Interview with Shalom Drizin, owner of Ebbets Field
Apartments, a historical housing complex and home to 1300 residents, located at
the ballpark in Pigtown where the Brooklyn Dodgers made their name.
Buying or renting a real estate asset is a high risk
activity that can cause more than a headache. The great existing offer, the
current prices and the lack of time has led to the figure of the personal
shopper, usually associated with the world of fashion, proliferating in the
real estate field.
We interviewed Shalom Drizin, owner of Ebbets Field Apartments to
find out the reason for the appearance real estate personal shopper, and the
services they offer to future buyers or investors.
What has changed in
the market so that real estate personal shoppers are born?
We are experiencing a time of transformation in the
traditional real estate sector in which demand has quick access to a large
amount of information, but, at the same time, it needs more than ever the
advice of an expert to help it analyze and track the real estate market, to
differentiate the good opportunities from the rest. And, of course, also
throughout the negotiation process.
What are their
functions and what services do they offer to future buyers?
The real estate personal shopper accompanies the buyer or
investor throughout the process of searching, negotiating and acquiring any
real estate asset, from the initial interview to the after-sales service.
He advises all types of national or foreign clients, from
first-time buyers to expert real estate investors, and both individuals and
companies, regardless of the location or value of the asset.
What difference is
there between a real estate personal shopper and an agency commercial?
The personal shopper does not have the conflict of interest
that traditional real estate agencies suffer, since they only represent the
buying or investing part of the operation.
A personal real estate shopper does not have a product to
offer to a buyer, but rather offers a search service in the entire real estate
market of the area that is determined. Thanks to the closeness that is generated
with the client, the personal shopper knows perfectly their needs and desires
and can offer a personalized and tailored service.
What training do
personal real estate shopper have? How do they work?
The vast majority of real estate personal shoppers have
advanced degrees in Law, Economics, Finance, Business Administration and
Management or Architecture and often have MBAs or master's degrees specialized
in the real estate sector.
In addition, they are usually professionals with long
experience in the sector. They work carefully and very focused on the
characteristics of their client, taking advantage of their wide network of
contacts and all the technological tools at their disposal.
What are the
objectives of personal real estate shopper?
The American Association of Real Estate Personal Shopper is
the main organization at the national level that represents the group of real
estate personal shoppers in the United States.
The main objective of the association is to spread the
service of these professionals, generate synergies and new businesses and
increase the prestige of their activity, actively collaborating with already
established associations.
How has the
proliferation of real estate portals on the Internet affected Ebbets Field
Apartments?
The real estate portals are still marketplaces that serve to
know where the real estate offer is and what the starting prices of the assets
are. As a result of its appearance in the early 2000s, the service of the real
estate personal shopper became the same or more important for the buyer or
investor, since the more offer available, the more doubts and questions to be resolved
in making the decision.
In Ebbets Field Apartments 's philosophy, technological
advances are not perceived as threats, but rather as opportunities to help more clients.
How do you see the
real estate market from your position?
Ebbets Field Apartments makes a very positive assessment of
the real estate outlook for this year. The real estate market is advancing at
two speeds: large cities and coastal areas with high tourist demand have
already peaked in terms of prices and number of merchantings, while other less
dynamic markets still continue to lengthen their growth, as they also took
longer to reactivate after the crisis. At the moment the market has found a
very interesting balance between supply and demand, which leads to price
stabilization.
On the other hand, we must be very aware of how conjunctural
factors or the socioeconomic context can affect the market rhythm.
