Last week, we attended Inman News' first ever virtual conference. The inagural Inman Connect Now took place of the conference that was originally set for Las Vegas in July and focused on both real estate and national news. We value opportunities like these that allow us to continue learning and evolving especially during this time.
Inman Connect Now brought together the real estate community in a truly innovative way. With speakers like Gary Keller, Rich Barton and Compass' very own Robert Reffkin, the digital event allowed participants to connect, learn from each other and lean on each other. Here are some of our key takeaways:
- The real estate community has a unique opportunity to promote social change. The real estate industry is one in which women play a prominent role, longevity is celebrated and minorily groups such as immigrants and members of the LGBTQ community represent a growing and important client base. Real estate businesses also have a significant impact on their communities and deep knowledge of their surrounding areas. We are uniquely positioned to leverage our influence to foster diversity in our communities. Some ways in which we can do this is by choosing vendors from a minority group and conduct trainings on The Fair Housing Act.
- The real estate industry is on a fast track to distruption. Much of the world has been under stay-at-home orders for the past three months due to Covid-19, real estate included. In Florida, real estate was deemed an essential business by Govenor Ron DeSantis. However, we still had to get creative to accommodate the new safety measures that prioritized our clients' wellbeing. In doing so, the real estate industry has embraced various technologies that cater to a digital environment that may not have otherwise been utilitized this early if not for the pandemic. Technologies such as virtual tours, 3D tours and digital closings have catapulted real estate into the future.
- There is a transaction revolution occuring in the real estate industry. "It's not clear that real estate is facing a downturn," according to Trulia co-founder Pete Flint. Many consumers have gotten a taste of what "going fully digital" means in the real esate industry and many of these tools such as virtual showings and e-closings are here to stay. Flint believes if agents accept this change, coupled with historically low interest rates and an increase in inventory as stay-at-home orders are lifted, they will be able to expand their businesses by offering increased customer service and convenience.
- Compass CEO, Robert Reffkin, is one of the industry's few Black leaders and has laid out clear steps to make a difference. We may be biased but our partiality in this case does not change the fact that Robert Reffkin is an incredible leader. In his candid discussion with Brad Inman, founder of Inman, Robert opened with, "It's OK to not be OK." Robert acknoledged the severity of both the global pandemic crisis along with the civil rights crisis in the U.S. He then went on to share his personal optimism that we can make a difference along with these three simple actions that we can all take: (1) Advocate for racial tolerance (2) Volunteer and donate to non-profits that advocate for racial tolerance and (3) Vote, especially at the state and local levels.
As we move forward as a real estate team, we look forward to implementing Robert's three tips to make a difference and leveraging our influence as real estate agents to specifically impact our Boca Raton and Delray Beach communities. We will also continue to embrace new technologies and are proud to be backed by Compass, a brokerage that has been investing in technology all along.