Before i-tunes and downloads from the internet, music consumers trekked out to the local Sam Goody and bought CD's. And before CD's music lovers bought albums or tapes, or 8-tracks if you can remember back that far. However, the Internet changed the availability of music and as a result the music industry was forced to change how they do business.

The internet is changing the Real Estate business now. In this "fast-food-information" age where home listings can be found on every website, and mortgage calculators, blogs and RSS news feed hungry homebuyers the information they seek without even meeting a Realtor in person, no longer does, "I can help you find your dream home," work. They can find their own dream home. They certainly can on my website.

The work of a Realtor remains mainly the same, however the value of where the hard work really lies in a real estate transaction is taken for granted. How has the perceived value of the Realtor changed and how must he re-define himself and his expertise?

These days some homebuyers believe Realtors are simply "keys-on-call." They browse the Internet, get their info and when they are ready to see something in person, they call up the last "key-on-call" they ran across to unlock the door. "Keys-on-call" require no skills or expertise other than having a key or knowing how to open the door, or so some may think.

The challenge for Realtors in the Internet Age is to disseminate to home-buyers the true value of using a Realtor. To narrow down their home search? No, they believe can do that themselves. To get the home-buyer to the closing table, there's the real value. And if a home-buyer is not aware of how much work and expertise it takes to get there, even the most conscientious Realtor may be viewed as a "key-on-call."

In Pennsylvania, there are 18 pages in a Standard Agreement of Sale. The first 11 pages contain 23 complicated clauses. The next 7 give brief explanations and disclaimers about those clauses. There are an additional 17 complicated disclosures and paperwork required by the State Commission to make it a legal transaction. Negotiations are fragile. Time lines are critical. Miss one deadline and a home-buyer could easily lose his deposit and/or the whole transaction could crash and burn.

Not every homebuyer would agree there's value in selecting a Realtor if they don't know where the value truly lies. And if they aren't educated about the value, it's like trying to play an eight-track on your i-pod. It doesn't work. And i-pods don't open doors either.

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