April Office Meeting

Prestige Realty March 2012 Top Performers!

Most New Listings…………………….Agent Name

Most Units Sold……………………………..

Top Producer…………………….

How to convince your buyers to sign one of these….

Customer vs. Client The biggest reason to sign a Buyer Agreement is that it makes you the agent’s client.  If you don’t sign one, you are just a customer.  What’s the difference, you ask?  Everything!As a customer, the agent has no fiduciary duty to you.  As a client, they do.  As a client, the agent is required to operate, negotiate, disclose and otherwise work on your behalf.  As a customer, especially if they are showing their own listing, they owe that fiduciary duty to the Seller.

Benefits of Signing The Buyer’s Representation Agreement

Obviously, the fiduciary duty is the big one!  Really, when you break it down, that should be the only one,

but there are others.1) You get the full attention, care, accountability, and

disclosure of an agent because they know they are dealing with a client.

2) Loyalty I must put the client's interest above all others, including myself.  I must make my client aware of all available properties that come on the market or I

hear of via any other source that fit their criteria.   Unlike many Agents I will show you any FSBO, “List

Only” and discounted commission listings.3) You get your best interests serviced at all times

during search, negotiation, closing and beyond.

4) I will provide my client with a comprehensive market analysis of the home before making an offer to purchase. 5) Obedience:  I must obey all lawful instructions of my client. 6) Confidentiality:  Unless unlawful, I must keep meaningful personal information about my client secret, for the benefit of my client throughout negotiations and all of our business dealings. 7) I will continue to work with my client until the right home is found and without pressure. 8) There is a greater peace of mind that you have an expert on your side making sure that your needs are going to be met. 9) Your overall level of satisfaction with the home buying process will be increased because you will have little or no doubt that you made the right decision and got the best deal.

Client Commitment1) To work only with me until the right home is found. 2) To inform me of any concerns and changes in the home needs during this period. 4) To inform me when the right home is found. 5) To pay my Agent’s Broker in the unlikely event that a FSBO seller refuses to pay my fee of 2.5% of the sale price or a discounted MLS listing that falls short of 2.5% you agree to pay the difference between the 2.5% fee and the MLS offering. (Both of these instances combined account for less than 5% of the time and in most cases we can offset any Buyer Client fees by further discounting the offer.)

Buyer Agreement BenefitsIf you're looking at a buyer representation (agency) agreement only as protection for the real estate agent or broker, you're missing a good deal of its value. There are significant values that can accrue to the buyer client as well. If you have trouble broaching the subject with buyers or asking for a signature on this document, here's some help.1. The Buyer is Assured of Your Best EffortsIf a buyer might be working with multiple agents, or they're out cruising open houses, you are at risk of losing them at any time. It's only logical that you would have a significantly higher level of comfort with a representation agreement, and thus you'd be willing to spend more time and effort in scouring the market for the right properties for your buyer clients.To help you put this in front of your buyer prospect in a positive way, you might say that you do pre-showing drive-by of properties for your agreement clients. Due to the time and expense requirements, you're unable to offer this to non-clients.

2. Your Buyer Representation Clients are Exposed to Every Eligible PropertyThis is a big one for them. If this doesn't get them into the mode to sign the agreement, then nothing else is likely to do so. This might also indicate a less-than-serious buyer.Basically, "Mr. & Mrs. Buyers, I am aware of some properties that might possibly meet your requirements but are not listed in the MLS. I feel it's in your best interests, and my duty, to look for FSBO properties that you might want to see. But we'll need to agree that I'll get paid a minimum commission if one of these properties turns out to be the right one for you. You can negotiate its payment as part of the transaction."3. Last, But Not Least, You Get Paid for SureThis one is for your mental and financial comfort level. It's a whole lot nicer going to the office each day knowing that you'll be showing properties to buyers who are serious enough to guarantee that you'll get paid. There's also that better feeling you'll get, knowing that you were able to show them all the homes that met their requirements, as well as having them well-informed as to their choices in representation. It's not fun having a buyer ask you after a purchase why they didn't see the home three streets over at a better price.

Leads Leads Leads Why do some leads work and not

others,Where is the Industry going?

Who controls our industry’s buyers?

1 | Zillow384 - eBizMBA Rank | 15,000,000 - Estimated Unique Monthly Visitors | 211 - Compete Rank | 284 - Quantcast Rank | 657 - Alexa Rank.Most Popular Real Estate Websites | Updated 4/5/2012 | eBizMBA

2 | Yahoo! Real Estate433 - eBizMBA Rank | 13,500,000 - Estimated Unique Monthly Visitors | *400* - Compete Rank | *465* - Quantcast Rank | NA - Alexa Rank.Most Popular Real Estate Websites | Updated 4/5/2012 | eBizMBA

3 | Trulia521 - eBizMBA Rank | 8,000,000 - Estimated Unique Monthly Visitors | 246 - Compete Rank | 329 - Quantcast Rank | 987 - Alexa Rank.Most Popular Real Estate Websites | Updated 4/5/2012 | eBizMBA

4 | Realtor548 - eBizMBA Rank | 7,500,000 - Estimated Unique Monthly Visitors | 180 - Compete Rank | 617 - Quantcast Rank | 846 - Alexa Rank.Most Popular Real Estate Websites | Updated 4/5/2012 | eBizMBA

5 | Homes1,847 - eBizMBA Rank | 2,850,000 - Estimated Unique Monthly Visitors | 506 - Compete Rank | 663 - Quantcast Rank | 4,372 - Alexa Rank.Most Popular Real Estate Websites | Updated 4/5/2012 | eBizMBA

This is how buyers are meeting Agents!

How to Work Real Estate Internet Leads Without Going Crazy

So you've finally figured out a way to generate real estate leads through the internet?Congratulations, you're rich!

Except for one tiny little thing, of course: actually closing your leads and generating sales.

According to the 2004 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, a full 77% of all our customers are using the Internet for at least some part of their home searches! And that number is growing.In the last year alone it increased by 26%. These days, to be out of the Net is to be out of business! The simple fact is that, if we don’t learn to tap the Internet, odds are we will be doing something besides real estate in a few short years.

Today’s real estate customer is more demanding than his predecessors and wants information right now. Tomorrow’s not good enough! He goes to the Internet to get that information, and if you’re not there, several national lead aggregators will be there to grab him.

Without a solid system, the only thing you'll be generating is a lot of work and heartache. In fact, I would say it's better to avoid online leads all together unless you're willing to invest the time upfront to set up proper systems.What exactly do I mean by a system? A proper lead follow up system consists of three parts:

Everything is faster on the internet. Think of the last time you shopped for anything online. Were you willing to wait even half an hour for an answer from an online store, or did you just move on until you found the answer immediately?

Online customer service is an entire article in itself, but here are the basics:

Online customer service is an entire article in itself, but here are the basics: 

Make it easy for them to contact you - post your phone # prominently and use an online form - just posting your email address is worthless.

Respond within 5 minutes - after 30 minutes you may as well not even bother.

ALWAYS provide something of value in every phone call/ email/ tweet/ note on rock thrown through their window, etc. This could be market news, useful links, answers, etc.

2. Use a CRM System (even if it's just an excel sheet).

In all honesty, there is simply no way to get the same success rates from online leads as you do from referrals and personal connections - that's simply the nature of the beast. Done properly, though, you can generate a solid amount of business without letting online lead follow up take over your life.

Companies who break up their sales process into specialties (like lead gen, inside sales, and outside sales) correspond with higher qualification and close ratios.Companies have no idea what is the best time or optimal timeliness to call leads back.

How have you been handling your leads ?Round Table