A business is as good as the service the business owner provides.

 

And in real estate, service often does not revolve around contracts, listings, property marketing, transactions, and closings.

 

Right now, in fact, many California buyers and sellers are at least in as much need of assurance and education as they are of smooth transactions, negotiation savvy and advice. The market has been consistently hot for so long that current and hopeful buyers and sellers may need gentle reminders of just how unusual the past 2 to 10 years have been.

 

But there’s no reason to slow down on account of longer market times and lower rates of home appreciation.

 

A busy agent is a better agent.

 

Instead, ask:

How can I empower clients to make smart decisions during times of change?

 

By extension, how can a fresh approach to helpfulness support my business?

 

 

California homes are still appreciating in value; they’re simply doing so at a slower pace than the warp speed of the past few years.

 

Coming off pandemic related shutdowns and, later, unfathomably lower interest rates, rapid- home sales, inflation, it’s tempting to refer to current market conditions as slow.

 

In a Housing Matters Podcast from the California Association of Realtors (CAR) last month, Jordan Levine, CAR chief economist, and Oscar Wei, CAR deputy chief economist, analyzed data on home sales, interest rates, inflation and the real estate market. In their conclusions, they offered tips for realtors.

 

Levine and Wei pointed out that even with far fewer overall transactions compared to a year ago, the rate of sales a year ago was a 12-year high.

 

Although interest rates are climbing and prices remain high, inventory is increasing.

 

As Levine says, “The appetite for home ownership is still alive and well,” especially with many people still working from home.

 

In other words, it’s all relative. And for real estate professionals out in the field, nothing about the pace of business should feel slow. The agents and brokerages who maintain the momentum of the past few years may just be the ones who better weather the changes.

 

 

Embody the Long View

 

Longer market time provides an opportunity for buyers to return to the long view when making decisions about purchases. The same goes for a real estate business.

 

Where do you — or does your buyer client or your listing client — envision yourself a year from now? Five years from now? Fifteen years from now? How might your — or your client’s — life and needs change over those periods of time?

 

“Buyers who are interested in and financially capable of doing so will have more choices now,” said Wei, adding that people are going to continue to look and be able to find a home that they like. Likewise, he added, the practice of overbidding may reduce.

 

By taking the time to help helping sellers understand the new mindset of buyers, listing agents can better tailor marketing to long-term buyers.

 

And by taking the time to help buyers see the benefits and drawbacks that every property can bring over the long term, buyer’s agents can better help clients with negotiations and, by extension, build new trust.

 

Learn how personalization strategies through LeadHax marketing can help your social media and other digital messaging resonate with the people who are looking for the service you provide.

 

 

Market as an Educator

 

One way of keeping up the momentum is to use perceived gains in time — such as listing time on market and the time between processing each of the several offers on the same house — to return to basics.

 

You’re of course going to provide a listening ear, as always. You’re going to express compassion and understanding. You’re even going to provide more time to people before they begin to work with you.

 

But now you have opportunities for better consulting with clients; for better education; to better prepare them for the next major change in their lives – the purchase or sale of a home.

 

Home sellers, for example, are going to require a lot more expertise from agents when properly pricing each listing, according to Wei in last month’s Housing Matters Podcast. He advises agents to provide that expertise, to share all the data and to take the time to educate sellers on new best practices in pricing.

 

 

The Ability to Educate Demonstrates Experience.

 

Likewise, on the buyer side, a recent California Association of Realtors member poll showed that more realtors are seeing buyers choose financing other than the long-term rate locks that regained popularity when rates were so low.

 

In their podcast, Levine and Wei explained that “Members (of the CAR) are going to want to make sure they’re on their game to know about different mortgage types,” as well as brush up on down-payment assistance programs among other home financing options.

 

So, what’s in a changed market for agents and brokerages? Opportunity to learn and to grow. Opportunity to rebrand as an educator and an advocate.

 

From messaging to integrated digital and print marketing campaigns, let LeadHax help you rebrand for now and for the future.