TriBrand Prosperity 2020 Complete - Flipbook - Page 14
Q&A
Q&A
“Knowing what a buyer is looking for helps an
agent match a buyer’s wants and needs against
the complexities of the real estate landscape.”
The Randall Family of Companies president says buyers should
understand that location and condition always play major roles in
whether a property is a good investment.
How has Covid-19 affected the
real estate market?
Housing markets in Southern New England
were off to a very strong start at the beginning
of 2020 but slowed dramatically in March and
April. The pandemic caused most people to put
their housing plans on hold as they attempted
to make sense of where the world was headed.
However, as we moved into mid-May, and as
the economy began to reopen, housing markets
took off. The combination of low interest rates
and pent-up demand and the attraction of resort
markets have led to Southern New England real
estate being extremely active.
Is it safe for buyers to look at
properties right now? What about
sellers?
If people feel safe leaving their homes then
they should feel safe looking at real estate.
Collectively our industry has put a strong
emphasis on the safe showing process and
our company is certainly doing its part. We
have protocol in place that requires our agents
to wear masks, sanitize, disinfect and socially
distance when they are in a home or working
with a client. We also ask our agents to ride in
separate cars from their clients and to operate
virtually whenever possible. As for sellers, our
agents are limiting the number of people in a
property at any one time, requiring their clients
to wear masks, asking clients to sanitize, asking
clients to touch as little as possible in any home
and disinfecting doorknobs, handles, etc. after
leaving a property. All in all I think our industry
has been very diligent in working to ensure the
safety of our clients and our agents.
ike Schlott, president of Kinlin Grover, Randall Realtors
and Page Taft Christie’s International Real Estate, has
more than 30 years of real estate experience, including
real estate brokerage, mortgage banking and residential real
estate franchising. Currently the vice chairman of the MLS
Property Information Network Inc., the eighth-largest multiple
listing service in the United States, Schlott shared his thoughts
on what the current market means for both buyers and sellers,
and the state of the Southern Coastal New England market.
14
Where do you think the real
estate market in Southern New
England is headed?
I believe activity will remain strong as long as our
states continue to keep the pandemic in check.
Our markets have always been attractive places
to live and this has only been accentuated by
the challenges of Covid-19. Buyers from major
metro areas like Boston and New York have
been looking to Southern New England for those
things that we have in abundance – fresh air,
PROSPERITY 2020