Incentives, Marketing and Social Media

Like me on Facebook and be entered into a draw for an iPad!

Follow me on Twitter and be entered to win a draw for an e-book reader!

Join my LinkedIn group and you could win dinner on me!

What do these three statements have in common? They each include an example of an incentive, which is anything that is advertised, communicated or offered by a brokerage to the public or a person for the purpose of attracting business to the brokerage. They include a promise, good, service, game of chance, contest, or anything else of value.

Regardless of how an incentive is communicated or advertised, the rules surrounding incentives are the same. All incentives must be offered through a brokerage. Individual real estate (or mortgage brokerage) professionals cannot offer incentives separate from or in addition to those incentives offered by their brokerage. Any incentive offered by one industry professional within a brokerage must be offered by all industry professionals registered with the brokerage.

Industry professionals often treat online advertising/marketing differently than traditional methods, but they shouldn’t. The line between a professional profile and a personal profile can get blurry, especially when the same content is used for both. Simply mentioning that you are an industry professional on a personal social media profile is not marketing per se; it simply identifies your profession.  However, when you set up a presence on LinkedIn or Facebook, for example, and your profile clearly promotes yourself and/or your brokerage, and may include marketing tactics such as the incentives above, that professional profile falls under RECA’s Advertising Guidelines and RECA views it as brokerage advertising.

To keep the personal/professional distinction clear, you may want to maintain two accounts in various social media platforms.  One would be a personal account that you don’t use for marketing.  The other account would be for you to market your services and RECA would consider it a form of marketing or advertising.

RECA is very pro-social media; and a contest through your Facebook page may seem like an innovative marketing idea, but even those must abide by the guidelines. Likewise, inviting followers to your Twitter account is fine, but providing a gift or contest entry in return may breach the guidelines.

To read more about incentives, check out RECA Information Bulletin: Incentives, click here.

To review RECA’s Advertising Guidelines, click here.

So,Your Buyer Client Wants a Home Inspection…

Just when your buyer client thinks the hard part is done – they found what seems to be the perfect home for them, they have a number of other things to consider and look after, one of which is often a home inspection. More often than not, a buyer’s home purchase will be conditional on a satisfactory home inspection.

There are two issues that sometimes arise with respect to home inspections:

1) Can or should the buyer’s representative be present during the home inspection?

2) Can the buyer bring additional people (family members, etc.) to the home inspection?

When a buyer has a home inspection condition, his or her representative will typically make an appointment to gain access to the property for the inspection through the seller’s representative. Typically, the buyer’s representative will request that the seller not be present during the inspection, which means the buyer’s representative will access the property using the lockbox or by picking up a key. The Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) expects the buyer’s representative to be present during the home inspection because it is he or she who is responsible for access to the property and the care of it during the inspection. It is inappropriate for the buyer’s representative to open the property and then leave the home inspector and buyer alone. If the buyer’s representative is unable to stay for the entire home inspection, they need to first ask permission from the seller’s representative to leave the buyer and the home inspector in the property alone.

Some industry professionals may believe the buyer’s representative should not be present as he or she may “influence” the inspection. The fact is, though, home inspectors have standards they must follow – and a real estate professional’s attendance at the inspection will not influence them. Additionally, a buyer’s representative should stay for the inspection in the event the buyer wants guidance on how to proceed once the inspection is complete.

So, a buyer and his or her representative should always be present at the inspection – but what about additional people? The issue of having additional people present at a home inspection may seem harmless, but it can lead to problems. While buyers are often excited about their purchase and anxious to show their new home to those closest to them without having to wait for the purchase to close, having additional attendees is inappropriate without permission from the seller (obtained through the seller’s representative). What happens if one of these “additional” people touches something belonging to the seller and breaks it? What happens if they “test” something (a toilet, faucet, furnace), and something goes wrong? Who will take responsibility for any damage that may result? The fact is, it is not yet the buyer’s home and it is not up to the buyer to decide who should have access to and can view the property; it is only a seller who can make that decision.

While the home inspection itself isn’t the responsibility of the real estate professional, the real estate professional is responsible for safeguarding the property while it is in their care during the inspection.

For more info regarding industry members and home inspectors, be sure to check out the RECABlog, Recommending Home Inspectors.

How do you usually manage home inspections for your buyer clients?

RECA Practice Tip: Inducements

RECA Real Estate Practice Advisor, Doug Dixon, explains what qualifies as an inducement and the difference between "inducements" and "incentives."

Charging for Charity

A luxury house-for-sale in Toronto is in the news  thanks to the listing industry professional charging $50 for a viewing. Now, before you spill your coffee in shock, you should know that the $50 is a charitable donation to the SickKids Foundation of Toronto.

The idea was conceived by the listing industry professional at the request of the seller to help keep gawkers and looky-loos away from this $5 million property. All of the attention the tactic has garnered has certainly gotten the attention of buyers who wouldn’t necessarily have known it was for sale. So really, it’s a win for everyone involved. Potential buyers have said they applaud the idea – after all, what’s $50 to someone looking to buy a $5-million property?

RECA’s counterpart in Ontario, the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO), has stated there is nothing wrong with the tactic, provided it is not misleading in any way and has the seller’s permission. RECA agrees with RECO’s stance, but Alberta industry professionals who may be interested in trying something similar need to make sure they don’t run astray of the legislation.

• Make sure you proceed only at the seller’s direction. The seller needs to know that although this tactic may keep gawkers away, it may also turn off certain buyers.
• Make sure the money goes directly to the charity and not first into your brokerage trust account or your personal account. A good way to avoid this is for people to make their cheque out to the charity you’ve chosen.
• Be up front with the requirement. Any advertisements for your listing should prominently mention this viewing requirement, so no one is surprised by it at the door.
• Run it by your broker. Brokers need to review and approve all industry professional’s advertising since it’s done on behalf of the brokerage. Run any marketing ideas by your broker and get their support before proceeding. If your broker is unsure whether something is acceptable, he or she can contact the RECA Real Estate Practice Advisor for advice.
• Make a courtesy call to the charity you have in mind, informing them of your intention.

RECA supports industry professionals’ innovation and efforts to stand out – but only if that innovation doesn’t fall outside of the Rules.

 

Third-Party Sites: Looking for an Edge, Staying Professional

Third-party sites such as Kijiji or Craigslist have become increasingly popular for real estate industry professionals to promote their listings, usually without any cost. These third-party sites have sections to advertise homes for sale or rent; often times these sites are used by the actual owners of the properties – but sometimes they’re used by the industry professionals hired by the owners to sell the property or find a tenant for it.  Beyond that, though, industry professionals sometimes use these sites as a means of working around the advertising rules.

An example of a real estate industry professional using a third party site in a misleading manner would be a sellers’ representative who had a listing on MLS® at one price and also advertised it on Craigslist at a different price with the condition the buyer use their services to purchase the home. Equally misleading would be if one associate took pictures and descriptions of a property listed by another associate and then posted an ad on Kijiji as if the property was their own listing, in order to attract new clients. Behaviour like this is misleading and could undermine the public’s confidence in the industry.

Using third-party sites can be a very effective way for a real estate professional to gain more exposure for a listing, at a relatively low (or zero) cost. When industry professionals use third-party sites for marketing while abiding by the advertising guidelines that are in place, they are an effective way to reach out to an even broader clientele base. The may give real estate professionals that extra bit of exposure it takes to move a listing.

Generating new business is often about finding an edge, and no place offers more ways to promote yourself than the Internet. But when looking for that edge, make sure you don’t fall off of it.

RECA encourages industry professionals to review the Advertising Guidelines and the Information Bulletins on advertising.

Do you use third-party sites to market your listings or yourself? 

Organized Chaos Redux: 2nd Annual RE BarCamp YYC

About 100 Alberta real estate and mortgage industry professionals attended RE BarCamp YYC 2013 yesterday at the Wainwright Hotel in Heritage Park. There were 15 participant-planned and driven discussions throughout the day on topics as diverse as social media marketing and alternative lending models.

This was the 2^nd Annual RE BarCamp YYC and the feedback to organizers during the event was extremely positive. The informal sessions allowed for high-energy, but casual discussion and the vast majority of participants stayed for all four sessions and the reception afterwards. 

Once again, #yycrebar trended on Twitter in the Calgary area thanks to the tweeting of participants and organizers.

Thank you to all the participants and to all those who facilitated a session. The organizers would also like to thank the day’s sponsors: myRealPage, Ceili’s Modern Irish Pub, Kahane Law Office and Redman Technologies.

We look forward to seeing even more participants next year. Pictures from the event will be posted soon – stay tuned!

RECA Practice Tip: Advertising - Licensed Name

Doug Dixon, RECA Real Estate Practice Advisor, discusses the guidelines for advertising, namely that all advertising must be done in the name that appears on your licence.

 

Appraisal Turnaround Times: Doing the Job Right

Real estate appraisal professionals have indicated that the turnaround times sometimes expected by Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) are not sufficient to allow for the completion of appraisals that meet the applicable ap praisal standards. Additionally, appraisal professionals raised concerns that when they turn down work from AMCs because of turnaround times, they will not be given any more work from that AMC.

These concerns were recently discussed at a meeting of the Real Estate Council of Alberta’s Real Estate Appraisers' Advisory Committee, which led to a meeting between RECA and most AMCs operating in Alberta

The AMCs stated that the deadlines they impose are those that are requested by their clients. They maintain that AMCs understand real estate appraisal professionals may be busy at particular points in time and if appraisal assignments are declined, this will not result in that appraiser’s removal from the AMC’s appraiser list.  RECA’s expectation is that real estate appraisal professionals can turn down real estate appraisal assignments without repercussions – particularly if accepting the assignment would result in a failure to meet appraisal standards.

AMCs have indicated a commitment to communicating that real estate appraisers will not be excluded from future assignments as the result of turning down specific appraisal assignments.

Section 41(b) of the Real Estate Act Rules states that all industry members must provide competent service. If the competency of a real estate appraisal professional’s work might be compromised because there isn’t sufficient time to complete the assignment or because the real estate appraiser’s overall workload would prevent him or her from meeting the required appraisal standards, the appraiser should request an extension or turn down the appraisal assignment.

Lights, Camera, Action: Following the Rules with Video Marketing

When it comes to the internet, video is king. Web-surfers are drawn more to quick videos than long articles. So why shouldn’t real estate and mortgage professionals use video in their marketing plans? Easy answer is, they should use it! After all, all it takes is a smart phone and a YouTube account for real estate and mortgage professionals to produce video marketing. 

Whether it is to promote themselves, a listing, or their brokerage, industry professionals need to understand the advertising guidelines that apply to print ads, also apply to video.

The most common mistake some industry professionals make when producing and posting video for marketing purposes is not including the name of their brokerage. While sites such as YouTube have rigid design parameters, it is still possible for industry professionals to produce video content and include a clear indication of their brokerage.

On YouTube, for example, each “channel” allows the owner of the channel to include an “About Me/Us” descriptive. There are more than enough characters allowed in that area of copy to clearly indicate your brokerage name. Another option would be to run a line of copy along the bottom of your video that indicates your name and the name of your brokerage. Either of these options will meet RECA’s advertising guidelines for clear indication of your brokerage.

Of course, there are also some industry members who do include their brokerage name, but it is somehow buried or hidden. For example, including a brokerage name in the fine print or maybe as a meta tag for a video, will not satisfy the advertising requirements in the Real Estate Act Rules. Just because required information exists somewhere, somehow within the marketing, does not necessarily mean it suffices as clearly indicated.

Real estate and mortgage professionals including videos in their marketing plans is increasingly popular and will likely become even more so. Just remember, when any new marketing trends emerge, the existing rules and guidelines continue to apply.  

For more information, be sure to read RECA’s Advertising Guidelines.

What are your thoughts on industry members creating video-based content for their advertising?

RE BarCamp YYC: Deadline Fast Approaching

If you haven’t signed up for RE BarCamp Calgary 2013, what are you waiting for? The registration deadline is Noon on Friday, April 26, 2013. The first 100 registrants will get a free t-shirt!

You can register here. Spots will fill up quickly so don’t wait until the last minute to sign up! 

The event is on May 1, 2013 at the Wainwright Hotel at Heritage Park. RE BarCamp YYC is jointly organized by RECA, the Alberta Real Estate Association, the Alberta Mortgage Brokers Association and the Calgary Real Estate Board.

Sponsors of this year’ event include Ceili's Modern Irish Pub, Kahane Law Office, and myRealPage.  There are still sponsorships spots available. To view sponsorship options click here.

For more info, check out the RE BarCamp YYC blog at http://rebarcampyyc.wordpress.com/ or follow the Twitter account @REBarCampYYC.

For those that don’t know, a RE BarCamp (or “real estate bar camp”) is an “unconference conference.” A RE BarCamp is an ad-hoc gathering of real estate and mortgage professionals through which attendees can share and learn in an open environment. It is an intense event with discussions, demos, and interaction from attendees.

We’re looking forward to seeing industry professionals there on May 1^st. 

Competence Means Accepting That You Don't Know Everything

It’s April and a collective groan can be heard ringing through the province. No, it’s not the unseasonal weather causing this displeasure (though that’s not helping!) – it’s tax season. Authorized real estate professionals are experts on the state of the real estate industry, but the tax implications of real estate purchases and sales may go beyond the realm of their expertise. And as house-flipping and investment properties continue to be popular with some consumers, real estate professionals need to remember to leave tax advice for their clients to the tax experts.   

One of the tax situations arising more regularly these days is related to consumers claiming a property as their primary residence, but soon changing their minds and immediately selling it, sometimes at a significant profit. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has announced it will be cracking down on those suspected of taking advantage of this capital gains loophole and they are looking to collect more than $500 million extra from those suspected of “flipping,” their property and not paying the tax this year.

During the buying or selling process, a consumer may assume their real estate industry professional is also an expert on home or property tax matters. And while many industry professionals do know a great deal about real estate tax from their extensive real estate industry experience, industry professionals must keep in mind they are not qualified to be counselling clients on tax matters. If a client has a tax query, the best course of action for an industry professional is to direct that client to a financial or tax advisor who is better suited to deal with their tax information needs.

The same is true for legal issues relating to a property purchase or sale. Assisting a client by directing them to a lawyer may be the best way for a real estate professional to demonstrate competency and truly serve their client’s needs.

Authorized real estate professionals want to ensure their clients get the professional information and advice they need, while not putting themselves in a position where they could provide misleading or incorrect information or advice.

To read more, be sure to check out RECA's Info Bulletin on Competent Service.

Has a client ever asked you for your input on tax matters? If so, how did you respond?