46:19 -0500

Hi everyone,

I have to say right now that I am pretty excited by this community. I found this place by just looking to create some directory links on my website. I thought I was internet savvy but I didn't ever do much about organic search. I always went the pay per click way.

Anyway, as I started to worry about getting organic, I found this place and what a delightful surprise! There are some great resources on people on here. And I learn something each time I log on. However, the downside is I am getting more, not less, confused on SEO.

I am actually frozen a bit now because I hear the Recip links = not good and other placed = good. What to do? I also am in the middle of searching for SEO software and wondered if any of you could recommend one. Essentially, I want something to track my positioning in the search engines for specific keywords while analyzing my site and making suggestions.

Does anyone use some of the software out there and how helpful has it been? Also, is it worth it to work on getting other agents to link to me and I to them from out individual link pages?

Thank you for any help you can give. I really appreciate it. My website is www.stefanwest.com if anyone is interested in checking it out. I am also planning to add another website to better target one community and wonderful if there is a good strategy for using to websites to maximize each other.

I know I am asking a lot. I just hate being frozen on what to do. I am reading like a demon but so much advice seems to directly conflict with other advice, both credible.

Thanks!

Stefan