success – Windermere Eastside

Windermere Agents Excel in Sales Over List Price

December 1, 2015

MultipleOffers_header_Dec3

Sales Over List Price

Did you know that 43 percent of home sales are over list price and almost always involve multiple offer situations? In fact, buyers working with a Windermere Real Estate broker are 19 percent more likely to win the sale in these situations.* Our brokers work tirelessly to make sure that not only do you have the best representation in the pool of offers, but that yours stands out to the seller.

MultipleOffers_graph_2016 — Change in market share in sales over list price vs. at or below list price.

Here’s Why Our Windermere Brokers Are Most Successful…

Windermere Real Estate brokers help position their buyer’s offer to have the greatest appeal to the seller. They also receive extensive training on how to create the most competitive offer and negotiate successfully in home sales over list price and potential multiple offer situations. Our brokers regularly receive the highest real estate education to stay ahead of real estate strategies, regulations, and everything else that helps make your offer the winning one.

Additionally, at the end of the day, it’s about reputation. Brokers are more confident in completing a transaction with a broker from Windermere than they are with any other real estate company.**

If you’re thinking about purchasing a home on the Eastside, make sure you have a Windermere Real Estate agent on your side. Almost half of our local real estate sales are sales over list price and multiple offer situations, and you want to make sure you’re represented by the best.

*Based on single family home sales in King County that closed above list price in 2015. New construction, condominiums and short sales were excluded.
**Based on a 2015 independent study of NWMLS brokers who closed six or more transactions in the previous year.

Updated on 2/16/16 to include all single family home sales in King County that closed above list price in 2015.

Eastside Windermere Foundation Scholarships for 2015

May 5, 2015

collegestudents Every year, the Eastside Windermere Foundation accepts scholarship applications for high school seniors headed off to college as well as returning college students. We make a point to assist as many students as we can achieve their educational and career goals, especially those who are community focused, academically driven, and in need of a helping hand by way of an educational scholarship.

This year, we had more than 30 scholarship applications from students in the area. Applications came from local high schools such as Secondary Academy for Success, Newport High School, Oliver M. Hazen High School, Lake Washington High School, Redmond High School, Eastside Academy, Emerson High School, Interlake High School, Juanita High School, Woodinville High School, and Issaquah High School. There were also a few post-secondary schools represented such as Lake Washington Institute of Technology, Bellevue College, and Washington State University Vancouver.

Some of the main qualities we look for in scholarship recipients are financial need, leadership skills, community involvement, and academic success. While we look forward to supporting the students who have consistently performed well in the classroom, we also want to help the students who have worked hard to improve their grades and are looking forward to continued improvement in their college and university classes. Some of the most influential students we want to support are those who have already given back to their communities through continuous volunteer efforts.

This year we have selected 21 outstanding students who have represented these traits. An education is one of the most powerful tools a young person can have at their disposal, and it gives us great pleasure to be able to assist as many as we can in achieving their educational goals. With this financial support, we can assist students on the Eastside to go on to become doctors, engineers, technicians, artists, business owners and more.

The most important goal felt among members of the Eastside Windermere Foundation is to let these students know their dreams and goals matter. That no matter what hardships they may have faced, their educational aspirations are important and worthy. We chose these scholarship recipients to help them achieve their goals so that they may make a difference in the lives of others.

Congratulations to the Eastside Windermere Foundation scholarship recipients of 2015!

February is Standards of Practice Awareness Month

February 6, 2015

genstandards Each year, all 12 of the Eastside offices participate in a campaign to highlight Windermere Real Estate’s “Standards of Practice.” For the entire month of February, Standards of Practice Awareness takes center stage in each office with the “blue folder” containing several documents created by brokers to help brokers attain the goal of the highest client satisfaction.

Windermere Real Estate brokers “set the standard” and follow a strict etiquette to best serve our clients. Our commitment to these standards is part of what sets Windermere apart and strengthens our resolve. They draw a clear picture of our culture and what our clients, colleagues, and community can expect from us. In turn, we trust this translates into a more satisfying real estate experience and peace-of-mind for our clients knowing that doing right by them is our highest priority.

It’s for these reasons and Standards of Practice that nearly one third of Eastside sellers select Windermere to market and sell their properties. Brokers in the northwest have listed Windermere as the company they are most confident in doing a transaction with due to the high caliber of Windermere’s professionals.

What does this mean for the Eastside?

Our brokers on the Eastside are poised to help you through your buying and selling experiences. We hold high value and honor to these Standards of Practice and apply them to every interaction, customer relationship, and transaction. The ultimate benefit for you as a client is a broker who is practiced and ready to offer you the best experience.

What Do Parking Garages And Your Business Have In Common?

January 30, 2015

Kick-off screen We had our office kick off meeting last week with several local developers there to discuss construction projects and the planned Sound Transit expansion.

One of the speakers was Jim Melby, the president of Kemper Development. They are expanding their project downtown Bellevue with additional shops, restaurants, office space, hotels, apartments and much more. What really struck me during Jim’s talk was the amount of time and money spent on parking.

Even Jim laughed about how focused they were on it, but as he talked, I realized what a big deal it is and how it is a perfect metaphor for our businesses.

As the consumer, how often do you pay attention to the parking garage? Do you enjoy it or endure it? On the one hand it seems insignificant, yet it is the one element that virtually everyone who visits the project will experience.

It is also the first impression and the last impression. Two key elements that shape the entire experience and influence, whether or not we come back or refer others.

Seem like a stretch to relate this back to your business? Consider this:

It sets the tone and expectations: A beautiful, well-lit parking garage tells you that you are in a nice place and sets the expectations for an enjoyable experience. What is your first impression with clients? Are you on time, well dressed and prepared or are you late, frazzled and distracted? Do you follow-up after the appointment with a thank you note and email summarizing the meeting and next steps? Or are you on to the next one leaving the client to figure out what’s next? These 2 experiences are the book ends of your client relationship and effect everything that happens in between.
Make it easy for your clients: Jim talked about having a ramp at the side of the garage so that you can turn off on the level you want rather than spiraling down via hairpin turns that make you nauseous. The support columns will be place at the head of the parking stall rather than the middle so that you are less likely to hit them with your car. How do you make it easy for your client? Do you send them marketing and closing timelines so that they know what will be happening when?
Make them feel safe and valued: They paint the garage white and light it so that their clients feel safe and not like they are in a dungeon waiting for someone to leap out from behind the next corner. Not only does it make their consumer feel safe, but it sends a message that they are valued and they genuinely want them there. Do your clients feel like they are participating in the wild west of real estate or do they feel safe and secure knowing that you have a process? A process let’s your clients know that their interests are protected and you value them as a person vs viewing them as your next paycheck.
Make it easy for them to find you: In this next phase they are adding more elevators making it easier to access amenities. Do your clients know when they can reach you? Do you have regular communication schedules such as Monday listing updates? Don’t make them work too hard for the info.

Ever wonder why it seems like you are trying it push a boulder uphill in your business? Maybe you are blocking your momentum by ignoring seemingly small things that make a big difference.

Take a few minutes to look at your business from your clients perspective. What are the seemingly small things that are actually opportunities to have a huge impact?

Sometimes the solution to growing your business is easier and closer than you think.

Nicole Mangina is a Windermere Real Estate broker on the Eastside out of the Bellevue Commons office. She is also a success mentor who coaches you through the three keys to success and achieving your goals. Visit her real estate website and her website, The Success Perspective. If you have any questions about her work, feel free to email her at nicole at nicolemangina dot com

Make sure you check out her original blog post!