The Digital Open House

Smart phones, tablets and mobile apps have been a real game changer in real estate! The internet and web brought us online listings, MLS systems, online applications to perform due diligence and investigate properties, virtual tours and more…

Mobile technology however has brought us that much more capability. Selling real estate is a profession that has you on the road all the time. Lugging around a clunky laptop can be uncomfortable, never mind a portable printer. Mobile technology can cut down on trips to the office and make you extremely efficient.

As we watch the paper disappear, it becomes more and more prudent for real estate sales professionals to learn and share ideas about how they can do more digitally. The digital open house is a great example and really only requires a tablet and access to the ViMO app.

• When you run an open house you can use your tablet to not only show highlights with respect to the property and neighbourhood, but as real estate sales professionals representing buyers and buyers themselves come through your client’s property, you can create a profile for them in your ViMO app and electronically transmit all pertinent details on the property.

• If a buyer comes through your client’s property and is not interested, you can show them other properties in the area on your ViMO app and schedule a date to take them out to see those properties (assuming they are unrepresented).

You can literally answer any and all questions a buyer may have at the swipe of your tablet!

Be ready to get digitally connected! After adding a real estate sales professional on ViMO, ask them if they would like to connect on LinkedIn, or if a buyer, connect on Facebook.

Getting prepared for a digital open house:

• You will want to ensure that you have an iPad with your app loaded up.
• Practice the different criteria you will enter to generate information about the property – this way you appear confident when with the client.
• Ensure that there is Wi-Fi at the property. If there is not, have a contingency plan like setting up your smart phone as a mobile hotspot.

As of today, you may not be able to do away with paper entirely – not because you can’t but because the late adopters of the world may still want something to take with them, like a feature sheet. It is a good idea to print a few from GeoWarehouse to have out on the table. With that said, when running a digital open house, keep a tally of how many people want the information transmitted to them electronically versus in hardcopy format.

Moving towards running your open houses digitally will inevitably make you more competitive because you are capable of doing more, faster!

Stay connected with GeoWarehouse and ViMO. Find out more by visiting www.geowarehouse.ca or www.myvimo.ca today.

Becoming Fraud Proof… A Monumental Task

Fraud continues to be rampant in the real estate industry. All parties to a transaction have to make their best efforts to avoid fraudulent deals. The Globe and Mail released an article from 2013 that we continue to share because it highlights some of the most common types of fraud you may encounter today. Check it out here: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/mortgages/top-6-real-estate-scams-and-how-to-avoid-them/article13108985/?page=all.  

Some of these are more impactful to lenders and brokers while some are more important for you– we look at the ones relevant to you and cover each to explain how you can leverage your tools to mitigate the chance that it could happen to you:

Title fraud: This could be flat out identity theft or simply undisclosed parties on title. You can avoid this by asking for identification when you sign up a new client and also requesting a search to verify home ownership information. The ID could be fake! Another idea is to Google the person’s name with address and you may discover that your client doesn’t look the same as another person with the same name and address.

Title insurance is far more common these days and is an effective way to also protect against real estate fraud - but that will only occur after the lawyer has cleared the property. Many times the lawyer will catch title fraud and in turn the deal won’t close after legal fees have been spent.

Home improvement scams. This is a big one that impacts many real estate sales professionals because your client may expect you to list the house for much more than it is worth. You can run a sales history report or look at sales comparables in the area and if the value isn’t there, sometimes it is better to take a pass than to get caught up with someone who is trying to commit fraud.

Realtor^® Magazine also released an article on the topic of mortgage fraud recently, highlighting some great tips for avoiding real estate fraud: http://realtormag.realtor.org/law-and-ethics/law/article/watching-out-for-fraud. A couple great points that discuss dealing with other real estate sales professionals include:

• When first working with another real estate sales professional that you haven’t worked with before – obtain their complete name, license number and check their license status. If the other agent doesn’t want to meet in person – this is a major red flag!
• Pay attention to names! If the real estate sales professional is a party to the deal this is non arms-length and could be a flag.

Unfortunately, fraud costs us all – not only in money but also time. Take advantage of the available tools that are money well spent – especially when they protect you and your client. GeoWarehouse has those tools – check them out at www.geowarehouse.ca. 

4 Pics, Same Significance

It’s that time again!!! Can you guess what common words that these pictures represent?

Get the information your clients want about specific neighbourhoods. GeoWarehouse has you covered. Check out www.geowarehouse.ca today.

ViMO Offers Subscription Billing

Attn: GeoWarehouse customers!!! ViMO is now available for 1 low annual subscription. Don’t know what ViMO is? It’s Teranet’s new mobile app for real estate sales professionals. Visit the ViMO site - www.myvimo.ca, click ViMO and input your preliminary information and someone will get back to you from sales. It is as easy as that!

ViMO gives you the ability to do so much, on-the-go – are you taking advantage? You should be!