Real Estate Made Accessible & Understandable
Most consumers don’t really know how real estate agents work, get paid or function.
To help consumers better understand how a real estate agent works and gets paid, I present this infographic “10 Real Estate Facts That Will Surprise You.”
If you find the image useful, please feel free to download it and share it, I just ask that you link back to this page.
Good luck! Hopefully it helps shed a little light on this mystery.
Since I was a child I have always been intrigued by real estate, and what my parents always said “Location, Location, Location” – I have carried that lesson forward in my life, as a REALTOR and an Associate Broker in Delaware, I see examples of this rule every day, but realize that most consumers don’t really understand what that means.
The first thing to consider is the value of your time. Depending on your profession, your social relationships, education, and interests there are certain things you will find more valuable than others. Typically people value their free time, that time when they are not working, over the time they do work. How does this come into play when we are discussing real estate? It’s fairly simple really.
It matters a great deal, more so than any other factor, to better understand let’s look at an example. The best example of the rule of location in real estate is to look at any major City in the world. For this example let’s take New York City.
The location of this kitchen determines it’s cost.
I went to high school on Long Island and college there as well as in Manhattan (what most consider New York City to be, but the city proper is an area that consists of five separate boroughs – Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx and Staten Island), so I speak from experience.
The closer you are to Manhattan’s primary business districts, the higher the cost is for real estate. Once within the City limits, in any community, the closer you are to public transportation the more premium is placed on the value of the real estate.
This rule follows to the commutable suburbs as well. For instance if someone worked in Midtown Manhattan (The area defined as between 34th Street up to 57th Street) and lived on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, you would have the quality of life that is most desirable to those who work and live in Manhattan. The convenience and proximity of your home to your workplace, as well as the convenience of access to Central Park, the East River, great restaurants, stores, etc. You could be at your office within 10-15 minutes with little effort or inconvenience, or expense. For this you could be paying well over $5,000,000 for a reasonably sized condo, even more for a private home (aka Brownstone).
The other end of the spectrum is the individual who works in Midtown Manhattan and lives in the suburbs, whether on Long Island, West Chester County, or a multitude of New Jersey Counties, you would be looking at 10-15 minutes from the train station in Manhattan to your office, add to that the 45-90 minute train ride, plus the drive to the train station if you don’t live within walking distance, and your quality of life drops significantly. You are potentially spending 1.25-2 hours per day, each way, commuting to your office to work. If you work an 8 hours day, that ends up eating a huge portion of your day, and therefore leaving very little time for anything else.
Most of my friends who work in Manhattan and commute leave their homes before 6:00am to get a train and guarantee they are at work by 9:00am. Then on the return home, some will stay in the city for events, meetings, meals, or just to avoid the rush hour squash of the commute, and get home after 9:00pm. To then get a reasonable amount of sleep to be able to wake and do the whole thing the next day leaves very little time to do anything else.
This is where the rule of location comes into play, and should be extremely obvious to you now. The closer you are to your place of business, the less time you have to spend getting there and back, the more time you have to enjoy the quality of life afforded you by working.
When I help my clients review their options for locations, one factor that I always try to review with them is what their goal is for their real estate purchase. We will review a list of things that are important to them in their life, and also what their goals are. Frequently people are steered toward the shiny new construction projects which tend to be a lot further from the business hubs where they work.
Everyone wants new and shiny, but most consumers don’t understand that there are more important factors in a real estate purchase than the gloss of the finish. The value of location has a direct impact on the cost of real estate because the convenience of being close to the places you want to be, or need to be, does hold a premium to many.
If you have two identical 3,000 square foot homes, what would the price difference be if you were in the Wilmington, Delaware area and purchasing in Delaware (we have quick access to Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland, so I don’t want to stretch out of the New Castle County Delaware area).
Let’s say that the first house is 3 miles from your place of work, was just built in 2014, has 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, 3 car garage and a half-acre lot. All the finishes are high end, a gourmet kitchen with granite and top of the line cabinets, hardwood floors throughout, iron banister for the stairs and cat walk, a stone two story fireplace, and architectural details throughout. The cost at the near work location is $750,000. From this house you have the option of going home for lunch.
The second house is about 35 miles away, and you have to cross the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal to get there, it is identical to the first house as it was constructed by the same builder, but in this location the cost is $375,000. Better pack your lunch – maybe even dinner, definitely a snack, with traffic, construction and congestion you will be lucky to make it home in time for dinner.
If price didn’t matter, which would you choose? Hopefully this has helped demonstrate the true value and reason behind the old saying “location, location, location”.
Dear Real Estate Consumer,
Whether you own a home, rent a home or want to own or rent, most people at some point have or will be, a real estate consumer. I would venture to guess that by the age of 30 more than 95% of American’s will fall into these categories. This letter is to you all, not all of you are those that need to read this but you will probably know someone who should. Please share this.
I am a REALTOR® and a Real Estate professional. I help people buy or sell houses, sometimes I help them with rentals or leasing, but my focus is on helping people. I offer a service, expertise, passion and commitment – my goal is to help people navigate the waters of the largest financial decision that most people make in their lives.
I care, we care. I chose real estate because I have loved what it represents since I was a child, I remember peering over the wall of my parent’s pool cabana and watching an open house at my childhood home. It was fascinating, I wanted to be inside and to watch what happened, how people reacted, what they did and looked at, I wanted to get inside their heads to understand the thought process, how they made a decision.
Copyright: olegdudko / 123RF Stock Photo
We are REALTORS®, we are professionals.
We are REALTORS®, we are professionals. We have invested time and money to become licensed real estate salespeople and sometimes brokers. We have rules and regulations we must follow in how we work, behave and disclose. We have federal guidelines to observe and respect, should we fail heavy penalties could be levied against our Brokers and ourselves.
We are primarily independent contractors, we pay our own social security (double what you would see deducted from a regular paycheck), we pay our monthly fees (including that website you are using to look at houses), we pay annual fees to be members of the National Association of REALTORS®, we pay for Errors & Omissions Insurance, we work for Brokers, in most States we are also paid by the Broker, and we pay a lot more, in many ways.
We answer our calls at all hours of the day or night. We are frequently greeted with contempt and a tone of distrust from some consumers who call our cell phones or offices. We are the “lowest of the low” in the minds of some, and in the manner in which we are treated. We work every day to fight the public opinion that we are “not necessary” or “anyone can do it, why should I pay a commission when all you do is list my house and nothing more” are the type of misconceptions we encounter on a daily basis.
We don’t get a paycheck, no one pays our expenses, we get no payment until after a closing, and then the time varies depending on how the broker pays an agent. When we work with a client we commit to them, to not show another person a house they might be interested in, to put their needs first, to act as their Agent and at their direction and consent. When we make a commitment to work with you we are choosing you over countless other clients in a market area. It is not ethical to create a competitive situation for our own clients.
There are days when we may forget that our “jargon” isn’t your “jargon” and that plain English and explanations might be necessary, but we all have our expertise in our professional fields. When you don’t tell us “I don’t understand” but instead stop communicating or walk away, we are left feeling rejected, we worked so hard for you and we will never get that time or money back, or more importantly enjoy seeing your excitement when you get the keys to your American Dream.
The Value of a REALTOR®
Our industry has failed to make the value of our industry clear, it has become convoluted in the mindless media message of “real estate sales are sales” at best it is a misnomer. We don’t sell real estate, we consult and facilitate the purchase of real property and the improvements (the house and structure) on that property. We help facilitate the American dream of home ownership.
It is not always an enjoyable experience, it is fraught with drama, nail biting cliff hangers, and tremendous amounts of nervous anticipation. We know this, but sometimes we might forget to tell you this. We are not only your REALTOR® but we are your therapist, talking you off the cliff of “buyers remorse” because we saw the excitement in your eyes when you first stepped into the place you want to be your new home. We are market experts and can make that dream come true.
It is not just about completing some paperwork and calling it a day. Our job as a REALTOR® is to make the process SEEM easy, effortless and as carefree as possible. If you think it is effortless to buy real estate then we have succeeded, but that success brings with it a price – the blatant and rampant disrespect for the professional qualifications and experience that goes with the name REALTOR®.
This is our fault, to some degree. We spend so much time fighting to prove our value, that the message of what that value is becomes lost. We don’t teach you, the consumer, enough about how the industry works. Who likes to discuss money? You see the big picture and think we are “overcompensated” and a bunch of “Rich REALTORS®”. It might be helpful for us to open the books, to share the secret doctrine of the industry. A REALTOR® could possibly be the smallest cog in the wheel, but the most important, it is our efforts that bring the business to the Broker, it is our efforts and opportunities that make the transaction happen for your American dream.
Our value as a REALTOR® is many fold, but simply put – it is making the largest purchase of your life be the smartest purchase of your life. Helping you navigate the process from weighing the choices, to writing the contract, to protecting your interests and making sure the contract is not breached. Through the inspections, negotiations, and then the final walk-through, to the closing table, and beyond a REALTOR® is there for you, to be your advocate and your expert, without compromising our obligations to protect your interest, confidence and our obligation to be your Agent – your eyes and ears in the process. We are REALTORS® and real estate professionals, all of us.
I am a real estate professional but most importantly I am a REALTOR® meaning I took an oath to go above and beyond the rules of most states that govern real estate sales, I follow a higher standard with the REALTOR® Code of Ethics that is over 100 years old. I have spent 15 years helping people buy/sell/lease real estate, I have spent countless hours and thousands of gallons of gas driving around to show people houses who then decide to call someone else to buy a house. It is time to realize what a REALTOR® offers and the valuable partnership that exists between the consumer and their REALTOR®.
Not every REALTOR® will be the right fit for a consumer, we all have to recognize this, and consumers need to freely communicate this. It is a partnership of the most important fiduciary kind, a symbiotic relationship that makes the American dream come true. We are Professionals, we are experts, we want to help, we are consumer advocates, we are passionate about truth and justice, we are REALTORS® and we want to help you.
Thank you for your trust, your time and the opportunity to serve your needs. We are grateful to have the opportunity to prove our value to you, and if you don’t see it – if it looks effortless, then we did our job properly – the job of a REALTOR®.
If content in king, then content creation is the Kings Mother. Without quality content then you might as well not have any content. The key to great content, no matter what industry you are working in is to follow the Rules of the Three F’s – Fresh, Frequent and Fundamental.
Copyright: federicofoto / 123RF Stock Photo
Your focus is on creating valuable and informative content for the real estate consumer, your community and anyone you want to connect with. This is organic lead generation at its best. If you are an established agent, a new agent, or just looking for a new element to add to your real estate practice, blogging is probably the most powerful of all online tools you can use (short of videos, but you can also combine the two – that’s a more advanced topic). Why should you care? What results would you get?
The Three F’s of Content Creation are the basics, and most reliable method to ensure that you content is relevant, timely and most of all gives you great search results. When search results are obtained through content creation like this we refer to those as “organic” which is the best, and most effective way to increase your search results on most search engines.
Let’s review the three F’s and explain why each is important and why if you do nothing else anywhere on line, you might want to consider these basics.
Fresh content means you are creating new content, it doesn’t mean you are reinventing the wheel, you are just providing a new spin on it. Have you ever wondered how many different way you could say a single statement? This is the time to figure that out. You do want to keep it Fun (maybe we should make this 4 F’s?) so that your audience is engaged, but don’t worry about your lack of training as a writer, it is more important to communicate in a conversational manner.
Make it frequent! Frequency is essential and truly non-negotiable. To get the optimum results from your efforts, you need to deliver that fresh content at least three times per week. Ideally posting fresh content five or even six days a week for the first few months will deliver faster and more powerful results, but if you are not up to the task then start with three days a week.
The content you are providing should meet a fundamental need of the audience you are trying to attract. Think of the questions that you are frequently asked, and use those as topics. I like to keep a micro-cassette recorder with me in the car to make notes on topic ideas that pop into my head. Keep a micro-journal in your pocket or pocketbook to help jot down notes as topics or ideas arrive.Your environment is a huge influence; the things you see every day as a REALTOR can inspire content creation. When you take a few minutes to really look you will be amazed at the plethora of inspiration there is right under your nose.
Content creation doesn’t have to be complicated so don’t over think it. Go easy on yourself and your audience, try writing about topics you are passionate about or extremely knowledgeable about in your market. Consider yourself the Welcome Wagon in many ways what would those new arrivals to your area want to know?
Just start writing, brief is best, trying to keep content about 300 words or fewer. That can be difficult for some people, and self-editing is not always easy. If you are like me and are extremely verbose, working your way toward being succinct is a daunting, but rewarding, task. I will never be as succinct and concise as some, but by my third edit I usually have dropped about 500 words.
Jump on in and get that content created!! If you don’t have somewhere to put it, don’t fear. We will cover that topic shortly.
What are some of your favorite fundamental topics to share on your real estate blog? Tell us below in the comments, we will highlight the best ideas in an upcoming post!
Real estate agents are quick to adopt the latest social networking platforms, and almost as quick to abandon the same platforms. The advantage for the real estate agent who “gets” social media marketing – a lock on lead generation that costs nothing more than just being human and connecting with people. You need to humanize to connect with consumers on social media.
Real estate agents are some of the earliest adopters of many of the most successful social networking platforms, but what differentiates those that “make it” with social media and those that do not? The answer is simple: Persevering at being human, flaws and all.
People want to connect with people they can relate to, I have preached this for years and will preach that until the end of my time. Social media is about building community, one human being at a time. Common interests are what unite us with others, and what builds a community. It is no different on social media, so why do so many real estate professionals treat it differently? The silver bullet myth.
Everyone wants a silver bullet, one that will solve all their problems and bring them to the pinnacle of their business, but there really is no such thing. You might subscribe to websites, worship at the altars of so called “social media guru’s” or even buy into the latest coaching or training product to cross your desk, but what substantiation do you have on the success of any of these? Usually that answer is – you never asked, you rely on word of mouth marketing (how ironic, since that is what social media is also about).
The key to build a successful presence on any social media platform is to be real, be authentic, be yourself. No one is perfect, I have gained more followers by sharing my failures, missteps, and foibles than in any other way. People enjoy knowing that they are not alone in the glory of the imperfections of day to day life.
Stop fretting about what you should share, and start sharing those moments when you have to laugh at yourself, or else you might cry.
Be real, and be connected.
