Help-U-Sell Heritage Real Estate – Page 8

Winter Warm-Up Results Are In!

The results are in for our Winter Warm-Up Contest! During the contest, which started Nov. 1 and ended Feb. 29, Help-U-Sell offices earned points for each new listing, each closed buyer side and each closed seller side.

The top three offices in total points have earned admin fees and Help-U-Sell shirts. The top point-getter in each of the three categories (new listings, closed buyer sides and closed seller sides) also have won prizes. Note: Offices that won in the total-points category were not eligible to win in the individual categories, and no one could win in more than one category. For more information about the points and the prizes, read the initial Connect post about the contest.

Without further ado, here are your winners!

Total Points

1) Help-U-Sell Honolulu Properties 392 points

2) Help-U-Sell Detwiler Realty 234 points

3) Help-U-Sell Heritage Real Estate 206 points

New Listing Points

Winner: Help-U-Sell Quad Cities Realty 160 points

Buyer Side Points

Winner (tie): Help-U-Sell Galleria Realty 45 points

Winner (tie): Help-U-Sell Real Estate Specialists 45 points

Seller Side Points

Winner: Help-U-Sell Select Services 64 points

We are proud of all of our participants. You all really stepped up your efforts, and in a year-over-year comparison, Help-U-Sell offices produced 15% more listings and closings in the November 2011-February 2012 period than in the November 2010-February 2011 period.

Broker Focus: Debra Schmidt

Help-U-Sell Heritage Real Estate's Debra Schmidt

One of the leaders of the Winter Warm-Up Contest, Debra Schmidt of Help-U-Sell Heritage Real Estate lives and works in Owatonna, Minn., a town of just over 25,000 residents.

Being smaller has its advantages, such as the ability to offer the personal touch. Schmidt maintains a database of past clients and sends them an item of value each month. This usually consists of timely information about home-care topics such as winterizing your house. Her office takes this one step further and occasionally goes door-to-door with gifts. Recently, Schmidt handed out pizza cutters emblazoned with the phrase “great service any way you slice it” and the Help-U-Sell logo. In the past, she has delivered Christmas cookies, Valentine’s candy and pumpkin bread.

Her eventual goal is to get 90 percent of her business from referrals. For now, half of her business remains foreclosures and short sales. Schmidt said the market is picking up in Owatonna. Her goal for 2012 is to increase the number of listings and sales by 50 percent over 2011.

Schmidt attributes her office’s success to and pins her future growth on the following simple-but-effective tactics: “Do what you say you’re going to do. Keep in touch with buyers and sellers. Know what’s going on in your market.”

For new brokers, she advises, “You need to be in real estate for more than just the money.”

If you have advice for new brokers or agents, please share it with us in the comments section.

Winter Warm-Up Contest Update

We have just six weeks left in our Winter Warm-Up Contest!

During the contest, which started Nov. 1, Help-U-Sell offices earn points for each new listing, each closed buyer side and each closed seller side. The top three offices in total points at the end of the contest win prizes in the form of admin fees, Help-U-Sell shirts and, of course, bragging rights. The top point-getter in each of the three categories (new listings, closed buyer sides and closed seller sides) will also win prizes. Note: Offices that won in the total-points category are not eligible to win in the categories. For more details, see our previous Connect post.

Because no one can win in more than one category, these would be our winners if the contest had ended Jan. 15:

Total Points:

1. Honolulu Properties

2. Heritage Real Estate

New Listings:

Buyer Sides:

Seller Sides:

But there’s still time to make your move up the leaderboards! Our standings as of Jan. 15 are as follows. We have listed the top five in each category to give a better idea of the big picture. [Note: There are a few ties.]

Total Points

Honolulu Properties 251 points
Heritage Real Estate 189
Detwiler Realty 139
Galleria Realty 126
Select Real Estate 108

New Listings

Honolulu Properties 225 points
Heritage Real Estate 150
Galleria Realty 95
Detwiler Realty 90
Quad Cities Realty 85

Closed Buyer Sides

Select Real Estate 39 points
Real Estate Specialists 30 (tied for 2nd)
Triad Realty 30 (tied for 2nd)
Heritage Real Estate 21 (tied for 3rd)
Galleria Realty 21 (tied for 3rd)
Detwiler Realty 21 (tied for 3rd)
Federal City Realty 18
Edmond/OKC 15 (tied for 5th)
Distinctive Homes 15 (tied for 5th)
Sims Realty 15 (tied for 5th)

Closed Seller Sides

Select Services 46 points
Honolulu Properties 26
Central Properties 24
Real Estate Specialists 18 (tied for 4th)
Heritage Real Estate 18 (tied for 4th)
Detwiler Realty 18 (tied for 4th)
Select Real Estate 14

Good luck to everyone and keep up the great work! Remember, the contest ends on Feb. 29, and winners will officially be announced on March 7.

Top Producers for October 2011

Congratulations to October’s top producers, who closed a combined total of 45 sides! The offices represent diverse states, from Pennsylvania to Oklahoma.

1) Help-U-Sell Select Services, in Fort Myers, Fla., closed an impressive 14 sides to finish in first place.

2) Perennial top producer Help-U-Sell Detwiler Realty, out of Carlisle, Penn., tied for second with 11 closed sides.

2) Oklahoma City’s Help-U-Sell Ditto & Associates also closed 11 sides.

3) Help-U-Sell Heritage Real Estate, based in Owatonna, Minn., came in third with nine closed sides.

[Figures are as of Nov. 1, 2011.]