Alexa • Apps • Google • real estate • January 19, 2018

Hey Google – What’s New in Smart Home?

by Kappel Gateway Realty

Google was everywhere at this year’s CES. From billboards over the strip to branded monorail cars to a large outdoor booth in Central Plaza, you couldn’t take more than a few steps without seeing or hearing “Hey Google.” Our Blue Crew got a private tour of the Google Booth at Central Hall. Check out the video below to learn what real estate professionals need to know about Google Home.

If you’re already affiliated with Coldwell Banker and want to learn more about our Smart Home initiative, visit CB Exchange and search “Smart Home.”

If you would like to know what Coldwell Banker agents have access to, head to coldwellbanker.com/join and explore the possibilities of moving your business to Coldwell Banker.

Source: CB Blue Matter Blog

Alexa • gadgets • real estate • Smart Homes • January 8, 2018

Turn Them Blue

by Kappel Gateway Realty

Many companies have already incorporated smart home tech into their daily business. Some have installed smart locks, lights or thermostats in the office. Many have encouraged agents to take the Coldwell Banker Smart Home course. The first-and-only course of its kind created for real estate agents. Companies have also encouraged agents to talk about the benefits of smart home tech in listing presentations.

Have you considered how you can use the brand’s leadership in the Smart Home space as a way to set your company apart and attract new agents to your office?

Even for agents who haven’t yet had a transaction that included smart home tech in one way or another, chances are good that they will in 2018. Most aren’t going to be prepared. And many may not even know where to go to find information on how smart home can or should fit into their business.

January is Smart Home Month here at Coldwell Banker. We are kicking the month off with our sponsorship of the Smart Home Marketplace at CES (Consumer Electronic Show) in Las Vegas! We will have agents from around the country creating content specifically to help other agents understand how to use Smart Home in their own business. This is a great opportunity for you to reach out to the agents in your market, offer them information and demonstrate the value you can add to their business. Here are a few questions to start with:

Have you considered how to talk about smart home tech during a listing presentation?
Do you know what you would say if a client asked you about the value of smart home tech during a purchase or sale?
Have you thought about using smart home as a reason to get in front of your sphere and network in the new year?

Every day in January we will be adding new tips, tricks and best practices for incorporating smart home tech into a real estate business, along with new product spotlights. All of this content can be found at ces.coldwellbanker.com. That means every day there is a new reason to talk to your list of prospects.

Showing agents the power and importance of this technology in the sale of a home, is yet another way you can bring value to agents in your office and attract those not yet affiliated. Leverage the leadership of Coldwell Banker in this area to deliver a clear edge for agents by sharing insights into state-of-the-art smart home technologies and how to leverage them to dominate the marketplace.

From content to conferences, Coldwell Banker is collecting and delivering leading edge insights during Smart Home Month to help you understand how the smart home boom impacts real estate:

CES: Catch Coldwell Banker on the floor of CES, Jan. 9-12 as the exclusive sponsor of the Smart Home Marketplace, which has grown every year since we began our sponsorship in 2016. It’s now over 114,000 square feet.
Consumer Survey: Find out how consumers view smart home tech, what they expect agents to know about it and how they react to VR. Spoiler alert – they love it!
Inman Connect New York: Coldwell Banker sponsors ICNY, Jan. 22-26, and hosts an exclusive lunch and learn on Jan. 23 where participants get the inside track on how to use smart home to market themselves and their listings.
Daily Content: Get an agent’s perspective on how smart home tech can benefit your real estate business with video and blog posts straight from the CES show floor.
Case Studies: Two case studies – one from T3 Sixty and one from Samsung – will explore how agents can be the early adopters of smart home in their market and how VR can truly set a listing apart.

If you’re already affiliated with Coldwell Banker and want to learn more about our Smart Home initiative, visit CB Exchange and search “Smart Home.”

If you would like to know what Coldwell Banker agents have access to, head to coldwellbanker.com/join and explore the possibilities of moving your business to Coldwell Banker.

Alexa • Smart Homes • January 5, 2018

Smart Home Month is Here

by Kappel Gateway Realty

If you’re like most agents, you’re finalizing your plan for how to make the most of 2018. And if you’re like most agents, you probably haven’t considered how you are going to use smart home tech to get a leg up on the competition this year.

If you haven’t already had a transaction that included smart home tech in one way or another, chances are good that it you will in 2018. Are you prepared?

Have you considered how to talk about smart home tech during a listing presentation?
Do you know what you would say if a client asked you about the value of smart home tech during a purchase or sale?
Have you thought about using smart home as a reason to get in front of your sphere and network in the new year?

Lucky for you, January happens to be Smart Home Month here at Coldwell Banker. Every day in January you’ll be able to find tips, tricks and best practices for incorporating smart home tech into your real estate business. Bookmark ces.coldwellbanker.com and check back daily to find all this, plus new product spotlights and posts that you can share with your sphere and even a few exclusive product giveaways (for the Coldwell Banker network)!

Understanding the power and importance of this technology in the sale or purchase of a home, is yet another way you can bring value to your clients. From content to conferences, Coldwell Banker is collecting and delivering leading insights during Smart Home Month to help give you an edge and build your understanding of how the smart home boom impacts real estate:

CES (Consumer Electronic Show): Catch Coldwell Banker on the floor of CES, Jan. 9-12 as the exclusive sponsor of the Smart Home Marketplace. Which has grown every year since we began our sponsorship in 2016. It’s now over 114,000 square feet.
Consumer Survey: Find out how consumers view smart home tech, what they expect agents to know about it and how they react to VR. Spoiler alert – they love it!
Inman Connect New York: Coldwell Banker sponsors ICNY, Jan. 22-26, and hosts an exclusive lunch and learn on Jan. 23 where participants get the inside track on how to use smart home to market themselves and their listings.
Daily Content: Get an agent’s perspective on how smart home tech can benefit your real estate business with video and blog posts straight from the CES show floor.
Case Studies: Two case studies – one from T3 Sixty and one from Samsung – will explore how agents can still be the early adopter of smart home in their market and how VR can truly set your listing apart.

The leadership of Coldwell Banker in this area delivers a clear edge to agents and brokers who embrace the smart home trend. By leveraging these insights into state-of-the-art smart home technology you can further dominate your market.

If you’re already affiliated with Coldwell Banker and want to learn more about our Smart Home initiative, visit CB Exchange and search “Smart Home.”

If you would like to know what Coldwell Banker agents have access to, head to coldwellbanker.com/join and explore the possibilities of moving your business to Coldwell Banker.

Source: CB Blue Matter Blog

buying • first time buyers • Google • HOA • neighborhood • Privacy • real estate • research • Uncategorized • May 16, 2017

Be a Detective: Google the Address When House Hunting

by Kappel Gateway Realty

Here are some GREAT tips to get the skinny on houses that have made it to your hot list. Fire up your Google!

Search-engine sleuthing is worth the effort to unearth the niceties — and perhaps negatives — when searching for your new home.

There’s probably not a day that goes by that you don’t Google something — the weather, a foreign phrase, directions, or news, just to name a few. With all the information Google can provide through its bird’s eye view, not Googling your address is practically a crime — especially when you’re searching for a new home (whether you’re house-hunting for a waterfront home in Benicia, or looking for a ranch house in Vacaville). Here’s what you could find.

Get a sense of the neighborhood using Google’s Street View

We can’t transport ourselves Star Trek–style to other places … yet, so the next best experience may be Google’s Street View, sort of a pre-virtual-reality experience. Simply type in an address, and if there’s an image of the property in the results, click on it. Other factors to note while on your Google stroll? Scope out yard size, proximity to neighbors, how many trees are on the property and the privacy provided by them, a view of the front of the home, a view of the neighbors’ homes (such as any nearby eyesores or hoarders), and the size of nearby roads. Don’t forget to use the aerial view while you’re at it, because it might let you know the condition of the roof (but keep in mind the image could be old.)

A caveat: Google Street View can be outdated, so it’s possible you could be looking at old news. The house you’re interested in might have been newly renovated, but you wouldn’t know that if the remodel happened after Google was there.

2. Map the proximity of the house to potential health hazards

The last thing anyone wants is to find out their dream home is located near a former meth lab or directly under a busy flight path. These aren’t just concerns for comfort; in unfortunate (and rare) cases, homes can be health hazards. When house hunting, be sure to search for whether or not that Los Angeles home for sale is in a safe area. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration maintains a database of homes that have been identified as drug labs, and some of these properties require intensive, expensive cleanup before they can be healthfully inhabited. Radon and industrial and airport zones are also pretty easily discoverable with a Google search and, in most states, via disclosures that most sellers will provide. (Some people find living near an airport or other noisy zone impacts their sleep, even if there is no chemical concern.)

3. Imagine your life in this home and its neighborhood

One of the deciding factors for saying “yes” to a house is if you can imagine yourself living there. Seeing listing photos and stats can let you know whether the house meets your specifications, but sometimes — especially with a long-distance home search — but to really imagine yourself living in that neighborhood could be difficult. Googling can help).

Kids can scope out their potential new school and spot signs of other kids living nearby, you might map your drive to the office, learn whether there’s a local farmer’s market nearby, or look to see whether the house is in a danger zone.

4. Get valuable details about the HOA

When you buy a home that is part of a homeowners’ association (HOA), you should receive the bylaws in advance of your purchase. But if you dig a little deeper by Googling the association’s name, you could find out that your new HOA is one of a surprisingly large number of HOAs that have been reviewed online. Grab your popcorn, because you’ll most likely find a variety of rants (and raves) about the subdivision, complex managers, neighbors, and amenities.

5. Scope out the neighborhood’s potential growth

Will you jump for joy to learn that Whole Foods is coming to town? Or is that just the sort of growth you’re trying to escape? Google your potential new neighborhood’s nearest major street or intersection for permit applications that have been filed recently. You might get lucky. If not, try searching the city or county planning departments. This can help you discover community plans for expansion in that area. Reading the online applications — and any notes from city council meetings discussing the permits — might help you understand the landscape of community-development issues at hand.