Mining the Margins

May 2014 | By Michelle Hofmann

 

There’s value in marketing to people waiting in the wings. Learn how some practitioners are getting renters and would-be sellers off the sidelines.

Three years. That’s how long it took Teresa Scott-Tibbs, a salesperson with Keller Williams Realty in Austin, Texas, to turn one renter into a home buyer. Still, she says there’s value in marketing to potential buyers waiting in the wings.

“I came into this business understanding that everybody deserves to own a home, no matter if they’re renters or not,” says Scott-Tibbs, who started selling real estate in 2003.

As she’s grown in her career and expanded her sphere, Scott-Tibbs has helped more and more renters enter the buyer market. She just had three begin looking for their first home in March alone.

“Our market is saturated with renters, but it’s important for those people to know that for the amount of money that they’re paying for rent, they could own their own house,” she says.

Whether their credit is bad, they’re living with the folks, renting, doing the “wait-and-see” jive, or just too damn scared to move, consumers have a variety of reasons for sitting on the sidelines. But studies show that Americans refuse to give up the dream of home ownership, and real estate practitioners are encouraging consumers to take a leap of faith.

Austin resident Tracy Burkhalter, 49, was a lifelong renter before turning to Scott-Tibbs. “I met her through my beautician. I always had a dream to own a home and finally decided not to procrastinate anymore and to make my dream come true,” Burkhalter says.

Scott-Tibbs helped Burkhalter clear up some minor credit issues, and in November 2013, Burkhalter moved out of the 600-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment she’d been renting for $700 since 2000 and got the keys to her three-bedroom, two-bath, 1,100-square-foot dream home. Burkhalter says her monthly mortgage is a little higher than $700, but her rent had been increasing every year.

She says she believes that Scott-Tibbs wanted to see her accomplish the goal of owning a home. “The agent has to care, be patient and have knowledge,” she says. “Real estate agents should not discount renters because we have a goal and have dreams, too. We need the right person to guide us through the process.”

Scott-Tibbs continues to broaden her reach with renters. One marketing tactic she uses is to upload addresses to Vistaprint and send regular flyers and postcards to residential customers, rental communities, and subdivisions in Austin, North Austin, and the adjacent suburbs.

 

Read the entire article at: http://realtormag.realtor.org/sales-and-marketing/sales-coach/article/2014/05/mining-margins