In the age of Google and social media, agents are facing increasing competition and disruption. How can you thrive at a time when people have access to more information than ever before?
Winning listings and selling property is more difficult today than it was, says Helen Yan winner of REB’s Top 50 Women in Real Estate 2016, but there is a way to prosper in spite of the hurdles.
“In a tough market, the best thing that you can do is maintain your reputation, and offer a great service and the correct information. That is the best thing to do,” she said.
Earning a reputation and protecting it is simple. All you need to do is be honest and always go the extra mile, Ms Yan said.
“You have to tell people the truth. Never lie to them and do a lot of work for them.”
“Doing a lot of work” translates to giving the market whatever it needs.
“If I'm selling one property, I'm not showing them just one property. You have to give buyers a wide choice and support all of it with a lot of figures. You have to be very fair to them,” Ms Yan said.
Both buyers and sellers want value, and it is important to provide clients with reliable information that backs their own research.
Ms Yan knows a thing or two about listing and selling real estate.
In 2015, she listed 102 properties, sold 92 of them and turned over more than $195 million in sales volumes, at an average of just 16 days on the market.
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