Defining the Differences

The Home Buyers AdvantEDGE Program,
(when compared to traditional realty services!)

1.  No Company Listings!    Our company’s policy foundation is that we never serve sellers, and haven’t taken a single listing in 16 years!  That’s almost an act of heresy in the real estate brokerage business, but it’s our cornerstone; enabling and enhancing all of the other buyer-friendly facets of our practice.   It’s also the reality as well as the perception of ultimate buyer loyalty, and confidence in the integrity of the whole process.  The biggest benefit according to our clients is….# 6 below.

2. Direct access to homes for sale! That’s direct access to all available homes for sale, from the same data base that we use, in real time.  For a long time, we’ve promoted direct consumer access to these once-closely-guarded files, and have browsers on all of our major sites that do that.  Be sure to read the “Introduction” and the “Tips” before using…just once!  This access supports a whole new kind of relationship between home buyers and our realtors…a new “team” approach that clients love.

3.  Extraordinary Information!     We consider our body of information one of our greatest contributions to your relocation process.  Objective, in-depth information is critical to wise buying decisions.   Note the emphasis on “objective”.  Because we serve only one side of the transaction, you should be able to trust the information you get from us…so let’s say “Extraordinary Trustworthy Information”!  And that’s long before you get to town, or even meet us.  Two internet sites accumulate and deliver it openly…OfallonHomes.com and EdwardsvilleHomes.com.

4. A Team Approach!   Most Real Estate Brokerage companies assign one agent to a client and from then on, that one person is the one and only contact, a relationship often jealously guarded.  Here, although we do appoint one person as having primary responsibility to coordinate the whole process, the entire staff becomes your “teammate” in the relocation process.  Everyone’s resources and experiences are therefore available and coverage of duty is constant.  In fact, we look upon the overall relationship as “teaming” with you for the home buying effort.  And with that, experience and dedication are constants.

5.  More Options!    This is an incredible paradox!  Although we have NO listings of our own, we actually have more to offer than do traditional real estate firms.  First we have everything ALL of them have, (access to the same MLS, pre-owned and new-builds,) but we work hard at non-listed properties…for-sale-by-owners, and builder inventory that might not be listed, where it still costs no more to have us involved.)  Traditional firms have difficulty with these offerings because it conflicts with their duties to their seller clients.  We aggressively pursue them.  One of the most significant, near-secret sources….former clients!.

6.  Absolute Market Objectivity!   Because we have no listings, we can present every single option with absolute impartiality.  We have no ties to any listings…no incentives to highlight any of them.  This is the most frequently mentioned “benefit” in our service surveys, by far….and the largest confidence builder in the process.  Just one listing would dilute the perception (and reality) of absolute impartiality.

7.  Specialization!    Specialization is a fact of our culture in many fields, and has recognized general benefits.  It our case, it means we always view every event from the buyers’ viewpoint.  It means getting a lot of specialized tools tuned to support our constant mission…maximizing the buyers’ benefits.  It means we get better and better at what we do because we do it all the time and constantly look for ways to make it even better.  And when it doesn’t cost more to use us, it’s like buying a custom suit for off-the-rack prices.
 
8. Relocation Emphasis!   Exclusive representation is an incredible support tool for families in transition, because of the trustworthy nature of our information, and the absolute impartiality of the options we present.  And we love this segment of the business.  So, we’ve additionally focused on relocation specialization, perfecting the special timing and hosting requirements and information delivery systems….the only such firm so specializing in southwest Illinois.  Of course we belong to the Employee Relocation Council, both the national organization and the St. Louis chapter.


9.  Broad Geographical Relevance!   Because of our relocation emphasis, we’ve developed relationships with ALL of the good relocation venues in SW Illinois, and can access all with equal ease, still with total impartiality.  Vacating the traditional vertical integration with just a community or two, we’ve developed this neat horizontal relationship with the best relocation targets in all of southwest Illinois, (and almost automatically with the luxury end of the markets.)  Clients as well as relocation companies and company sponsors like this capability…again, the only such firm in southwest Illinois.

10. Primary Attention to Resale!   The longer we’re in practice, the more we believe that the greatest monetary benefit we give our clients is when they resell the home we help them buy!    In the traditional real estate world, unless the buyer insists on resale-analysis, this most-important buying goal is often simply overlooked in the quest to “get it sold”.   Just one minute after closing is “too late” to do much about incurable problems.  Our data indicates more than twice the appreciation and half the days on market when compared to city by city averages….significant differences.

11.  A Competitive Advantage!   More often than not, in the better markets, we find ourselves in competition with other buyers, especially when we “pick cherries”…look for the better properties.  We hate losing!  So we’re prepared, with your help, to compete successfully.  A bit complex, but the “Homework” article…”Competing In a Tight Market”, explains how we approach it.

12.  A Super Service Mindset!  We’ve got the most marvelous tool for home buyer support developed since the MLS…and that’s “exclusive representation”.  But it doesn’t stand alone…we still need to know the markets, the business, and have our attitude tuned to maximize the benefits…always…using all of the tools available.  (But we truly don’t see how “super service” can consistently be delivered without the cornerstone of exclusive buyer representation!)

13.  The “Cheers” Of the Real Estate Community!  If exclusive representation is the cornerstone however, then the mortar must be attention to the “soft side” of relocations…the human side.  We find that we relate to people as much as property, and intend family-like hospitality.   Whatever anxieties and concerns exist, we intend to replace them with comfort, control, convenience and confidence….making the whole a pleasant adventure with an always-successful result.

14. Value Added Service!   Nobody likes to spend money unwisely, and everyone wants something of value in return for his expenditures.  Few events of life are worse than leaving a transaction feeling cheated.   Here, you should have the confidence that you’ve made the very best decisions from among complete options, and that you’ve gotten real value for your money…or as current-speak suggests, that you’ve gotten “value added service”.    Previous clients consistently say that!  

15.   No Hustle!  Everybody hates a “hustle”….decisions forced before their time.  We won’t do that here….ever.   A page in our “Wiser Buyer Guidebook” describes our “We Won’t Do Pledge”.  And “hustling” is at the top of that list.  (We title it, “Buying Your Castle Without a Hassle”….patterned after “Buy No Wine Before Its Time”, a bit weaker, but….well you get the idea!)

16. Respect for our clients’ time, interests and intelligence!   This overall viewpoint was stated as such by a former client, who claimed she simple felt she was treated with ultimate respect for her intelligence, her interests and her time!   That’s truly what is intended and we’re glad it shows.  Our clients really DO significant things, and really ARE smart, and really HAVE concerns about solving the problems of relocating…and they really KNOW the difference between good service and otherwise!   We simply recognize that!  (Sometimes we claim, only a little “tongue-in-cheek” that our clients pass an intelligence test of sorts when they come to know the difference and consent to service.  That’s only a little “tongue-in-cheek” because we honestly feel we have the most intelligent set of clients anywhere…and that when they come to understand the differences and become a team-mate with us, the service simply can’t be beat!