Priorities and Strategies for 2008

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RISMEDIA, Jan. 8, 2008-The Power Broker Roundtable is brought to you by the National Association of REALTORS® and Alex Perriello, NAR’s Special Liaison for Large Firm Relations. Watch for this column each month, where we will address broker issues, concerns and milestones.

This month’s participants:

Moderator: Alex Perriello, Special Liaison for Large Firm Relations, NAR
Participants: Andrea Lawrence, President and Co-owner, Prudential Alliance Realtors-St. Louis, Missouri
James Phelps Retz, Senior Vice President, Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty-Huntington, New York
Margaret Kelly, Chief Operating Officer, RE/MAX International-Denver, Colorado

Alex Perriello: With the New Year come fresh opportunities and ample challenges. The trick is to tackle them in a way that enhances success and ensures profitability. What follows are insightful comments shared by three industry veterans who have withstood both good and bad cycles. They concede the market will be tough again this year but rich with possibilities, if we cater to consumer needs and stick to business fundamentals.

AP: What are your company’s priorities for this year, and why?

Andrea Lawrence: This is a unique time in the real estate business, and we want to be poised to act aggressively when opportunities arise. We are constantly monitoring market conditions to take advantage of weaknesses. We are focused on developing new revenue sources, the enhancement of our marketing technology and extreme fiscal responsibility.

James Phelps Retz: Continue to deliver the absolute best service available to consumers. We want to ensure that our sales professionals have all of the right sales, marketing, and technology tools and systems to provide unparalleled results; support our management team with accurate, “live” data on every single agent and transaction and relevant market share information so that they can coach, recruit, and grow their offices properly; and grow and expand the company strategically depending on logical, geographic opportunities.

Margaret Kelly: Our priorities are the same as they are every year-find ways to do what we do, even better. We want to sell more franchises, increase our agent count and expand our network, both domestically and internationally. We can do that more easily if we respond effectively to the changing needs of the consumer. In our 34-year history, we have learned that difficult markets present tremendous opportunities.

AP: What will distinguish this year from previous years?

AL: There will be a weeding out of companies and agents who came into real estate during the boom years and have never fully understood the fundamentals of the business. Mergers, acquisitions and consolidations will come back to the forefront in the industry, giving significant growth opportunities to strong, well-run companies.

JPR: We believe that it will be imperative that real estate consumers have timely, accurate information on appropriate transactions to make informed decisions. And, albeit redundant, technology expertise on all levels is simply a condition of success, and an area where we will continue to outperform our competitors.

MK: The marketplace won’t be very different from what we’ve seen in 2007. However, the real estate industry is undergoing far-reaching changes. We feel that change is good. The strong will survive. Those who are innovative and resourceful will set a new course for themselves and be much more successful, as a result. Agents will go back to the basics to provide good, old-fashioned, face-to-face customer service, while taking the time to learn critical new skills.

AP: What message do you want associates and managers to keep in mind throughout 2008?

AL: It is time to ignore the negative media, to focus on our business plans and exciting opportunities, and to return to the basics of brokerage. We have withstood many cycles in past real estate markets, and we will ride this wave to new heights again.

JPR: We have grown and prospered through virtually every kind of market imaginable. Our sales associates have afforded us the opportunity to always be the marketshare leaders for the entire North Shore of Long Island, and it will be the same expertise, integrity, and commitment that will make 2008 a fantastic year.

MK: Our mantra for the New Year is, “Be Great in 2008.” And there are many ways to do that. NAR tells us that there are likely to be 5.7 million existing home sales in the U.S. in 2008. The message to our agents is that “you need to position yourself to get your share of those sales.” To do this, many will have to recognize that this market is not like any market they’ve seen in the past. It’s not business as usual. They need to reinvent themselves to become equipped to deal effectively with the new norm.

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