Active Website Enterprise Network Blog » Charles Reinhart Company Realtors

Real Estate Comes to Pinterest

Amanda Stephan — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:41:38 +0000

(Tweet this article!) If you haven’t heard of Pinterest by now, I HIGHLY recommend checking out this new site that allows you to make virtual pinboards of items you find interesting – from recipes to crafts to fashion and more. I’ve been a member of Pinterest for several months now, and besides the fact that I’m sleep deprived from spending all night pinning my favorite items and browsing other’s boards for my next project idea (seriously, it’s my latest online addiction), I think this platform provides a unique opportunity to the Real Estate Industry.

Pinterest and real estate seem to be a natural fit. Pinterest has proven to be a great resource for those looking to design their dream kitchen, find DIY home improvement projects and browse boards for other inspirational ideas for interior decorating. And because Pinterest visits increased 4,000% in just six months landing them in the top 10 most visited social sites in Nov. 2011, this is one site you need to get on board with (no pun intended).

The above image is an example of how one member is using this social platform to their advantage. For more info check out Reinhart Realtors on Pinterest! They’ve done a great job inspiring their followers with pins ranging from restaurants in their area to housewarming gifts to master bathroom ideas and more.

A Few Benefits Pinterest Provides to Real Estate Professionals Include:

Social Engagement: This social site is gaining substantial momentum and gives you another great opportunity to connect with potential home buyers and sellers. Users are sharing their likes, styles and favorite items with one another, giving you the opportunity to stay up-to-date on the latest trends as they relate to your audience.

Become a Local Resource: Pinterest is a great way to provide helpful insight into the home buying process. If you’re a seller, what decorating tips or renovation projects will increase the value of your home? If you’ve recently purchased a home, how are you going to decorate your new master bedroom? Keep in mind; these are commonly-asked questions and interests of most homeowners. So even if they’re not in the market for a new home right now, you’re increasing the chances they’ll come to you when they’re ready to buy or sell a home in the future (it’s that whole top-of-mind awareness thing people are always talking about!)

SEO Link Building: We definitely cannot forget about the SEO love this site provides! Each pin links to a specific site where users can go for more information. If you’re linking to an Individual Property Website with an image of a new property for sale, every time that particular pin is “re-pinned”, the link will direct others back to your site as well.

These are all great reasons for real estate professionals to join Pinterest today. However, remember there is more to it than just sharing your listings. Be sure to provide value to your customers in addition to spotlighting featured homes on your site. Think about other factors that influence the buying or selling of a home. Buying a home is an emotional experience and often times lifestyle choices play an important role in the decision-making process. Include photos of the local community, things to do in the area, school information and more. Over time, you’ll have another factor helping you become the resource for your region. (Tweet this article!)

By Amanda Stephan

Charles Reinhart Company Realtors Launches Lifestyle Search!

Amanda Stephan — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 00:23:41 +0000

Continuing the launch of Lifestyle Search on Enterprise sites, we’re happy to announce the release of our next lifestyle search engine for Charles Reinhart Company Realtors.

Serving the Ann Arbor real estate market since 1971, Charles Reinhart Company Realtors is the definitive market leader in the area with annual sales of more than $468 million. With a commitment to quality, Reinhart has created generations of repeat customers as well as low turnover for agents and staff. Currently, Reinhart has 7 offices serving the southeastern Michigan area and is well-known for their strong marketing and technology experience.

That being said, it’s no surprise that Reinhart is one of the first members to implement lifestyle search. With a desire to remain on the cutting edge of technology, Reinhart has implemented this functionality on their site in order to improve the user experience and meet their high standard of quality.

To see all these great new lifestyle features now available on their site, be sure to visit Reinhart Realtors at www.reinhartrealtors.com!

Enterprise Network Challenge: Milestone Realty Consultants Launches Lifestyle Search

Residential Properties Ltd. Launches First Lifestyle Search on Enterprise Platform

Active Community: Introducing Lifestyle Search

Enterprise Network Members Make Real Trends 500 List

Amanda Stephan — Tue, 10 May 2011 20:19:12 +0000

Active Website would like to congratulate The Active Enterprise Network for another great year in 2011. With the release of The REAL Trends 500 Report, we’d like to take the time to spotlight several members who made the list.

Every year, REAL Trends ranks the performance of residential real estate companies across the country by sales volume, transactions, mortgage, etc. This annual report is a trusted standard of measuring performance, so again, congratulations to the following members!

The 500 Largest Brokers in the U.S. (Ranked by Closed Transaction Sides for 2010)

The 500 Largest Brokers in the U.S. (Ranked by Closed Sales Volume in 2010)

Top Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Affiliates

The Largest Independents

Top Firms Ranked by Closed Sales Volume Per Sales Associate

Top Firms Ranked by Closed Sales Volume Per Office

16- Kentwood Real Estate

Top Firms Ranked by Average Sales Price

24- McEnearney Associates, Inc.

The Billionaire’s Club! (Those who closed at least one billion $ worth of real estate in 2010)

Top 500 Firms Ranked by Mortgage Closings

The Group, Inc. Real Estate

Top 500 Firms Ranked by Title Closings

The Group, Inc. Real Estate

The Danberry Company

Real Trends Market Leaders

Ann Arbor: Charles Reinhart Company Realtors
Dallas/Ft.Worth: Ebby Halliday Realtors
Denver: Kentwood Real Estate
Fort Collins: The Group, Inc. Real Estate
Lexington: Milestone Realty Consultants
Portland: Hasson Company Realtors
Providence: Residential Properties, Ltd.
Toledo: The Danberry Company

Enterprise Network Members Make REAL Trends Top 500 List

Amanda Stephan — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:46:27 +0000

Following up on a recent press release, Active Website would like to congratulate The Enterprise Network for another great year in 2009. With the results of The REAL Trends 500 having been released a couple months ago, we’d like to take the time to spotlight several of our Network Members who made the list.

The 500 Largest Brokers in the U.S. (Ranked by Closed Transaction Sides for 2009)

The 500 Largest Brokers in the U.S. (Ranked by Closed Sales Volume in 2009)

Top Leading Real Estate Companies of the World Affiliates

The Largest Independents

The Billionaire’s Club! (Those who closed at least one billion $ worth of real estate in 2009)

12- Ebby Halliday Realtors

Top 500 Firms Ranked by Mortgage Closings

The Group, Inc. Real Estate

Top 500 Firms Ranked by Title Closings

The Group, Inc. Real Estate

Real Trends Market Leaders

Ann Arbor: Charles Reinhart Company Realtors
Dallas/Ft.Worth: Ebby Halliday Realtors
Denver: The Kentwood Companies
Fort Collins: The Group, Inc. Real Estate
Lexington: Milestone Realty Consultants
Portland: The Hasson Company
Toledo: The Danberry Company

To read more, check out our press release, The Active Enterprise Network Makes Real Trends Top 500 List for 2009.

By Amanda Stephan

Happy Earth Day!

Amanda Stephan — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 23:41:50 +0000

Because it’s Earth Day, we’d like to talk to you about ways you can tap into the “green” movement from a real estate perspective. The green real estate market is gaining momentum – no longer do granite countertops and stainless steel appliances distinguish homes from their competition. With more homes becoming EnergyStar and LEED certified, it’s important to stand out to buyers and sellers looking to do business with companies who share their same values.

Today’s consumers are becoming more and more environmentally-conscious, so as an industry it’s important to address these needs. Many consumers want to have a more positive impact on the environment and are looking to make their homes more energy efficient as a result. Here are some simple ways homeowners can make an impact:

Contact a home energy auditor to schedule a home inspection. By having an energy assessment, customers can evaluate what measures need to be taken to make their home more energy efficient.
Use green cleaning products that are free from toxins. Besides being non-toxic, many of these products are biodegradable and made from renewable resources.
Consider higher energy efficient options for heating and air conditioning systems, insulation, windows, doors, etc. Not only does it help reduce their carbon footprints, but it’s a worthwhile investment because these are cost-saving initiatives as well.
Place plants throughout your home to help improve air quality. Not only do they scrub out a significant amount of harmful gases, but they release oxygen back into the air as well.

Now, from a broker and agent perspective, what can we do to educate ourselves on sustainable living? There are many options, but one to take note of is NAR’s Green Designation. The National Association of Realtors created this designation to provide agents advanced training in green building and sustainable business practices. For more information, visit www.greenresourcecouncil.org.

Agents can also choose to become eco-broker certified. Again, this is a green real estate training program that gives real estate professionals the tools and resources needed to educate customers on green living. To read how Active Enterprise Network member Rob Ewing from Charles Reinhart Company Realtors become eco-broker certified, check out our interview during a past installment of People in the Network Making a Difference.

Sustainable Education

Sustainability and the LOHAS Consumer

By Amanda Stephan

Active Newsroom Update

Amanda Stephan — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:08:22 +0000

Once again, it’s been an eventful month for the Active Enterprise Network. From the launch of Turpin Real Estate’s new website to the redesign of Charles Reinhart Company Realtors‘ existing site, Network Members are staying busy!

With new technologies in play, the Active Enterprise Network is stronger than ever. At Active Website, our clients are a part of our culture and we are proud to be working with such an innovative and talented group. This being said, we want to remind everyone to check out Active Newsroom for highlights of our achievements so far this year.

Read the following press releases for more information:

Turpin Real Estate Launches New Website on Enterprise Platform

Enterprise Network Members Gain Recognition for Excellence in Web Design

Milestone Realty Consultants Wins Award for Best Website by an Associate

Charles Reinhart Company Realtors Launches Redesigned Website

Make sure you’re on the lookout for more exciting news as we move forward into 2010!

By Amanda Stephan

Active Newsroom Update

Amanda Stephan — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 00:37:08 +0000

It’s been an exciting year for the Enterprise Network so far! With 2010 plans in place, we’re all working hard to make this year even better than the last. This being said, we want to remind everyone to check out the Active Newsroom for highlights of our achievements throughout the year. Only into the second week in February – we’ve already announced the inclusion of Turpin Real Estate into the Network, The Danberry Company’s release of our inquiry management system and the addition of the Active RE Rewards program into two more markets.

Be sure to read the following press releases for more information:

Turpin Real Estate Becomes Newest Enterprise Network Member

Danberry Launches LifeCycle for Inquiry Management

Charles Reinhart Company Realtors and The Danberry Company Join Active RE Rewards Program

This year is off to a great start and we’re pleased with the progress the Network has made, so make sure you’re on the lookout for more exciting news as we move forward into 2010!

By Amanda Stephan

People in the Network Making a Difference, Rob Ewing at Charles Reinhart Company Realtors

Amanda Stephan — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:07:07 +0000

We’d like to end the week with a Q and A session featuring Rob Ewing, a realtor at Charles Reinhart Company Realtors, for our next installment of People in the Network Making a Difference. With over a decade worth of experience under his belt, Rob, an innovator in the real estate industry, has found a new way to educate consumers on the importance of living a sustainable lifestyle.

Driven by his environmental background, Rob made the decision a couple years ago to become eco-broker certified. This program was established to provide environmental education to real estate professionals so they are better equipped to inform their communities of the advantages of energy efficiency and environmentally sensitive design. This is the first green real estate training program and will help agents spread the word on how to reduce your carbon footprint. Completing this program required Rob to take a 60 hour course, but the results were worth it- he found a new way to market himself to potential clients. To find out how you can become eco-broker certified visit www.ecobroker.com.

Read the Q and A session below to find out more about this inspiring realtor and what he’s doing to increase awareness to consumers.

Name: Rob Ewing
Title: Eco-broker
Company: Charles Reinhart Company Realtors
Website: www.robertewing.com

Why did you want to become eco-broker certified?
I originally came from working in the outdoor industry and have an environmental background. I wanted to follow both a philosophical bent/belief by promoting it and further my background in how construction get’s done. In this case, “Green.”

What impact does this have on your clients?
I am able to help educate them in the advantages of energy efficiency, indoor environmental quality in their home and ultimately to save them money (and maybe make the earth a better place to live in is always a perk). I might add that it dovetails well with the extensive knowledge that I have in home construction.

How are you using this certification to market yourself to potential clients?
I use the eco-broker logo in my ads and offer my buyers an energy audit after closing at no charge to them. This is a $425 value that comes out of my pocket, but if I can help bring awareness to the importance of living a sustainable lifestyle, then the benefits outweigh the cost. And while it’s still early in the process for me to know just how it’s changing my client base, those who are aware of what I’m doing are usually very appreciative.

What are some misconceptions customers have about buying an eco- friendly home?
Cost is still an issue for a lot of people, although most homes that my customers purchase do not require a lot of money to make them more efficient. New homes & full remodels are a different subject. For the moment, that business is subdued to a great extent although I am working with people in the industry to jump start it. The more demand there is for these products, the more the prices will decrease over time.

How can agents address these concerns?
First, get educated. That’s where eco-broker type programs come in. Also, get to know others in your community who are focused on this same goal. Whether it be construction companies or home re-modelers in the area, you can work together to continue to learn and educate others.

Why do you feel it’s important for customers to become more aware of sustainability efforts?
Money is number one. It’s the difference between driving a car that gets 50 mpg and a Hummer that gets 8 mpg. The fact that we are now leaving more resources for future generations by building & improving existing homes in terms of maximizing energy efficiency & sustainability makes good sense to me.

Can you give us some examples of how to make your home more energy efficient?
Start with the basics, caulk, insulation etc. But most important is a home energy audit which should yield a report prioritizing where you are losing the most & what it is costing you on an annual basis. It creates a road map for home owners of the quickest way to greater energy efficiency.

How are consumers saving money by turning to these green initiatives?
Here is a great example. A builder that I represent built a 1950 square ft. ranch to LEED Platinum standards and the Energy Star report showed a heating & cooling estimate of $142 per year. When a person can easily have a bill that costs this much a month, this is a substantial saving and shows the benefits of green living.

By becoming eco-broker certified, you’re setting a great example of how the real estate industry can meet the demands of this new age consumer. What future plans do you have to continue the growth of this market?
I am moderating a panel of local experts specializing in wind/solar, insulation, energy rating, green building techniques, & more at a local high school physics program which will reach 400 students. Part of their homework assignment will require interaction with their parents and is yet another way I make a difference in educating my local community.

Rob is setting a great example of how the Real Estate Industry can make a difference in their community. To visit Rob’s website, go to www.robertewing.com.