The time does go quickly.  I can't believe it has been over a week since I wrote anything so it looks like I have some catching up to do with you this week - so let's get started...

First, there are a few articles in the Statesman that I found of interest:

This article is about how the internet has changed the real estate business for buyers, sellers and Realtors.  This isn't exactly anything new or profound, but it bears discussion.  As I mention to every one of my sellers, 77% of homebuyers used the internet to search for a home in 2005, and this is a number that has been increasing every year.  I have noted a leveling off of sorts over the last couple of years as we reach some type of critical mass.  The more surprising facet is that nearly one-quarter of all buyers found their home through an internet search - a ten percent increase over the prior year.  This is one reason why I stress property presentation so much to my sellers.  If you look at my website, and in particular the exlcusive listings section, you will notice that I take a great deal of care and time on presenting each listing so that homebuyers can really grasp what a home is about.  Too often, in fact far too often, I see agents who have put no pictures or 1 photo or dark photos up on the internet or in the MLS.  I'm not sure what those agents are thinking when they do that.  It certainly is not going to make a buyer think that they want to see that home.  Time and time again buyers tell me that if there are no photos are bad photos of a property they skip right through the property and cross it off the list.  Additionally, I try to write a description of each property so that the home buyer can visualize what I can't really show in photos.  For the home seller, the goal needs to almost be 'not being eliminated' at this juncture in the real estate business.  With buyers controlling far more of what they see, which is a good thing, it is important to put on the best 'face' you can.  Many sellers need to ask themselves, is my agent really showing my home in the best possible light?  If the answer to that question is no, the seller probably needs to have a discussion with their listing agent or maybe even find another. 

Also of note though is that 81% of those buyers who used the internet to search for homes did use a Realtor.  Of course this brought out the whole "Realtors need to be prepared because we're no longer the gatekeepers of the information", which always makes me laugh.  Honestly, if all you, as a Realtor, could provide was which homes were on the market and the ability to show them, you really shouldn't be in real estate.  Of course, that is just my humble opinion.  A Realtor should be a resource for their client on the transaction, the market, the values and should make their client's lives less stressful and make the purchase as smooth as possible.  There are too many agents who actually interject themselves too much into the transaction and thus disrupt it or cause more drama than is necessary.  Maybe I'm just a little more prepared to embrace the changes in the industry, after all I did spend four years with eRealty or, as they were known in Austin at the time, the devil.  Of course that experience actually brought me to where I am today with my company.  Too often with these 'internet' real estate companies (you know who you are!) they lose sight of what is most important in a real estate transaction - trust!  Too much of the focus is placed on reduced commissions and, due to the reduced commissions, volume becomes the paramount issue because the profit margins are so slim.  In the end when you focus on volume the company starts to lose sight of the individual - the home buyer or seller - and, as my old broker who shall remain nameless used to say 'they just want you to treat them as johns'.  (Yeah, it sounds as horrible now as it did then.)  How disheartening that thought was.

My creation of West Elm Properties, Realtors was in direct response to my experience at eRealty.  I still wanted to be on the cutting edge of technology, to use it in any way that would benefit by clients, but I wanted to get back to the roots of the fact that the real estate transaction is a very human thing.  Buying or selling a home is one of the most stressful things to do and can stir up a whole lot of emotions.  Its important to not only use the best tools available for a buyer or seller but to also 'see' and understand the very specific, very unique needs of each client.  I really believe that having West Elm Properties helps me accomplish the marriage of the two facets new and old, better than any other company out there.

jb

The other night I was at a sort of a house warming party for my very best friends.  The husband was relaying a story about a recent telephone conversation that he had with a customer service rep.  It seems, that store 'x' (who shall remain nameless, although it's hard to avoid them with the amount of catalogs i get in the mail from them) had overcharged my friends $11 on the shipping.  When they called to have it removed they were told that the original shipping amount they were told was just an estimate.  No where was that communicated, either verbally or written, at any prior time.  The simple solution would have been for giant-store to just say, '"We're sorry, we'll go ahead and take that off for you".  But noooooooo...my friend ends up in a protracted 20+ minute conversation with the customer service rep.  During the conversation he asked to speak to her manager no less than 4 times.  The final time she yelled at him, "Hold On!"  He waited for about 5 minutes on hold and then she finally came back and, all huffy-like, said "we credited the $11".  He said thank you and hung up.

A couple weeks passed and my friends noticed on their bill that the store had actually charged another $11 - they were down $22 now.  My friend called the store's customer service line again, explained the situation, and the credit of $22 was applied - all in about 2 minutes.  It's amazing to think of all the time that was wasted by the first customer 'service' rep when it was such a simple fix.

It seems like I've heard more and more of these stories in the past couple of years.  On one hand I'm hoping it's not just me and my friends getting older and grumpier but on the other hand that would be a whole lot easier to correct.  Unfortunately, I see it in even such simple things such as asking someone working at a store, 'how are you doing?' and getting what seems to be a fairly common refrain of 'i can't wait for this day to be over' or 'i'd be a lot better if i wasn't here'.  

(As an aside, if you'd really be a lot better if you weren't there, then don't be there.  Find something you would enjoy doing more!)

In the end this conversation takes me back to real estate and a recent transaction.  There was a situation where the buyer of my client's home did not close the home by the contractual date.  We were told it would just be another day or two so we decided to hang in there.  Typically your first offer is your best and any offers after that tend to keep going down.  Putting the house back on the market, given the client's situation and the stigma that's attached to homes that fall out of contract, was not in my client's best interest.  Well, a couple days turned into another couple of days which turned into another couple of days.  The buyer, an investor from out of state, and then lender seemed to not understand the importance of actually living up to the contract and expediting the loan so that the property could close.

One afternoon I was having a conversation with a title rep, checking in to find out the latest information.  I also conveyed that this situation was very stressful for my clients and that our patience was wearing thin.

Her response to me:

"Well, tell them that's real estate"

Ugh!

What kind of answer is that?  I'm supposed to go to my clients, people who I now call friends, and tell them to suck it up because 'that's real estate'.

I'm sure the title rep did not mean the statement as flippant as it sounds.  But honestly, it's that thinking that drives me batty because it's pervasive within the real estate industry.  The people that are supposed to be protected and shepherded the most in real estate - the consumer - seems to not be at the forefront of the thinking for so many people within this industry.  So much of the drama that occurs during a real estate transaction is completely unnecessary and could be avoided.  If every link in the chain of a real estate transaction just remembered who we are here to serve, and took care of their parts with that in mind (much like they would want someone taking care of their own purchase or sale), then I think consumer trust in the real estate industry would skyrocket.

It's not that hard.  A little kindness.  A little consideration.  A good faith effort.  It goes a long way. 

Here's to customer service coming back strong.