Friday, February 09, 2007
Cold Emailing
With what free time I have, I've been shooting emails off to a bunch of different brokers and agents, regarding properties they have listed that may be worth looking into more. I've noticed that for every 10 (or maybe more) emails I send out, I get one back. Most of the time the property is already under contract (even though it still shows up as "Active" on their web site). What I am disappointed about is the agent I spoke with on the phone a couple of weeks ago. I sent her three emails the first week and I sent her a follow-up earlier this week, but still no response. How do these people stay in business? If I got an inquisitive (and potential) buyer, I'd at least follow-up, if nothing else. I sent one broker and email asking her about a listing, and at least she responded to it - she said it was currently under contract. I sent her a response asking her to let me know if any properties that meet my criteria become available. No response. Geesh! I'm REALLY thinking maybe I should become a real estate agent, work under the tutolage of a broker for two years (one of Texas' requirements), get my broker's license, and open my own shop. :-/
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3 comments:
Wow! That's some great customer service you are receiving. Isn't the real estate industry basically built on referrals and good customer service? Good luck with your property search.
Hey, you know what you could do? You could turn in those agents with properties that are "pending" that still have them as "active" with the local Association of Realtors. That kind of behavior is frowned upon big time because of exactly what you're going through--it makes the whole industry look bad to prospective customers.
And, I probably told you this, but I think only about 10% of licensees actually check their email every day. Michael and I are always griping about how the real estate industry seems to be the last one to embrace technology. I don't understand why everything isn't paperless by this point!
amillionby40 - Tell me about it. Makes me wonder how people make any money (or why they are even doing it).
trisha - Now there's an idea. The listings don't really have a status indicator (i.e., "ACtive", "Under Contract"), but I'd think the default would be "Active" and if they were under contract, they'd be temporarily off the MLS (just a guess). However, I found out today from one agent that they have gotten pounded recently by one winter storm after another, which has basically shut down the whole area. Looking at the weather maps, it looks like it's nott letting up anytime soon, either. We'll see.
I'm really, really, REALLY, considering getting my license for that state and becoming my own broker/agent to do deals. Lot's of research to do first, though. I'm sure I *may* have to be a resident of the state, too.
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