Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How old are you? You look like you are about 12 years old!
A: Ha. I actually had a lady say that to me. I am actually in my late 30’s. I frequently have people tell me that they thought I was about 28, and are surprised to find out that I am older.
Q: How long have you been in real estate?
A: I got my license in early 2005.
Q: Have you always been with Keller Williams Realty?
A: No. I started out with Coldwell Banker. I decided to make the move to Keller Williams based on the Keller Williams company model and because it was a better fit for how I wanted to do business.
Q: Is that rabbit you have on your card and marketing materials the Keller Williams mascot?
A: No. The rabbit is my own personal branding mechanism. I use the rabbit rather than my headshot because it is a better branding mechanism and helps to set me apart. I have had a lot of people call my office looking for "the guy with the rabbit" - who had not remembered my name or number but knew I was with Keller Williams... very effective. I was told by one agent that when they had taken out a client to look at homes and my card was in one that they were looking at, and that their client was curious about my card because of the rabbit and they both thought it was "neat" -- and then they saw my listing with the rabbit on the For Sale sign and they got excited to see the house. That agent told me, "Your marketing really works great!"; so I am quite pleased with the rabbit because I never had anyone say anything similar regarding my headshot before I started using the rabbit as a marketing device. Anyway... I like my rabbit.
Q: I've got so many choices for Realtors… why should I pick you as my Realtor?
A: Yes… why would you pick me? There are so many people who could help you to acheive your real estate goals, but none who you will find have exactly my combination of friendliness, patience, and at ease approach to the often times stressful arena of buying or selling a home. Buying and selling real estate is not rocket surgery, but it does take a decent understanding of the dynamic principles that are at play in the market and I like to educate my clients as best I can so that they can make the best decisions for their particular situation. I have had some of the very best mentors who have helped teach me the intricacies of the business and the principles by which effective negotiations can be achieved. I do not like to learn through the school of "hard knocks" so I have always been good at learning throught the experiences of others, and I use the cumulative knowledge of those who have gone before me to great advantage. My skill set definitely is an asset to my clients who often times have challenging decisions to make and I can council them to acheive the most advantageous outcome. One of the most frequent complaints I hear about real estate agents from folks who have had a less than stellar experience with real estate is that there was not good communication, or that the person felt that the agent didn’t know what they were doing. I wish that I could know everything, but alas I am but a frail human being... which doesn't mean that I can't find out given a short bit of time. I don't like to pretend to the world that I have all the answers and If I encounter a particular situation that requires some investigation one of the first things I do is look to my vast relationship resources to see if one of my collegues have encountered the same thing. I find it vital for me to have a good working relationship with my peers because we all bounce different scenarios off of each other all the time and it is through the sharing of experience that everyone can keep up to date and have a sharp sword when it comes time to do battle, so to speak. When communicating with clients I like to promptly return phone calls and I am both e-mail and text friendly. I spend as much time educating my clients as it takes to make sure they are comfortable with the tough decisions they need to make.
Q: Why don’t you have a place on your website to search for properties like I have seen on other sites?
A: I believe that there are already numerous sites that allow people and my clients to view what properties are available for them to purchase so I don’t really feel the need to have the functionality here on this site, although I might integrate such a tool down the road sometime just to make a convenient one stop shop as it were. It isn’t like the old days where real estate agents had the sole access to what was listed in the multiple listing service. Now anyone can do a search online and find what properties fit what they are looking for using any of the real estate websites like Realtor.com or Trulia.com which provide an MLS number with every advertised listing. Where I come in is in helping people to narrow down their searches to a realistic number and to help them determine what strategy to take in order to eliminate the properties that do not fit their needs. I prefer it if my clients want to participate in the search process online because realistically I can't be looking online every minute of the day for every property that might fit someone’s needs regardless of how fantastic my sophisticated tools are and while I do see MANY homes throughout the weeks, there are literally hundreds of homes that are on the market with new ones coming on the market every day in the Alameda and Contra Costa counties where I work. With services like Realtor.com clients can easily search under the parameters we discuss and then when a property is of interest the client takes down the MLS number inquires about that property via e-mail. I then can look up the complete listing information regarding that property on my end which has detailed information regarding what type of sale the property is (equity sale, short sale, or bank owned REO) as well as what the showing instructions for the property are and can then relate the specifics to the client. EASY EASY EASY.
Q: What happens if your client wants to see a property?
A: My buyers are encouraged as part of the buying strategy to go and take a drive by of the properties whenever possible that end up making it on “the list” to ensure that we are efficiently eliminating properties that don’t fit based on either the location or specific neighborhood or the particular "curb appeal" of the property (often times there will be obvious factors that are cause for elimination such as proximity to high traffic streets, or perhaps obstructed or unsightly views that were not obvious from pictures provided with the listing advertisement.) When my clients and I do make an appointment to see properties we have a well targeted set of properties that have usually been narrowed down to about 6 per showing appointment and they can feel pretty confident about the selection (this is a rough estimate based on about a 2 hour showing appointment and about 6 properties -- the right number to avoid confusion between the homes.) Once we see the property it is my job to point out the various factors of the property that I see as strengths or weaknesses of the property regarding resale value, proximity to amenities, etc., and to be the emotionally detached voice for the clients since their job is in fact to be open to their emotions (if they plan on making the property their home… for investors we want to do the opposite and leave emotions out of the equation if possible.)