I came to the real estate world long after computers had infested society. In fact with my twenty years at Apple, I could rightly be accused of helping spread those computers.
So almost all of my real estate clients have been computer users to some degree. I had a buyer last summer who did not use a computer. I ended up printing pictures and sending them to him.
The convenience of email is really hard to argue. It is immediate and more often than not you can accomplish a lot of business using email.
Recently I had another computerless buyer come to me. This one really likes to do old fashioned on the ground neighborhood searches. Yet she is also very appreciative of all the extra homes and information that computers can bring to the table.
It occured to me that perhaps this was the way real estate agents and clients operated before so much real estate information made it to the web.
We have actually worked very well together. By my client bringing me neighborhoods that interest her, I have been able to get a good read on what works for her. As somone with interior design experience, she has been clear during showings about the homes she likes and the ones that do not work.
We are close to finding the right spot for her.
Often when I am working with very computer literate clients who really hang their hats on their online findings, it takes a while to get them back to earth. They are often disappointed when seeing some of their favorite online listings because they have only seen homes online and not in the context of their neighborhoods.
It often takes half a day to get them familiarized with area neighborhoods. Usually then their computer searches are much more effective. It almost seems like without some neighborhood context, computer searches are close to shots in the dark.
Of course as people who live and breath real estate, we agents have known that what you see on the computer is only part of the picture.
Recently I have run into some "potential buyers" who seem so stuck on computer information that they never get to the point of actually seeing neighborhoods or homes. They are the virtual tire kickers of the real estate world, those folks who enjoy looking at automated emails from MLS, but rarely ever get to the point of buying something.
Fortunately they are in the minority of people who contact me.
I have never been afraid of having too much information on the web.
In fact I am a big believer in getting as much information on the web as possible. It helps potential clients, and it helps me. If someone calls, I can go to my website advertising a listing like this new construction in Bluewater Cove and have all the information at my finger tips. It is far easier than trying to pull out a piece of paper.
I still do not see computer search replacing real estate agents, but I do think we have to work to make sure that we add value to the technology. If we are just printing pages off and handing them to the clients, we are not in a sustainable position.
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