Catch the Predictions

Weekly RISMedia iSucceed counseling calls offer in-depth research
RISMEDIA, Jan. 25?Almost anyone can put forth a sweeping generalization regarding the future ? we do it all the time. Whether it’s sports, the economy, politics, or stock prices we give predictions on, our collective obsession over the future is a favorite topic of conversation. But while it’s one thing to simply offer our personal thoughts on a subject, it’s quite another to dive deep into serious, qualitative research in a sincere effort to prepare an industry for imminent change.

Real estate industry trends expert Stefan Swanepoel first took on this task back in 1989. He explains, ?No one can see into the future and neither are we trying to predict it,? he says ?but in the absence of availability of market information for our own business plan we were forced to conduct our own. This has over time evolved into publishing 12 books and whitepapers on various items that involve trends and change,? he said.

A book titled ?Real Estate Confronts Reality,? published in 1997 became the landmark publication on the subject and has had a profound impact on the industry, touching on a handful of key change indicators and correctly predicting several of the industry?s largest changes with astonishing clarity. For example, Swanepoel stated some 10 years ago that, ?Technology is the single biggest transformation catalyst the real estate industry has or will experience in the future. With an open architecture, the Internet is increasingly becoming possible to connect the entire transaction process into one integrated, transparent, wireless, paperless procedure.?

Swanepoel also believed that over the next ten years the real estate industry would experience a major consolidation of medium size brokerage firms. He predicted that, ?Many small to medium size brokerages would disappear as they were purchased by larger companies. He also predicted that franchising would be a renewed growth business. Both of these trends have in fact surged over the last couple of years with companies like NRT (founded the same year the book was published) and HomeServices (founded after the book was published) leading the consolidation trend, and companies like Keller Williams Realty and EXIT (both companies strong growth occurred after the book was published) leading the franchise resurgence.

So tune into this week’s RISMedia/iSucceed Business Development and Training Call, and catch Stefan Swanepoel?s incisive analysis of the industry?s current condition and a few of his coming predictions that will shape the industry over the next twelve months. The interview, hosted by iSucceed?s own Bill Shue, will be available from Jan. 25th to the 31st at rismedia.com.

Next week enjoy an interesting conversation with Lewis Walker, who explains how agents can modify the focus of their website with a neighborhood concept designed to dramatically increase the number and frequency of leads they receive.

Every Wednesday the RIS Media/iSucceed Business Development and Training Call provides valuable real estate strategies, and introduces agents across the country to the full 30-minute iSucceed Weekly Counseling Call, available only at www.iSucceed.com – the most expansive online provider of practical real estate tips, tools, secrets and strategies from over 175 of the industry?s most successful superstar agents.

Listen to this week’s interview at www.isucceed.com/rismedia/interview.

Real Estate Hot Topics

Profit Center: Real Estate Tips, Training & Events

RISMedia Solutions

RISMedia on the Go

Today's Featured Listing