Realtors Are All In, All the Time

For 25 years, I've had the honor of working alongside some of the best and most relentless real estate professionals in the industry. Throughout that time, it has always been clear that their value within the consumer’s real estate journey can never be replaced.??

I firmly believe that what makes us special is the ‘human element.’ Real estate professionals give up weekends and time away from their families. They take calls and text conversations, literally closing deals during family gatherings, their kids’ games, shows and activities, at the supermarket and everywhere else.??

And over the past few decades, one of the only certainties for agents has been uncertainty. From navigating recession markets to global pandemic shutdowns to skyrocketing mortgage rates, our agents have helped their clients work through every single obstacle thrown their way. I challenge you to name another service industry where being so “all in” is a prerequisite, while having to factor in so many uncontrollable forces – especially one where the effort is ONLY financially rewarded when, and if, a transaction closes.?

That is why the intense focus on real estate professionals over the last couple of weeks has been so difficult to watch. Many of the conversations?devalue us and why we do what we do, reducing us to a number and ignoring that human element. Transparent conversations about what a client will pay us are certainly healthy, but the pendulum in the real estate discourse has swung so far that too many people have lost sight of the investments that agents make in their clients’ lives.?

In fact, as I think back over the thousands of conversations I've had with brokers and agents, I can’t recall a single discussion where an agent said they were in real estate only to make money. Great real estate professionals are special people. Sure, they get paid for what they do, but what they do truly impacts the lives of their clients and the health of their communities. Every day. All day. The word we use at Century 21 Real Estate to describe our people is “relentless.” And it’s the perfect word.?

Our industry is filled with people who are going above and beyond to bring their clients across the finish line. Take for example, Art Furtney at CENTURY 21 Champion Real Estate. Art is a Marine Corps veteran who did two tours in Vietnam. After serving our nation for 25 years, he found real estate - a job where he could continue to serve his local community.??

Art recently assisted a military family who needed him. They were a former client who he once helped buy a home using their VA disability income. Unfortunately, years later, after the veteran passed away, his spouse was under the threat of foreclosure and needed to sell. She needed Art. Art not only helped coordinate repairs to the home, worked with the bank, and found solutions for buyer delays and deal complications – but he also pitched in financially to help her. Is she going to remember the final sales price of the home or how quickly it sold? Maybe. But more importantly, she’s going to hold on to the feeling of having someone guide her through what was likely one of the toughest times in her life.??

As we all know, change in any industry is inevitable – perhaps even more so in ours. But, we have a long track record of looking change in the eyes and navigating through it. We heard that the birth of the internet would destroy our value. Instead, it made us more effective in connecting our consumers with their dream homes. The evolution of different brokerage models and iBuying was supposed to take us out of the equation. Instead, we stayed focus on providing outstanding service tailored to the individual needs of our clients. Literally four years ago, our world came to a screeching halt while state agencies made us non-essential and shut us down...and instead of a housing market shutdown, what followed was perhaps the strongest buying and selling environment we’ve ever seen.?

We are now in the midst of potentially more change and uncertainty. But I am confident that real estate will continue to thrive as a great industry.??

Why? Because the most important factor in the real estate process is the human element. Our “why” is to help people. We do it better than anyone else.??

That will never change because of the real estate professionals who devote themselves day-in and day-out to making the dream of home ownership a reality.??