Jim and Ellen Crawford, of RE/MAX Greater Atlanta, contacted me a few months ago about a prospective listing in Bowie, Maryland. We kept in touch, as weeks went by, since the seller wasn't quite ready to make the commitment to sell her home of 40 years.
Finally, the "okay" came, and I contacted the seller and her daughter, a friend of Jim and Ellen's who was helping her mother prepare for relocation to North Carolina. My husband and I went by a few days before the scheduled listing appointment so I could take some exterior photos and we were pleasantly surprised - the home had a lot of curb appeal, and it appeared to be well-maintained. Hallelujah!
The listing appointment didn't go as well as I hoped, however, because they did not want to hear a word about me, my company, or my plan for selling the home, so I never got to show off my brief but brilliant new animated Power Point listing presentation. They just wanted to know about price and what they had to do to prepare the home for sale, and they dismissed me without signing a listing.
That's never a good thing... did this mean I might not get the listing? Of course, I second-guessed myself about my brutal honesty regarding pricing, but I knew I was right - I had just settled a "perfect" comp days earlier. Jim and Ellen, the referring agents, would expect no less from me than complete candor.
A few days later, an Army officer transferring into The Pentagon who had come to me through my blogs (ActiveRain and Focus On Crofton) arrived in town to look at homes. I had previously shown her Crofton townhomes that she picked out online, and now she wanted to see a detached home near Andrews AFB. My prospective listing was in the same county, closer to her family, lower priced (if they followed my advice), and in better condition, so I contacted the seller that Jim and Ellen had referred to me and asked if I could show it to my client as a Buyer's agent. Even though I might not get the listing, I could still sell it!
My buyer fell in love with the home, but her mother did not, so the buyer went back to Fort Bragg and initiated her loan application. The seller loved the buyer as much as the buyer loved the house - after all, who wouldn't love a beautiful young army officer who had served in Afghanistan, Kuwait and Iraq during the 8 years since she graduated from college with an Army ROTC scholarship. When the buyer decided to make an offer by email and fax, the seller was eager to have her as their buyer - truly, a match made in heaven!
The contract writing, presentation, and counter-offer consumed the entire day before I left for Texas, and it could not have happened without my broker-owner Ed White stepping in to show waterfront property to another blog client with whom I already had an appointment that day. And Ed took over this case, too, when I left for a month-long vacation, meeting the home inspector and appraiser, sending his assistant to the walk-through and yesterday's settlement.
I am so fortunate to have such great support within my office (RE/MAX Vision), the seller and buyer are still amazed at the "luck" which brought them together, and Jim and Ellen earned a referral fee even though their referral never listed with me.
The bottom line: One ActiveRain referral (happy seller, happy referring agents) + one ActiveRain buyer (happy buyer, happy selling agent). I'd say that's a LOT of happy people... and one very smooth military relocation!
Thank you, ActiveRain!
PHOTO: Mwoda
Copyright 2006-12. All rights reserved.
DISCLAIMER: Information contained in this post is deemed reliable on the date of publication, but it is not guaranteed and it is subject to change without notice.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Margaret Woda, REALTOR and Associate Broker
Direct: (301)346-2923 or click on EMAIL
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Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc., 2191 Defense Hwy., Crofton, MD 21114 (410) 721-1500
I had someone contact me from Massachusetts who found me on Active Rain. Nothing has come of it yet but who knows. I believe its a great tool.
I received an international buyer through Realtor.com. We have to take advantage of what is on the internet as much as we can. Most buyers are on the web months before they make a decision. The buyers we are seeing now are more savy and have done their research.
Congratulations on putting your buyer and seller together. Makes you feel good at the end of the day!
Bonnie Barbieri
Remax Advantage Realty - Spring Hill, Florida
That's a great story. Thanks for posting it.
Aloha from Kauai, Hawaii . . . .
Thanks for your post.
Keep up the good work and keep the faith !! This cycle will surely turn.
Congratulations, Margaret. I love happy endings! It sound like your office lives up to its name -- it has vision beyond the individual to the success of the office.
Congrats to your recent success through an active rain referral Margaret. I hope to do the same.
Congratulations! It does sound like everyone won! BTW where did you go on vacation?
MARGARET - Glad to see that everything worked out for everyone involved. Sounds like this was a much easier way to get the home sold than listing it with owners that were only interested in price.
Margaret, that is an awesome story! Thanks for sharing!
Margaret that is great to hear.... Everything plays out we just don't know how but it always does.
Hi Margaret,
Thanks for sharing! Congrats to you and your team!
Margaret,
That's a wonderful story how buying and selling real estate sometimes just clicks. And of course in the background AR was working its magic, starting the ball rolling.
I love a story with a happy ending. I'm working several referrals right now from some of my Internet Realtor buds.
That's a great story Margaret! Thanks for sharing ...
Great Post and good news - who says the internet doesn't work it's just a resource? You are a shining example of what AR and great agents can do!
Margaret, I am happy that this pairing all worked out for you and that it even had the Active Rain connection as well.
Margaret,
On behalf of ActiveRain, you are welcome! However, we never accept thanks without pointing out the fact that in the end it was really your passion for what you do and the way you are able to convey that passion that ultimately solidified this deal and brought all these happy people together.
Congratulations!
That is a great story Margaret. It is amazing how things can come together. Hope your vacation was fun.
Margaret, This is a hearth warming and wonderful story. Best wishes to you and to both the home seller and the home buyer.
Margaret, Congratulations on your success. Wow, ,that couldn't have worked out any better, could it? How was that month long vacation anyway? I love AR and all the business it brings our way!
Margaret- Congrats for sure. Having the support of your Broker was surely a big help but it was you who brought it all together.
Hi Margaret, a very nice ending to a great beginning. Congrats is in order.
Hi, Margaret - What a great referral story. It definitely sounds like everyone won where this transaction was concerned.
what a great post! What a wonderful win-win situation!!
Hey Margaret~ Congratulations on making everyone happy as well as making money while doing it! Isn't it nice to specialize in happy endings?
Certainly a feel good story and a great reason to blog on Active Rain!
happy endings are a good thing...and AR creates lots of them...not just the buyers and sellers but realtor to realtor...do I hear convention ????
How fabulous for everyone but would we expect anything less from you?
Margaret- Don't you just love these stories! Awesome testimony of the power of Active Rain and referrals.
HI MARGARET!
Great story well deserving a featured spot! Everyone likes to hear success stories about AR! P.S. If you ever need a referral in this area, I'm the one!!!
Have a great day!
Margaret, thanks for sharing such a wonderful Active Rain success story. I hope that you're enjoying your time in Texas.
Hi Margaret,
As my Grannie says "there's more than one way to skin a cat". Congratulations to all.
Margaret, great story with a happy ending for all. I'm closing on a home Friday that Tracy Sandrock from N.C referred to me and it is very exciting to be able to really know the agents from activerain that trust you with their referrals.
What A great AR success story! I'm so glad to hear it all worked out!
Glad to hear that people are making lives better and generating a little income at the same time.
What a great transaction! It's really nice to have people work together so well like at our office!
whoo hooo.... nice job to all - great job between ActiveRainer's and RE/MAX to boot... love it when everyone wins
Margaret,
I'm still looking forward to my first AR/Localism referral so this is real inspiration. Thanks for sharing with us.
Michael Bergin at GWSleptHere,com, Your Alexandria Specialist
Congratulations. Sounds like the perfect WIN-WIN situation.
Have A Great Day
Great Job.
Paula
Great story! Congratulations to all and thank you Activerain! I hope we'll all have similar stories to tell in our future!
Thanks for sharing... I was just getting a little "blue" about a few transactions that I am working in...and you gave me the perfect inspiration. YOU are right...keep forging ahead and the RAIN is just a great place to be...
Again, thank you all for commenting. I still have very limited access to Internet, so hopefully you'll understand if I don't reciprocate comments right away.
Thanks for sharing your story! Being new to AR it is nice to hear all the stories. have a great day! :)
So glad to hear you are getting so many great leads from your blogging efforts. They say networking is key and your story certainly shows that to be the case. Congrats!
Margaret: Congratulations on everything ! Lots of hard work, lots of blogging, lots of follow-up, super people skills, and with a little good ol' fashioned good luck mixed in ! What a great way for a send-off before leaving for your vacation. Thanks for sharing.
congrats on the successful referral. I've just made a few in the past couple of days and here's hoping they turn out like yours!
Margaret,
Congrats on what sounds like a true win-win!
Congratulations, Margaret. We are seeing so many of these referrals in Active Rain. Well deserving to you both!
Margaret....just "bumped into" this post! How awesome! Gosh, I hope one day you and I can exchange something like this. But there is a key point to your post that you may have overlooked, and that's never burn your bridges! You did not get the listing, but when a buyer came along that the house fit, you stepped up above the common agents, and did the right thing. In turn, you as you pointed out....you have a happy Buyer, a Happy Seller that was not even your client, a happy referral agent....and even more so.....inspired REALTORS around the country by your success.
Thanks for sharing this with all of us! Ya make me proud! I can hardly wait for that lunch date we've talked about when I come to New York (for those of you reading the post...I know she's in Maryland...I'm driving to New York!)
Great story! Thanks for sharing!!
Thank you so much Margaret! This is a testimony to you as a professional full time agent that gets the job done. In recent times real estate has become more difficult, and more competitive. Every deal...counts, and yet we are thwarted at every turn by financing, the cooperating agents, the expectations of the buyers and sellers, and the media. So when referring out friends, relatives, and clients it is even more important to chose the perfect agent for them. You are it! Your presence on Active Rain is a testimony to you taking real estate seriously and treating it is as such. Your Blogs bring home the point that you are an achiever in real estate and not a dreamer. At the end of each day in real estate we are judge by our performance, not our promises. Ellen and I would like to personally thank you for taking care of our clients in such a short time, and in a market where that is not a very easy thing to do at all!
Margaret, you are the best! I would highly recommend you and your services!
Love always,
Jim and Ellen Crawford RE/MAX Greater Atlanta
What a wonderful ending....congratulations!