There are some significant changes happening in the real estate industry:

If you've been following the Zillow lawsuit, you might know that recently, two major players, Realogy (which includes Coldwell Banker, Century 21, and Sotheby's) and RE/MAX, settled this lawsuit. While other companies and the National Association of REALTORS are still part of this ongoing lawsuit, these two giants settled for substantial amounts—Realogy for 85 million and RE/MAX for over 55 million.

But what's more crucial is what they agreed to within the settlement itself, not just the financial aspect:

They've agreed to give sellers the option to not pay buyer agent commissions (BAC) when listing their homes. This means that when a property is listed on the MLS, sellers can choose to set the buyer agent commission to zero.

Imagine this scenario:

In your market, a significant portion of sellers start opting not to pay a buyer agent...

We see so much marketing that is irrelevant and meaningless — it doesn't resonate with anybody. It's trying to be ironic, cute, and Instagram perfect.

But nobody really cares so these marketing gimmicks fail.

What do our potential clients care about then?

Learning something new — which will always make them stop dead in their tracks and consider your message.

That's the basic idea behind my "Educational Marketing" strategy.

Now let's think of it in terms of real estate:

Not everyone has an interest in real estate. Buyers and sellers usually only get interested right before they're ready to sell their home or buy a new one.

So when a buyer starts to think that they should buy a house, that's when they start to look at all the terms and processes around real estate. Or when a homeowner gets interested in selling, that's when they suddenly get tuned into the market conditions.

That's the power behind using "Educational...

Want to take a lot of listings rapidly?

The trick to do this is by targeting pre-foreclosure properties. There's 2.7 million homes in America today that are in a pre-foreclosure status. That number is so high because a lot of people have applied for a forbearance due to the COVID crisis, the struggling economy, and not being able to make their house payments.

A forbearance is where the lender gives the owner an opportunity to restructure their loan so they can either move or skip payments then make a balloon payment at the end.

But a lot of people are going into default because they're not able to get caught back up.

Here's the latest numbers we found from principal economist, Yanling Mayer from CoreLogic:

39.1% of all forborne loans are now 150 days behind payment. And 25% are 180 days past due.

Now, I don't say this to scare you that we're in 2009 again. The sky is not falling — and there are many differences between the market we were in then...

My friend and superstar REALTOR Adam McGrew recently shared a unique concept that he uses when talking commissions with sellers. He focuses his script around what the competition is offering and how the seller can be more competitive in the market.

His first step is to print a map of the area along with a list of properties that are currently for sale near the new listing. He then researches the compensation offered to buyers agents and highlights this information in his presentation. Next he asks the seller a simple question "So, you do want to be competitive, right?"

Not only do most sellers want to match the current compensation offered to buyers agents in the market, many want to incentivize buyers agents and encourage more showings by offering a higher compensation percentage.

Watch the video for more details...

In our changing marketing landscape we must adapt our strategy, our sales language, and our approach to advising and consulting with buyer and sellers to ensure they make informed decisions. 

In a traditional market with the normal seasonality of a stronger selling season in the spring and summer and a slower selling season in the fall in winter - many sellers will consider taking their house off the market during the winter, and many buyers may wait for more inventory to arrive in the typical spring and summer surge.  

We are not in a traditional market. The market today is undergoing a transition, a normalization which in many areas means more inventory is quickly flooding back into your local MLS. 

Watch and learn how to coach your clients (buyers and sellers) on why buying a home now is a great idea and why keeping their home on the market is a smart strategic decision. 

Ready for a new lead generation plan for 2019?

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The number one reason a home doesn't sell is always price. But what's the second biggest reason? It's the product or the home itself. We can help sellers position their home to sell with more showings and more offers by coaching them on how to have their home make a great first impression. 

By giving sellers a "to-do" list you can actually help sellers focus all their nervous energy on something productive (instead of focusing on your marketing) and you can eliminate reasons for buyers to object to the home - when they "horriblize" small insignificant items that could have been easily repaired. 

Watch as Jim provides three easy scripts to help sellers prepare their home for sale! 

Ready for FREE Starter Kit's to get excited about Lead Generation? 

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About Jim Remley:

Jim Remley is a nationally recognized expert in the field of...