Real Estate Marketing Seattle

What has been holding up the economy all this time. It’s the
unprecedented volumes in the Real Estate Market in Seattle and
elsewhere around the country. With the changes in the United States
to a service economy. Much business focus has moved to the Real
Estate market and the benefits to offering some kind of services to
the public selling and buying residential properties. The Internet
has also changed the landscape significantly with the launch of such
services as Zillow.com and Redfin.com . The addition of Banks as more
active players in the buying and selling of properties also is a major
change to be observed in the months to come. Even the Search engines
themselves have gotten into the mix by branding their own links such
as Yahoo and then selling the prospects to Brokerages.

This is not a perfect world were businesses have to respect barriers
and Integrity in terms of position is important to many if any of the
players. I could personally no less go down the street as a Real
Estate Agent and show a client a house that they were interested in
and then compete with my client with who I have a fiduciary
relationship with by buying the house from under them. Than as a search
engine company with the power and position they yield in our lives
brand the first position in their own search engine as their own and
sell the prospects. At the very least it seems a dilution of their
brand and the most a conflict of interest.

I as a Real Estate Agent can pay $400 for exclusive position on a
national website that uses Realtor MLS data which they market as
“exclusive” and then have them set up the remainder of the website to
bring in additional income by also selling positions to other
interested parties such as Banks, Mortgage Companies, Inspection
Companies, Moving and Home Warranty Companies not taking into account
the position the of the Agent who the website was created for in the
first place. I as an agent have experience that says this will
backfire in the long run. I believe in competition. This doesn’t
necessarily have anything to do with competition as it does with
profit. It all comes down to client experience if the client is
served and is able to complete the transaction without issues then all
is well. My experience is otherwise. As the closest party with a
legal relationship not just a business relationship with my client I
would no more throw a dart at a wall with mortgage companies on it to
choose one than shoot myself in the foot. I have seen too many
pre-qualification letters brought to me by my clients from companies
claiming they will write a loan for my client who then I find out in
one case almost at closing that it could not be done when the
transaction had multiple families it affected. Simply, I don’t want
the highest bidder to be featured on the website that I am the
exclusive Real Estate Agent for I want the Mortgage Broker that I
selected and hold accountable to making the transaction for my
clients. I cannot hold that vendor accountable on one transaction if
I don’t have additional business that allows me to develop a
relationship that encourages a high level of service for my clients.
It also makes transactions run much smoother because expectations are
clear based on a already developed relationship. Our current policy
borne out of experience is if you as a Real Estate client want to
bring your own mortgage broker to a transaction that I am responsible
for the success of if I have never done business with that vendor I am
going to ask for the good of all parties to the transaction that you
interview with one of my lenders and get qualified by them also as a
backup. This kind of care goes for all the most important vendors that
come in contact with my client. I would not send my clients to just
any Home Inspector, I’m going to send them to the one I have picked
that does the best job for my clients and uncovers issues that need to
be addressed and is willing to stand by their work.

This is a dilution of a system whereby I have the interest of my
client in mind and have set up relationships that are no more
expensive than any of the other options, but insure the overall
success of the transaction with MY client. So go ahead and dilute the
position of the Agent in favor of a dollar of revenue and see how
happy clients are in the end. Unless you want to set up a rating
system for vendors stay out of the middle of my relationship with my
clients. What I have and what most Real Estate Agents have in the
Puget Sound and Seattle area is relationships it is what good
businesses do it insures success. This is what is going to separate
those who are attempting to change the Real Estate model to a purely
Internet model, a discount model or a so called full-service model.
Relationships between Realtors and the vendors they have selected
insure that each party will go the extra mile to make the deal go
through even if there is no money in it, because they know the
relationship will survive to complete a deal that will make money.
Enough said. Maybe what we really need is more regulation to make
sure the client gets served. There will be call for this when the
problems surface. On the record competition is good as long as the
client see the possible advantages and disadvantages of any decision.
We can let the market decide. Including Real Estate Agents who will
decide which vendors represent their interests and those of their
clients best.

What has been holding up the economy all this time. It’s the
unprecedented volumes in the Real Estate Market in Seattle and
elsewhere around the country. With the changes in the United States
to a service economy. Much business focus has moved to the Real
Estate market and the benefits to offering some kind of services to
the public selling and buying residential properties. The Internet
has also changed the landscape significantly with the launch of such
services as Zillow.com and Redfin.com . The addition of Banks as more
active players in the buying and selling of properties also is a major
change to be observed in the months to come. Even the Search engines
themselves have gotten into the mix by branding their own links such
as Yahoo and then selling the prospects to Brokerages.

This is not a perfect world were businesses have to respect barriers
and Integrity in terms of position is important to many if any of the
players. I could personally no less go down the street as a Real
Estate Agent and show a client a house that they were interested in
and then compete with my client with who I have a fiduciary
relationship with by buying the house from under them. Than as a search
engine company with the power and position they yield in our lives
brand the first position in their own search engine as their own and
sell the prospects. At the very least it seems a dilution of their
brand and the most a conflict of interest.

I as a Real Estate Agent can pay $400 for exclusive position on a
national website that uses Realtor MLS data which they market as
“exclusive” and then have them set up the remainder of the website to
bring in additional income by also selling positions to other
interested parties such as Banks, Mortgage Companies, Inspection
Companies, Moving and Home Warranty Companies not taking into account
the position the of the Agent who the website was created for in the
first place. I as an agent have experience that says this will
backfire in the long run. I believe in competition. This doesn’t
necessarily have anything to do with competition as it does with
profit. It all comes down to client experience if the client is
served and is able to complete the transaction without issues then all
is well. My experience is otherwise. As the closest party with a
legal relationship not just a business relationship with my client I
would no more throw a dart at a wall with mortgage companies on it to
choose one than shoot myself in the foot. I have seen too many
pre-qualification letters brought to me by my clients from companies
claiming they will write a loan for my client who then I find out in
one case almost at closing that it could not be done when the
transaction had multiple families it affected. Simply, I don’t want
the highest bidder to be featured on the website that I am the
exclusive Real Estate Agent for I want the Mortgage Broker that I
selected and hold accountable to making the transaction for my
clients. I cannot hold that vendor accountable on one transaction if
I don’t have additional business that allows me to develop a
relationship that encourages a high level of service for my clients.
It also makes transactions run much smoother because expectations are
clear based on a already developed relationship. Our current policy
borne out of experience is if you as a Real Estate client want to
bring your own mortgage broker to a transaction that I am responsible
for the success of if I have never done business with that vendor I am
going to ask for the good of all parties to the transaction that you
interview with one of my lenders and get qualified by them also as a
backup. This kind of care goes for all the most important vendors that
come in contact with my client. I would not send my clients to just
any Home Inspector, I’m going to send them to the one I have picked
that does the best job for my clients and uncovers issues that need to
be addressed and is willing to stand by their work.

This is a dilution of a system whereby I have the interest of my
client in mind and have set up relationships that are no more
expensive than any of the other options, but insure the overall
success of the transaction with MY client. So go ahead and dilute the
position of the Agent in favor of a dollar of revenue and see how
happy clients are in the end. Unless you want to set up a rating
system for vendors stay out of the middle of my relationship with my
clients. What I have and what most Real Estate Agents have in the
Puget Sound and Seattle area is relationships it is what good
businesses do it insures success. This is what is going to separate
those who are attempting to change the Real Estate model to a purely
Internet model, a discount model or a so called full-service model.
Relationships between Realtors and the vendors they have selected
insure that each party will go the extra mile to make the deal go
through even if there is no money in it, because they know the
relationship will survive to complete a deal that will make money.
Enough said. Maybe what we really need is more regulation to make
sure the client gets served. There will be call for this when the
problems surface. On the record competition is good as long as the
client see the possible advantages and disadvantages of any decision.
We can let the market decide. Including Real Estate Agents who will
decide which vendors represent their interests and those of their
clients best.