Archive for November, 2020

Realtors 3 Common Email Blast Mistake

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

3 Common Email Mistakes Real Estate Agents Make

Jessie Beaudoin
other

56%* of Email is Opened on Mobile Devices

Working with thousands of real estate professionals, we often see a common email mistake that is causing agents to lose real estate business.
Today, over 80% of the US population has 24/7 internet access via a smartphone. The mobile trend has dramatically changed how and where consumers open and read their email.

Studies show between 54% – 56% of all email opens occur on mobile or tablets.

Mobile email open rates are growing at a rapid pace while desktop access is decreasing.
Email drip campaigns are one of the most popular ways for real estate professionals to stay top of mind with lead. Now it is critical for these emails to open on mobile.

51% of consumers have unsubscribed from a brand’s promotional emails because their emails or website didn’t display or work well on their smartphone.
– Litmus 2017 State of Email
You work hard to build your email list so make sure you are not losing subscribers because your emails don’t open display correctly.

So what are the 3 email mistakes agents are making?

Email Mistake Number One

If you notice that you are having customers unsubscribe from your real estate email drip campaigns be sure that your emails are displaying correctly.
Top real estate CRM systems like FollowUp Boss, CINC and BoomTown allow you to build custom drip campaigns but you may want to send plain text or limited HTML formatted emails to guarantee that your emails display correctly.

Email Mistake Number Two

This is so common in real estate agent email signatures.

Email signatures using images.

We see thousands of email signatures that contain an image with the agents’ contact phone number included in the image instead of plain text in the email body.

Why is this an issue?

Since most email access is on mobile and most consumers will call you from their mobile phone, you want to make it as easy as possible for them to call you. If your phone number is in an image there are a few things that happen:

• The image may not display correctly on mobile and be too small for the consumer to read.
• The phone number cannot be “clicked to call” forcing the consumer to try and remember your

phone number so they can dial it to call you.
• Friction causes frustration and images will make you seem non-tech savvy in the eyes of

millennial consumers
You can have an image in your email signature but do not include your phone number, website or any other link that a user can just click on mobile.
Make sure your phone numbers are in the body of the email and are can be clicked to dial your phone number.
This is critical because the growth in consumers are using “Click to call” on the web is exploding (think of Google searches, when is the last time you actually dialed a phone number?)

So please stop including all of your contact information in an email using an image.

Mistake Number Three

Not using a call tracking/call capture phone number in your email drip campaigns to track lead conversion. You may already be measuring your email open rates and response rates but are you measuring if people are responding to your email by calling you directly?
Inbound calls are you most valuable leads, yet most agents are not tracking what marketing campaign is actually generating those calls.

Bonus Email Lead Conversion Tip

We addressed some easily correctable email mistakes and now we’ll share an idea to help you generate more leads from email.
The data above shows you that people access their email on mobile and they click to call. You want to make it simple as possible for them to read your email and respond instantly, so how do you do that?

In the first paragraph of your email should be your offer that reinforces your email subject headline. As an example, subject line: “Home values up 18%”, your first paragraph should have a strong call to action like:
“Call me now (555) 555-5555 to learn the value of your home today”

The phone number will automatically be clickable giving your consumer a clear simple manner to respond to your offer.
•Look at the sample email on a mobile device, see how easily it is for a consumer to respond.

•Look at the sample email on a mobile device, see how easily it is for a consumer to call you directly to take you up on your offer.
One call to action which is a hyperlinked phone number that appears when the email is opened without scrolling will increase your lead conversion. Fix the most common mistakes, use call tracking and remove contact friction to increase your response rate today.

@2020BREAKTHROUGHBROKER

Realtors must do during BC?s Second Wave

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

Safer Showings During BC?s Second Wave

BCREA
BCREA

Real estate professionals must continue to adapt to protect themselves, consumers and communities from COVID-19.

Realtors must continue to manage risks of showings as infections rise

The acceleration in the number of COVID-19 infections in British Columbia means we must all continue our efforts to slow the spread of the disease in accordance with public directives and the public health order from the Provincial Health Office. Both the British Columbia Real Estate Association and the Real Estate Council of British Columbia now strongly recommend against open houses and are replacing previous guidance on hosting safer open houses with this revised guidance on safer showings. This revised guidance reflects that no more than six people may attend an event in or at a private residence.

By using the 10 best practices below, you can help ensure that you’ve assessed, prepared for, and helped prevent potential health risks to yourself, your family, clients, colleagues, and consumers when conducting showings.

1. Consider Your Clients’ Best Interests First

Given the growth in COVID-19 transmission rates, it’s important that buyers and sellers understand the risks inherent in showings. When discussing showings as part of marketing a client’s property, it’s important to discuss all the different risk factors, from the spread of COVID-19 to concerns from neighbours or tenants, as well as the precautions that can reduce some of these risks. These risks can differ depending on whether a home is vacant, owner-occupied, tenant occupied or a strata unit in a multi-tenanted building.

Only after assessing the risks and understanding the required precautions can sellers make an informed decision to accommodate showings.

Remember, the brokerage determines the services they offer to clients. If it’s not in the Schedule “A”, you are not obligated to provide those services. If it is in the Schedule “A” and you are concerned with the risks, you should discuss this with your client and your managing broker.

November 5, 2020 1

Realtors representing buyers must also ensure buyers’ interests are protected. This means helping buyers understand and reduce the risks of contracting COVID-19 while attending private showings, as well as the risks of buying a property sight unseen. You can advise buyers the steps they can take to better protect themselves, such as only attending a showing after reviewing all information and virtual marketing and, when they do attend a showing, wearing a mask and observing physical distancing.

2. Understand and Stay Informed of Safety Protocols

On October 26, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced that gatherings at private residences would be limited to a maximum of six people in addition to occupants. It’s important that Realtors understand the implications of this public health order and other changes to safety guidelines.

This limit on gatherings applies to both inside and outside the home, meaning consumers cannot wait on the property if another showing is already underway. Consumers should also understand that in the case of smaller properties, six people might be too many to still allow for safe physical distancing.

Realtors should also stay up to date with revised guidance from WorkSafeBC. WorkSafeBC now

requires that real estate professionals “ensure that viewings are scheduled at appropriate intervals to allow for sufficient time to clean, sanitize, and ventilate the property between viewings.” You can read

WorkSafeBC’s full protocols for real estate professionals here.

Your brokerage also has its own policies and procedures. These should be the foundation of the protocols that you put in place to ensure safe showings. You can view the Checklist for Managing Brokers that BCREA created to help guide brokerages here. The Real Estate Council of BC has also

created COVID-19 information for consumers and additional resources for real estate professionals.

3. Clearly Communicate and Document Safety Protocols

When working with a seller, discuss what measures need to be in place to ensure a safe showing and who will be responsible for these measures. Be sure to document your recommendations as well as what was agreed to, particularly when it comes to sanitizing and ventilating a property between showings. If the seller declines to require masks to be worn during showings, document that decision too and be sure to discuss this with your managing broker if your brokerage has their own policies on this issue.

Once you have agreed to safety protocols for a showing, consider including a link to them on the MLS® listing. When working with a buyer’s agent, ask them to confirm that the buyer understands and

agrees to all the safety protocols and to following the public health order.
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Clearly communicate any safety protocols you will follow to all your clients and consider posting these protocols on your website. Also consider using the CREA Coronavirus Statement & Consent form, available on WEBForms®, BCREA’s COVID-19 Notice and Acknowledgement form or, as appropriate, your brokerage’s waiver form.

4. Reduce In-person Interactions by Leveraging Technology

Reducing in-person interactions is an important way you can help control the spread of COVID-19. This means continuing to take every opportunity to use technology to reduce in-person contact (e.g., virtual open houses, showings and executing documents remotely).

Let your clients know that you can provide real estate services and market their home effectively using the array of technological tools available. Virtual showings and transactions are an impactful way to help market properties while protecting our communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When working with buyers, encourage them to review the MLS® listing details/photos in full, including any floor plans, 3D renderings, videos or additional information before requesting a showing. Buyers should also be encouraged to drive by and be familiar with the physical location of the property before requesting a showing.

5. Pre-screen Buyers Before Booking a Showing

In addition to ensuring that no more than six people, including Realtors, attend a showing, try to limit showings to serious buyers by screening for qualifying consumers who:

o have already listed or sold their current home,
o are working with a REALTOR®,
o are prequalified or have means to finance the purchase.

This is in addition to ensuring that prospective buyers have familiarized themselves with the information available on the property, photos, videos, 3D floorplans and other information and have driven past the property before requesting a showing.

6. Plan in Advance

To help ensure the safety of those attending the showing, confirm in advance that all attendees will follow the public health order and your client’s and brokerage’s safety protocols. Be prepared to follow the instructions of your client and brokerage regarding access to the property for anyone who is not following directions.

November 5, 2020 3

If you are representing the seller, send an email to the buyer’s agent the day before the showing reminding them of the safety protocols, for example:

  • no more than six people may attend, including Realtors;

  • anyone with COVID-19 symptoms, who has been exposed to COVID-19 or who has travelled

    outside of the country within the last 14 days may not attend;

  • masks must be worn in the home and in common areas for multi-tenanted properties

    (consider having disposable masks available in case prospective buyers forget to bring their

    own); and

  • physical distancing must be observed.

    If representing the buyer, send an email to the seller’s agent the day before the showing requesting that they:

    • ensure the occupants will not be in attendance;

    • confirm the sellers, and anyone on the premises, do not have any COVID-19 symptoms,

      have not been exposed to COVID-19 or have not travelled outside of the province or

      country within the last 14 days;

    • ensure that occupants and the listing Realtor will wear masks in the home (and in common

      areas for multi-tenanted properties) if they plan on being present; and

    • that anyone in attendance will observe physical distancing.

      7. Keep Safety in Mind During the Showing

      Before entering the property, confirm with the seller that the home has been cleaned and that

      common spaces are disinfected. This should include door handles, counters, light switches or anywhere someone may touch. All lights should be on and doors open (including closets) so that all areas prospective buyers may wish to see are accessible without touching surfaces. Be sure to provide hand sanitizer/disinfectant at the property and ask that everyone attending use it as they enter the property. Where possible, ask that windows are kept open to improve ventilation.

      Remain two metres away from others during the showing and avoid physical contact like shaking hands.

      8. Consider the Requirements of Multi-Tenanted Properties

      For multi-tenanted properties, discuss with the seller whether the strata council has any COVID-19

      safety protocols to be aware of and incorporate these into your plan. Just as you need to consider who

      will be responsible for the sanitizing and ventilation of the property being shown, you will need to November 5, 2020 4

consider what cleaning protocols will be required for common areas and who will do them. Ensure physical distancing is also maintained between in common areas.

As other building occupants may be concerned about showings, consider getting permission to share the safety protocols you will be following in common areas of multi-tenanted properties.

9. Safely Conclude the Showing.

At the end of the showing, leave lights on and windows and interior doors as found to minimize touchpoints in the home. Follow up with your client to ensure that proper sanitization procedures have been carried out, which will have been agreed upon prior to the showing. Be sure to disinfect keys and lockboxes on exiting the home.

10. Anticipate and Respond to Community Concerns

You may hear concerns from others in the neighbourhoods and strata properties where you are showing properties. Whether online or in-person, be prepared to respond to concerns with professionalism and empathy. Remember Dr. Bonnie Henry’s words, “Be kind, be calm, be safe.” By communicating clearly about the precautions and safety protocols you are following, you can help members of the public understand that you are acting responsibly to protect their health and safety. Keep in mind that your actions can influence the public’s perception of the entire real estate profession.

Realtors must do during BC?s Second Wave

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

Safer Showings During BC?s Second Wave

BCREA
BCREA

CIBC: The impact in housing market brought by Covid-19

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

CIBC: Housing market slowdown looming amid economic malaise

Ephraim Vecina
Mortgage Broker News

Optimism towards the Canadian housing sector’s prospects has been mounting, but the market should not count out the impact of the lingering economic lethargy brought about by COVID-19, according to Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC.

Tal said that historically low interest rates are driving “the most housing-friendly-recession ever,” but economic drag will soon push the market towards troubled waters.

“Even the governor of the Bank of Canada is telling us, ‘Listen, don’t expect any growth basically over the next six months,’” Tal told BNN Bloomberg. “The party’s over. You can’t have 0% increase in the economy with the housing market continuing to boom.”

The change will be particularly apparent in the low-rise condo segment.

“The demand is there because of the nature of the crisis and this means that we soon will reach, I believe, a price resistance, even in this segment of the market and it will start softening,” Tal said.

Moody’s Analytics offered a similar prognosis recently, saying that a cocktail of economic contraction, higher unemployment, and lower incomes will see the value of Canadian homes falling by 7% in early 2021. Single-family home prices will likely drop 6.7%, while condo values might suffer a 6.5% decline.

Long-term weakness in the labour sector will also be “much more significant in terms of the impact of the economy and the impact on the economy,” Tal said.

“Normally you would see more higher-wage jobs disappearing or at least you would have less job security there,” Tal said. “And that’s very, very important. So, I believe that this optimism is not actually going to last for too long.”

 

Copyright © 2020 Key Media

Calling all Real Estate Professionals to discontinue open houses

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

Real Estate Professionals Urged to Stop Open Houses

BCREA
BCREA

The regulatory agencies overseeing real estate professionals in BC and the provincial association representing REALTORS® are calling on real estate professionals across the province to protect public health and safety by temporarily discontinuing open houses. With cases of COVID-19 on the rise in BC, the Real Estate Council of BC (RECBC), the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA), and the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (OSRE) are together strongly advising real estate professionals not to hold open houses for properties for sale or rent, to limit face-to-face interactions and to use virtual tools whenever possible.
“RECBC, BCREA, and OSRE share the position that open houses should not be held at this time,” said Erin Seeley, CEO of RECBC. “Protecting the public during the pandemic remains our top concern. Real estate professionals in BC have been very successful in using virtual tools to limit in-person interactions with clients, and we encourage them to continue those innovative practices to keep themselves, their clients, and community members safe.”
The recommendation to temporarily end open houses follows the issuing of an order last week by the Public Health Office limiting the number of attendees at an event in a private residence to six. Real estate professionals must follow the guidance from the public health office when conducting any in- person showings. Real estate professionals are advised to continue discussing the risks of in-person showings with their clients, and to recommend that their clients use virtual tools to show and view properties.
Darlene Hyde, CEO of BCREA, said “BC Realtors rose to the challenge of the first COVID-19 wave by embracing innovative virtual technologies to serve consumers while helping keep communities safe. With transmission rates increasing, Realtors can continue to show leadership in their communities by reducing in-person interactions, wearing masks and adapting to new public health guidelines and orders.”
Micheal Noseworthy, Superintendent of Real Estate, noted “It is important for the real estate industry to maintain public trust and confidence by continuing to work in a manner that protects the public. By following the advice and recommendations of the regulators, public health officials, and government,
we can help reduce the spread of COVID-19, while continuing to provide essential real estate services that British Columbians rely on in their daily lives.”
Information for real estate professionals and consumers on the use of virtual tools and on how to safely conduct in-person showings is available at www.recbc.ca and www.bcrea.bc.ca.

Average price range in detached house to hit $1.7 million in 2021 in Greater Vancouver

Thursday, November 5th, 2020

Average Greater Vancouver house to hit $1.7 million in 2021

WI Staff
Western Investor

The average price of a detached house in Greater Vancouver will hit a record high of $1.7 million in 2021, according to a forecast released November 4 by the B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA), which also calls for all-time high house prices next year in the Fraser Valley.

That price has already been reached in the City of Vancouuver, where it is not uncommon to detached houses listed for $2 million for more, but the BCREA forecast is for suburban prices to soon catch up. 

“The single-family market seen a marked increase in demand as buyers search for extra space during the pandemic,” according to the BCREA, which added that a lack of inventory will keep prices rising.

The coronavirus has delivered a shot-in-the arm stimulus to the Metro Vancouver housing market, based on BCREA data.

In pre-pandemic 2019, total Metro-region housing sales were down about 1 per cent from a year earlier in the Fraser Valley and up a modest 2.3 per cent in Greater Vancouver. But housing sales have soared 20 per cent this year in the Metro region and are up 22 per cent in the Valley.  Detached houses are leading the sales and price curve in both markets.

“As a result of tight market conditions and increased demand for more expensive single-family homes, average prices across the Lower Mainland are at, or near, record highs,” the BCREA stated.
“Without a sharp rise in inventory, there will be sustained upward pressure on home prices over the next year,” added Brendon Ogmundson, chief economist at the BCREA.

By this time in 2021, the association expects the average Fraser Valley detached house will be selling for $1.15 million, a new high, and up nearly 8 per cent from pre-pandemic 2019. In Greater Vancouver, detached house prices will increase 4.5 per cent this year, compared to 2019, to $1.65 million and jump a further 3 per cent to reach $1.7 million in 2021, the BCREA forecasts.

The low inventory is both due to a lack of listings and drop in housing starts, which have fallen nearly 20 per cent from a year ago, to around 21,000 units.

The total number of homes currently listed for sale in Metro Vancouver is 12,416, a 1.5 per cent increase compared to October 2019, but a 5.2 per cent decrease compared to September 2020, reports the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

In the Fraser Valley, October finished with 6,872 active listings, a decrease of 6.8 per cent compared to September and down 7.1 per cent year-over-year.

 “The situation is unprecedented. We are in the middle of a pandemic yet in many communities we are seeing a strong seller’s market for townhomes and single-family homes. For example, in Langley, our current supply of detached homes would sell in 1.4 months if no new listings became available. And for Mission townhomes, we have zero months of inventory,” said Chris Shields, president of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board.

“The unusual nature of this recession means that rather than a rapid accumulation of inventory, active listings declined through the spring and have remained low through the summer and fall,” Ogmundson explained.

Meanwhile, Greater Vancouver home sales this year are running 50 per cent ahead of pre-pandemic levels, he noted.

The BCREA forecasts that housing sales in Greater Vancouver will reach 31,000 sales this year before rising to 35,000 transactions in 2021. It expects a 23 per cent increase in Fraser Valley sales in 2020 followed by a 13 per cent increase in 2021 to 20,300 sales.

 

© Copyright 2020 Western Investor

Toronto condo investors are scrambling to withdraw due to pandemic

Wednesday, November 4th, 2020

Toronto seeing mass exit of investors in condo market

Ephraim Vecina
Mortgage Broker News

With declining rents and much stricter lending qualifications for rental property, real estate investors in Toronto are scrambling to withdraw from closing on their newly built condos in the region.

Simeon Papailias, senior partner with REC Canada, told The Globe and Mail that assignment sales currently represent around 20%-25% of his firm’s pre-construction sales. Papailias said that this was far higher than the 10%-15% level seen before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold.

Industry research firm Urbanation said that condo vacancy in the Greater Toronto Area went up to 2.4% in the third quarter. During the same period, the region’s average rental price was 9% lower on an annual basis.

“Guys who are closing in the short term are absolutely shook and affected by the pandemic and what it has done to the rental market. That is what is pushing them to assign,” Papailias said.

Urbanation data also showed that approximately 23,000 new condo units will be completed in Toronto by the end of 2020, with another 22,434 expected to follow next year. Urbanation said that roughly half of these were purchased as rental units.

This is compounded by the fact that over the past few quarters, banks have imposed significantly tighter guidelines for rental financing, including larger down payments.

“The financing has gotten a lot more difficult,” said Matt Elkind, senior broker with Connect Realty. “The banks’ appetite to lend to investors is down significantly. An individual, six months ago, would have qualified without problem. They’re not now.”

 

Copyright © 2020 Key Media

Canadian housing market continues to strengthen despite pandemic

Wednesday, November 4th, 2020

Housing market confidence strongest since mid-March

Ephraim Vecina
Mortgage Broker News

Be updated on the latest US Presidential election result

Wednesday, November 4th, 2020

Trump vs. Biden ? US election result latest

Clayton Jarvis
Mortgage Broker News

Canadians with their eyes trained to the south will need to continue peering into the fog for at least another several hours, as the 2020 US election remains undecided.

As of 9:00 EST, the presidential, Senate and House races broke down as follows:

  • Donald Trump – 213 electoral college votes; 66,859,610 total votes
  • Joe Biden – 238 electoral college votes; 69,141,253 total votes
  • Senate – Democrats: 45 seats, Republicans: 47
  • House – Democrats: 189 seats, Republicans: 181

Much of the attention generated by this year’s election has focused on the acute differences between Trump’s and Biden’s personalities, philosophies, and approaches to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving most to speculate about what a win by either candidate would mean for the Canadian economy and housing market.

Recent search data from Royal LePage showed a drastic increase – 116% – in American traffic to the company’s website between October 01 and 22, with Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec being the most frequently searched locations. With the US-Canada border still closed to inessential travel, and immigration to Canada being a drawn-out process for most who apply, the likelihood of a wave of American buyers remains low. Royal LePage CEO Phil Soper described the activity as “voyeurism or window shopping.”

It has been theorized that a Biden win may be more advantageous for the overall health of the US, and therefore, the Canadian economy. His plan to increase corporate tax rates could make doing business in Canada a more attractive option. Biden’s infrastructure plan, which includes building two million affordable housing units, could benefit Canadian manufacturers that supply goods for the construction industry. A Biden victory could also theoretically grease the wheels for another round of COVID-19 financial relief, bringing more predictability to the US economy. Considering the gridlock that seized negotiations between Congress and the Senate throughout the summer, a Biden win would presumably require the House and Senate to be under Democrat control as well.

A Trump win, coupled with wins in the House and Senate, could also bring its own form of stability. With the Democrat-Republican ideological divide having widened into a canyon, and few Democratic bills receiving a hearing in the Senate, a Republican Congress would theoretically have the ability to pass bills more quickly, allowing the President’s vision for the economy to become reality with less partisan friction and uncertainty for the country’s trade partners.

Trump has also been vocal about his support for the oil industry. His positive view of the Keystone XL pipeline and embargo against Iranian oil, which keeps over a million barrels a day of the country’s product offline, could benefit both Alberta’s oil producers and its sluggish real estate market.

 

Copyright © 2020 Key Media

Vancouver housing market increase by 6% in October amidst in high supply

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2020

Vancouver home prices rose 6% in October amid tight supply, multiple offers

Sean MacKay
Livabl