Tech-savvy brokers are proud and profitable
But web contact will never replace fiduciary responsibility
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By Susan Brickman - CNC REAL ESTATE EDITOR
Editor's note: This is the second in a series focusing on real estate business on the Internet,
with a particular look at Greater Boston players.
They used to make fun of her in the mid 90s, calling her the 'techie queen,' but rather than be insulted, Mollie Wasserman basked in the glow of an revolution. Today, Wasserman, who calls her team at Keller Williams Realty Mollie & Company, has 12 buyers under contract and prides herself on making Internet connections that result in full-fledged real estate deals.
She is just one of many local brokers who use the Internet to introduce herself, her background, qualifications and products to information-hungry consumers before making that fundamental hands-on relationship.
Many of these web-based brokers work differently, some offering what they call discounts, others a menu of services, and still others flat fees for the services provided, but what is really important, Wasserman said, is the factor of loyalty to the client or customer, the seller or buyer, that fiduciary aspect that can only be accomplished with a set contract.
And you have to know exactly what you're going to get for the fees or services agreed upon in that contract and who is available when needed.
Holliston resident Sue Price wouldn't work with any real estate broker who wasn't tech savvy, and currently, she is only going to work with Wasserman, she said.
Price had checked several on-line real estate companies, but wasn't willing to make an initial call to a firm with which she wasn't familiar and which she feared might not serve her needs. She buys homes, rehabs them and turns them over and has had great results with Wasserman, she said.
Price actually met Wasserman in person before finding out about her tech background, she said. "She was referred by my hairdresser. They were the part of the same business group and I found her very personable. She struck me as very honest and forthright and I've learned through my experience with her she is very much that way," Price said.
Then she discovered how Wasserman's Internet savvy worked to her, Price's, benefit. "Everything is up to date and she was always right on the ball," she said. Wasserman posted photos of the exterior and interior of her home that she was selling and is sure that played a big part in its quick sale. "A real estate agent looking for a house for someone else saw it there," she said.
Price currently is working with Wasserman as a buyer client, looking for another house to buy and rehab, and did so when she purchased a home in Franklin. She in turn worked with Wasserman as a seller's agent when she put the Franklin home on the market.
Price is convinced she will continue working with Wasserman and is sure those buyers or sellers working with someone who is not Internet savvy are missing out. In fact, Price said, she originally found on Wassserman's site service people to help her with her re-habs and now turns to it for updates on real estate information in the area and articles pertaining to everything about real estate. Wasserman has links to all kinds of sites, including MetroWest Homes & Open House Guide, mapping sites, a mortgage site, even the post office, just about everything anyone interested in real estate might need to find and find quickly. "I looked at a couple of other dot com companies and they were generic sites and weren't very useful," Price said.
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without the written consent of
Mollie W. Wasserman.
The Real Estate Internet Warning is the one exception to the above rule as we encourage agents to use it but ONLY WITH THE FOLLOWING CREDIT:
"Courtesy of Mollie W. Wasserman, http://www.TheHomeConsultants.com
Any questions or comments about this site should be directed to: Mollie W. Wasserman, Email or (508) 613-9101
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