Glendale and Pasadena Data Share to begin on May 22nd. MRMLS (Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service Incorporated) announces that after many hours of hard work, beginning Tuesday, May 22, 2007, Glendale and Pasadena listings will appear in the MRMLS Matrix. In return, MRMLS listings will appear in the iTech system. Residential data will be the first to appear, followed by Residential Income. The remaining property types will be phased in shortly thereafter.
REALTORS® invested heavily in technology with more than half of brokers, sales agents, associate brokers, and managers saying they spent more than $1,000 last year, according to a new survey by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. The 2007 REALTOR® Technology Survey, conducted by NAR’s Center for REALTOR® Technology, also found that 25 percent of respondents spent more than $2,000 on technology in 2006.
In addition, approximately two-thirds of those surveyed have a real estate business Web site, and a quarter of those surveyed spend more than $1,000 annually to maintain their site. Nearly all of these sites – 93 percent – provide listing search capabilities.
While eight in 10 of those surveyed think the current technology supplied by their broker is valuable, two-thirds would like their broker to expand the amount of technology offered. Eight-four percent of those surveyed were also interested in augmenting the technology and services offered by their Multiple Listing Service.
The most popular devices REALTORS® reporting using in their day-to-day business include digital cameras, desktop computers, and cell phones. The survey also revealed the growing popularity of smartphones or PDAs, which provide phone, Internet, and e-mail capabilities. In 2005, only 8 percent of respondents used a smartphone compared to 28 percent in 2006, and as many as 30 percent of respondents plan to purchase or replace one in the coming year.
Automated forms and transaction management software is also on the rise as real estate transactions become more complex. In fact, more than three-fourths of REALTORS® surveyed said they must manage as many as 20 documents to complete a real estate transaction. Fifty-nine percent of those surveyed use an automated forms management program to help streamline the paperwork involved in a transaction management system, which tracks each step of the real estate process, and 69 percent of those who are not currently using a transaction management system are interested in adopting the technology.
Survey respondents cite referrals and repeat business as the top sources for generating the greatest number of leads. One-third of respondents said that more than half of their business comes from referral clients, which makes staying in touch with current and past clients crucial to a REALTORS® success. The most popular way to maintain relationships with current clients is through phone calls (48 percent) and e-mail (39 percent).
Two-thirds of REALTORS® continue to communicate with their former clients at least once or more every quarter. The methods, however, have changed. Electronic newsletters have gained in popularity as a way to stay in touch with former clients; other favored methods are mailings and market updates.
The Trade Corridor Improvement Fund Working Group meets on May 18th 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the San Bernardino Associated Governments Office, 1170 West Third Street, Second Floor in San Bernardino. Anyone who has a desire to improve California’s transportation system should attend.
Part of the $19 billion transportation bond approved by the voters last November is aimed specifically at improving goods movement throughout the state, including the Inland Empire. The working group is now in the process of developing criteria and guidelines for the goods movement portion of the bond. The group, according to Senator Bob Dutton, has set a goal of program adoption by March 1, 2008.
Richard Tegley is a Realtor® and a Director of the California Association of Realtors® and the National Association of Realtors®. Richard can be reached at (951) 533-9340 or email Tegley@surfcity.net
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