Kathy Vaughan's (kathyvaughan) Blog

By the way, I'm not picking on Redfin. If you Google "rebate" and "real estate" you get about 495,000 hits. There are a lot of firms and agents out there on the rebate bandwagon. After my last post, I got a bunch of replies from supporters of rebate models. I would like to comment on these commen...

I was following a lively question and answer set on a Redfin forum when someone in the discussion (a Redfin representative?) accused other party (sounded like a consumer) of being "out to get Redfin." The consumer was arguing that Redfin's offer of "2 percent back" to the buyer is false advertisi...

In a recent post, I brought up the issue of who should pay the buyer's agent. Most of the comments I received focused on two concepts:1. Many of you commented that buyers, if faced with the possibility of having to use part of their funds to pay their own agent, would simply move onto another hou...

Recently an offer came in on one of my listings from an experienced, seasoned, competent, and well-regarded buyer's agent from a well-known, well-respected firm. As many offers are these days, the price was low, the closing cost credit was high, and the inspection contingencies were rigorous.On t...

I recently interviewed a fairly new agent who was looking to join my firm. I asked her "What are your sources of business?" She looked ocnfused. I rephrased, "Where do your clients come from?" She quickly smiled and proudly said they were all referrals. Both of them.I remember when the "by referr...

Often, new agents come to me asking about "image advertising." This is a term they've seen in marketing materials and theywonder about it. Is it important? How expensive is it? How do I go about it?To answer the first question, "Yes, it is crucial!" Why? This might be a long answer to a short que...

In Part 2, Turning an Internet Lead Into a Buyer: Part 2, I differentiated between a true lead and a mere glimmer of hope. That is, a true lead is a consumer who asks for information that is not already on the web site and expects a reply in their email or by phone.That means that when they get a...

In Part 1, Turning an Internet Lead Into a Buyer: Part 1, I raised the issue of what in the world to do with Internet leads once you got them. How do you turn them into buyers?I proposed that a recent experience I had with moving companies as in Internet lead for moving might be similar. For a sh...

I am constantly bombarded by offers from thousands (it seems like) companies offering to give me (for a fee) buyer and seller leads from the Internet. After all, we've had to accept that the Internet is where the buyers are, or where they start out at, and agents who get them during that "informa...

A recent post focused on a list of questions buyers should answer about their wants and needs related to a home before they begin looking. The writer mentioned the huge number of properties to choose from and the absolute necessity of narrowing down your criteria before you can possibly find a ho...