Today’s Ask the Expert column features Cindy Fauth, global marketing manager for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).
Q: How do I build a global practice?
A: No matter where you live in the U.S., international clients are present. Whether they’re moving into your local market, Americans searching overseas, or foreign-born living in your area and purchasing real estate for the first time, if you shift your view and look through a global lens, you will find them. And they’re a lucrative clientele; foreign buyers purchasing in the United States typically spend more money per home, and pay in cash more frequently, than domestic buyers.
To find global clients who already live in your area, take a look around you, as the things you see every day might tell a story. Are local business signs in multiple languages? Does one culture’s food dominate the inventory in your grocery store’s ethnic foods aisle? After you’ve had a chance to scan your area for clues, visit census.gov to find foreign-born population statistics as well as information pertaining to languages spoken in homes, which will give you a strong indication of who already lives in your local market.
To find clients moving to your area, check out the statistics from the realtor.com® international website, available at nar.realtor/global/realtorcom-international. The statistics include the Top 10 Markets for International Traffic based on the realtor.com international demand index, in addition to showing the top U.S. metropolitan areas most likely to be searched by international consumers on realtor.com.
Finally, NAR provides several research reports to assist in your quest for international clients. The Profile of International Activity in U.S. Residential Real Estate is the most comprehensive, detailing the who, what, where and why of international buyers’ habits. State-by-State International Business reports drill down census statistics and global business on a state level. And last but not least, the Local Market Assessments provided at nar.realtor/global take a deep dive into a selection of U.S. states where you wouldn’t think global business is happening—think Kentucky, Utah, Washington, Ohio, etc. You don’t have to live in these states to take advantage of the information, as much of it can be duplicated in any state, and it’s a great step to finding international business happening in your market. And, as always, the Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS) designation is the most comprehensive training and international network to help build your global business. More information on all the research, statistics and training mentioned here can be found at nar.realtor/global.
For more information, please visit nar.realtor/global.
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