The Smiths in 2024
Confused by the postcard picture? Well, it's a combination of two things that are usually pretty big parts of a normal year with the Smith's: 1.) Our neighborhood goes all out on Halloween, and we host a block party. Our family’s costume contest entry this year was 'Astronauts.' It's also meaningful because I wanted to be an astronaut growing up, and space in general has also had such a big year in 2024 (in case you missed things like chopsticks catching a 23-story building that fell from the sky). This year the Smiths also got to go to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, and in Austin even got to tour the Firefly Aerospace facility that makes the NASA lunar lander! And I didn't forget, I know there was a … 2.) Enchanted Rock ... It's kind of our family place. We usually make at least one or two annual pilgrimages, and this year was no different. One thing we still love about it is how much it always looks like an alien landscape. It's like taking a spaceship to another world, and being back by bedtime. This year we just so happened to have costumes to complete the whole fantasy. :-) Hmmm, what else happened in 2024? The kids got to see Chicago for the first time and visit Indiana Dunes National Park. It was tons of fun, and they only have four continental states to go! We also got to see lots more alien landscapes in beautiful Southern Utah, visiting “The Mighty Five” national parks. These few pictures definitely don’t do it justice. Among other things, I somehow found time to add a science degree to my resume this year too. The kids are also excelling at all sorts of new things, really picking up steam in piano, writing, robotics, coding, and even gaining at least beginner proficiency in something like 7 different computer languages (I’m losing track). We just wrapped up our second robotics season, and the kids had a lot of fun. Both kids have advanced about one belt level in Jiu Jitsu, Addie is working her way up in gymnastics, and Logan has found a new love– the Dungeons & Dragons game! Of course he hasn’t left his first love, video games -- and even gets Addie involved sometimes when he can pull her away from crafts and puzzles. They’re kickin’ all kinds of tail in academics, but I’ll spare you that trophy “show and tell.” I will say though that it was VERY cool to see a writing teacher light Logan’s fire earlier this year. He even published a kid's book, and you can purchase it on Amazon! What else is going on?... Addie now routinely saves up her money to dye her hair rainbow. Hillary continues her passion toward all things small, furry, and feathery. We even accompanied her to a the HummerFest in Port Aransas in September, where host homes hang feeders to nourish hummingbirds along their yearly migration to Mexico. Hillary also continues new milestones in real estate, despite a rough industry with lots of changes this year. She's expanded her staging services and has a legit warehouse now to organize all the furniture and accessories. We also enjoyed some great visitors from out of town. Early in the year we were able to see the Bjorks from Africa, and during the solar eclipse, our old friends the Robinsons were able to come down from Maryland. Our friend, Valerie, from Tennessee, was even able to drop by as well! The biggest treat of all is that, after coming last year, my in-laws –- Faith, Robert, & little Scout– never left! They live four doors down! That makes our local life cool in so many ways! One other big change for me this year is the degree I’ve begun to integrate AI into my daily lifestyle. If you haven’t delved into this yet… I’d say you don’t know what you’re missing! It can really enrich your life, if you begin to work it into your routines. What’s more, I’d suggest that things are moving so fast that if you don’t get on board soon, it will be hard to catch up.
The Smiths in 2023
Being something of photographers in a past life, Hillary and I had already seen a thousand pictures of the TA Moulton Barn that sits in front of the Grand Tetons. As we were accompanying my mother on a bucket list trip up to Glacier National Park a couple months ago, I realized we’d be passing right by it! I knew we HAD to somehow make it our Christmas card. I also think it’s a good memento to a pretty picturesque year. We’ve been blessed to have a stretch of growth without any major bumps or crises. The kids are finally getting to the age where they can explore lots of new things and acquire varied skills. We tried fencing, but haven’t stuck with it. Tried jiu jitsu, and still going strong. Tried chess, and have stuck with it. The kids and I learned the Rubik’s cube too. Addie is the master, usually completing in about a minute. We all tried skateboarding and rollerblading as well, and have actually even gotten pretty decent at it! Maybe it could translate into snowboarding & skiing skill later on. The kids have also taken up piano, and to my surprise, Logan’s even gotten pretty excited about it. Mom helps polish them off where the lessons leave off… and I’m no help whatsoever. Hillary also continues to break through ceilings in real estate, and amazingly thrive in a market that is really stacked against us right now. My little math monsters continue to scale new heights. And Addie with puzzles…sheesh! All. Day. Long. We also started a robotics team and have begun learning the basics. The kids have even moved from block coding into java recently! If they could ever stop fighting with each other, they could make a great team. Hands-on Addie can build ANYTHING it seems, and abstract Logan could be her coder. Someday, perhaps… This year we also retraced some old trails as well, showing the kids more of the nation. Only eight states to go! We of course made our regular pilgrimages to Enchanted Rock, and once was even during a meteor shower! We also made our first trip to a Renaissance Fair, just to make sure we fully round out our nerdiness. In general, I think Mission “Be-open-to-new-things” has been somewhat successful. Heck, I can even get the kids to eat Thai food with me on occasion! Incredibly, we’ve also got them doing laundry and dishes. Not kidding. And my new thing this year? I guess I’d have to say healthy living! It only took me 40 years to finally try this path. In August we got a REALLY pleasant surprise. Hillary’s sister and brother in law got a job in Austin and moved in four doors down! They have a newborn that we can dote on for a while… and then hand back. It will be fun celebrating the holidays in Austin with a lot more local family gravity this year. We hope you also had some happy trails this year, even if bumpy, and holidays that bring some rest and reflection. If you enjoy watching the kids grow, here are the ghosts of Christmas past: The Smiths in 2022 The Smiths in 2021 The Smiths in 2020 The Smiths in 2019 The Smiths in 2018 The Smiths in 2017 The Smiths in 2016 The Smiths in 2015
The Smiths in 2022
With an eye injury, a month as a pirate, and three surgeries to follow, 2022 took off from a bit of a low point. Not having to wear a mask anymore–definite high point. Real estate was also surging and was keeping us busy. The Austin market is a roller coaster, though, now down about 20% from the peak. This year Logan turned 9 and got his braces off. Addie turned 7 and just lost her first tooth. Besides Minecraft and Fortnight obsessions, Logan is also learning to code and is a voracious reader. Addie keeps her head in crafts and wordsearch puzzles. They have both advanced in school in leaps and bounds. Both are math rockstars. There’s little more I can say about their progress other than … wow. For two realtors in a nose-diving market, the one silver lining is more time off for some roadtrips. We’ve been able to take in some of America’s natural beauty, and the kids were able to rack up their 17th state. I’m thankful for our world-class road system, and the freedom to roam. Are you curious about some of the pictures below? Yes, that IS actually Hillary getting boxed by a hungry Kangaroo. Yes, the Smiths actually ARE nerdy enough to all dress in historical costumes for Halloween. Yes, those ARE pictures of them standing on foreign planets landscapes… yet somehow on Earth. Yes, there really IS a museum devoted to an ancient war between aliens and dinosaurs. Yes, I actually DID get charged by an angry elk at a car charging station. Yes, those ARE 200+ year old cacti about 4 times our height. Yes, those ARE wild hogs behind our house–right in the middle of Austin. And, yes, apparently Addie’s new boyfriend is Bigfoot. We’d love to hear what’s going on with you. Give us a shout! If you enjoy watching the kids grow, here are the ghosts of Christmas past: The Smiths in 2021 The Smiths in 2020 The Smiths in 2019 The Smiths in 2018 The Smiths in 2017 The Smiths in 2016 The Smiths in 2015
Jeremy Smith – Awards and Accolades
In real estate, it’s an awkward position to have to promote one’s awards and accolades, but in a competitive market where people want to only work with the most experienced, competent, and high performing agents, it becomes necessary to present our job resume. It’s just a part of applying for the job, and saying “I would like to be your agent!” Listing all of these accolades year after year, though, becomes a bit repetitive and redundant after awhile, so I thought perhaps it’s best to just link to a few of these accolades in one post, and move on to more important business. Many of these awards will reoccur year after year because of continual high volume performance, and many, quite frankly, we will simply decline to pay membership for the ongoing online advertising of our profile. Awards like the one below, though, are still worth mentioning. We’d love to be top 1% agents for you too, and help your home buying or selling experience be in the top 1%! Please let us know any way we can help. Contact Us We often have MLS coverage (the ability to open doors, analyze values, access documents, etc ) of other city areas giving you more market access. Learn more about our MLS coverage here. Awards & Accolades: Top Producer, Homelight Achievement Award Platinum Top 50, 2021 Top 1% Agent & Top 50 Team Award Five Star Professional Award Accredited Luxury Home Specialist FastExpert Five Star Agent Austin Real Producers Top Agent Upnest Top Agent Congratulations on your selection among the most esteemed and top producing Real Estate Agents in the nation – America’s Top 100 Real Estate Agents®. Dear Jeremy Blain Smith: Based on your years of exceptional real estate sales above market value in luxury or high-volume markets, you have been selected among America’s Top 100 Real Estate Agents® for Texas – Austin Metro in 2021. In accepting this award, limited to the Top 1% of real estate professionals in your state, you will join the ranks of some of the most esteemed and successful Real Estate Professionals in America, including: … Selection Criteria Your selection has come after an exhaustive process involving third-party research and ranking based on proprietary algorithms and advanced data analytics to help ensure that only the most skilled, exceptional, and effective real estate professionals are selected for membership. This ranking process places particular emphasis on criteria such as total yearly sales volume, notable above market value sales, luxury home sales, and efficiency rating for closing sales in order to rate all candidates based on their relative effectiveness in closing high-value sales above market value in comparison to other real estate agents in their region.With these extremely high standards for selection, less than one percent (1%) of active Real Estate Professionals in the United States will receive this award, placing you among the most elite level of real estate professionals in the eyes of your peers and prospective clients in your area. Why Choose HomeSmith?
The Smiths in 2021
Although we’re in covid round two year, we’ve still found lots of ways to make the most of it. We’ve been able to make our yearly trips to Enchanted Rock as well as other novelties like Natural Bridge Caverns, Dinosaur Park, Austin’s Revel, the Texas Capital, Washington DC and more. I know not all of life is about the getaways, but it seems to be what sticks out in my head. As for the work side of life, the first half of this year was undeniably a strain to endure, both for ourselves in the middle of this crazy market, and for our home buying troopers. Not only were we the hottest market in the nation (when everywhere was hot), but the first six months of this year will probably make the real estate history books and have case studies written about it in the coming years. Almost all realtors I know are like us- glad things have calmed to something below a piranha frenzy. For those of you outside of Texas, you might not know we also had a bit of an Icemagedon. I don’t mean to sound dramatic, but when Texans already have panic attacks for a hundredth inch of ice on the roads, this one was kind of a big deal. For the Smiths though, I think it was more novel than nuisance. Not only did we have lots of fun playing outside and snowboarding in the neighborhood, but we also got some time off from work, in a white-hot market that was hardly even taking a breath. While some of our friends had no power, gas, or water for several days, we were fortunate that we only had no power for about 12 hours. Besides turning the big 4-0 this year, I have also taken a few other lumps, filing three big insurance claims for car damage (none my fault), and making two visits to the ER (all my dumb fault). I also had the privilege of finally getting covid myself, well after my second vaccine dose. Fortunately it was light and only lasted about 36 hours. Unfortunately that was JUST enough time for me to earn my “Super-Spreader” badge. The day my symptoms started I happened to be at a small family reunion. Lots of people had a few rough weeks following it, but fortunately everyone is still with us now and mostly recovered. Addie and Logan have taken strides this year, now all capable bike riders, shoe tiers, and doing very well in school. I’m also very proud to have seen Logan blossom into a super-reader. He just finished his 100th chapter book! There’s hardly any accomplishment at age eight that would be better than that in my eyes, and I’m excited for the lifelong trajectory that puts him on. Now, if we can just pair that with being a “doer,” then he’ll become superman. What’s going on with Hillary? Well she killed a five foot snake with a spoon. She was defending her rabbits from being eaten. Her jam these days is all things furry. We’d love to hear what’s going on with you. Give us a shout! If you enjoy watching the kids grow, here are the ghosts of Christmas past: The Smiths in 2020 The Smiths in 2019 The Smiths in 2018 The Smiths in 2017 The Smiths in 2016 The Smiths in 2015
Why Choose HomeSmith?
I know there are thousands of realtors to choose from. When my clients move to other metro areas, I’m often tasked with finding them their next realtor. Naturally, I’m looking for a realtor like myself in many ways because I believe myself to be among the best. Here’s what I’m looking for, and also why I’d choose me as your Austin realtor. Response time: It’s a fast paced market. I will get back to you asap. This is not just courtesy, the Austin market requires it! I get a TON telemarketer calls, so I don’t always answer every incoming, but I do return all voicemails, texts, and emails VERY quickly. Test me and see. I’m also pretty 24/7 so nights and weekends are never a problem. Again, the market necessitates this here. In it to win it: This is not a hobby or a side hustle. Not only am I putting in 50-75 hours a week at this, but I’m also pouring my own investment money into this. You can tell by someone’s media and online presence who is really trying, and who is not. We take all this seriously, and it shows.Manpower: Having staff is almost always a plus because there’s more hands on deck to help, even when the agent is tied up in appointment. On top of our realtor teammates, we also have four staff members devoted to admin, research, appointments, inquiries, etc. Current experience: My personal goal is to be closing on at least one home a week. I usually show well over 1000 homes a year, and write more than a dozen offers a week. All this helps me keep a pulse on what the market is doing THIS MONTH, or even THIS WEEK. This matters! In a market like Austin that is changing all the time, having 40 years of experience may not be as useful as having closed 40 homes last year, or even better 4+ homes in the last month. Being out there in the fray every day, having CURRENT knowledge of the battlefield, can make the difference of winning or losing a home, paying too much or bidding too little… Your city guide: While some agents hunker down in one neighborhood, we are Austin generalists. Our spend to meet new buyers every year is WELL into six digits. We’re meeting out-of-towners weekly, and talking with them daily. If not real estate agents, we’d also probably make great city tour guides. We’re so familiar with how to give clear, helpful city overviews that we could probably do it in our sleep. We’ve also designed lots of custom resources to help digest the whole city and find the area that’s the best fit.Investing: I have a double major degree in business, and have been a serial entrepreneur for decades. I speak the language, and investors and I click very well. Whether they want to talk cap rate, cash flow, appreciation projections, etc, I am the man for the job.Education: Besides a long resume of higher education, as a broker I also have far more formal real estate education than the average agent. I also have an extensive commitment to daily reading, just to stay abreast of market changes and developments. You can see lots of commentary on the articles I’m digesting each week on our blog and Facebook page.
The Smiths in 2020
What a year, right? A lot of us will remember 2020 as a year simply endured. I personally don’t cage well. I’m the type of who likes to get out everyday and keep moving. Still, it’s always best to look for things to be thankful for. Although it took probably 3x the amount of normal hustle to do the same amount of business, I’m THANKFUL that I have a job, income, and even business funds from the government as well. I’m also thankful to be able to still meet and work with really great, fun people, face to masked-face. Spending so much more time at home, I’ve lost count of how many video games have been beaten and full shows binged. I’ve taken up some archery, magic, some rubix cubing and more. We’ve used our indoor time to build castles, stairway slides, and more. We even made the news somehow! I’ve also made my back deck my office, and sometimes our classroom as well. During the spring months it was WONDERFUL, and with fans it’s still been great even through the summer! I’m also grateful for being able to get out in nature this year more. I even took distancing to the extreme, hiking 17 miles, and up about 5000 ft from the base. I’d like to tell you it was beautiful, but if I’m being honest, it was one of the most painful days of my life. 🙂 I’m also thankful that we’ve been able to see family so much, and have no one close to us too gravely affected by covid. I can say though, I’ve missed my friends and seeing people’s facial expressions. I dislike masks, and breathing CO2 all day long… but I know it could be much worse, and so many people are going through such torment. I’m grateful we’ve dodged those bullets this year.With the education system in turmoil, I’m also thankful for the strides my kids have made while homeschooling. Five year old Addie’s reading and writing continues to improve (probably 2-3 grade levels above normal), and 7 year old Logan’s math skills just went into the stratosphere. Before the end of the summer, we finished 1-5th grade math books, geometry, all of pre-algebra, as well as introductory chemistry. They’re both also reading chapter books. Big deal stuff! 🙂 I’m sure social growth has suffered, but I never expected such academic gains made without formal schooling. It seems like “an attitude of gratitude” is more important this year than ever. What are you thankful for? We’d love to hear more from you. Don’t let this pandemic make us strangers!If you enjoy watching the kids grow, here are the ghosts of Christmas past:http://www.jeremyblainsmith.com/blog/thesmiths2019http://www.jeremyblainsmith.com/blog/thesmiths2018http://www.jeremyblainsmith.com/blog/thesmiths2017http://www.jeremyblainsmith.com/blog/thesmiths2016http://www.jeremyblainsmith.com/blog/thesmiths2015
Corona Castles in the Sky
The past couple of months seem like such a loss that, if you’re like me, you’re just looking for something to show for it. How much has the bar been lowered when your list of month’s accomplishments consist of the number of shows completed or nintendo switch games you beat (I think somewhere around a dozen)! Also with all the manic amazon purchasing, and some recent flip houses finished, I also had the dilemma of what to do with all the accumulating cardboard. I started building a castle to entertain my kids, but then I think it just evolved into logging some kind of indoor accomplishment. Something. Anything. Anything, that I can show for all this lost time. Nobody’s going to be setting any real estate records during this time! So, after much ado, here’s my Corona accomplishment. Anyway, after I shared on facebook, a little birdie even told the local news station. Yay accomplishments! Maybe even a quasi-real estate accomplishment?? COVID-19 KINGDOM: FAMILY TURNS ONLINE SHOPPING BOXES INTO A LIVING ROOM CASTLE
Flashback: Skydiving
I’m retiring an my old website intro page from several years ago, but I think posting is a lot of fun so I thought I’d preserve it for posterity here on the blog. My Big Leap This Year was jumping out of a plane. Most likely your big leap this year is something different. Maybe your current home is not the right fit, and you need to Jump into buying or selling this year… you probably need a little help right? I know I sure wouldn’t have jumped out of the plane this year without someone strapped to my back! real estate is no different-You need someone who’s done it before so that you can actually enjoy the process. I want to listen to your needs, and show you the ropes. I want it to be FUN! So… why Jeremy Smith? BLOG: 5 THINGS I LEARNED TANDEM SKYDIVING
The Smiths in 2019
2019 was a year of trying new things, full circle journeys, and incremental growth. I’m sure Hillary and I show more than 1000 houses a year (each), and it’s difficult not to get “the itch” sometimes. Our friends have dependably poked fun at our house hopping. Earlier this year, though, we found a centrally-located house we really love where we want to stay parked for the long term. In the spirit of putting down roots, we invested in solar panels, got off gasoline, and made strides toward a cheaper and more sustainable life in the long run. We’ve also learned a lot about psychology this year. After getting some good advice and direction toward dealing with ADHD in our kids, we’re now taking strides toward improvement and more stability there as well. This year we completed our experiment joining another company and feel we’ve come back full circle again to a good permanent place owning and running our own brokerage, HomeSmith Realty. I also picked up a paintbrush for the first time in almost 20 years, and to my surprise, it IS a little like riding a bike. I also jumped into a little carpentry for the first time, building lots of staircase and decking. Although we’ve helped flipper clients for years, this year we also personally got our hands dirty more and flipped a few homes ourselves. It’s exhausting, but it provided lots of good, unique learning experiences. We made more strides in our real estate business as well, closing more homes than ever before. We weren’t all work and no play though. Never a year goes by when we don’t take a trip or two to Enchanted Rock, but this year for the first time in over 30 years I was able to go back to Disney World with the family. There are lots of new things there of course, but it was also amazing how much was absolutely identical to when I was five years old! On the side, I was also able to finish my last continental US state, Nebraska! Now if someone wants to send me on an Alaskan and Hawaiian cruise, I can knock out the complete set. Another fun thing is the discovery that our new neighborhood makes a big deal about Halloween, with a big party, costume contest, and more! We joined in the fun, and ALMOST had a Star Wars-themed family. Logan just HAD to be Spiderman.
The Smiths in 2018
This year’s accomplishments include keeping my dauntless daughter alive one more year, getting my wife to finally admit Thai food is pretty good, and selling more houses than we ever have. In 2018 we’ve frequented some of our old favorite places (Enchanted Rock) and found new favorites, as well (Urban Air). The kids also got to see their first circus and their first cave, woohoo! This summer, we got to take a short vacation to the Houston area where we saw the Space Center, the beach, and Moody Gardens. Most memorable for me was becoming a speck of dust standing beside the Saturn rocket (much longer than a football field or taller than the Statue of Liberty). It’s almost unfathomable we can build such things, yet what sticks out most in our kids’ minds was the hotel pool. 🙂 In addition to my full time job, this past spring, I enjoyed taking an epigenetics and genomics class on the side. Real estate affords me lots of time for audio books as I’m on the go, and lately I also discovered I like fiction much more than I previously thought, as I tried to make my way through some of the new classics. Really enjoyed The Martian, The Ender’s Game series, One Second After, Harry Potter, Davinci Code, World War Z, etc. I tend to binge on topics, and earlier this year my favorites were AI and the mind. This year I also bought a Chevy volt. Favorite car so far! I’m loving my car wifi, 50+ miles of electric driving every day, and dumping less carbon in the air. I’m really proud of my two kids this year as well. Logan’s reading is approaching a second grade level, and Addie (our three year old!) is really nipping at his heals. She’s no longer allowed to be within close proximity when Logan is reading since a short stall by him results in her shouting out the word and, in turn, an infuriated five year old! To top it off though, Addie’s teacher’s tell us her Chinese is as good as her English, and Logan is coming along in Spanish, as well, in his immersion kindergarten. Logan is ever more dug in on his ambition to be “a roboticist” when he grows up, and Addie is sure she wants to be “a woman.” 🙂 I’m also happy that total potty independence is JUST around the corner, praise the Lord. And last but not least, Hillary is undeniably the glue that holds the family together—professional lunch maker, child bather, bookkeeper, bill payer, laundry extraordinaire, and on and on… She’s also become quite a proficient Lego master craftsman. I don’t even want to know how many hours have been logged there! 🙂 Sound too cheery? No we have weekly pitfalls and struggles like everyone (don’t get me started on buying a few stocks right before everything crashed, losing battles with pitbulls, medical bills, etc.), it’s just not interesting to anyone to hear us complain. I showed a home recently who had a sign that said “There is always, always, always, something to be thankful for.” I like that. And lest you think all we do is play, we should confess we often work 100+ real estate hours a week. Many of those hours we get to spend with great people like you guys, and that makes the job enjoyable and want to work even harder. If you have friends or family buying or selling in Austin, we hope you’ll send them our way. We’d love to spend our days helping and getting to know them as well! How have you been? Give us a shout. We’d love to catch up! And by the way, I know this site’s due for an update. After all, we do have TWO kids now! 🙂 We have a new video and pictures coming soon. Stay tuned!
The Smiths In 2017
Happy Holidays everyone!
The Smiths in 2016
Happy Holidays everyone!
Your Real Estate Jedi
I must admit, with the advent of the new Star Wars this week, I feel a little bit like a kid again. 🙂 I don’t think I’ll be in costume, but I’ll definitely be standing in line early on opening day. Whether Star Wars is your thing or not, I’d still love to be your “Real Estate Jedi.” What does that mean? It means you need someone who knows what they’re doing, who knows the ebbs and flows of market forces. Are you looking to buy? I’ve written a bit for you here. Are you thinking about selling? Here’s a link for you too. Please let me know how I can help!
The Smiths in 2015
Happy Holidays everyone!
Babies and Real Estate Doulas
If you’re one of my clients, you might have noticed that I was a little out of pocket, or not quite as fast on responses earlier this month. That’s because we just added another member to our family, little Adeline Marie Smith! We’re blessed to have a healthy baby, and a healthy mama. A few months before I had a friend recommend doulas to us. He said “it’s the best $500 I’ve ever spent! They make the whole process much easier and less stressful because they know what to do every step of the way.” We decided to go for it, and indeed she did make things seem a lot different than the first time. She made my wife feel a lot better about the whole process, and freed me up for a lot for other things as well. Watching her made me start thinking about the similarities in occupations as well. Realtors are a lot like doula’s, who have seen the whole process transpire countless times, and know what to expect at every step of the way. They have a very broad expertise that can make all of the other tasks just flow together more seamlessly. They can also give you a lot of great advice along the way too as you navigate the input of lots of different professionals at each juncture. As you go through a lot of the trials and challenges of selling your house, I would love to be your “real estate doula” and help make the whole experience much more pleasant for you. I know what’s supposed to happen when, and can be here for you to bring those stress levels down. Please let me know if I can help!
A Video Introduction
Hi, I’m Jeremy Smith and I’d like to be your realtor! I know you wouldn’t want to hire someone to be part of such an important event in your life without checking them out first. This video below is a short personal introduction, but for more about me please look over my website and feel free to contact me any time with any questions or ways I can help.
Why Pick Jeremy
I could tell you about having more real estate education, experience, and transactions than probably 99% of other realtors, but I can also tell you something maybe others won’t. Post-transaction surveys show that the vast majority of people were satisfied with their realtors, and would use them again. Knowing that, I hope you can stress a little less about your realtor selection process. For starters, all realtors have background checks done every year to make sure our lives are not involved in anything nefarious. In fact, the whole Texas Real Estate Commission that regulates us and watches over us is explicitly created and designed to protect you the consumer, not realtors. Not only are we realtors watched over, but being a realtor itself requires hundreds of class hours about law, contracts, market trends, etc, as well as yearly continuing education classes just to keep our license. On top of that, many brokerages require much more of their own in house training to make sure realtors are on top of their game. So with all that in mind, does it really matter which realtor I choose? Most people end up choosing realtors based upon two things: professionalism and likability. Professionalism entails many of the things mentioned above, but in the end the most important thing it comes down to is “knowing the market.” If a realtor knows his or her particular market, then the customer will usually be satisfied. As for myself, I strive to be learning what I can every day to be able to better serve you, but I also am big on preparation. I like to study ahead a lot, so that when I have a meeting scheduled with you, I come in like someone who has already done their homework. As realtors, even with lots of general Austin knowledge under our belts, it’s impossible to know EVERYTHING about EVERY neighborhood. It’s just too big of a city. Preparation and research are a couple of my own personal keys to professionalism. And then there’s likability… What can you say–some people you like, and some you don’t right? Learn as much as you can from a realtor’s website, references, reviews, etc, but in the end just go with your gut and relax. Take a realtor for a test drive! Call them up and ask them to show you a house or help with a real estate task, and see what you think. If you’re not impressed, move on to the next realtor. We have to EARN your loyalty, and we know how competitive real estate is. If you don’t call us back, we’ll get over it. : ) That being said, I’d still REALLY like to be your realtor. One complaint I’ve recently heard multiple times when someone wasn’t satisfied with their realtors was “they didn’t listen to me.” I want to strive to listen to you first and foremost, to understand your needs. It’s not about me, or the house I think is great. There’s a lot already written out there about professionalism and likability (you can read something about this on almost any realtor’s bio), but in the end there are two main things I want to stress about my service to you: 1) I want to LISTEN, and 2) I want to be prepared and knowledgable… and if I don’t know something, I’ll be honest about it, and then go find you the answer!
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