. . . Emailed Directly to Clients
In theory, automatic searches on MLS are the greatest thing since sliced bread: the Realtor inputs their client’s purchase criteria — price range, preferred area, home attributes, etc..
Then, whenever something comes on the market meeting those criteria, the client automatically receives an email (and presumably contacts their Realtor next).
What could be easier?
Wheat vs. Chaff
The problem is that clients — as opposed to Realtors — are unschooled in all the ways that listing agents (representing Sellers) can (over)hype a property.
So, “immaculate condition” invariably means . . . hasn’t been updated since 1940.
Or, the listed measurements are nonsensical. See, “Who’s Buried in Grant’s Tomb?” — Real Estate Version.
Or, the “new list” has in fact been cancelled-and-relisted 7(!) times since 2009, at six month intervals.
Or, the home is ridiculously overpriced.
Or, a home that’s listed as a “traditional sale” is in fact a short sale (Sellers are supposed to disclose whether their home is a potential short sale, but in practice many don’t).
And on and on and on.
See also: “Real Estate Euphemisms“;”Real Estate Clichés and How to Avoid Them“; “Show and Sell!”
Combine the foregoing with over broad Buyer criteria (“anything in the Western suburbs between $400,000 and $800,000”), and it’s not inconceivable for an automatic search to kick out hundreds of hits a week, especially during market peaks (like March-April in the Twin Cities).
As the locals like to say, “uff-dah!”
Realtor Pre-Screening
None of which is to say I don’t avail myself of automatic MLS searches, or my clients don’t benefit from them.
On the contrary, at any given time I typically have at least a dozen automatic searches saved for various clients.
It’s just that my druthers are to pre-screen the results, and only forward homes that I know are “best in class.”
P.S.: The ultimate “drip” marketing?
My impression is that many Realtors use automatic searches as an (inexpensive) marketing tool.
That is, it’s an easy way for them to keep in front of early-stage prospects (vs. actual clients).
