The Reluctant Brighton Blogger

If someone would have told me that in the year 2010 I would actually find myself writing a blog, I would have bet them a million dollars that wouldn’t happen. All I know is that after 34 years in the real estate business I am told that it is imperative to have a blog, a Facebook account and involve myself in something called twittering. I want to take this one step at a time. One thing I know is that as a person gets older, they are resistant to change, and I find myself looking for reasons why I shouldn’t have to do these things to help my business grow.

We are living in very different times and a lot of people can relate to how much the world has changed. The changes have been dramatic in the business of Real Estate. There were very few franchises out there; most were smaller-run offices with a handful of agents who sold homes at prices as low as $5,500 for a small ranch, or how about this: Did you know that you could get out the Sears Roebuck catalogue and order a house they would put on your lot for $3,500. You could buy a 3,500-square-foot house for around $8,500.

Those houses are still around today in different areas of the country.

Back then, the only computers we ever heard of were IBMs that filled up a whole room. To think that one day we would actually have desk computers, laptop computers, hand-held computers, and computers in notebook form. It is totally amazing what changes we have gone through! We are truly in the age of technology!

Thirty years ago, realtors carried around yellow real estate books with listings that had come on the market in the past two weeks. Those yellow books were our lifeline to homes on the market that we could show our clients. If the homes we were showing to our client that day didn’t appeal to them, we would pull out that that yellow book to see if there was another house we could show them another day. Back then, most of us had never seen a cell phone, so we couldn’t set up an appointment from the road to show that same day. We had to go out with the clients another day.

We didn’t have copy machines; we had carbon paper for our very important contract. They were messy, and nothing was clear after the second copy. I guess, in thinking back to the old days, we thought it was a much better time. (The pace was slower and that is something we all miss right now) but other than that I know I have to embrace the technology.

I find that I love this business and although I have joked for years I would be 80 years old and I would still be selling real estate. I actually love it so much, I can guarantee I will be here, Lord willing! Now, if I plan to do well selling real estate, I will need every tool available to me, so I can be successful and serve my clients well! I wonder what other new tools on the horizon will make me think twice about whether I should stay in real estate beyond 80 years old!

Signed,

The Reluctant Brighton Blogger
Nannette Gregory