Rudy Bachraty’s Real Estate Blog

Ok. I admit it. I am a big fan of ABC’S The Bachelor & The Bachelorette. I’m an even bigger fan this season because the show has a “Realtor” in the mix. Philadelphia Prudential Fox and Roach Realtor® Reid Rosenthal from The Rosenthal Group is in the final group of bachelors vowing for that final rose from Jillian Harris - The Bachelorette.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to talk to Reid on the phone about his real estate business and his experience on the Bachelorette.

Here are some highlights from our conversation:

Rudy: How did you get into real estate?

Reid: I was born into the business. My parents, Rhonda and Larry, have been in real estate for over 20 years and are still active and very productive. Together, our company, The Rosenthal Group is in the Prudential Top 100 nationwide.

Rudy: How many team members do you have in the Rosenthal Group?

Reid: We have 7 people on the team and work very closely together

Rudy: I hear you have an extensive marketing plan for your clients? Tell us about that.

Reid: We do everything. Traditional and non-traditional marketing including blogging, social networking, email blasts, postcards and Craigslist. We go the extra mile for our clients.

Rudy: Ok, let’s get into it now. How did you end up on the Bachelorette?

Reid: Well, I was on floor time in the office and one of the women I work with told me about the show and really wanted me to submit an application. She got a picture of me and blurb and sent it to the show. I didn’t think about much after that. Soon, I started getting calls like crazy from the producers. They liked my profile and really wanted me on the show. We had a few back and forth talks. With 2 days left before the start of filming, I signed the contract and made it on the show just in time.

Rudy: While you were filming, how did you family, company and clients handle you being away?

Reid: My mom and dad did a great job covering for me and I was lucky to have a great team, friends  and clients who supported me. The timing of the show couldn’t of happened at a better time. The market was dead due to traditional seasonality so it was in a work sense, a perfect time to take advantage of this opportunity to find love.

Rudy: How long were you gone?

Reid: Nice try Rudy. What I can say is that the show shot from approx March 23rd to the end of May. Sorry, but due to my contract, I can’t share any more details here

Rudy: Ok, I totally understand. Since you’ve been back, has the show gotten you and your company more business or recognition.

Reid: Oh absolutely. Again, it was the slow season when I left to do the show and now it’s the high season so to be fair it could be a combination of the show and season. However, people definitely recognize me more - everywhere I go. I tend to work more with buyers now whereas before it was more balanced - 50/50% for buyers and sellers. Traffic is up 3x on our site too which is great. I should be getting a couple more listings this week and have a number of active buyers I’m working with.

Rudy: Has social media/ social networking helped your business?

Reid: Yes! I’ve definitely gotten some business from social networking. Facebook was awesome for me before the show but I’ve since had to stop my ad campaigns there - again, due to my contractual obligations. I plan on being more active on social networks in the future including Trulia.

Rudy: Do you watch the show now?

Reid: Yes. It was very weird at first seeing myself on TV and hearing my voice but I got used to it. Even weirder was seeing myself and others kissing Jillian knowing how many people were watching. Strange. Weird. But I’m over it now

Rudy: Ok, so everyone wants to know, did you and Jillian live happilly ever after?

Reid: Um, I can’t get into that.

Thanks Reid for your time. You rock! I hope you were the last bachelor standing. See you on Trulia and #IRL soon

Did you watch Reid and Jillian on their last date on The Bachelor? - Aren’t they perfect for each other? So what do you think, will they end up together?

Update:

This is an interview I did with Reide Rosenthal on June 25th on Trulia Blog

Reid did not end up with Jillian but he put a fight in the finale by flying back to Hawaii to propose - gotta give him credit for putting himself on the line albeit too late.

Visionary HAR President & CEO Bob Hale and Rudy Bachraty

Last week I had the pleasure of participating in HAR’s first ever Digital Media Summer Camp in Houston, Texas. As a sponsor of the event, Trulia was happy to support the Houston Association of Realtors social media education efforts. They have a well organized social media program and lots of interest from their agent members = a good formula for becoming a tech savvy real estate agent.

The audience listening in on our Social Media Style panel.

@kenbrand, @trulia, @dannyfrank, @askozzie, @sarabonert, @respres, @amysmytheharris

Social Media Style panel: Ken Brand dropping some knowledge

250 attendees received Trulia notebooks and pens and Paul Chaney gave away some copies of his new social media book - The Digital Handshake

Name those feet….

Suzie Hale took some notes in her Trulia notebook - very cool.

Awesome finally meeting Stephanie Edwards-Mussa f2f.

Amy Smythe -Harris was an awesome moderator and Facebook presenter.

Bobby Bryant a.ka. Mr Scrubs…..

Jay Thompson the Phoenix Real Estate Guy caught Jaywalking

Quote of the Conference:

Nancy Furst - “I DESIRE to INSPIRE before I EXPIRE”

Many thanks to Danny Frank for asking us to be a part of the event and to everyone at HAR for being such gracious hosts. It was truly an amazing experience to be a part of.

This week, were highlighting Trulia Pro Ronda Allen, a realtor® with RE/MAX Dallas Suburbs -The Keith Dobbs Team - from Prosper, Texas. She shared a great testimonial with us about her blogging experience on Trulia which we wanted to share with you.

Here’s a snippet of her Trulia Blog Post:

“Trulia.com has been such a powerful tool for my business since I started using it early in Summer, 2008.  Being in Texas, I wasn’t introduced to Trulia.com until last year.  Word of mouth from another agent got me curious about the site.”

“Agents who see my activity on trulia.com will contact me and ask if it’s generating any real business.  They seem surprised by how much I love this site.  I don’t do things over the course of my work day just to have busy work.  I work on trulia.com because it puts me in front of sellers, buyers, and renters from everywhere.”

In her Trulia blog post, Ronda shares 2 of her real life success stories with both home buyers and home sellers who she met on Trulia. It’s a good read - please check it out.

Many thanks for sharing your Trulia success story with us Ronda!

If you have a Trulia success story you’d like to share with us, please email me at rudy at trulia.com.

Today, we’re sharing a Trulia Testimonial blog post by Mark Wisterman, a real estate Broker/Owner of Realty World - Best Realty in Oroville, California. In his most recent Trulia blog, he talks about the recent success he and his office have had on Trulia.

According to Mark:

As a rule I am normally not a big ”endorsement” kind of guy. I am very protective of my reputation. I just feel that putting my reputation on the line to recommend a company that I do not have much experience with is not a good idea.

Today I am going to make an exception to my self imposed rule by telling you about my recent success with Trulia.

The top 5 takeaways are:

1. Featured listings showing up on the top of the first 6-7 pages for Oroville, California property results pages
2. Getting Quality Leads
3. Opened one escrow from a Trulia lead last week
4. One offer pending from a client who found Mark on Trulia
5. Mark’s office had 6 property inquires from Trulia in one day

Check out Mark’s entire - Thank You Trulia - blog post on his Trulia Voices Blog.

Thanks for sharing your Trulia experiences with us. We wish you and your entire company continued success.

Mike Phillips, broker/owner of Century 21 All-Pro, was named the #1 real estate agent based on transaction sides in the country by the Wall Street Journal. In 2008, he accounted for an amazing 1,148 real estate transactions. For 2008, Mike is ranked #71 based on sales volume for a total of  $68.2 million - Serena Boardman from Sotheby’s International is #1 in sales volume with $255.2 million.  Many of Mike’s listings are foreclosures which accounts for the lower sales volume but nevertheless - fantastic results by anyones standards. When Mike first opened his business in 2002, he had his wife and a buyers agent helping him. Today, he has 140 agents working for his company. What a great success story - congrats Mike!

Mike on KMBC-TV via YouTube

According to the Kansas City Business Journal, “Phillips said his successful business model involves a division of labor. Phillips, who doesn’t deal with any buyers, immediately posts foreclosure listings with online bidding and multiple listing services. His agents, spread throughout the metro area and other parts of Kansas and Missouri, place signs and lockboxes at the new listings in exchange for getting their phone numbers on the signs. In addition, Phillips delegates to assistants tasks such as writing property descriptions, taking photographs and updating the listings that pour in at a rate of 40 a day.”

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mike. Although he was extremely busy, he took a few minutes out of his day to talk with me which I greatly appreciated. I wanted to learn more about this thoughts on foreclosures, technology and Trulia. He didn’t dissapoint.

Rudy: How much of your business is based on foreclosures?

Mike: 1/2 of our company business is REO / foreclosures.  A few years ago it was only 1 or 2 REO / foreclosures a month.  Now it is over a hundred easy.

Rudy: What’s your #1 foreclosure tip for home buyers?

Mike: Home buyers need to be sure before going in that they are pre-approved or their deal may never even get taken seriously by the seller.

Rudy: What’s your #1 piece of advice to homeowners facing foreclosure?

Mike: Work with your mortgage holder to try and get a modification or “Short Re-Fi” done.  This is your best bet of making it all work out.

Rudy: Do you consider yourself a tech savvy Realtor®?

Mike: Technology made me what I am.  When I got started in 1999 almost no agents had a personal website.  I have at least 40 URL’s now that I use for various projects.  We use Twitter, Facebook, text messages and some specific online techniques to get our listings noticed.

Rudy: How important is marketing your listings online?

Mike: Without on-line marketing you are living in the Jurassic Age. I make sure that my listings get on dozens of websites. In multiple languages.  It is what sets you apart from the masses.

Rudy: How do your sellers feel about you marketing their listings online?

Mike: Our sellers know that we are #1 in online marketing.  The savvy sellers do their homework before they hire you. The interview is really a listing appointment for us, we have it wrapped up before we get to the house due to our heavy marketing presence.

Rudy: Has Trulia helped you sell homes?

Mike: Trulia is major asset to me. They send me qualified leads that I would not get anywhere else.

Rudy: Have you met any buyers and/or sellers via Trulia?

Mike: Trulia sends buyers my direction constantly, but because I only work with sellers, my buyers agents get the true benefit from Trulia.

Rudy: Do you use social media tools and sites such as Twitter or Facebook to connect with home buyers and sellers?

Mike: We use Twitter, Facebook, text messages and some specific online techniques to get our listings noticed.  Be careful not to become a listing troll on Facebook.  Save your posts for special properties. We like to twitter what houses are available for $100 down payments.

Rudy: As the #1 real estate agent in the country, what advice do you have for your fellow Realtors?

Mike: If you want to reach a high level of success and you are willing to do whatever is needed to reach that goal, do it in balance with your personal life.  Being #1 is no fun if you are alone.  Take your family, friends, co-workers and pets along for the ride.  They say success is a journey not a final destination, and I believe that.

Trulia Wins the 2009 Webby Award for Real Estate

Wow! After being nominated by our fans and winning the 2008 People’s Voice Webby Award last year, what a fantastic honor it is to be recognized by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences for our work in the real estate space this year. We are truly humbled. Thank you!

Congrats to Hotpads for winning the 2009 People’s Voice Award and to all the other nominees in the real estate category. It was a pleasure to be in the running with you.

“The Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet. Established in 1996 during the Web’s infancy, the Webbys are presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 550-member body of leading Web experts, business figures, luminaries, visionaries and creative celebrities.

Reflecting the tremendous growth of the Internet as a tool for business and everyday lives, the 13th Annual Webby Awards expands the mission of the Webby by honoring excellence in over 100+ Website, Interactive Advertising, Online Film&Video, and Mobile Web categories.”

Team Trulia is dedicated and passionate about providing the best real estate experience to our community of home buyers, home sellers, partners and real estate professionals. Stay tuned as we launch more great user friendly features in 2009. A huge congrats to our team for a job well done. Woot!

Thanks for all your support Trulia Fans!

Trulia’s very own Pierre Calzadilla and Trulia Voice Luke Constantino recently appeared on NY1 talking about how home buyers, home sellers and real estate agents are using social networking sites like Trulia, Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter. Great job guys!

“What’s changed is the medium in which the consumers and the agents are connecting. And how consumers are finding information, and how agents are connecting to these consumers,” said Pierre Calzadilla of Trulia.com.”

“Facebook has become the online cocktail party. Great way to agents and consumers to connect, very light touching, not heavy selling,” said Calzadilla. “LinkedIn has become the online chamber of commerce, professional, a little more rules when you connect. Twitter is like riding the bus and hearing someone talk about real estate and can say, hey, I’m an agent and I can help you sell that home.”

“I believe less is more, it’s a social media, it’s like a lounge, they’re friends. If they want, they will contact you, they know you are in real estate,” said Constantino.”

Agents and consumers who have embraced social networking tools and sites are the ones reaping the benefits. Simply having a basic profile with you name and contact info on these sites is not enough. You need to add more details about yourself and complete your profiles as much as you can - the details matter. Most social networking sites allow you to add more details about yourself, your business, your accomplishments and your interests. Take advantage of it. Think of your profile as your resume. You wouldn’t want someone reading a blank resume now would you? On Trulia, think of your profile as your Real Estate Resume. If you’re looking to make a connection with someone, a good first impression can make all the difference in the world.

Consumers like DJ Waldow are finding their real estate agents, Michael Colvin, on Trulia Voices to help them buy and sell their homes. Some agents like Karen Fiddler, are doing extremely well on Trulia. Social networking on sites like Trulia does work!

Have you created your free Trulia Real Estate Resume yet?