Digital tools link Realtors to consumers

Just as the under-40 generations are adept at using Facebook, Twitter and text messaging in their social lives, so have these and other technological innovations influenced other parts of their lives, including how they buy and sell homes.

Not so long ago, having a cell phone and an e-mail address was a boon in the real estate business, but these days, owning a BlackBerry or other device for constant Internet access is practically mandatory for real estate agents. Wireless technology allows agents and customers to share information digitally, including photographs of properties, financial information and contracts.

Instead of driving miles every day to look at property or deliver paperwork, agents and clients can preview every room in a listed residence and use electronic signatures for legal documents.

“The largest segment of the population that is buying property today is 29-year-olds,” says Darrin Friedman, branch vice president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage’s Chevy Chase office in the District. “These people are used to quick communication. If you don’t respond to a phone call, a text or an e-mail in 10 minutes, you’re dead.”

Mr. Friedman estimates that there are 48 million consumers in Generation X, ranging in age from 30 to 41; and 73 million in the Millennial Generation, currently age 12 to 29. Combined, these groups of potential current and future home buyers number 121 million.

“Everything in real estate right now is about responsiveness,” Mr. Friedman says. “You need to think the way consumers think and respond to the marketplace.”

Frank LLosa, broker/owner of FranklyRealty.com in Virginia, says consumers today are looking for fast information and fast transactions.

“The Internet is all about having all the information that’s out there,” Mr. LLosa says. “But while information is the key, people want the data analyzed. The analysis is what gives them more security. The more information consumers have, the less likely they will feel ripped off.”

Peggy James, a Realtor with Erick and Co., a team at Exit 1st Choice Realty in Woodbridge, Va., says buyers and sellers are hungry for information and are turning to Internet sites such as Localism.com to learn about the communities where they want to live.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) says 84 percent of buyers start the home-buying process by searching for property on the Internet.

Kelly Vezzi, a Realtor with Weichert, Realtors in Potomac, says, “It is very helpful for consumers to have as much information as possible, and certainly I need to know about all the resources out there, too. But we have to recognize that not all the information on the Internet is 100 percent accurate. It is my job to know all the information that consumers are seeing and then apply it to their individual situations.”

Ms. Vezzi focuses on posting as many photographs as possible of her listings and advertises open houses online as far in advance as possible. She also uses text messaging and is instantly available on the phone when Weichert sends her a potential Internet lead.

“Folks are getting used to wanting information instantly,” says Amit Kulkarni, director of marketing and technology with Avery-Hess, Realtors in Virginia. “The new consumer can do lots of searching online now, but then they need an agent to provide the expertise to choreograph the transaction.”

Mr. Kulkarni says contracts are now written online and stored electronically, so everything is virtually connected and can be tracked, which he says benefits buyers and sellers.

High-speed communication is expected by consumers today, along with the ability to learn about neighborhoods and real estate agents before putting a toe outside the door.

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