Team DiMuria Katy Texas Blog: December 2007

We notice many Realtors get on Activerain, blog like crazy agents...then disappear into the night! What happens? Do they think if they blog for a while business will fly onto their website...do you have the "God's in his Heaven all is right with the world" attitude?

This is a get to work medium. It requires daily follow up, engaging comments, and real insight. You need to make the time for blogging that you make for showings or listing presentations. It can increase your business at a faster pace then mailers, or knocking on doors, or geographic farming!

If you have just started...or have been around for a while but not really engaged...JUST DO IT! Don't give up. We have had referrals from other Realtors, listings, and buyers come our way via Activerain. Keep plugging and write a thoughtful well crafted post...we will read it!

This is now a daily bash on one of the  National Broadcasting Company's television shows, websites, or radio stations. This is the latest available blast http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/22418842/ although they were on this morning on the Today weekend program bashing real estate sales.

This is a topic that seems to send fear up and down the collective spine of the American public...and thus makes for great copy for NBC. I believe NBC is a very liberal company and this may be a concerted effort to hurt the present administration...and elect the person they very obviously want elected Hillary Clinton!

By now I hope you all use Craigslist along with your other advertising to help promote and sell your listings. Here is a great way to make your listing stand apart from others on that site as well as other sites like backpage.

Here is a Craigslist Post Using Realestateshows.com:

http://houston.craigslist.org/rfs/522511167.html

Here is a basic Craiglist Post Using the Regular Setup:

http://houston.craigslist.org/rfs/502914816.html 

As you can see your listings will stand out against other listings that are being posted on Craigslist or Backpage.

Here is How To Do It:

You will need to sign up for realestateshows.com They have what I believe to be the program for the money for a video flyer or visual tour. It is only $125 a year for the service. You will then copy and paste the box they have set up on the publish flyer page just for craigslist and the like...directly into the description box.

It is hard to decide which one of the many real estate websites you should choose. They all advertise that they are the best, or they will get you the most hits, or they are the easiest to use!

Here are a couple of tips to decide what host is right for you:

Go With a Real Estate Only Website Host: Do not pay a bunch of money to someone who tells you they will develop a website for you that will be better than what is available. I am sure you will get a beautiful site but it will not have any of the built in real estate links that only a large real estate only host can give you.

If You Are Only Looking to Supplement Your Business Use a Company Site if Available: If you are working for a large firm or your firm has a semi-customizable website host you may be better off using it if you only look for a few deals a year...or if you want your site to be informational to clients you already have. I website that will require quite a bit of maintenance will fall by the waist-side when you get busy if it is not your major source of income!

If Your Website is Your Major Source of Income Choose A Very Customizable Site: We use Point2Agent. It gives us the ability to customize or completely change every page. We spend 2-3 hours per day working our website. You must be willing to spend the time...however if you do you can make it into a cash cow for yourself or your team How to turn your website into a cash cow!

Do Not Pick Your Website Based on Flash: Quite a few web hosts exist that give you a ton of flash...but they will not help you get or retain clients. The objective of your website should be to improve your bottom line. You need to decide how it can do that (supplement, take care of previous clients, neighborhood info, or cash cow) and use the site that will best help you achieve the goal!

Well 2008 is upon us and we are all beginning to take stock in what we will need to do for 2008. We all know that education should be part of our planning.

Here are two designations that can help you sell more real estate in 2008:

1. Get an ASP or Staging Designation! The ASP or Accredited Staging Professional designation is offered by www.StagedHomes.com and has been an invaluable tool in not only helping both our buyer and seller clients either see a home for its potential....or set the listing they have up for maximum profit, but it is also a wonderful advertising tool for agents to set themselves apart from their rivals. You will be able to offer a service to your clients that they simply cannot! Other staging designations are also available...though the ASP is considered the industry standard.

2. Get an SRES Designation! The SRES or Senior Real Estate Specialist is a designation designed to help you work with our growing senior community. With society ageing, and baby boomers beginning to turn into 55+ empty nest buyers and sellers, you would be hard pressed to find a better or more potentially profitable section of the real estate landscape. We have received many leads because of this designation and will continue to work this important segment of our society. More and more developments are adding separate 55+ sections to their subdivisions...this is a growing trend folks!

Both of these designations count for continuing education credit  in many states. Check with your local or state board to find out.

Meadowbrook Farms Golf Club is now offering a limited number of lifetime, refundable, and non-refundable golf and corporate memberships. To learn more about our membership invitation and financing options, please contact the Club at 281.693.4653.

Here are some of some specifics:

I think by the mere fact that you are reading this post...you are likely ahead of the curve! 2008 will go down in real estate history as The Year of Technology! If you are not blogging, website savvy, and at least dreaming about podcasts...I believe you may be on your way to being a Real Estate Dinosaur!

This is it guys...I think it is a last chance to get on the wagon before it leaves you behind...forever!

The beautiful thing about technology is that all the resources you will ever need are in your browser. You are already blogging (make sure in 2008 you follow through and blog more often...at least 3 times per week) now Google Podcasting!

Learn all you can because if you choose to send out 12 postcards per year to everyone in your farm....especially the sports team schedule....you will get tagged on the refrigerator with the other 47 agents doing exactly what you are...and failing...just like you!

While you are at it...look at your website. Think about how to get the most out of it and begin generating leads How to turn your website into a cash cow! (this post might help) and helping you get your 21st Century Cash Cow rolling!

The next generation is upon us...and taking over with lots of purchasing power and a thirst for genuine knowledge...NOT A NEW FLY SWATER WITH YOUR LOGO ON IT!

I am just sick and tired of listening to national media outlets tell us how bad real estate is doing nationwide. I understand we have markets doing very well and markets doing very poorly. We also have quite a few that are in the middle...buyer's and seller's on even playing fields. But if you listen to the media all of our houses would be better off being burned to the ground so we can at least collect the insurance!

This is just crazy. I read blog posts from Asheville and Houston and Maui and....well you get the idea. All doing quite well and not tiny markets either. Houston, last time I looked is the 4th largest city in the United States! Asheville is turning into one of the largest retirement destinations in the U.S.! And Maui...well we all would like to live in Maui!

It is all not gloom and doom unless you listen to the Media. So my solution above stands...lets get rid of Katy Couric and Brian Williams and CNN and MSNBC, etc...

AND CONTINUE SELLING HOUSES WITHOUT FEAR!!!!

Happy New Year!

It seems that most of the agents we deal with when negotiating a real estate deal have little or no knowledge of how to properly negotiate a win-win transaction. We either run into the type A personality who tries to bully their way into a deal....or the meek new agent who isn't sure how to present anything to the client...and thus has the deal blow up! We think firms should begin the process of teaching agents the art of negotiation. We all need to remember that the objective of any negotiation is not to just get our clients the best deal possible...but to also make sure that both sides are happy and the process is smooth and without any unneeded incidents.

The type A bully tends to have deals that come together at the closing table with all parties feeling they got burned, and the meek new agents seem to have deals fall apart all the time (and it is never their fault!). A win-win negotiating tact might pull all parties closer together and allow for smoother transactions with less conflict and more happy key exchanges!

Someone needs to explain to me why NBC and its affiliates hate Realtors, Real Estate, and Republicans? It is hard for me to understand why they need to lead segments with negative headlines like...what you need to know to sell your home...and why your real estate agent wont tell you. Or why they bring out a so called expert to tell us why every market in the Country is tanking and why buyers should not buy now. this is all sensational journalistic garbage that is only designed to scare people into watching...no matter that some may believe them and hurt the very economy that they rely on to sell their advertisers products.

At some point this journalistic suicide has to end. Misrepresenting a subject...any subject is wrong...and not why we choose to have a free press in the United States. I watched MSNBC recently and watched Kieth Oberman describe Rudy Gulliani as someone who runs his campaign like a Mafia Family. This was very offensive to me (being an Italian-American) while giving a free ride to those on the Democratic side who run their campaigns in much the same way.

As long as people who watch the Today show (and they number in the many millions) keep hearing and believing the sensationalistic garbage that keeps coming out...we will have issues in the economically crucial housing industry.

We are often asked how we do so many deals...both sellers and buyers from our www.katyhomefinder.com website. We train both experienced and new agents on how to get started. About halfway through most of our trainings we are often told "I do not have the time to devote to my website that you do". (seems to me the only thing most newer agents have in abundance is time!) The first statement we will make is this If you are not willing to devote the time you will fail!

To get started you must first get your time management skills in order. Schedule you website time on your computer calender. We suggest 2 hours per day...5 days per week (10 hours per week is a good start). We suggest setting up your website time first thing in the morning with your daily cup of coffee.

You must now choose the right website host for you. Do some research here. We picked Point2Agent to host our site. Our reason was it is very customizable and gives you wonderful feedback from clients when they do request info. Pick a host that is the best fit for the amount of work and skill level you have. Do not pay someone to come in and build you a site...use a real estate web host...they will have much of what you will need real estate wise built in to the system they employ.

You will need to do your homework next. You are going to need to learn about Meta Tags, Keywords, Pay Per Click, and Page Placement. You can search all these terms on Google or Yahoo! You need to print the columns that interest you and have them available as you adjust your website to fit you. Make sure your website is aiming at the clients you wish to have hit you (if you are in Houston you could care less about people searching real estate in New York). Be very specific here because you are going to need to decide on who you want to attract and what areas of speciality you want to work....will you be the condo king, or subdivision expert or school district expert...or will you help seniors in your area of expertise find homes. Whatever you choose aim your site at them.

Do not make your website about you. I can promise you this: No one cares how much real estate you sell, or what you are number #1 at, or how great you are...they only care about what you can do for them. Have a small article about you on the front page, have it written in third person and have it talk about what you specialize in (if you are the condo king let them know why they should buy a condo...and why they should buy it from you).

Make sure you put "calls to action" throughout your website. These are areas the potential client can click in and leave you personal info. Make sure they are getting something of value in return (like a relocation package). We do not require people who choose to search our listings or the MLS to leave us personal info. This is a touchy subject with many agents who believe they should always require people to log in the site to use it. We feel this is a mistake because many clients are not yet ready to leave info and it will likely chase them to another site. Have a blog linked to your website. Become the area expert on all things related to your area of expertize (if you are the school expert make sure you have lots of school related issues discussed...you can can lots of great info to write about right on the web!) blogging will increase your listings if you are consistent and do it every day or two.

Last but not least...follow up.

Make sure you choose a website that gives you good and quick feedback when a client clicks in and requests info...follow up as soon as possible...1 hour or less is best (see if the website host you choose has text message service). Do not give up if you do not get a reply...we try at least 7 times before moving the client to a cold file. Make sure you personalize each follow up (do not send auto responders or generated mail...you will significantly reduce your closing ratio), and set your next follow up right then (we use outlook and while we are doing the follow up we set a red flag for the next contact). When they send you a phone number make sure to call...this is a great sign you are making progress in gaining trust.

If you do these steps...and devote the time it takes to be a success on the Internet...you can turn your website into a cash cow as well as spend More time at home and improve your quality of life!

We have many wonderful Master Planned Communities and subdivisions in the Katy Texas area. This is the first in a series of posts about the differences between them, and amenities each community has to offer. Seven Meadows is a Newland Community. Newland is one of the top Master Planned Community developers in the United States. This particular community encompasses both Seven Meadows and Avalon at Seven Meadows (a gated section that uses Seven Meadows amenities). Some of the amenities at Seven Meadows include the Central Park Recreation Complex which includes a water park, a work fitness center, tennis courts, and a theatre and meeting room. It also has a neighborhood Olympic style pool at the Cross Meadow Recreation Center. Seven Meadows includes many pocket parks (small play areas for children and adults) and walking and jogging trails through out the community. These amenities are for the use of Seven Meadow residents and their guests only!

Seven Meadows is home to the Greg Norman Meadowbrook Farms Golf Club (Seven Meadow residents get reduced fees!) which is presently a public course that is rated as one of the 20 best golf courses in Texas by Golf Digest.

The entire community of Seven Meadows is located within the boundaries of the award winning KISD school district including the new state of the art Seven Lakes High School. Seven Meadows is located near I-10, the Grand Parkway, and the Westpark Tollway for convenient commute or travel to Houston, the Texas Hill Country, or our  Gulf Beaches!

Seven Meadows and Avalon at Seven Meadows are a wonderful choice for families, but they also include patio home sections favored by empty nest buyers, singles, and dink's (dual income no kids). Many of the medical employees from the new area hospitals have also chosen this subdivision.

We show and sell many homes each year and we get frustrated by the descriptions some agents use to put their listings in the best possible light. It sometimes feels like we are viewing a different home than the one that was described on the MLS. The home we viewed today was a 3 bedroom 2 bath home with a very small but functional study. The home had 9 ft ceilings.

The description was 4 bedroom 2 bath (assuming they felt that the small study with no closet is a bedroom) with vaulted ceilings ( I guess the 9 ft is vaulted?) and a gourmet kitchen (maybe the home next door had a gourmet kitchen because this house didn't!).

To make a long story short my clients needed 4 bedrooms and a study...we didn't need to waste our valuable time on this showing...nor did the sellers need us to trample through their home. The goal of all agents should be to the "right buyers" see the home they have listed. Right  buyers being those that fit the description of being ready, willing, and able to buy a particular home. In this case my clients would NEVER have purchased this home because it would not have fit their needs.

Point out the positive features of a home you have listed...if it has a small kitchen you can point out the functionality of everything being within easy reach! If you call it a gourmet kitchen...and that is what the buyer wants...you are wasting their time and your clients!

Fourteen schools in the Katy Independent School District have been ranked among the best in the State of Texas by Texas Monthly magazine in partnership with the National Center for Educational Accountability.  The breakdown of schools that made the list are eight elementary, four junior high and two high schools! (schools must be open a minimum of three years to qualify).

Elementary schools included are Alexander, Creech, Fielder, Hayes, Katy, Pattison, Williams, and Winborn. The junior high schools are Beck, Beckendorff, Cinco Ranch, and McMeans. High schools included are Cinco Ranch High School and Taylor High School.

Student performance on standardized tests were analyzed in measurable curricula areas like reading, writing, math, science, and social studies as well as the demographic makeup of the school.