RE/MAX Prestige makes RIS MEDIA Power Broker Annual Report

RIS Media’s Annual Power Broker Report & Survey is the residential real estate industry’s most comprehensive report on the 600 most successful brokerages in the United States. The Report, issued each year in an abbreviated version in the April issue of Real Estate Magazine and then in May in a fully expanded edition, is used as a powerful reference and referral tool by the nation’s top brokers. We are proud to report that RE/MAX Prestige moved up more than 120 spots from a ranking of 347 in the country last year to a ranking of 221 in 2009. That means we are one the 300 most powerful offices in the entire country! When the market gets tough…the tough get stronger!

Andy and I wish to thank every agent at RE/MAX Prestige for your hard work and dedication in 2009. For the year, we averaged 11.55 transactions per agent, far surpassing any real estate firm in our marketplaces. You are the cream of the crop and, from the bottom of our hearts, we appreciate the sacrifices you have made to be the best in the business.

As well, we’d like to thank the hundreds of cooperating agents that aided us in completing the 2095 transactions closed last year. We owe you a debt of gratitude for all of the time, energy, and hard work you put into your careers which enabled all of us to succeed in this market.

As for 2010, there is no doubt that this will be our best year ever. In fact, our numbers are already surpassing our goals for this year. With several upcoming strategic initiatives, we are confident that we will exceed our goal of 2600 closed transactions for the year. We are dedicated to bringing more tools, technology, and culture to our firm, ensuring us a place on the RIS Media Power Broker Report for many years to come.

Make a commitment to change a life with every check you earn this year. Start by supporting a fellow RE/MAX family member. A number of our agents are participating in some awesome events to raise money for some special charities. Please choose an agent (or agents) and help them in their journey to raise awareness and money for a good cause. Please take some time to read the pages they’ve made and the reason they’ve committed their time and resources to help these causes. Most of us can relate to at least one or two of these causes. Show thanks for your personal blessings by making a donation to one of these great causes.

1. http://danfordsrunforacure.com/ – Malcolm Fulford of Pelham has put his heart and soul into this awesome 5K run for two years in a row. I know I’ll be running it and I’d love to see some other RE/MAX faces there as well! I hope you will join me in a run…a beer…and a good cause. Life is good!

2. http://pages.teamintraining.org/ma/paris10/mfermin Michelle Fermin from our Methuen family will be running the Paris Marathon with Team in Training. Team in Training raises money for leukemia research. I am committed to raising $7,000 through sponsorships from individuals like you. Every donation helps me reach my goal. Please take a minute and visit this link and give what you can. Your tax deductible sponsorship is sincerely appreciated.

3. Team Peaches Karen Couillard of Pelham. On June 26-27th I will be walking in The Out of Darkness Overnight in Boston, MA . This is a 20-mile journey from dusk until dawn. The Overnight raises funds and awareness to help end the stigma surrounding depression and suicide. I will be walking in memory of my good friend, Phil Tousignant who passed away on September 30, 2004. I’ll be walking with Phil’s wife Stephanie, his son Josh and his wife Amanda. We can be found on the Overnight website under “Team Peaches”…. Peaches was his nick name. Attached is a picture of Stephanie and Phil. Each walker needs to raise $1,000 – that’s why I’m asking for donations. I realize times are tough – so any amount is greatly appreciated.

4. Relay for Life – Ayeh’s Page Touran Sham’s (Pelham) daughter, Ayeh will be walking in the Relay for Life in Pelham. Good Morning Everyone Please support Touran’s Daughter Ayeh I am taking part in an American Cancer Society Relay For Life on June 5th in Pelham!There’s a good chance you’ve heard of it – it’s the largest cancer-fighting movement in the world. There will be more than 230 Relays happening throughout New England this year, and more than 5,000 across the U.S., each uniting communities against a common enemy: cancer. I will be walking in honor of my grandparents who both lost their battle with cancer a few years ago and for my friend Nick who is currently battling lymphoma.

5. Alexa Edyn Bergeron’s Page JJ Bergeron’s (Methuen) daughter, Alexa is participating with millions of other kids to help save lives with the American Heart Association’s Jump Rope For Heart Program! I’m doing Jump Rope For Heart at my school and learning about kids with special hearts. I’m also learning about my own heart, and how to take care of it. And I’m getting active and jumping rope!I’m also doing this in memory of my special Nana- Benedetta DiFruscia who just passed away of heart disease and I miss so much. I’m excited about raising money to help kids with special hearts. Please help me save lives and be a Heart Hero! Will you please help me raise money..Thank you so much

6. Art Richton’s Relay for Life Page Art Ricton of Team East Longmeadow is participating in the Relay for Life overnight cancer walk.I take part in the relay in memory of my wife, Theresa who passed away on July 5, 2001 from Breast Cancer. Theresa was a strong advocate for the relay and her determination drives my participation. I also take part to honor the survivors in my family. These include my 86 year old mother Ardelle Richton(a 24 year survivor), my sister, Sheila Hewett and sister-in-law Carol McCabe(Theresa’s sister) diagnosed with Breast Cancer last year and lastly my sister-in-law Sandy Richton a leukemia and bone marrow transplant survivor. Please support my efforts to fight back against cancer by making a donation or joining my Relay For Life® team.

Per the request of many agents in our firm we have updated our check request to add a new charity selection for those who would like to make a charitable donation upon closing. The new charity selection is for a Haiti Relief Fund through The Clinton Foundation. To make a charitable donation upon closing please choose Susan G. Koman, Children’s Miracle Network, or the Haiti Relief Fund. Please write into the comment section how much you would like to donate. We are also happy to accomodate donations to any charity if you provide information to us in the comment section of the check request.

This week was one of those fun-filled weeks where the offices were filled with holiday spirit. The Chelmsford office is filled with holiday gifts for the 25 local families our agents adopted for the holidays. As well, we welcomed the holidays in this week with two fun packed parties. On Wednesday we had a catered luncheon at the East Longmeadow office for all of the agents in Western, MA. The office was standing room only as we shared good cheer and all participated in a Yankee Swap. Of course, no holiday party could be complete without some home baked snacks from Christine..our Wilbraham administrator. Her rum cake was to die for!

On Thursday we celebrated the holidays with an afternoon cocktail party at Meadowcreek Golf Club in Dracut where about 120 of our local Eastern MA agents stopped in to share in the holiday spirit. The highlite of this party was Andrew’s speech where he recognized the many past RE/MAX owners who now work at our firm and who have formed the foundation of our company. In traditional RE/MAX style we also had an aggressive Yankee Swap where no holds were barred in swapping gifts.

It’s been an awesome year in real estate….a year that we wall needed after the challenges we’ve been through. We all get so busy in our lives and our businesses but during these brief holiday get togethers you really get to sit back and say “Wow…these people really are family…and there’s no place I’d rather be than RE/MAX Prestige.”

RE/MAX Prestige is very excited to announce the newest addition to our RE/MAX Family. My daughter, Oshyn Catherine McHugh was born on Friday, December 11, 2009. Sometimes we have to call and email and meet several times with the best in the industry before they join our firm…and sometimes they’re just Born to be RE/MAX.

If you’re interested in evaluating your career for 2010 please email or call me for a confidential interview.

20 Reasons to list during the Holidays

1.) Rates are averaging under 5%, the lowest in years. There’s no telling how long rates will last this low.

2.) There is less competition for buyers.

3.) Winter prospects are more serious buyers.

4.) Your home looks better during the holidays.

5.) One of the highest percentages of “the listing sold” to “listing taken” occur during this time of year.

6.) You may receive more money for your home now because you have less competition.

7.) Throughout the holiday season, you may restrict showings during your personal family events.

8.) Buyers have more time to look at homes during the holidays, especially during vacations.

9.) January is traditionally the biggest transfer month and you must be on the market to capture that market.

10.) By selling now you can have a delayed closing or extended occupancy until the beginning of the following year if you want it.

11.) When you sell during the winter you have an opportunity to buy during the spring, when many homes are on the market.

12.) You may have fewer actual showings, but more qualified and motivated prospects.

13.) Corporate transfers, who need to buy a home now, can’t wait until spring.

14.) If you purchased your home at the peak of pricing and need to sell because of loss of a job or a job transfer, banks are working with homeowners to allow a short sale so you can sell your home with far less impact to your credit than if you lost it to foreclosure. Undoubtedly with less listing inventory in the winter, short sales will get processed faster by the lenders.

15.) Homeowners who have owned and lived in their principal residence for five consecutive years within the past eight years may also qualify for a new tax credit of up to $6,500 under the recently signed qualified homeowner tax credit.

16.) If you’re selling this home and buying another, there’s a 1 in 4 chance that the home you are looking to buy is in a short sale position. By starting the selling/buying process now you can rest assured that you will close early in the new year, long before potential tax credits can run out for you or the buyers of your home.

17.) If your home no longer suits the needs of your family, you can sell it now for less than you might hope for, however selling now will enable you to buy a more suitable home at a great price, to lock in low interest rates and to ride the market up in a home, which fits your current needs better.

18.) A recession is a natural selection process, which weeds out contractors, lenders, appraisers and Realtors who are not highly skilled in their fields. The people you deal with in a real estate transaction at this time are much more likely to be professional and skilled at what they do than in a boom market.

19.) The current and extended first-time homeowner tax credit allowed incredible numbers of first-time buyers the chance to get into their own home and get $8,000 back in tax credits. Many of these first time buyers are looking for their home now, not wanting to risk that they won’t have a property under agreement by the April 30th deadline.

20.) Curb Appeal. If your landscape and lawn isn’t that great, breathe a sigh of relief that no one else’s is this time of year, either. Add seasonal color, a wreath, perhaps some decorations.

Thank you to RE/MAX Prestige and George’s Automotive. Together we supplied Thanksgiving dinners to more than 50 local DSS families!! Many agents put together their own Thanksgiving baskets to donate last week and for the many that donated money we worked with Shaws where they boxed up complete dinners including turkeys, pies, and all of the fixings. With the holidays approaching RE/MAX Prestige has also committed to helping 25 DSS families for the holidays. If you’re interested in a Christmas wish list for a local family please email salcorn@remaxprestige.com. We appreciate your holiday support! Keep up the great work!

Check out TEAM RE/MAX PRESTIGE as we make our way down the streets of Metheun in the annual holiday parade! You couldn’t miss our crew with the RE/MAX PT Cruiser and the RE/MAX balloonman marching beside us. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon for a parade and our unbeleivable team gave out over 1200 candycanes! What a great afternoon of spreading holiday cheer!

Is a new house! At RE/MAX Prestige, we LOVE it when agents think outside the box. That’s why we were so impressed when Team Fulford (Malcolm and Roberta Fulford) from our Pelham, NH office took the liberty of renting a kiosk at the local mall for the holiday season! With the extension of the tax credit, there’s no better time than now to buy or upgrade a home. What better way to meet and greet the masses than distributing important tax credit and home buying information at the mall during the holidays. Kudos to Team Fulford for a job well done!

The merger of two long-established real estate firms in the Merrimack Valley area has further strengthened the Re/Max organization in that segment of Essex and Middlesex County Real Estate market. The merger involved the acquisition of Re/Max Preferred of Methuen, one of the pioneer RE/MAX offices in New England which has been in business for twenty five years, by Re/Max Prestige with offices in Chelmsford, Dracut, Billerica, Tewksbury, Pelham, Tyngsboro, Groton, and Westford, as well as two offices in Western Massachusetts in Wilbraham and East Longmeadow.

“Given the strength of the Re/Max brand in our area, we’re very excited about the prospect of expanding further into the Methuen Market” said Andrew Armata, who along with his partner, Stacey Alcorn, acquired the Methuen office of Re/Max Preferred in November. The Prestige Lawrence office has been merged into the Re/Max office in Methuen and will now host more agents and continue operating under the Re/Max Prestige name.

Armata noted that even with existing offices in eight surrounding towns, the idea of adding a Methuen location was quite attractive. “People like doing business with a real estate firm that has an office in their community, so even though the current business environment is not one that makes it easy to expand, we felt it was an opportunity we should not pass up. It gives us top franchise marketshare in both Methuen and Lawrence as well as additional marketshare in Haverhill, North Andover, and Salem NH, he said.

Armata noted that the Prestige office is also perfectly located because, like his other Merrimack Valley offices it offers great opportunity for further expansion up both the Route 93 and Route 495 Corridors. “The multiple offices throughout MA & NH really offers both our agents and customers a lot of convenience,” Armata said.

RE/MAX Prestige now has approximately 200 agents and is the largest RE/MAX office in New England. As well, the firm in total is expected to come in number five in unit sales for all real estate offices in Massachusetts for 2009.

It just wouldn’t be Halloween unless someone shows up to work this week in a cape and tights. In the Spirit of Halloween we are once again having our yearly Halloween costume contest. Any agent or staff member that comes to the office in costume either today, tomorrow, or on Halloween will be entered into our contest. We will need a photo of the costume emailed to Andy and I by Sunday morning. We have an independent staff of three judges who will determine the costume contest winners on Monday!

Prizes:
1st Place – $200 Gift Certificate to Merrill – the RE/MAX Approved Supplier
2nd Place – $100 Gift Certificate to Home Depot
3rd Place – $50 Gift Certificate to Amazon.com

Check out this Design Center Video for Some Ghosts of Years Past! http://odc.remax.imprev.net/tmp/70/45070/443529/

We look forward to some hauntingly creative costumes…. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

With 73 days left until the tax credit expires our agents are working diligently on several fronts to help as many buyers as possible. On the one hand our agents are doing their part to petition Congress to extend the tax credit. On the other hand, they are working feverishly to help buyers find the home of their dreams in the next few weeks. Right now it takes an average buyer approximately 45 days to secure financing on a home. This means that a buyer that wants to take advantage of the tax credit really needs to have a home under agreement in the next two to three weeks. As well, we are advising buyers that now is not the time to buy a distressed property which will require short sale negotiation because there is certainly no guarantee that the short sale will be negotiated in less then 2.5 months. The best we can do is work hard to fufill the needs of every last homebuyer out there while at the same time taking precautions to make sure these transactions close on time so that nobody loses out on the tax credit.

Can you believe it’s almost September! Summer is over and that means RE/MAX Prestige will be once again hosting our monthly MARKETING S.W.A.T. (Still Without A Taker) TEAM tour to help each other sell listings. How this approach works is that if you have a listing that’s been on the market for more than 60 days and you need ideas on how to make it more saleable you can put it on the SWAT list. On Friday, September 4th everyone with a home on the SWAT tour will go on a tour to view the homes. The tour will take place from 9am-12:30. This is not just a caravan! This is a TLC (Troubled Listing Caravan) approach to giving constructive feedback. We have a TLC Tour Analysis sheet that each agent will be required to complete after viewing each home. This is so that the listing agent will have concrete feedback on how to get the house sold. The tour meets at 9:00am at the first house. You will receive the Tour Analysis Sheets for each property on the day of the tour. The tour will be followed by a half hour marketing de-briefing where we can exchange verbal feedback about each listing.

EMAIL ME IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR PROPERTY INCLUDED ON THE SEPTEMBER TOUR!

THE RULES:
1. To qualify, the property must be recognized as aged. That means it must have been on the market at least 60 days.
2. The tour spots will be filled on a first come, first serve basis.
3. Each agent can only have one property on the tour.
4. If you have a property on the SWAT tour… YOU MUST BE AVAILABLE TO GO INTO EVERY HOME ON THE TOUR.
5. If a property is in an area that is too distant, we reserve the right to not include it in the SWAT tour.

We think this is a great way for us to leverage the expertise within our marketplace.

It’s a good life!

Andy and I are excited to be back from the Broker/Owner conference in Chicago. We are diligently working with our team to put together some good information to share with you all. Much of this will be presented at our upcoming Sales Rallies in September. My favorite piece from the event was the new RE/MAX video entitled DID YOU KNOW? Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/remaxintl then post it to your email signature lines, your Facebook pages, and your websites. It’s good information to share with buyers and sellers alike.

In addition to the conference, Andy and I had the great pleasure of attending the RE/MAX International Broker Strategy Task Force which consists of the top 55 RE/MAX brokerages across the country. In our meetings we met with Dave Liniger, Gail Liniger, Margaret Kelly, and other top executives to talk about the state of our market and the challenges our agents face every day. Andy and I are privileged to be part of this elite group and we admire the time and effort that our top management team at RE/MAX has dedicated to making RE/MAX the #1 real estate firm in the country. Attending these meetings has helped us gain insight on how to become better brokers and managers. As well, they have given us the opportunity to share our feedback and industry knowledge in order to help our RE/MAX family grow and prosper around the world.

Obviously the distressed real estate market continues to play an important role in all of our lives. We learned that in the past 12 months, agents with the CDPE designation closed an average of 25 transaction sides, more than double that of the average RE/MAX agent and quadruple that of any real estate agent. For this reason we look forward to watching more of our agents attain this important designation in the coming months. In fact, we have been working with the region to bring Alex Chafrin and the CDPE training program right to Massachusetts at a price discounted for our agents. We will be sending out detailed information on this event in the coming week.

This morning, RE/MAX International sent you a quick recap of this week’s conference. Please take a moment to read the story below as I truly feel there is information that will help you with your business plan for the coming year.

Liniger in Chicago: ‘Demand Will Come’

By George White, RE/MAX Times Managing Editor

CHICAGO – Demand built on demographics and population – rather than questionable lending policies – will spark the next wave of strong home sales in the U.S., Dave Liniger told nearly 700 Affiliates at the 2009 RE/MAX Summer Conference for Broker/Owners and Managers on Monday.

The confluence of two massive population groups – 80 million Baby Boomers born from 1946-1964 and 74 million Millennials born from 1980-1995 – will fuel a huge increase in transactions from 2012 onward, the RE/MAX International Chairman and Co-Founder said at the conference’s Opening General Session. Immigration and minority household trends will add to the upturn, he noted.

As the Millennials, who are 15-29 now, reach their prime homebuying years – the average first-time buyer is 33, though that number appears to be trending downward – the Baby Boomers will be selling and downsizing. The rise in demand will drive the market upward, Liniger said.

“Very good years are coming,” he said, adding that RE/MAX International – through technology, training, social media and other initiatives – will help Broker/Owners and Associates connect with these consumers.

Being successful today
For the time being, though, local markets will stay as they are, Liniger said. In fact, unemployment and a second wave of foreclosures in 2010 and 2011 are likely to make things worse before they get better. He urged Broker/Owners to help their Sales Associates close transactions through distressed properties, REOs, first-time homebuyers and investors. His constant theme: Affiliates cannot sit back and wait for a quick turnaround – because it’s not coming.

“I’m not negative; I’m realistic,” he said. “If you’re not realistic, you can’t make the adjustments you need to make in order to survive and prosper.”

Liniger said RE/MAX leaders have met many times with key lenders and government officials to push for foreclosure solutions and a standardized and streamlined short-sale process.

He also called the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) course the best training he’s ever encountered. More than 6,000 RE/MAX Associates have earned the designation, he said, and others should consider it.

“Short sales are the key for the next 18-24 months. Our people must be trained to handle them,” he said, noting that true recovery simply isn’t possible until the foreclosure problem is solved.

The smartest place to be
RE/MAX continues to be the best network for top agents, Liniger said. Its unmatched technology, brand name awareness, training, market share and advertising provide significant competitive advantages for Broker/Owners and Sales Associates.

Liniger also thanked Affiliates for their enduring support of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and children’s hospitals, noting that RE/MAX will soon reach the $100 million mark in Children’s Miracle Network contributions.

Rousing life lessons
Following Liniger’s address, former Notre Dame and NFL star Joe Theismann explained how he has approached life since his football career ended suddenly – his leg was broken on national TV – in 1985. He drew parallels between his adversity and the real estate industry’s current struggles.

“We all face obstacles and hurdles; the test is what you do about them,” Theismann said. “Real champions don’t stay down. They figure out what to do, and then they do it. Why is RE/MAX where it is? Because they reject the idea of failing.”

I hope you enjoyed this article and have taken away information that will help improve your business.