Why It's Important to Get Immediate Property Search Updates & Not Rely on Concierge Mode
- Adam Garrett
- Jun 9, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 6
Image courtesy Rein
The Multiple Listing Service is where real estate agents perform searches of properties on the market listed by other agents. "Concierge Mode" is where, rather than a buyer or seller receiving a property into their email (& their texts if they do like I recommend) It is something that I've done before for buyers who wanted it, but that I highly discourage in my dealings with buyers. In this article, I wanted to cover why you wouldn't want concierge mode & what to do instead.
Top Reason To Avoid Concierge Mode: Delays Will Occur
The top reason to avoid concierge mode is delays. Let's face it:
When you are with your agent, you want their focus to be on you, and not their emails that don't relate to you, even if you are with them for 12 showings in a row over the course of more than 8 hours.
Your agent has more than 1 client, & you wouldn't want your agent to interrupt a showing with you to check someone else's email from concierge mode.
In some cases, showings are limited to only 15 minutes, & in other cases, unforeseen traffic can occur in between showings of yours, reducing the time that you have to be there, especially if there was an accident, so in scenarios like that, every second can count.
Your agent isn't awake whenever you're awake, whether you're in the same time zone or not.
2nd Top Reason To Avoid Concierge Mode: Delays Can Cost You Properties
The best properties go under contract the fastest, some in less than 12 hrs after they hit the market. I've even seen properties go on and off the market in under 3 hours on MLS. You don't want there to be any delay that could cost you a property, which is the top reason to avoid concierge mode. I go in-depth about how to go about expeditious showings and why you would want expeditious showings in this article.
How to Avoid Concierge Mode
It's best to get a solid search going with your agent that rules out a number of possibilities.
Most agents include by default in buyer's search elements that would rule out a property for a buyer if asked simply because the agent wasn't an expert in searches or because they didn't care. My default residential home criteria have 37 different factors across 18 criteria categories that I add to, shift, or eliminate based on a buyer's preferences. Many agents have never established default criteria, so if a buyer doesn't mention a criterion, the agent may never ask about it. Your search should be anywhere between 20-50 properties, and you'll be able to set up a much better search if you set it up not over the phone, but by seeing the search as it's being put together such as in person or via screen share.
It's also helpful at times to use 3rd party resources to help narrow your search, such as my SE VA City Information & Real Estate Property Info spreadsheet & my Public School Districts in Hampton Roads & The Surrounding Area of SE VA
It's also helpful to work with an agent who has spent hours on templates that he can pull any time, such as a number of searches I've done based on driving time to various locations since my MLS don't yet have the capability of doing that themselves, as well as USDA zones, HUB zones, and otherwise.
When to do Concierge Mode
One case where it may be a good idea to do concierge mode is when conducting a search based in part on agent remarks, remarks that are not visible to the public & where the buyer will need a higher degree of reliance on what the agent can see that the buyer can't see.
I Can do Concierge Mode (Sometimes)
While I highly don't recommend it, if a buyer wants it, I can do concierge mode sometimes. Just keep in mind that there are inherent delays in the process & that you're relying heavily on factors like your agent's sleep schedule & level of business at the time.
Here are the factors that determine whether or not I'll be able to do concierge mode, and in some cases if I'm able to do them, the volume of delays:
The amount of time I have (i.e. not a complex/labor intensive form of concierge mode right after birth of a child or during my busy season of April-August)
The distance that a buyer's search is from me
The price range of the buyer
The amount of clients I'm working with at the time
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