It is good to know that the Real Estate world is keeping up with the High Tech world.
The Real Estate world are making it easier for buyers to search and preview the homes that they like before they call the real estate agents to show them the homes.
They did all the homework and have list of homes they really like and really want to see. The problem is that sometimes those list of homes are not a reliable source.
When buyers call the Real Estate agent and ask the agent to show the homes to them the buyers have no idea what it takes for the agent to get ready to show the properties. This is the normal preparation or the procedure to showing homes.
Home Showing Scenarios or Home Showing Steps:
1) The buyers search the internet and see the homes they like on any of the web site.
2) The buyers call agent to show homes.
3) Many of the listings on all the web sites are not update daily and homes are either sold or pending.
4) Agent has to get the address and check the status of the listing on MLS.
6) MLS status is updated daily and the property is either 'ACTIVE' or 'BACK UP' or
'PENDING' or 'SOLD'
7) If the property is still available then the agent has to gether all the information about the property and plan to put on the list of property to show.
For me personally, I check each of the property on the 'Official' Multiple Listing to see if it is still available. If the property is available then I check to see if the listing agent put all the pertinent property showing information on the agent remark area. What is the lockbox type, is it SUPRA (best and the easiest to show) If it is not a SUPRA, did the agent put the lockbox code on the listing? Some agent will not put the lockbox number on it. Is it vacant or occupied? If it is occupied by the owners then we usually have to call the owner for appointment. If it is occupied by the Tenant sometimes we are not allowed to call the tenants.
If the property has acres then we need to see if it has a gate entrance if it is we have to find out the gate code.
After I gathered all the information of all the properties the buyers want to see I would print them all and start calling the listing agents or the owners to make an appointment with the approximate time to show.
If the home is value over $800000 many of the home owners do not want people to just drop in to the property anytime of the day they want. Most home owners with multi-million dollars homes want to have the agents make an appointment to show the home, HENCE they are APPOINTMENT only and some even have 24 HOURS advance notice.
It is not easy being a Real Estate agent, you have to be prepared with list of all the homes to show. You have to get all the codes to get in the homes or the gate codes to get inside the gate to show. You have to have all the pertinent information or appointment set ahead of time.
While out driving if the property is in an areas with the mountain range like De Luz or Fallbrook there will be intermittent wireless or cell phone signal making it difficult to communicate with anyone. Before you go to the properties, you have to program your GPS correctly so you will not get lost. Even you prepare ahead of time, the GPS can trick you and take you to the wrong way or wrong address. It can be embarassing for you infront of the buyers.
I really think that it is best to have 2 agents working together to show properties. One agent can drive, another agent can be on the phone calling to ask for property that you drive by and the buyers want to know about it. The other agent can also work on the GPS to make sure it is going in the right direction. If an agent forget to bring the SUPRA Key, or if the battery on the SUPRA KEY goes out, hopefully the other agent has his or her key available.
Buyers demand instant and immediate gratification and now if you have an Iphone plus Zillow.com has an app. so you can get an application to instantly get all the information about the home that you drive by and want to know about EVERYTHING ABOUT it. EVERYTHING including photos and all plus you can even call to show the home right then and there.
Great idea but the Iphone is a $600+ investment. I want a cellphone to make a phone call while I am away from my home, I do not really want to have an app for this and that. Now if I have an Iphone I will have an app. for everything, great!! I can drive and get the app. for this and an app. for that at the same time lol. Dangerous, plus you can not talk on the phone while you drive.
SO I have to park the car and get an app. for this and that, lol
I have been in High Tech for 30+ years and I do not have an Iphone yet, NOT YET!!
I just got a Blackberry after resisting it for years. YES, years. When I worked at Intel Corp. all the managers had to have the Blackberry so they can talk to each other AT ALL TIME!!! As an oncall programmers and data architect, I had 2 Beepers and 2 Cellphones!!! One set for a Client-server app. and another set for a Mainframe app.
Real Estate & High Tech has come a long way and I am still playing catch-up.
Not fully catching up yet!!!
I wrote this a long time ago and not sure if I have posted it. However, I am posting it now and I also want to show what a realtor owns or having to have these devices for tools to use when they are out showing homes to a client. Of course, certainly an iPad probably will solve the problem of carrying so many high tech junks around...
These are only few of the gadgets that a realtor have to have in order to go out for a whole day
driving around showing houses to a 'CLIENT' that wants to look at every home on the market ;)
What are they?
1) SUPRA key, many realtor now are using their iPhone or a Cellphone to unlock the SUPRA key lock box instead of a portable key.
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2. A good GPS to find the exact location of the home or the lot; so you know exactly where you are going to show the home or the vacant land (with or with out the Real Estate for sale sign).
3. A good cell phone with a back up battery pack can add another 4 hours to your cellphone usage when you are completely out of batter. (My cellphone only last 4 hours with gmail, facebook, text chat and other junkie apps.). I used to have Blackberry but I have a new Verizon Samsung Nexus (which I was told by the salesperson recently that it is not a very good phone (wink wink*) upgrade time? Well this phone also provides a great Google map GPS, so my other GPS is now is kind of OLD and near obsolete !!!.
4. I used to carry a laptop around with me and I used the car battery converter so I can plug my laptop to use when the laptop battery runs out. This is also an obsolete item since many modern cars now aday provides all kind of plugs and outlet so you can plug your electrical devices on while you are on the go. PS. It is in mostly in the back seat so the driver is not online and drive which is dangerous as texting and driving..
5. I carry my digital camera with me all the time, so then I have to have extra batteries and extra SIMM cards, that's a safe thing to do. Although Ipad can take good pictures and my Samsung can take good pictures as well but you want more professional looking pictures for the home that you list. I takes pictures of the area, the scenery and sometimes the front of the property that I show so the client will remember that they HAVE SEEN the home (at least twice before?)
