Whether you’re a buyer or seller’s agent, working with remodelers can boost your business by catering to your client’s wants and needs.
How often have you had a client decide they’re not interested in a house because the laundry room is in the basement? What about a lack of office space or a kitchen that’s not quite right? By working with remodelers and other professionals, you can cater to your client’s wants and needs, ensuring you close more deals and get more referrals.
In this episode of Curb Appeal, our host Rachel Gombosch welcomes Jenny Rice, the owner and remodeling consultant of Icon Building Group. Jenny and Rachel get into the remodeling industry and the changes it’s gone through over the past few years. They discuss the importance of cooperation between real estate agents and remodelers and the impact of COVID-19 on the remodeling and construction industry.
What’s the connection between real estate agents and remodelers?
While at first glance, it may seem like remodelers would be competition for real estate agents, they’re actually a very valuable resource!
Looking at homes is an incredibly visual process. If a client sees something they don’t like, it can turn them off from a home altogether.
However, if you have a connection with a remodeler, you can help a client visualize the possibilities of a space before they determine it’s not right for them.
How can working with a remodeler boost my business?
By partnering with a remodeling company, you become a vital part of tailoring your client’s home buying or selling process. If a basement laundry room is a dealbreaker, but the rest of the house is perfect, having a remodeler on deck to discuss options with your buyer is crucial.
Jenny states, “The most successful realtors that I have met are open to whatever is the best fit for their customers.”
When you can provide the best options for your customers—like advice on what to bid, how much a remodel will cost, or other valuable information—you become invaluable to them.
Additionally, you’ve expanded your potential referral network once you build a connection and relationship with remodelers. If they know anyone looking to buy or sell a home, you’ll be someone they trust and can recommend.
Is the remodeling industry seeing a decline like the overall real estate market?
While the new construction side of the building industry has slowed, Jenny believes the remodeling side is still growing, regardless of the current market trends, telling Rachel, “I still don’t think…we’re still busy on a new construction side. It has slowed down. The remodeling side, still very busy, and I think we’ll continue to be busy because it’s a very different business model than new construction…”
And with market scarcity and cost of living, it is often much more affordable for people to remodel their home versus building something custom or trying to find the perfect home.
Jenny also points out that different parts of the nation are experiencing different markets. As she is from Chicago, she says, “It’s a little bit more conservative here fiscally, I think, so I don’t know that we’re seeing the exact same kind of screeching halt that the coasts are seeing, so I don’t think it’s a national epidemic as profound as 2008 was…”
As a real estate professional, doing everything you can to boost your business based on your current market conditions can help you remain resilient—regardless of what’s happening nationally.
What advice can I provide my sellers and buyers?
While it seems strange, Jenny’s top tip is ensuring your sellers have good countertops! She tells Rachel, “Make sure you have good countertops. It’s odd to say, but often countertops seem more important to buyers than the cabinetry themselves.”
Jenny also recommends having a room or space—like the powder room—that’s unique but appealing to a wide variety of buyers, stating, “So, have a little fun in the powder room—tile the floor, put up wallpaper or something. Houses can get a little repetitive or vanilla after a while…just one little nugget that will stick with them on the positive side… We don’t want to make it too antiseptic, but we want to make it appealing to as many buyers as we possibly can to get it off the market as quickly as possible.”
Jenny’s point also brings up valuable advice for buyers or sellers—remove yourself from the design equation. If you’re planning to remodel a home and will potentially sell in the future, you don’t want to remodel for your tastes now. Sticking with timeless, easily customizable options can prevent your home from sitting on the market without interest.
How Virtuance can help
As a real estate professional, working with a remodeling company can significantly boost your business, and so can professional real estate photography.
Whether your seller has newly remodeled their home or an older listing needs to put its best foot forward, professional real estate photos can get more eyes on your listings.
With Virtuance’s HDReal® technology, our real estate photography captures 2x more attention to sell your listing faster and for more money. Every order also comes with access to a single listing website and our Marketing Suite, giving you all the tools you need to close more deals.
And if you’re looking for more real estate marketing advice, check out our marketing resources and download our other Curb Appeal episodes!
