Redfin to Zip Diaries:: Part 2
August 4, 2008
Today started off nice, I had just picked up my extra hot white mocha when my cell phone started to ring. The phone call ended up being a client who was interested in purchasing a home. She had said that she was working with an associate agent of mine through Zip; however, she wanted to work with me. I asked her what prompted her interest in my services. She said that she had seen me on Redfin.com and had been using both sites(Good for her!); she had seen the video article on Channel 10 back in 2007. When she saw my photo on Zip’s site she decided to give me a call. (Ahh yes, that deal was the first Redfin transaction in Southern California.) She had remembered that I was mentioned in the piece and that I represented the buyers. That time seems like it was so long ago, I was so proud of that transaction, I recall calling my parents to gloat a bit after that deal closed. Those were fun times.
With over 1000 contacts, 200+ of them are real estate clients. 2 years goes by so fast.
During my conversation with my new client, she mentioned that she loved Redfin’s site.
One thing that she made clear during our conversation was her apprehension towards buying in the wrong neighborhood with all that was going on in the housing market. I reassured her that I would do my best to help her make the appropriate decision. I even discussed why certain areas were hit harder than others. I went on about how the boom and bust effect. I recommended that she look for homes in more established communities, therefore that stability coupled with the growing scarcity of home speculators would help them find a home that would hopefully maintain its value.
I told her that while times are tough, there have been several other periods that have been as bad or worse (depending on who you talk to).
From the years 1991-1994, there were a total of 304 bank closures nationwide. Compared to our 8 year to date closures, in my opinion this is just the beginning and we should see more closings as we move forward. The one bright line to all of this, and something that we need to keep in mind - Everything is cyclical.
I mean everything.
