What is your game plan for this changing market?
Too many people have accepted the "fact" that we're in a down real estate market. We need to remember that the media is trying to sell news, not houses. Ask the woman whose house has been listed for almost two months and she'll tell you the market is terrible. But then ask the man who just sold his house, and he'll say the market if fine!
Good professional Realtors® are busy listing and selling regardless of the scare stories in the press. Late summer is always a slow time for real estate. At the end of August, people are stretching out the final days of summer vacation, doing everything they can to avoid returning to "real" life. Children are starting school, and parents are concentrating on class schedules and new wardrobes, not on finding a new home. But with September here attitudes are changing. Now's the time to be out there taking advantage of this market of opportunity. Here's my list of a dozen and a half ways to "make it rain" in real estate:
•1. Call ALL those buyers you had last year. Where are they? Many did not buy anything. There are homes to choose from now and no rush to make an offer. Get out there with your buyers and tell them about the opportunities.
•2. Have the buyers send you their "Wish List," and then go make their dreams come true.
•3. Don't sit around and get caught up complaining about the market
•4. Do something to attract people - make your ads interesting, get on a radio show.
•5. Sign up for the ActiveRain Real Estate Network, and join this free online community of real estate professionals. You'll find a dynamic group with members around the country who are eager to share advice and experience to help everyone improve.
•6. Start a blog. This online newsletter/journal is a great way to reach your clients and prospects and keep your name in front of them. Take a look at http://www.homeromeblog.com/.
•7. Look at the expireds, FSBOs, withdrawn listings. They need us more than ever! Don't you think so? Harvest that crop of business.
•8. Do something for the buyer and seller that brings them into the process. Offer them a place to tell you what they need, such as on your blog, or something like http://www.buyers4yourhome.com/.
•9. Get back to basics! Go to meetings of WCR, neighborhood associations, business groups, cousin's clubs. Get out of the office. Get face to face. Have kids? Go to their games and activities. Remember everyone needs to live somewhere. JOIN and be active in the activities that you enjoy.
•10. Have your cards available. Remember my definition of advertising: It is your job to let people know that you are in real estate, not their job to remember. Keep your name in front of the public.
•11. Use your down time in the car to make phone calls.
•12. Remember that a small gesture goes a long way. How many Thank You notes have you written this week? Do you have nice-looking Thank You notes? Do you have them with you, with stamps, so it is easy to take a few minutes to show your appreciation for someone who has made your day a bit better?
•13. Take a class - GRI, ePro, etc. Keep learning, always.
•14. Keep motivational tapes in the car and really listen to them.
•15. Get a few agents together to brainstorm.
•16. Start a mentor group. If you don't have a group, start with an agent you admire and respect and ask what you can do to help them in their business. Ask if you can "shadow" them for a day. ( Look at Jonathan and Bryant's day). Offer to cover for them for a couple of hours whenever they need you.
•17. Take a prospective client to lunch every Tuesday.
•18. Call an Active Rainer. We are here to help.
Now is the time to get listings, and at a full commission. A house that is priced right with a fair profit for the seller and a good value for the buyer - that kind of house will sell in any market including today's.
Remember the book Who Moved My Cheese? Well, Floyd Wickman said a few weeks ago, "I don't care WHO moved it. I just want to go find it." Go find your "cheese!" Go out and get your business, your buyers, and your sellers.
Baltimore,Md
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