Agents Receiving a Real Estate Referral from Adam Garrett

Adam is unusually selective about what agents he refers to buyers & sellers. Prior to accepting a referral, please review below to ensure that you meet his minimum criteria for agents, & keep in mind that he is not asking for anything more than a portion of what he expects of himself when serving buyers or sellers:

1. Adam likely wouldn't have reached out to you unless...

1. You have been a licensed real estate agent for at least 5 years cumulatively

2. You have done at least one of the following in sold property volume over the course of your career:

A. 50 real estate transactions

OR

B. 15 million USD in property sold prices (with a minimum of 20 sales)

3. You have at least one of the following:

A. 15 or more reviews on publicly available websites in places where clients can place positive or negative reviews for you and have done so (not counting duplicate reviews on multiple platforms, but counting cumulative reviews across review sources) with a cumulative rating across review platforms of 4.75/5 or higher.

B. Adam Garrett can personally vouch for you through his current or past personal friendship with you where you have maintained high ethical standards as well as standards of excellence, though you haven't sought out reviews much during your career to have 15 or more. Also, you have at least 10 years of experience with either 75 or more real estate transaction or 22 million USD in property sold prices. Example

4. You must be either engaged in real estate full-time or have done at least 10 transactions in the past year.

2. Adam needs to know if you meet the following minimum criteria:

Initial Response Time:

1. You must be available to respond to Adam within 24 hrs of receiving the referral, not counting Sundays, verifying whether or not you meet his requirements.

2. You must be available to reach out to the referral within 24 hrs of receiving their information, not counting Sundays.

Matters That Likely Are Already True of You:

1. You are a Realtor®

2. You have access to the primary MLS in the city/town where you are based out of & where the referral is looking. If there are multiple MLS in the buyer's or seller's area, you have access to at least 95% of the listings via MLS in the city/town where you are based or have informed Adam prior to the referral agreement that you do not have access to all the MLS necessary to help the buyer or seller with 95%+ access (not including FSBO's, other homes not listed on any MLS, etc.). (SE VA MLS % by county/city)

3. You must have a CRM.

4. If you have been found guilty of any ethics violations with your Real Estate Board, it has been less than 1 for every 50 career transactions, and have never been convicted of any felonies.

5. You must be able to text.

Matters That Impact How You Respond/Engage w the Referral:

1. You must be the referral's primary point of contact for in-person and phone/virtual meetings (i.e. showings for buyers, listing appointments for sellers, etc.) in the transaction, not another admin or another agent. While an admin or transaction coordinator may assist with emails, phone calls, and virtual meetings, they shouldn't be the main person the client engages with. Email templates created by the agent and sent by the admin count as agent-client communication.

2. No admin/transaction coordinator fee that exceeds $400, and if present, clearly stated in buyer brokerage agreements/listing agreements & disclosed to Adam when sharing that you would be available.
   

3. Minimum criteria if Adam's referring you a buyer:

1. No lender lock in agreements where the buyer must use the preferred lender of the agent with their purchase.

2. No minimum commission that exceeds the greater of 2.5% or $4k in buyer brokerage agreements.

4. Minimum criteria if Adam's referring you a seller:

1. Professional photography used (& if not professional, top 10% of non-professional photos by someone with a camera that is a competitor to professional grade cameras and shot primarily in wide angle if appropriate, & you must send Adam your last 5 listings so that he can preview your photo quality/volume prior to referral)

2. Agent must personally preview the property in person before listing

3. If the suggested listing side of commission (not including the buyer side) exceeds 3% for single-family residential, there must be available reduced options that include 3% that are disclosed to Adam prior to referral that still meet all of the listed criteria on this page.

4. A Matterport virtual tour of the home or commercial building for properties >$125k

5. If the sale(s) are in an area where more than 1 MLS is common, the following MLS access for sellers is minimally required.

Up to $200k - Primary MLS coverage

$200,001-$300k 80%+ MLS coverage

$300,001+ 95%+ MLS coverage

6. If within 2 hrs of Adam & >$125k, aerial photos of the home. If beyond 2 hrs of Adam, aerial photos for properties >$300k.

Adam is at times available to assist with Matterport & aerials for properties within 2 hours of him in Smithfield, VA since he can assist listing agents personally with meeting requirements for Matterport & aerials at a lower cost than would typically be incurred when doing them.

Related:

Which Multiple Listing Service(s) Are Needed to List or Buy in SE VA?

5. Requirements if clients being referred aren't in the same location as where they plan to purchase or sell and they will be doing things remotely

1. You must be able to use screenshare in virtual meetings

2. You must know how to shift your phone to wide angle videography

3. You must have at least one of the following camera phones or a model of comparable or superior image quality:

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, S21 Ultra, or S22 Ultra

Google Pixel 5 Pro, 6 Pro, or 7 Pro

Iphone 12, 13, or 14 Pro or Pro Max

Huawei P50 Pro

Oppo Find X5 Pro

Xiami 12 Pro

OnePlus 10 Pro

6. Does Adam himself meet these requirements?

Adam far exceeds many of these requirements, in some cases being in the top 1% of agents in his area in a critical component of the purchase or selling process or providing unmatched service in some capacity.

Here are some examples of what Adam provides his own clients that he doesn't expect of you, though it'd be nice to have if you happen to as well:

1. Locally unmatched digital tools

2. Top 1% physical gadgets/tools

3. No transaction coordinator/admin fees

4. No dual agency

Buyer Examples:

1. Locally Unmatched Programs to Reduce Home Cost (1, 2)

2. Locally Unmatched Offer Considerations Spreadsheet

3. Locally Unmatched Buyer's Guide

4. Locally Unmatched Home Purchase Considerations Spreadsheet

5. Locally Unmatched Video Showings for Buyers

6. Locally Unmatched Area Guide

7. Top .1% Buyer Showing Feedback

8. Top 1% Research Prior to Showings

9. Access to up to 5 MLS w Data on Coverage Area of % MLS Coverage by County Based on My Research

10. Experienced Agent Fill-Ins When I'm Unavailable (typically >150 past transactions)

11. Non-Exclusive Buyer Brokerage Agreements Available

Seller Examples:

1. Top 1% of Listings for Matterport Virtual Tours

2. Locally Unmatched Seller Guide

3. Showingtime (The Best Virtual Showing Service)

4. Flexible Commission Rates Based On Tiered Offerings, w Even Lowest Tiers Still Maintaining elements like Matterport, some Area Photos, & Aerials

5. Open House(s)

6. Additional Tiered Offerings Based on Commission Tier & Pricing Tier Chosen (i.e. locally unmatched Organic Social Media Campaign Available)

7. Unmatched Area Photos

Here's more on what he offers if you're looking to refer someone to him.

Related:

Referrals to Real Estate Agents Across the Globe