This article was originally written on March 29 and things have changed again! Stay tuned for additional updates.
Re-inventing roles as we embark on week 2 of the executive order to reduce workforce by 100%. This is the second article in the series about the effect of coronavirus on real estate. Updates are coming in fast and furious!
Real estate is not an essential business in New York! To stay safe and healthy and to stop the spread we are staying home and not coming in contact with sellers, buyers or any of our core service providers. Essential related businesses include title services, banking/lending, inspectors, photographers and movers to name a few. We have managed to close some of the transaction already pending in no less than 2 days. Communication and response time being the key element and the willingness on the part of all parties to participate. There are plenty of restrictions and we are abiding by the governor’s mandate.
What happens when the pipeline from the Realtors to our core service providers is dry? How will the essential services survive without our non-essential real estate service?
Time is our only consideration as we cannot determine what timeline this virus will follow. Some optimistically predict May, probability in July, possible to not get resolved until the fall? Will a scientific/medical breakthrough create more positivity in the financial sector? We may have another 4-8 weeks until the curve is flattened. Buckle up buttercup we are in for a bumpy ride but don’t despair, it is a temporary situation with a lasting effect. Business as we know will forever change so mindset must change along with it.
Our vocabulary has increased to include many new words and terms such as pandemic, social distancing, flatten the curve, PPE/personal protection equipment, Zoom, COVID-19, working remotely, essential and non-essential business. And some familiar ones that have resurfaced: distance learning, online learning, fear of the unknown, anxiety, social media, electronic delivery of documents and the ever present wash your hands. Much can be learned from this moment in history when everything seems to be in flux. Take this opportunity to reinvent yourself and your business.
The real estate industry is adapting to the use of electronic delivery of documents and other web related resources. We are sharing and following, liking and giving the thumbs up👍 and a heart ❤ to connect with our audiences. It’s a time not to sell but to serve, to be apart of the community with our physical and emotional support to those in need. We are reliant on the internet and how it is used to keep social distance without social isolation. Show that you care, your voice matters.
The National Association of Realtors and the New York State Association of Realtors have our backs and are advocating on our behalf to support the 1.4 million Realtors in this country, an industry representing 17% of the US economy. Click here to read the article.
Our quest is to realize that while our jobs may be the same after COVID-19, the way we perform them will be different. Embrace this time as precedented because being able to adapt and recognize opportunity is as difficult as trying to understand what just happened. I follow Simon Sinek to keep my mindset in check, here is a recent video of his team meeting called These Are Not Unprecedented Times. We need more leaders to adopt this mindset because leaders are inundated with news, information and sometimes too much noise in the form of opinion and interpretation of information.
Stay connected my friends, Cafe Realty is prepared to update you continuously on our social channels. We have also put up a resource page on our resource site and have all of our featured listings and searches on our regular site. We are conducting remote consultations and have the technology necessary to serve you through this crisis.
Stay safe. Be well.
Elisa