The year 2020 had proven to be a roller coaster ride in many industries. COVID-19, economic recession and political unrest has put a serious dent in economic recovery. One that has withstood the tide of change has been the real estate market. The housing market is not typically tied to swings in the stock market or the economy. People don not buy house as an investment. Housing is a basic need and the decision to buy one is usually prompted by entering various stages in life. A recession does not change the circumstances for people. Even in a full-blown recession, the housing market is durable. To verify these statistics, I sat down with a local realtor to get a behind the scenes look at how real estate was faring during this time.
Mia Anderson is an award-winning Realtor for Berkshire Hathaway HS Pen Fed Realty. Having been licensed for over 17 years, Mia has been specially helping people in the local area move for the past eight years. She is not your typical realtor; she is a people person. Prior to her work in the Real Estate arena, Mia worked in Human Resources for Horak Construction. You know that old song, A House Is Not A Home, well Mia believes that A House IS A Home! And a home is made up of the people who will live there and she is not selling, Mia is helping. She knows that to provide real service, you must add something with cannot be bought or measured with money and that is sincerity and integrity.
According to Mia and her solid team of professionals, they are not doing business as usual, but doing business at the next level. There has not been a downturn for her, because Real Estate has been designated as an essential business during this time. The actual office may have been closed, but real estate business is being done differently. Like most businesses, the safety of all concerned is paramount and they are doing business with minimal contact. When I pressed on how this was accomplished, she proceeded to explain. There are still some usual things that have to be done. The house is thoroughly cleaned before and after any interaction within the home. The doors of the cabinets are always open so that there is no need to keep touching them. Technology continues to be a catalyst for change in all sectors of business and industry and real estate is no exception. She said that technologies are taking over the real estate industry by storm and streamlining the way they do business. Sellers are on the receiving end of this technological revolution. Homeowners are using devices and smart sensors to remotely monitor their residential property in real time. There is an emphasis on staging the homes, using a lot of patented technology like virtual and augmented reality apps. A major member of her team now is the videographers that use artificial intelligence platforms to create the digital open houses.
Mia also contends that technology is also changing other aspects of the real estate business. Buyers can now move around the property virtually and determine the property dimensions as well as have a better view of the rooms using 3D video home tours. With tech savvy millennials constituting the largest group of homebuyers, it is important to keep abreast of the evolving tech trends and learn how to benefit from them. She no longer has to drive clients to view properties. Many buyers are using the internet to hunt for homes and make real estate decisions. Realtors can screen buyers thoroughly, ensuring those that are pre-qualitied, as opposed to those that are just looking. Realtors maximize their time by only communicating by appointment. There is also a lot of communication using zoom technology.
Marketing in real estate is also benefiting from technology and realtors are taking advantage. Mia indicates that many property websites and real estate platforms post and view listings online. Realtors are taking advantage of these new marketing channels and leveraging them to increase market outreach and understand buyer behavior and other real estate analysis. She also said that social media I is being used with many Realtors buying ads on Facebook among others.
Mia reminds us the real estate is one of the most thriving business in the country today. However, real estate technology can never replace the realtor. The technical resources are solely beneficial, convenient, but only add to but can never take the place of the human bond. In today’s market REAL ESTATE IS DONE DIFFERENT!!
