Connectors of People and Houses

Like a lot of boys when our son was young he was passionate about any toy that connected things together.  One of his all-time favorites was the K’NEX Amazin’ 8 Coaster Building Set.  The instructions and photos provided a visual for one way to connect and build a roller coaster.  Drew was occupied for hours as he followed the instructions to put it together based on the information.  It didn’t take him long though to visualize creative “out of the box” ways that he could connect the pieces together.

Real estate agents are connectors of people and houses. One way of doing so is to follow traditional strategies, or more “inside the box” strategies.  For example, an agent can take the specified criteria provided by a buyer and set up a search that is delivered to the client automatically. The buyer then would tell the agent which houses they may be interested in and coordinate to view the houses. 

Then there are the creative and more “out of the box” ways to connect buyers with houses. One I follow is to set up the criteria and deliver it to myself. Then I actively view those homes. In this way I can tell the client from personal experience the property attributes, this is my unique value proposition. I also on a consistent basis view homes and think of people while in the process. To connect people and houses is always on the top of my mind.  Like Drew and the roller coaster, I’m always thinking creatively of “who would this house be great for?”

Another “outside the box” strategy is to look in the shadow markets. That is, homes that had been for sale and withdrawn or expired.  In many cases the owner would still be willing to sell the home. Then there is always door knocking and letter writing campaigns. These strategies tend to be most effective when the agent promotes the actual buyer need to the home owners.

Proactive agents reach out and network with the colleagues who have completed transactions in the desired market segment. Often they know of a seller who will be coming on the market and/or they have gone on a listing appointment. Perhaps the owner would be able to move the process forward if a real buyer was procured.

Real estate agents new in their career often follow in the steps of a more experienced agent, coach or mentor.  This is like following an instruction manual to achieve success.  Clearly this is a tried and true course.  The next level is to connect that knowledge with creative thinking to build and achieve your vision of the business.

Karen Briscoe and Lizzy Conroy and their team HBC Group at Keller Williams are active and experienced Realtors® in the Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland and Washington, DC market place.  They would be delighted to assist whether for home buying or selling.  Please contact via the means most convenient for you:  www.HBCRealtyGroup.com, 703-734-0192, Homes@HBCRealtyGroup.com.