Question and Answer (for The Neighbors of Playa Vista, February 2024
I have been inspired by other expert contributors and thought having a question and answer session would be the sincerest form of flattery and a fun way for people to get to know a little more about me and my real estate business. I have received some good questions recently and here are some of them.
Q: Do you work on your own or do you have a team?
A: I like to be involved in every transaction to understand the client’s goals, ensure the highest level of service throughout, and avoid communication issues that can arise when you are being passed around in a large organization, therefore I run a very small, close-knit team. Starting with myself (the face of the business and 18 year Los Angeles real estate expert), my sales associate, Brandon, with whom I work closely and has been with me for over four years, and my transaction coordinator, Sunnye, with whom I have been working even longer, to handle the disclosures and other transaction paperwork. I am very conscious of the customer experience in all businesses whether it is responsiveness, communication, or paperwork and am careful to avoid any situation where their experience with mine might be anything other than seamless. My small team was carefully selected and trained on my preferences to ensure the highest quality experience, even when you are not working directly with me at that moment.
Q: Do you also invest in real estate or just sell it?
A: I definitely also invest in residential property and it is a very important aspect of my plan to build wealth. I bought my first investment property in 2009, a condo in the Valley for $90,000. I eventually sold it, but my wife and I have invested in several 2 and 3 unit properties in the Chicago and Columbus, OH areas over the years. Those are long-term cash-flowing rentals that we intend to keep forever. My more recent investments have been partnerships and a couple years ago purchased an investment condo in Playa Vista with a client. Additionally, other partners and I recently completed the disposition of a 25-unit residential portfolio in rural Ohio, which we acquired in 2022 to add value and re-sell. As a partnership, we more than tripled our equity in less than two years with this and am currently on the look-out for our next opportunity. While I am only personally licensed to sell real estate in California, I do have resources in other locations, which I am happy to share, as well as the willingness to help potential investors make the best decisions for their investment goals.
Q: What is your biggest challenge when selling a property?
A: With many years of experience, the steps involved in selling a home as well as making sense of the market analysis in order to recommend pricing and offer strategies have become second nature. In a neighborhood like Playa Vista, I fully understand the items that can benefit home sellers, the trade-offs that buyers might need to make, as well as the expected level of buyer demand for each community and floor plan. The most challenging part of the sale can be managing the emotions of the principals. Buying or selling a home is an emotional experience and deals with people’s feelings as well as a lot of money. Sometimes my suggestions, which are always intended to achieve the best result, are not feasible or desirable to my client and, in those cases, I need to know when to push and when to back off. Additionally, offers that might not be as high as expected as well as repair requests can be delicate subjects and buyers or sellers can be easily upset by these perceived slights as well as upset by responses from the other side. In situations where this occurs, it is important to understand my client’s position, to convey a position of strength while listening to the other side’s objections, and help facilitate a compromise when one can be made. It is always important to remain calm, explain options (there is never just one), and not respond emotionally, even if nerves are raw. This way my client knows that they are in control of what happens next and I am there to support them. I am proud of my success rate of having sold over 95% of all of my listings and closing over 90% of transactions that I have opened with nearly universally happy outcomes.
If you would like your question included the next time we do this or if you have a real estate question that you would like me to answer sooner, please email me at Reid@PlayaVistaExperts.com or call/text me at 310-883-8921.