My change of attitude on BPOs

A few months back my blood was boiling over two Broker Price Opinions I received on two short sales in the Oklahoma City area. In one the Realtor® the home at a price higher than new homes built 5 years later, and the other the opinion on a home in terrible condition would have set a record for a pristine home in that neighborhood by about $10 a SF. So I blogged about it here to vent my anger at BPO agents who just dial it in. From that article I got into a discussion on the comment section with Renee Burrows of Las Vegas who took exception to a few of my conclusions and what could have been a heated discussion turned into a productive one, the kind we all treasure on Active Rain. Renee is someone who does a lot of BPOs and without seeing them I can tell you that she approaches them in a professional and comprehensive way. So I decided that based on our conversation I would sign up and see if I could do a BPO.

Then it happened, I got one! It was from iasreo.com. I told my girlfriend and real estate partner. She laughed at me. I told my broker I had one. He laughed at me. I started thinking of the Nick Lowe song, "Whats so funny about peace, love, and understanding"? It's just a BPO! I went and took the pictures and then I came home to knock it out, and 5 hours later I was still knocking. These folks ask a lot of questions. Then it hit me like a thunderbolt and like George of the Jungle I cried "Topeka! You either take these puppies seriously and learn a system or you just dial it in. After my experience, and the correction request that were emailed in, I realized that only the strong survive and the dial ins go away. This can be a lot of work for the money, but let me hit the highlights of the benefits as well as what I think you need to do them. We are now up to 30 a month headed for 50 a month and now I have a system.

What you Need. My MLS system is Market Lynx Tempo 5 and we have the Realist add on. Realist allows me to quickly find out how many homes are in the neighborhood, how many are occupied by an owner, and how many bank owned or lender approval preforeclosures are in their currently. I also have what used to be called MDC which is now REDLINK, that gives me appraisal data other than price, and has non MLS sales also. This shortcuts the process considerably and it help s you make the data more accurate and verifiable.

Market Research. Think about it, we do market research normally for free to start, and often only when requested. Oklahoma City is an area of almost 1.3 million people and a ton of neighborhoods I have never seen before despite 20 years of real estate here. First, I am being paid for the research, and second I am seeing on the ground new areas I have never seen before. Think about this in your next listing presentation. How well do I know the market versus another agent? How about a bunch more. My team does a lot of short sales and we also get leads form places like the Dave Ramsey network. I have been in every corner of the city, and the surrounding suburbs. it extends your reach and influence.

Listings. This hasn't happened yet, but in talking to other very active Realtors® who do broker price opinions they do get them. Most of the listings I have been getting are through past clients, referrals, and people calling off Google searches or from my website IDX system. I like it when I get a call that says come list my house, my short sale, you were recommended. We all love this the best don't we. It is not that we don't compete, it is just that when you get these kind of listings they are often clear cut with defined guidelines and pricing. These sellers want me and they want what I can do for them. This is another good reason to not dial BPOs in. Do them correctly and quickly will be rewarded.

Revenue Stream. We are self employed contractors. We do not have a salary nor is our employer putting money away in retirement unless we do it ourselves. Since this a public post because I want local people to know what I do to keep the knife sharp I won't go into details, but do the math of 50 BPOs a month both interior and exterior request. Sure palys for a lot of marketing expense. As a Realtor® in my 21 years with over 2000 transactions, tons of designations and extra training, national meetings, and service as an office on the MLS Board and my local Board, I have a lot to offer in the way of expertise. To use the cliche, been there, done that. It is nice now to get paid for what I have dedicated my life to, and what I have a passion for.

One more time, my thanks to Renee Burrows for engaging me in dialog, questioning some of my assumptions, not attacking me personally, adding and enhancing the discussion, and helping me to appreciate just what communication on Active Rain is about when it is good. Plus, I never would have started this in the first place, and endured the laughter of those close to me who thought, he doesn't have the patience to do them. To them I say,"eat my dust and just try and keep up!