RE/MAX real estate
Office Newsletter - Week of July 22nd Edition
Ninja Mastermind Session
GLVR: Import Contacts Feature Now Available
Do you ever procrastinate anything?
Last week we talked about being in a slump and remedies for that.
This week our topic is procrastination.
Universal and frustrating are two of the characteristics of procrastination. Here is a really simple fix.
Thought of the week: Procrastination isn't a flaw, it's technique!
July Team Collaboration Highlights
Transactional Lessons Learned
Maintenance and Risk of Loss
Broker Co-operation
Revised AOS – July 2019
Industry News
Amazon ‘Turnkey’ Program ‘Desperation’ for Realogy
“Realogy throwing a deep ball late in the game” is how one Wall Street analyst summed up the July 23rd announcement of Amazon/Realogy "Turnkey" program. Several analysts have questioned if the agreement will help Realogy as it struggles with massive debt.
Despite Amazon’s tech prowess, “Turnkey” is an old-school lead-generation ploy being paid for directly out of the commissions of Realogy agents. In essence, the program provides home buyers with expensive closing gifts of Amazon services (e.g. carpet cleaning) and Smart Home products (Ec
“We believe this is desperation to improve their broker platform which has structural headwinds,” wrote Senior Research Analyst Brad Berning at Craig-Hallum Capital Group. He added, “We are skeptical that people will go to Amazon.com to search for a Realtor or homes in any meaningful scale. Amazon is notorious for throwing ‘spaghetti at the wall’ and seeing what sticks.”
For Amazon, this is a potentially significant sale of its services and products on Realogy’s dime. For Realogy, appearing to partner in any way with the high-flying Amazon is a chance to help shore up its financial image.
Amazon isn’t really entering real estate
- Despite the headlines, Amazon isn’t really entering real estate. It will have nothing to do with the transaction process itself.
- Amazon’s main role is capturing a lead and, much later, providing an after-the-fact bundle of closing gifts. In fact, Amazon states that it “is not sponsoring the brokerage component nor providing any brokerage services…”
- It’s our understanding that the lead from Amazon will be sent to Cartus, so agents receiving the leads will likely pay hefty referral fees as well. The fine print: “The cost to provide the Amazon Move-in Benefit is paid for by the participating licensed real estate brokers.” Cartus typically collects 35% of the commission as a referral fee. For a Realogy agent working on a 70-30 split with her brokerage, that means half of the agent’s commission will go to pay the Cartus referral fee. In some instances inside Realogy NRT-owned offices, the brokerage side of the split on Cartus leads is higher, such as 50-50 instead of 70-30. In this case, the agent’s true commission would be 15% of the buyer-side commission.
- Put another way, Realogy is purchasing expensive Amazon closing gifts with its agents' referral fees, rather than giving those agents a higher split that they could use to purchase closing gifts tailored to the specific needs of their clients.
- Part of Amazon’s appeal is that purchasers go there for convenience and self-selection. They don’t want to be “sold” something. How much traffic will this option attract?
- What quality of leads will this generate? Turnkey is currently buried on Amazon.com and is only accessible through the www.amazon.com/turnkey url.
- This is a very traditional lead-gen partnership. It does nothing to elevate the customer experience during the transaction.
- Fourteen of the 15 markets (except Seattle) have a large presence of offices owned by Realogy’s NRT brokerage. While Century 21 and ERA franchisees are mentioned in the news release, company-owned Coldwell Banker offices will be well-positioned to receive the leads. In these NRT offices, Realogy can maximize its share of the commission compared to leads closed by agents of Century 21 and ERA franchisees.
- RE/MAX Affiliates shouldn’t be all that concerned. This is essentially a Cartus lead-generation play. It is a poor substitute for the valuable relationships that our agents have worked so hard to cultivate with clients.
- RE/MAX agents earn their business by providing value and expertise – not with a bundle of after-the-fact closing gifts. We’ve never needed a “use me and you’ll get this free stuff” type of strategy. Would you rather get another gizmo or work with a trusted advisor?
Stepping Out of Your Routine to Innovate
We all get into our routines, whether it’s those first few moments in the morning or a complex list of daily milestones. Sometimes, however, our routines serve us less than we realize, and stepping out of them can add inspiration and innovation to your day. Here are a few tips for stepping out of your routine.
Ask your colleagues what they do. If you have a productive colleague, ask them for 10 minutes to pick their brain about their daily routine. They may have some great habits that you can incorporate.
Make a list and try them all. Create a list of five to 10 ways you could shake up your daily routine, and then try them all to see if anything sticks.
Get outside. Research shows that being outside can boost creativity and innovation. If the weather allows for it, add three 10-minute outdoor breaks into your day. Sit in the garden with a cup of coffee (and no phone!), take a quick walk around the block or eat lunch outside.
Do things backwards. Shake up your routine by simply reorganizing it. Hit the gym after work instead of before, make those afternoon calls first thing in the morning and check emails before lunch instead of after. You may find you prefer the new order better than the old.
The Novice's View
Just as you only have one chance to make a first impression, you only have one opportunity to see something for the first time. As children, our entire world is composed of "first time" experiences. At times it is enchanting. In other ways it is terrifying.
As we gain experience, and our collective library of "first impressions" changes our ability to see the world with fresh eyes. This is helpful when it saves us from mistakes, but it can be a hindrance to perceiving new opportunities or solutions. Once lessons have been taught, they can be enormously hard to unlearn.
We often have to rely on others for a new perspective. The practice, however, of trying to see the world from the child's mind by yourself can be enlightening if you cultivate it. Try to strip down your storehouse of knowledge and look at a situation as though you're a complete novice. As your biases and accumulated knowledge resists, acknowledge them and set them aside.
Attempting this can help you develop empathy for people who do not have the same level of familiarity with a subject as you do. It can teach you patience and remind you that the root of communication depends upon true mutual understanding. It helps you remove assumptions and thwart miscommunication.
Can you remember a time when you didn't know what a title search was? Can you honestly recall the first time someone explained a mortgage to you? You may not, but there are people out there who come to you with zero understanding of the home buying and selling process.
The child's mind not only protects you from your biases, but it helps discard half-truths, rumors, and assumptions you may have held (but don't recall their origins or can't vouch for their accuracy).
Cultivate this state of mind--one filled with curiosity and useful ignorance--to help you become a better listener, problem solver, and intuitive professional.
Direct all requests to:
If needing assistance, please contact Jackie Karmilowicz. She will be main contact person for all agents. She then will direct all inquiries to either one of her two assistants, Bill Cook and Sandra Saturne who will work with your clients.
Business Development Manager
NRG NE Realtor Channel
Office: 267-295-5836
Personal mobile: 717-875-7690
https://www.nrghomepower.com/energy-choice/energy-solutions/concierge/
I'm sure Matt will reach out to each of you individually over the next few weeks.
Contact Joel Diaz to Make an Appointment to start getting ready for Booj
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$25.00 min / $2,000,000.00 max
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2019 member Profile
Wanda Hoffman
Jamie Bowman
Sherrie Brunetti
Phil Edmiston
Jeff Burnatowski
Chris Topping
Andrew Dilg
Years with RE/MAX real estate: 8
Years in Real Estate: 8
Trese Merkel
7/19/2019
Years with RE/MAX real estate: 3
Years in Real Estate: 3
Tyla Jackson
7/23/2019
Years with RE/MAX real estate: 1
Years in Real Estate: 16
RE/MAX real estate
Let us know about your open house TODAY!
Email: joel@LehighValleyHomes.com
Website: www.LehighValleyHome.com
Location: 3120 Hamilton Boulevard, Allentown, PA, United States
Phone: 610-770-9000
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Twitter: @jdiaz01