Working with relocation families, you often are able to give many referrals out and receive several. I got my CRS designation in 2001 and know one year I received over 18 referrals. Not all ended up in a sale, but what a great year!
My web site has attracted many relocation buyers, and some ultimately decide Denver is not the City they want to move to. One said it is too big, one said our home values are too high and another said they wanted to be more in a rural setting. I know REALTORS® all over this State to refer business to, and nice when they think of me too. I had one buyer from Austin that decided they really liked Fort Collins, and met with my referral agent, and they will be moving forward. I like to look at the CRS network, AR and Google.
Another web visitor was looking on my site, I met with them a month ago, and they indicated they needed to sell before they bought. I did some research and found an agent in their area, and should be listing any day. Of course, the home they fell in love with went pending a couple of weeks ago. Hopefully, there will be another home on the market when they return to Denver.
Right now I have a buyer that wanted to move back to Colorado Springs to be nearer to family and I sold their home last year. I have several good referral agents, and these buyers will be closing on their brand new home end of this month. They are getting so excited!
One of my Colorado Springs REALTOR friends sent me a referral for a purchase, and they should have their home in Fountain on the market soon, and be looking in my market area in the next couple of weeks.
I always let my clients know I know wonderful agents across the Country, and they rely on me to give them options when they move out of the Denver metro area. I stay in touch, because you never know - they could return to Denver some day!
Another agent called me and asked if I would like a listing in Castle Rock --- OF COURSE! Our inventory is so low, having listings right now is BEST. And, for some reason, I have more buyers this year. They should have their home ready in the next month to put on the market.
Sometimes locating the perfect match can be challenging. I have some clients that are very technology oriented, and love that I am able to respond quickly. (email, text or phone call) If this is the case, finding someone with the same work ethics and that can respond quickly is very important. Did they answer their phone, or return the call or email within a few hours? If it takes more than a day with these clients, it won't work. Sometimes my clients have asked for a male or female agent to work with specifically. I have found if they have knowledge of the business and area, it doesn't matter the gender. Age sometimes does, as my older clients would rather work with someone a bit more their age, and the same with the younger crowd. If I cannot find someone in AR, I do fall back to the CRS list. Many who used to blog here, seem like they are no longer active in real estate. I have started putting expiration dates on all referrals (incoming and outgoing) of two years, and also the referral should be for that specific client's needs - not for the life of the contact. I feel if we did a great job, they will keep using us because we earned that right.
I do like to hear how the referrals are going, and I do the same when I get a referral. Like a few now, I let them know I have not heard from the clients yet. Often times the client will update me with the progress and how their transaction is going.
Lately, I have even had my past clients ask for their co-workers or family members moving out of state for a referral --- you just have to let your clients know you have this knowledge of agents all over the Country.
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