How long have you been a realtor? What made you get into real estate?
This is our 9th year in real estate. We had positions with major corporations, relocated and moved a number of times, and sold a number of homes in Cleveland, Columbus, and Chicago (if the city didnt start with a C we didnt move there weve lived in Chagrin Falls/Bainbridge for 21 years). We were so involved in real estate with all our moves, that becoming Realtors seemed like a natural transition.
Whats your favorite area to show homes and why?
Chagrin Falls, Ohio is such a unique little town. Most of the buildings are either 100 years old or older or built to look like they have been around for 100 years. It’s businesses still function and the town could be in the middle of Anywhere, USA. When relocation is the reason for a move to our area, it’s fun to see the looks on people’s faces when we drive into town for the first time. There is actually a waterfall in Chagrin Falls in the center of town. The famous Popcorn Shop Factory is located right alongside the falls…also a great place to get an ice cream cone.
What do you do in your spare time?
We really like to visit our grandchildren. The older 3 live in Wadsworth, Ohio via Chattanooga & Hartford (Tommy -17, Frankie 15, and Katherine 12). We have 2 that live in Goshen, NY via Columbus (Andrew 3 and Aubree -2). The youngest live in Alaska, via Reno/Tahoe and New Zealand (Benjamin and Jonathan 9 month old twins). The visits aren’t nearly as frequent as we would like. Thank goodness for the Skype video phone calls.
*In the photo above, Jim & Joan share time with family in New York.
What impact has mobile marketing/social media had for you?
When working for the Cleveland Convention & Visitor’s Bureau, we were teaching our members how to network. Now we are back to being the students. To date, most of the impact has been the time and effort spent to initiate programs that will benefit our clients. We’ve realized the importance of developing and sharing information that will benefit the Home Buyers and Home Sellers that we work with and allow us to attract new clients.
Any additional information that you would like to share?
There are many parts to a real estate transaction. We believe that there are 2 important parts of being a good realtor. Part A is to be a good resource. We provide the right information to arm every buyer and seller with the data they need and want. Part B is to be a good friend. To be a good friend, we do a lot of listening to get to know and understand our clients. The better we understand them, the more we can help them through the buying and selling process. This can be a stressful time, and sometimes all we need to do is listen. We dont make decisions for our friends. We give them good advice and information so that they can make good decisions.
Want to learn more about this real estate team? www.yourclevelandrealtors.com