| | I feel so exonerated! I've claimed for years that Curb Appeal = Sex Appeal. In fact my 1st videoblog in 2010 addressed this! Now finally, according to a new study, the attractiveness of your real estate agent does affect how well your property sells! Duh! People judge me all the time by the way I look..not always to my benefit. The study has some ineresstin findings about race & gender. Homes sell for more when agents are female &/or white. But, hey, can't let that get us down. We gotta do the best with what we've got! |
Add Comment  "grab collar" pose! classy! My friend Scott Schang thinks Supernatural on the CW Network made a few jabs at real estate agents on their episode last week. Bottom left clip is a snippet example. Jab or not, it is so true! It's practically a cliché to have a headshot that's 15 yrs old! As I have videoblogged before, from a consumer stand point, an "outdated headshot = outdated agent"! BTW, if you seen any other media representations of realtors, please forward!  An older agent asked me for advice: should he get iPhone or stick to his flip phone? I cracked up hysterically, until I realized he was serious (D'oh!). Feeling guilty, I put on my teacher hat & for next hour showed him the wonders of internet, email and apps all in the palm of his 65 yr old hand. The next day he bought a simple flip phone. I screamed, "Why oh why?! Haven't you heard of Nomophobia?" He said, "What's your sexuality got to do with it?" I retorted, "Not Homophobia. Nomophobia: the fear of being without a mobile phone" Huffington Post reports consumers are addicted to their phones which spells opportunity. Double down on your mobile strategy, identify ways to incorporate Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and other social media.....You need a smart phone for all this! If you show up to a showing with brick cell phone, clients will crack up hysterically at you! It seems everyone is on some "real estate team" now. Some are effective, meaning there is clear division of labor and works like well oiled machine. But more often than not, I find teams to be just disorganized. I have to communicate the same conversation 5 times to 5 different people. Many are inexperienced new agents who need to join a team to do any business. Too many hands in the pot leads to no accountability. But then again, if I were them and I had to split my earnings 5 ways, I probably wouldn't be very motivated either...I'm just sayin'!  Mitt Romney was disqualified as McCain's VP in 2008 because he owned 6 homes. You'll recall McCain disastrously told a reporter he couldn't remember how many houses he & his wife owned. (They own 8) Hmm, not the best thing to say when the nation dove into foreclosure crisis in 2008! Well, it's interesting to know one's real estate holdings are part of the VP selection process! (I guess that means Sarah Palin didn't have many homes). Oddly, they disqualify a VP for having too much, but don't mind if he is boinking his "videographer" during the campaign (John Edwards).  I'm perusing the MLS, minding my own business, when I come across this! How can this be a photo for a property for sale?! Looks like a scene from COPS or Cheaters! Ironically, it says "Cute, Cozy & Clean Clean Clean" (overboard with the alliteration). This area actually is nice quiet suburb. This pic makes it seem like a meth house! Well even crackheads need a home, right?  What would you think if you did a deal with another agent, and at the end of the transaction, they gave a closing gift to YOUR client? I'm not talking dinky rubber keychain with their contact info. I'm talking a sweet jaw dropping present. Is it merely in the spirit of celebration? A kind gesture of congratulations? Or... is it poaching your client?! Back-handed try to steal them? What would you think/do?! Real phone conversation with clueless listing agent Herman: Hi, I'm calling about listing on *&^@& St. Is there anything wrong with the property? Agent: It's gorgeous! Herman: How come there are no photos? Agent: Didn't you read the pretty description I wrote? Herman: (rolls eyes) Um, a picture is worth a 1000 words. I feel so sorry for his clients! People are visual creatures. If your house is for sale, make sure you have TONS of pics. It's like online dating, you are more likely to click on the guy with attractive photos and sparse bio, than a guy with no pix and long flowery bio (TMI or over compensation). Let's face it. No pix implies fugly! Case in point: Notice how boring this blog post is without any images?!  When 90% of the business is done by 10% of realtors, does it honestly matter if membership to National Association of Realtors dips below 1 million? Membership peaked in 2007 at 1,369,411. It's all for the best, if you ask me. Dirty little secret: Despite their "aura of success", most realtors across the nation maybe sell 1 house per year ...usually to a relative! No joke. Even if the number of realtors drops to 100k, when selecting representation, be sure your agent is full time & part of that top 10%. With so much on the line, you can NOT risk your house and money to a part time amateur!  Domainnamewire.com reports "National Association of Realtors filed a complaint with World Intellectual Property Organization over the domain name GayRealtor.com" First of all, I get this is about the improper use of the realtor, er, I mean REALTOR® trademark. But, honestly folks, a cursory search on Twitter or Google brings up plenty of people incorrectly using realtor in their email, URL or username. To be fair, NAR does issue cease and desist letters left and right. But it is rare for the association to escalate things to this level. In the past 12 years, this is merely the 6th domain arbitration case they've filed. Why are they zeroing in on gayrealtor.com? The site has been active for many many years. What is especially striking is the timing of this enforcement. It has always been a raging bone of contention amongst my LGBTQ and LGBTQ-friendly REALTORS® that NAR did not include sexual orientation in its discrimination clause. NAR’s REALTORS® Code of Ethics only prohibited the “denial of its professional services to any person for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.” The "Realtor Party" was apparently a party we weren't invited to! In a sign that NAR finally joined the 21st century, they decided to add sexual orientation to the aforementioned list last year. Clutch my pearls! At long last, some good will! Is gayrealtor.com a trademark misuse? Yeah, rules are rules. Is this the best time to take them down? Not sure. What do you think? | As Seen On
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