Are You The Laziest REALTOR in the World?

Gotta disagree with you on this one Ian, at least for my market.

There are 50,000 homes listed in the Phoenix MLS. I’ve *got* to make my listings as easy as possible for buyers and buyers agents to get into the home.

If I don’t use a lockbox, that means I have to get to the home to open it. In our market, if someone is driving by and wants to see the home, they won’t even wait 10 minutes — they’ll just move on to one of the other dozen homes within a 1/4 mile.

Via an electronic lockbox, I can at least know who’s seen the house and follow up.

One could say, “just make showings by appointment only”. Well, that doesn’t work here. With so many homes to chose from, you have to make them VERY accessible, and a lockbox greatly facilitates that.

Gotta agree with PhoenixRealEstateGuy – in my market, an electronic lockbox is a requirement. NOT using a lockbox is BAD service.

That said, I try to hold Open Houses as often as possible unless the owner dislikes it.

I agree whole heartedly and am a convert to this religion. I was once a lockbox user saw the error of my ways. In this competitive market the realtors who give the best customer service, by showing the properties, doing open houses and doing all they can to sell the vendor’s property are the ones that will be left standing at the end of the day.

First, I am not an agent, but I work with them every day and my question would be…

If you have more than one listing but not enough to employ an assistant, how could you give GREAT Customer service to your sellers (by showing their homes) if you have more than one showing at the same time on different properties?

I am not convinced that a Lockbox is lazy, it is the only option some have, short of Cloning.

Hey Ian & others….

I am a fellow lockbox hater. Phoenix aside (I agree with your volume problem) I think that a Realtor who does not conduct their showings in person misses out on a TON of both verbal and non-verbal cues that take place during a showing. Asking the other realtor for feedback after the fact is close to useless, as they have zero interest in telling you the truth, in fact they have an obligation to their client to NOT disclose information that may be very important to how you handle an eventual negotiation. From my perspective being present for showings will tell you everything you need to know, straight from the heart – from the actual buyer’s perspective. A skilled realtor will pick up on all the cues during a showing, and make the appropriate adjustments (if required) to the listing, which in turn will help it sell faster. A lockbox itself is still handy as a backup, but nothing will ever replace being present for showings.

My 10 cents (Canadian)
Dave deBruyn
deBruyn Design + Marketing

I totally agree with you on this Ian.

In fact, not only are lockboxes for lazy agents, I think yard signs are for lazy agents too.

I’m going to start standing out in front of my listings all day and all night instead of using a yard sign. That way I can answer any questions potential buyers might have and show them the house immediately. I’m sure my wife will understand. She wants me to give my sellers good customer service too.

I love watching your videos, and so I apologize for the sarcasm… I’m only trying to make a point. What you are saying just does not make sense for virtually every real estate market in America. Not using a lockbox in my market would be awful customer service, not good customer service. Houses that are not on lockbox in my market, and most every other non-downtown market in America, will get less showings and will have less of a chance of being sold. In downtown Vancouver and New York City your thinking might make sense, but it is just silly for you to say that every agent in America who uses lockboxes is lazy.

Dave deBruyn –

What you are saying is exactly why the listing agent WON’T BE IN THE HOUSE with me and my buyer.

If the listing agent insists on being in the home when I’m with my client, I will respectfully ask them to leave. If they refuse, my clients (whom I’ve already educated on this very matter) will leave and go look at other homes.

I’d love to hear the explanation to your sellers about how you just provided superior customer service by driving off a prospective buyer.

This can’t possibly be an “I’m right, you’re wrong” issue. There are a variety of pros and cons to using lockboxes.
From a seller’s perspective, the question I would ask, would be: Am I not hiring YOU to sell my property? If you Mr./Mrs. listing agent aren’t there, who’s doing the selling? If selling residential real estate – in large part – is to convince buyers on an emotional level, speed of information might be key. In other words, explaining certain features of the property (that would be too cumbersome in the MLS remarks) to the buyer, as they’re touring the place, might make a difference between them wanting to write up the offer then and there and moving on to the next property.

Otoh, if you’re a power lister, with 150 listings in you’re inventory, and only 1 licensed assistant, you might have a problem without lockboxes.

I saw a similar thread on Active Rain. My reaction is still the same: “Yeah. Right.”

I already show the house to “unrepresented” buyers who ride by, see the sign and call because they want to “take a look” at the house. Who cares if they’re financially qualified or not? I’m giving my Seller clients good customer service by showing the house and, in this market, any showing is a good showing.

Hey, if you have a ton of assistants that you can send out or if your business is so flush that you can advertise showings “between 5 and 7 on Mon, Weds and Fri.” than, good for you.

The implication that using a lockbox to allow maximum possible access by other real estate professional who may be represent financially qualified buyers in order to provide the maximum exposure of my Seller client’s home to the marketplace is either lazy or undeserving of my fee is just plain wrong.

BTW, when fellow real estate professionals refer to our fees or income as if they were astronomically high or unjustifiable is doing a disservice to themselves and to the profession.

Ian, just send your checks to me.

Teri,

Not to pick on you, but I have been through so many homes where the listing agent doesn’t know a damn thing about the house they’re selling. I’ll routinely ask something as simple as “What’s the lot size?” only to get a blank stare and see them scurry off to their stack of papers.

If you’re truly a “FULL SERVICE” agent, you’ll have a complete listing binder right there in the home, with all of the required disclosures filled out. Between that resource, and the eyes of a good buyer’s agent, that’s all a buyer needs. To insinuate that your value is “pointing out features that the buyer’s agent couldn’t possibly know” is pretty insulting. But what it really says is that YOUR marketing is lacking — if there truly is a “feature” that a buyer needs to know about, shouldn’t it be in your marketing??? Hmmmm.

The biggest problem I have is the whole concept of “reading the buyer.” Remind me again whose client this is? Unless you’re acting as a dual agent (forms signed, of course) what right do you have to ANYTHING about a buyer who walks in with their agent?

According to that twisted logic, I should be able to hang out and listen to the conversation between you and your seller, right?

OK I’m not a Realtor (yet)…..

That being said, It would seem that having a home on Lock Box would make a home more available, Thus increasing the Traffic to the home. Just the same way that Vacant homes receive more views than occupied homes, or Homes with 2 or fewer pictures posted in the MLS receive less traffic than Homes with 7 or more Pictures.

If this is the case, Shouldn’t this be a requirement to best represent the seller if it is offered in your area?

Just a Question

@Chuck G
I’m totally aware and respectful of agency relationships. But when you’re saying

[…]Unless you’re acting as a dual agent (forms signed, of course) what right do you have to ANYTHING about a buyer who walks in with their agent?[…]

are you suggesting that as the listing agent (=salesperson), I wouldn’t have a right to promote (=sell) the virtues of the property to your client? Without interfering with your agency relationship, of course?
Btw, may I suggest “Threaded Comments”? It’s a feature in WP 2.7 now, you know… 😉

As a consumer, I wouldn’t want anyone other than my agent in the house with me – I’d even include dogs and cats in that list too, but for different reasons. When buying houses, I have done a quick scan of homes with occupants still in them or an agent (not mine) tagging behind me – and left and removed them from the list 9 out of 10 times. It puts me off of my mission – to objectively and openly view the home and make comments, ask questions, and take notes.

If an agent or a buyer has questions, my lines are open. Feel free to question me to death over my listing if you want some info that you don’t think was there in front of you (through marketing, packets, flyers, MLS, photos, videos, your tour of the home, etc.). As a buyer, if you’re interested and your agent is worth his salt, they’ll do this all for you as quickly as they can and report back to you. Of course, the agent should have done as much homework as they could have beforehand.

Lockboxes aren’t lazy, they’re making the best use of technology. Is marketing a listing on the internet lazy? I mean, with a few clicks, I can get more people to look at my listing than if I put an ad in the paper or mailed out flyers to the area. Is using email instead of calling someone lazy? No, it makes the best use of your time (not that I’m against the phone – just sometimes email or even a text message is quick simple and allows you to multitask). Perhaps its lazy to mail out just listed cards, I guess I could hand deliver all ten million of them I wanted to send out.

Laziness is a problem in real estate. I’ve seen examples of it. This in my opinion, is not one of them.

Corinne – While me may disagree on the lockbox issue, I wonder what’s your take on this situation:

I have a listing, it takes me 15 minutes to get to with little traffic, if there’s any sort of back up, we’re looking at 30-45. We (my team for this example) get a call at 4:15PM from an agent wanting to show the property. They are in the subdivision looking at some homes (which has approximately 1900 homes in various parts of the subdivision) and saw our sign. I’m out of the office, but my team member is open and can head out there. Since we have the lockbox for sets of keys at our office, he heads out from there. Traffic is snarled and the agent takes 45 minutes to get there. That buyer is now bored, the buyer’s agent is in a rush, and my team member shows up apologetically. The buyer looks through the house, but because they’re not in the best mood now, they don’t really care to take their time. Have they not possibly missed out on what was a great house? Did I serve you, my seller, by not being able to account for traffic and the buyer’s hatred for waiting? I just don’t think that any sort of impediment to the showing is good…especially in today’s market.

I also wanted to comment on:

I would also like to suggest to the Real Estate professionals that it’s time to start considering the difference in generations. Gen Y is a generation like none other and like every other business, the Real Estate profession is going to have make some serious changes to survive. If ever there is to be a generation who will find a way to sell & buy homes on their own, it’s Gen Y.

I think many of the members and readers of AgentGenius are doing just that. I would love to hear more of your thoughts on what could and should be done…in fact, if you’d like, I would encourage you to contact me personally so that we don’t take up a ton of space here. I’m a consumer as much as I am an agent and I do like to hear the consumers point of view. I got into real estate thanks to two great agents and one absolutely horrible.

Maybe I’m a little slow to realize I’m supposed to be heading out to pasture now that I’m approaching 40, but it seems to me every generation believes they’re like no other. Gen X certainly felt so, back before we found out we had gotten old.

And maybe I’m a little jaded by agents who promote the features of a home without the slightest idea of what might matter to my client. Having been around the block a few times, I don’t need the listing agent to stand there spouting features at me and my buyers. Don’t need them. Don’t want them. If I have a question, I’ll ask.

Basic reality … if there are seven identical homes, six are on lockbox and the seventh requires setting an appointment with the listing agent, I can guarantee you I’ll show the first six and worry about that seventh only if the first six don’t meet my buyers’ needs.

If the home isn’t ready to show when I’m out with my buyers, it may as well not be listed.

In our area, homes that DON’T have lock boxes tend to sit and sit and sit and sit…..I live in a densely populated area – BUT the geography can be treacherous and requires a car. There are towns and villages miles apart that I often have to visit in a single shot. Last Sat I covered 36 miles with one client in a very dense area with tons of traffic. I do NOT want to wait for a listing agent to get there. It throws a monkey wrench into the schedule and can cause me to have to reschedule en route.

Buyers are also impatient. They don’t want to listen to the listing agent’s drivel. If they don’t like the home, they want to feel free to leave without having to “be polite.” If they like the home, they want to discover the home FOR THEMSELVES with as little interference as possible.

Bottom line: seldom does a listing agents song and dance sell a home. But creating obstacles to showing will definitely PREVENT the home from being shown…and that can easily cost the seller a sale.

Finally, there is the issue of the lister who tries to “steal” buyers and double end a deal. Many of these types insist on showing the home themselves. Unless there is a contract with the buyer (which is rare in our area) buyer’s agents will avoid these showings like the plague.

Ian, I have had clients that refuse to see homes that must be accompanied by the listing agent.

I personally would probably pass up a home with out a lock box as well.

Is it lazy? No. It’s the same reason why sometimes you see people walking around a car dealership lot on the days they are closed as opposed to when they have their entire sales force greeting you as you step out of your car.

As a buyer’s agent, I won’t show a home to a buyer unless I’ve previewed it. Let’s say I have a buyer coming to town and there’s 12 properties that I think might fit their needs. Let’s say 4 are vacant, 8 occupied.
With a lock box I can make 8 phone calls to set up “rough appts” (I’ll be previewing your home between 2-4pm. It’ll just be me, so don’t worry about getting it all cleaned up) and then go and preview 12 homes in about 2hrs time.
Without a lockbox, I have to call 12 agents, set up specific times (unless you feel that your time is well spent by not being lazy and sitting in your car for 20 minutes waiting for another agent to show up with no clients), and spend 20 seconds zipping through a house with another agent telling me why I should show this house to my clients whom they know nothing about.

Oregon has full service gas stations–they pump the gas for you. It drives me nuts. It’s not a good use of the gas station’s time or money to have somebody do a job I can do just fine.

A listing agent is not doing their sellers, me, or my buyers any great service by being at the home while I’m there showing it.

Many comments suggested the listing agent wait in the car or lobby while it was being shown. Really? If I hire somebody to sell my house, you’re telling me it’s a better use of their time to sit in the car in front of my home than it is for them to be finding and implementing other ways to get that house sold?

We call agents co-op agents here. Meaning we co-operate. As a listing agent, it’s my job to make the home accessible. As a selliing agent, it’s my job to take my clients in and get that home sold. We co-operate. That’s not lazy, that’s efficient and effective.

Whoa….caution needed, here! The Christian Right wants us to believe they too have the answer. The only answer!

Ian, the argument that Lockbox vs No Lockbox defines Customer Service vs “Lazy” is off the mark (…in my opinion).

The Lockbox allows for REALTOR previewing, prior to Buyer Showings. Has Previewing become a lost art?

Making the property available and easily accessible is good for both clients, thus good customer service.

A Buyer’s first viewing most often has as its objective elimination. Perhaps your presence is warranted on second viewings.

Customer service is more than one-sided. Yes, you have your Seller. Yet, there is the Customer Buyer, and there is the Customer REALTOR.

Two-To-Tango: Lest we forget, “It is the Buyer who invites the Seller to the dance.”

I’m with BawldGuy. But we will get rid of all of our fax machines and drive the papers over so we can get a really good feel for people’s reactions to our papers.

Russell,

If I want a good feeling, I can go to any street corner…. well, you know where I’m going with this.

I’m gonna follow Grandma’s advice here, and keep my mouth shut. Wow.

I just called Jay Thompson https://www.phoenixrealestateguy.com/ and he didn’t answer. I guess he’s out showing some of his listings!

Ian,

Like many others here I agree that no lockboxes is a very easy thing to do in a tight, close knit market like down town Vancouver. I would even say that luxury properties require both agents to be at the home during the showing. Not only for security etc. but for those questions that will come up.

I, personally, have shown large ranches, vineyards, luxury homes and closed the deal’s because the selling agent was on the scene to answer questions effectively and efficiently. If I show a property like that a second time I will ask the agent to wait in their car or outside.

I have no issue if another agent is present at my showings, I am confident enough to even invite them along. I also encourage my client’s to speak freely and openly about the property, and let me tell you they do. I don’t look at other agent’s as competition in the sense that Wal-Mart and Target do. I look at it like we are a large team trying to do the best job for our clients, Seller or Buyer.

On the other hand, locally, lockboxes are a must in my opinion. I live in an area with “Old School” realtors whom would turn even more grey if I was to say, “I need to be present for all showings.”

Ian has raised quite a few interesting point’s though and I am strongly considering testing his theory out in my own local market. I am very open to new ideas and new ways of thinking. This industry need’s it.

Sheldon

OK Ian, I’m getting pissed, you still haven’t told me what you use to hold that camera still while you’re sitting in the car. Lockbox, smockbox…I wanna know how you rig the camera.

Also, for the record I happen to know plenty of people who avoid this issue altogether….they don’t list and they don’t show and they don’t sell…they whine and wish.

You’ve got yourself a Tiger by the tail my man….as they say in the great state of Texas, Ride’em Cowboy.

Cheers….now spill on the rig.

Ian,

Lockboxes are to the practice of real estate; what videos are to bloggers.

Lockboxes are simply tools of the trade that make sense in most markets.

I don’t think you’re lazier than I am, because you push a button and talk for 2 minutes, yet I have to check spelling, grammar, make graphics, use formatting etc… We both use these tools to communicate.

If I were a seller hiring you, I would want the home available to a ready, willing and able buyer with the barrier of the listing agent’s schedule getting in the way.

To insinuate that agents with more than 4 listings have them because they can’t sell is just…. well wrong.

Prior to running my school, I listed and managed a company. My average inventory was about 15-20 and I had a fantastic closing rate and some of the shortest DOM.

This is yet another great example of why I argue that real estate is still based on micro-markets. Your theory, in my market would ensure that you lost several listings. I don’t understand how limiting the access to a listing is ever in the Seller’s best interest. At some point a “right now” buyer is going to want in the house and you’re going to be involved in a fender-bender, with clients, with a sick family member or otherwise and not able to get there.

As far as your question about articulating value of an agent outside of the lockbox or MLS, this is a flawed premise. Possessing and properly using the tools of the trade is one of the many facets of being of value.

I would be more cautious of an agent who could articulate their full value in the comments of a blog post – it’s too big for that…

Well I just returned Ian Watt’s call and he didn’t answer.

Maybe he’s out showing one of his listings. 😉

May I turn this on it’s head?

I’ve read through all these comments and by the time I finished writing this I’m sure there will be a few more.

Real customer service involves choice.

Can you see where I’m going already?

I was at “Death of the Old School Realtor” and I have to agree with Ian’s, (among others), philosophy and the way things are going in the front runners of real estate marketing of late. While I was listening to him speak about social network marketing and online dominance I had visions of a ‘buy now’ button next to each listing. OK, that’s never going to happen.

But in the eyse of the public we’re almost there if lock boxes are completely relied upon. There is already a lot of talk about service based commissions. There always has been. I think real customer service would offer the seller a number of different levels of service.

As a seller, If I had 3 to 5 homes I wanted to sell, I want as many people through them as possible and I would prefer a reduced method of selling. If it is my own home with a number of key features I have installed, I might want the listing agent their to explain the home to everyone.

A change in commission structure probably isn’t going to change anytime soon but if I was an agent, I think I might explain both ways of selling and let the owner decide.

For the record, I don’t think you Realtors make that much per hours worked as the general public believes. Who sends out that message? That’s a good question.

Ian, I watched your update and I understand what you are saying. But, considering that all markets are different it is comparing apples to oranges.

You mention a $5M home with security cameras everywhere, etc. If a home is different and unique regardless of price then a listing agent should be there if at all possible. These are rare in my market.

Specializing in ‘green’ I can see the trend of no lockbox increasing in about 3-5 years in certain parts of the City to be able to explain the systems in the home. (in my market)

We have grown as a society to like the WalMart and Burger King mentality. I’m talking humans. Everyone, all consumers. We want convenience and ‘your way, right away’. This is why people look at listings online before even contacting an agent. Now, I refer back to my car lot statement above.

Taking your comments in the 2nd video and comparing apples to apples – Yes, not using a lockbox is lazy. Apples to oranges – No. It’s not lazy it is giving the prospective buyer what they want.

Our jobs as agents is to figure out the most appropriate way to get the information to the prospective buyer whether it be through advertising/marketing or being there in person. It’s our job to figure out whether that home is an apple or an orange.

Coming from the “no Lockbox” culture of Vancouver I completely agree with Ian (and other Vancouver realtors here). I also understand what some “gurus” say about lockboxes and the listing agent getting in the way of the buyer’s agent by maybe opening their mouth too big when showing the property. After all, the buyer’s agent knows their client and knows what to say (and, more importantly, what not to say).
So I think a balance needs to be struck. Feature sheets clearly do not convey all the benefits of the property (how can you describe the perfect home in a paragraph?). So now I make up real Feature Sheets that I email off to realtors wanting to show the place. That way they become much more familiar with it and are able to pump up their buyers before, during, and after showings.

Since I work mostly condos I (or an assistant) have to be there to let them in. I don’t need to take over, and I don’t need to be inside following them around. I do, however, set the stage by getting the excitement level up (if needed) or lower their expectations (in the case of messy tenanted properties) so that they walk away with a more positive impression than when they were in the car/at the door.

And that is what an agent needs to do (lockbox or not); Create the more positive impression. Being there enables you to answer their questions right away before they get fogotten or buried under the competition.

No lockboxes. Sell the home. And make sure your sellers are committed to selling the home.

Quite the conversation! I am going to steer clear of the lock box, generational sales concerns, what is good customer service etc. and focus on what I think Ian is trying to do with these videos.

All be it with a far sharper stick than I choose to use Ian is prompting the individuals that comprise the Real Estate industry to find ways to be better. Ian wants everyone of us to step up and build a better model for our clients, ourselves and as a collective industry.

Love or hate the videos above, Ian deserves credit for prompting dialogue and pushing the industry forward.

None of us will ever be right 100% of the time. But trying new approaches and being open to new things will be the right thing to do 100% of time.

Say you think he is wrong here, so be it.

Was he wrong about video blogging 5 days a week consistently with fresh and brazen content? Bet that seemed pretty over the top and a ‘full of holes’ concept to many when he started.

Bottom line how many of you are out there prompting and helping your peers to be better tomorrow than they are today?

Not enough.

How many are letting their peers do the same things over and over again knowing there is or maybe a better way?

Too many.

How many even know or think there is a better way with some of the best new ways to conduct Real Estate business yet to come?

Way to close to zero.

My prediction is this industry is going to change far more than the vast majority predict and the debate of using a lock box or not will be the least of the concerns if this industry doesn’t pull its head out of you know where.

Ian and I are friends and I consider him a mentor, motivator and great Realtor.

Does this mean I always agree with him or the context of his message?

No.

Do I always hear him out and consider what he has to say?

Absolutely.

Do I always leave each conversation with something to take away of value?

100% Absolutely.

For those of you who have swung the pendulum just as far the other direction as Ian does in his vids, take a step back and see if there isn’t a message in there beyond the use of lock boxes that will add value to you.

Don’t make it about right or wrong make it about finding value in his message.

Keep rocking the RE world Ian!

To answer your question about what a listing agents/broker’s job is… (imho) a listing agent’s job is to procure a ready, willing and able buyer for their seller’s property. In addition, it’s the listing agent’s job to negotiatie the best price and terms for the current local market conditions and in the seller’s best interest.

In my market (Washington, DC metro/Northern Virginia), buyers do not want the sellers nor the listing agent/broker at the property while they’re there. Even if you could sell ice to an eskimo, your presence at the property as a listing agent/broker will hurt the chances of the buyer purchasing that property.

Why? Because people in this area hate being sold. In fact, they hate even the possibility of being sold. They want their peace and quiet and want only themselves and their buyer’s agent there when going through a property.

For example, I am working with buyers that refuse to preview a home while the sellers, renters or listing agent are there. If someone is at the property, even another buyer previewing it, we get right back into the car and move on to the next property.

Now you tell me…if a listing agent scares away my buyers by being at the property, did they help or hinder a potential sale?

Here’s another example…One reason why open houses don’t sell homes anymore around here is because buyers don’t want to walk into an open house only to be sold by the listing agent. Buyers would rather come back another time with their buyer’s agent and have their peace and quiet.

The way I see it, if you help procure a ready, willing and able buyer that presents an offer, you’re doing your job. If you do something to hinder that (such as scare a buyer away), you’re NOT doing your job and hurting your client.

That is why, at least around here, having a lock box on your listing is extremely important. And it has nothing to do with being lazy.

Btw, don’t keep your feelings inside. I mean, seriously…tell us how you really feel 🙂 LOL