Business Spotlight
Freedom Realty There's a New Sign in Town
By Anna Ebert

It is said that one of the most stressful things in life besides marriage and career changes, is relocating. Along with marriage and a new job, moving should be an adventure to a new place, while beginning a new chapter of your life. Unfortunately, the typical scenario with relocating usually involves immense stress.

Moving from Point A to Point B seems like a straightforward concept, but for a homeowner, its what falls in the middle that holds up your U-Haul from making the journey. Playing the waiting game for your home to sell, not only drags the moving process out for you, but also means you could end up owning two homes, or potentially without a home at all. Between buying a home and selling your current one, the process of moving might not be on the schedule you anticipated. A local Urbandale Real Estate Company with years of success and hands-on experience, really can simplify your home buying and selling process.

Although Freedom Realty might be a new name in the Des Moines Real Estate Community, its definitely not new to the real estate business. Freedom Realty has pioneered a new way of meeting your real estate needs. Freedom Realty makes it their mission to constantly find more new ways to keep customers happy. Were a unique real estate company, Angela Campbell, office manager notes. They do this by following updated standard home buying and selling methods that revolve around maximized customer benefits and convenience.

By using these methods, both home buyers and sellers reap the many rewards. The owner of Freedom Realty felt that Des Moines was ready for this fresh approach to real estate and a name that reflects what they offer their customers: freedom and control of their buying and selling. One of the initial ways they go about doing this is by alleviating the stress that is put on a single real estate agent working alone.

An agent at most other real estate companies has a plethora of task to complete when listing and or selling a home. They try to juggle all of the task by him or herself. This is not the case at Freedom Realty! They recognized that an agent doing everything themselves does not have the time to really service their clients the way a client deserves. At Freedom Realty, you will enjoy a team driven atmosphere that puts each of the staff members specifically in charge of one area of the home buying and selling process. You are getting full services with full benefits, Campbell said. Its a full team versus a single agent working alone.

Everything from putting the sign on your lawn, to working with financing, designing flyers, and taking photos of new listings is completed by support staff. Its like a wheel starts turning, Campbell says of the process that begins when you start working with them. The staff at Freedom Realty compares their setup to your doctor: you would expect him or her to perform all of the office duties, and be the doctor.This makes working with an overwhelmed agent seem ridiculous when you can work with a team in which each member has a designated area of expertise to give you the best service and attention possible.

The staff at Freedom Realty is equipped to give you this outstanding service due to extensive training and by using state of the art technology. Not only are they trained by one of the pioneers of this new real estate methodology, but they also learn how to best work with customers of all personality types. This ensures that Freedom Realty staff will understand the most efficient way to handle and meet your real estate needs.

One example of this, is the many different companies that use Freedom Realty for relocating employees,a service that they were first to offer in Iowa. Other areas of business that Freedom Realty work with besides standard real estate transactions include areas like investors, income property and management of bank foreclosures. One of the particularly unique aspects of Freedom Realty, is their Guaranteed Sale Program. If your home does not sell within 120 days, they will buy it from you at market value so you can close on your new home.

Like any other potential buyer, Freedom Realty submits a bid on your home that you are free to accept or reject. If you accept their offer, they cut you a check and you are on your way to being able to get into the house of your dreams.

This reduces the fear of sitting with two mortgages and a vacant home, or potentially, no house at all. While this may sound like a gimmick, Freedom Realty has the proof from past satisfied customers that this is not too good to be true. The program is possible thanks to local banker Tim Rhodes at the Polk County Bank. While terms and conditions do apply, it is an offer that would make any home sellers life easier.

Once Freedom Realty obtains homes through this program, they rarely have to hang on to them for much longer. A marker board with properties they are currently working with shows that many of the homes are successfully sold within a few months of Freedom Realty acquiring them. This selling success, combined with higher home selling prices than competitors, is true for regularly listed properties with Freedom Realty, as well. This can be attributed to some of their updated tactics in regard to advertising and other public exposure to your property.

Freedom Realty makes finding your dream home in the Des Moines Metro Area as simple as possible. Unlike many metro companies that try to show customers their listings only, Freedom Realty will not hesitate to show you listings that are listed by competitors! Another part of what can hold you up in this overwhelming process, is operating on a realtors schedule, which, at other agencies that don't operate on the team system like Freedom Realty, can set you back further as you try to coordinate your schedule with a busy realtors.

Freedom Realty again stands apart by giving you more control as the customer. The team setup of the company again allows you to get one-on-one attention at every step of the home buying process. In addition, your home shopping is not restricted to business hours. Not only is Freedom Realty a leader in advertising their properties with large ads and full-color brochures, but they also operate a 24-hour hotline.

This option allows you to peruse available home listings over the phone through pre-recorded descriptions. Another benefit to the buyer through this option, is that they have the choice to speak with an agent if they choose, or they can simply listen to the recordings at their leisure. This feature is not just a benefit to the home buyer, but sellers as well.

Each time a potential buyer checks on a house and/or receives assistance from the customer service part of the team, it is logged. Then, when there are changes to a listing, such as a price reduction, interested parties are automatically notified by Freedom Realty's auto call system and made aware of the price change. And, if for any reason you are not happy with the service you have received, Freedom Realty gives you the right to cancel your listing if it is not already under contract with a buyer. This cancellation guarantee is in writing and is something that other companies may not allow you to do.

Dedication to communication is one of Freedom Realty's primary areas of concern, when it comes to customer service. Going above and beyond the usual standards is something they strive to do at every level of the home buying and selling process for all of their customers. Its the same thing for everyone; it doesn't matter on the price, Campbell notes. After a home is shown, Freedom Realty's customer service department solicits feedback from the potential buyer and their agent about their perception of your home and its price.

A Freedom Realty Customer Service Representative then updates the home seller. This is done to maximize the homes selling potential and, most importantly, to keep the seller informed. Additionally, all of Freedom Realty properties are inspected on a weekly basis to keep the listings as up-to-date as possible and make sure everything is in top condition. This is especially vital for properties that might be vacant. Again, this is just another benefit of listing your home with Freedom Realty and taking advantage of their team system. Since it is one persons sole job to keep inspecting the listings, it is guaranteed that it will get done and not become another added task of the realtors, which translates into more time to spend with you. When it comes to your time, Freedom Realty understands that as a buyer or seller, you already have enough going on without wasting the free time you do have.

This is where Freedom Realty's twist on the traditional Sunday Open House comes into play. Instead of holding one sellers house open for the entire afternoon, Freedom Realty implemented the Sunday Tour of Homes. This occurs twice a month and allows potential buyers to see between six and 12 houses in one afternoon. The homes are open for 15 minutes each. The times are exact so all potential home buyers come to see the home at the same time. This is a way for Freedom Realty Agents to get serious prospects to look at the home. The prospective buyers that do come to each home feel less pressured.

If they are interested in the home, the buyer tends to make an offer faster than usual because they see other interested parties looking at the home they wish to purchase. It creates an auction-like atmosphere. Even after you have settled in at your new place, Freedom Realty still offers a crucial service to you. Through their Home Warranty program, you are protected from being responsible for items that were functioning when you left, but may now need repair in your old home after the new homeowner moves in.

The staff at Freedom Realty are constantly brainstorming and learning even more ways to keep up-to-date with the latest real estate success methods. One of their current projects includes implementing a staging program to continue to simplify the lives of homeowners in the quest to sell their house.

Its just another way Freedom Realty strives to stay updated on the latest trends and successful tactics in the real estate world. Expanding the company's current location is also projected in the fall of 2006. For more information on how to become one of the many satisfied Freedom Realty customers, visit them in Urbandale at 2940 104th Street,call them at 515-334-3500 or visit them online at www.FreedomRealtyIowa.com , or www.DesMoinesHomeInfo.com . All of their listings can be viewed on these sites as well as www.Realtor.com . n