Buyers and sellers often depend on Realtors�

to refer them to related service pros.

This isn't anything new to most of us, yet I feel it bears repeating and deserves a little further discussion. Giving a good referral makes you look great in your client's eyes, while giving one that turns out badly can also make you look bad.

Whether you want them to or not, the referrals you give reflect directly back on you.

In real estate, clients often need a referral...

to another professional who provides a related service and helps the transaction proceed to closing.

Buyers depend on their Realtors� for various local referrals that may include:

- Mortgage lenders - Attorneys

- Title companies - Home inspectors

- Insurance companies - Pool services

- Landscapers - Home repair contractors

In getting a home ready for sale, sellers may also need good

referrals from their listing agents to contractors, landscapers, or pool companies.

Here in South Florida, referrals hold even more importance due to the large number of second-home buyers and owner-sellers who may have their primary residences elsewhere, only being here seasonally. They depend on people here for good service while they may be hundreds or more miles away.

A referral from you means much more and carries greater credibility compared to them trying to choose from the many unknown names that turn up in an online search as they guess at the appropriate keywords.

Due to heightened RESPA awareness and enforcement, it is now more important than ever to give clients/buyers a choice of qualified service providers. One of RESPA's major purposes is to make sure buyers are aware of all options available to them.

In fact, many brokers and managers are now asking their agents to provide clients with a few different referrals for each related service.

When you give a referral you are essentially "partnering" with that other person or business.

No matter how many disclaimers or disclosures you give...in the client's mind you are at least partially responsible for that referral's performance.

You will be praised for a referral's great performance...and you will be indirectly blamed for a referral's poor performance.

Carefully choosing referral partners has a huge influence on overall client satisfaction and future referrals back to you.

Clients satisfied with your referral's performance

are much more likely to recommend you in the future.

Many successful Realtors� develop a referral team of various related businesses and professionals who have demonstrated high levels of :
                               - dependability
                               - customer service
                              - realistic pricing
                               - competence in their fields

Here's something else to consider...

and why you need a team of referral partners, not just one or two. Different service professionals have different skills and talents, even within the same industry or type of service provided. The team you put together for one transaction may not work as well on another. Areas of expertise, personalities, location, specializations, and other factors all enter the mix.

Refer your buyers to those businesses and individuals who have demonstrated high levels of both competence and customer service in similar deals.

Before referring a buyer or seller to an individual or company that's on an office list or you saw on a business card somewhere, call to get an idea of how they approach their work and how they will treat your client.

You can tell a lot from that brief phone conversation, then decide whether or not they will provide the same level of service to your client that you do.

When it comes to a financing referral for buyers who want to use a mortgage to buy their home, it's important for them to be properly informed and guided every step of the way from PreApproval to closing.

A good Mortgage Originator coordinates the buyer's financing with all other aspects of the transaction, and fits the

mortgage process to the purchase timeline.

That's the type of service and communication both you and your clients deserve to receive from a responsible referral partner

Have your buyers call me early in the looking stages to learn their financing options, keep their purchases on track, and arrive at the closing table well-informed, relaxed, and on time.

Let me reinforce the trust

your buyer has placed in you! sm