I’m blessed to live in a phenomenal town called Chappaqua, New York. We’re about 50 minutes north of New York city by train. Our school district is excellent, the people are phenomenal, the stores are outstanding and the local restaurants are top notch. That’s why I feel obligated to offer some unsolicited advice to the local Real Estate community. Change the way you currently do business, and add more value. 
Recently when a friend who lives out of state inquired about the state of the economy and how that was effecting our local area, I joked about how the Prudential Real Estate building was actually remodeling. The Houlihan Lawrence office as well. Suffice to say, our local real estate market while slumping a bit; is certainly still alive and well. That does not mean it can’t do better.
I have 5 tips that I think could change the way we interact with Real Estate Brokers
1. Sign up for Twitter - As more and more people leverage the micro-blogging site they’ll expect to find you here. Think of how powerful it would be if you could update regarding open houses, links touting local schools, community programs, or even (a more recent phenomenon) of price reductions.
2. Create a Facebook Page – There are over 250 million people on Facebook, and they’re your peers, not your kids peers. You need to have a presence in Facebook. People, when investigating new areas talk to people. People talk to each other on Facebook. You need to join in the dialogue. Speak about the community you represent, show that you’re not only selling a home. You’re selling schools, a community and the emotion attached to owning a home in a phenomenal town.
3. Engage with your potential clients (ie, the buyers AND the sellers) – drop the loyalty to the buyer, or the seller. I get that you’re working on commission, but someday that buyer may be a seller, and guess what; now they hate you. Really. Just be human and it will all work out in the end. If you mess with one, it will come back I guarantee it. If you work more as a match maker, you will thrill everyone involved in the transaction.
4. Let us peek behind the curtain, We’re all big boys and girls: we know every house isn’t perfect. Buy a flip cam, walk a house, critique the house (honestly) and share with the world. We all get that homes are not perfect, and we BUY THEM ANYWAY. Stop trying to create the perfect illusion when you’re selling a home. We know it’s not perfect, but that’s OK. Just be honest with us, and we’ll love you for it.
5. Trust us and sift through the BS: Stop being fuzzy with details. If the school district isn’t listed, we already assume that the mailing address doesn’t synch with the school district we want. So when we get to your office, and request to see the house, we’re only going to be dissapointed. Just give it to us straight.
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Chris…
i wanted to elaborate on my tweet. excellent points, especially # 3. a favorite topic of my. i still don’t understand how double-dipping is still even legal. on #3–i’m trying to work that in. I will start doing them with foreclosures since they’re vacant. occupied homes may be an issue with homeowners.