Meredith Rowe: The Real Estate Entrepreneur

REE #228 Transcript

[00:00:00] Meredith Rowe: I go above and beyond for my friends. I go above and beyond for my customers. That probably bites me back a couple of times, but I always go above and beyond. I reach out to get quotes for you, meet the contractors, and do everything I can to make the experience as stress-free as possible. Buying or selling a house is really stressful. How can I alleviate some of that stress? That's my goal. Because I've done it and know what it's like to work with an agent, I also know what it feels like to work with someone who's either helping to make things easier or making it more stressful by not taking anything off your plate. My goal has always been to make the process as stress-free as possible, no matter how many times you've been through it.

[00:00:59] Tracy Hayes: Hey, welcome back to the Real Estate Excellence podcast. Today’s guest began her interest in real estate while in college at UNC Wilmington, working at a local brokerage office. She has a passion for photography and a background in marketing, which gave her a great foundation for her real estate business. She considers herself a concierge real estate agent, with a focus on luxury properties here in Northeast Florida. Let’s welcome the lady who will take the stress out of buying and selling—Meredith Rowe with Real Broker.

[00:01:28] Meredith Rowe: Hello, Tracy. Thanks so much for having me.

[00:01:30] Tracy Hayes: Thank you for coming on. Normally, I don’t talk as long in the pre-show, but we had a great one!

[00:01:38] Meredith Rowe: We did.

[00:01:39] Tracy Hayes: It’ll make the show better. One thing I’ve been trying to do, and I think when I initially invited you, you didn’t respond to it, is I’ve found that having a longer pre-show discussion—maybe a cup of coffee beforehand—really helps build a better show. What we covered earlier will hopefully allow me to go deeper into your bio.

I want to mention this now so I don’t forget: Remi Graphics, a local business, made these mugs for you, which you’ll find in your gift bag. I think yours is the hot pink one. They only do hot pink and blue, but they can create custom mugs. If you want one for a client with their name on it, like “John and Sally, Welcome to Jacksonville 2024,” she’ll make them for you. You don’t have to order a dozen; they do one-offs. It’s great for client gifts because when something’s personalized, they’re more likely to keep it.

[00:02:42] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. I’m a big fan of personalizing gifts for my clients. I might put my logo on there, but it’s small because they don’t want my name all over it—they want something that feels personal to them.

[00:02:54] Tracy Hayes: Exactly. And they’ll remember who gave it to them.

[00:02:57] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely.

[00:02:58] Tracy Hayes: That’s the value, right? It’s something they won’t throw away. When it comes to gift-giving, people value items they can use or that feel special.

Now, let’s get into it. You were recently invited to be on a reality competition show! I know you can’t spill all the details, but can you give us a surface-level overview?

[00:03:38] Meredith Rowe: Yes! So, Megan Farrell, Amy, and I... One Saturday morning, I started receiving screenshots from people telling me I had to audition for this show. It’s called So You Think You Can Sell Luxury, a real estate competition show. There was a local casting call, and we had no idea what it was about, but we showed up and fell in love with the audition process. That night, we found out we were cast on the show! Filming started last week. We’re under an NDA, so I can’t disclose too much, but it’s a pilot series. It’s set up like March Madness, with different rounds and agents competing. Some rounds are individual, but we’re the largest group competing, with the three of us. We’re not a team in our regular business, but we’re all from the same brokerage, so we decided to team up—three heads are better than one!

[00:04:38] Tracy Hayes: So, was it Megan who reached out to the producers?

[00:04:41] Meredith Rowe: No, it was a casting call that I found online. A bunch of friends and clients started sending me screenshots about it, so I passed them on to Amy and Megan and said, “We should do this! Will you come with me?”

[00:05:04] Tracy Hayes: During the pre-show, we talked about “trash talking” for fun. Have you all agreed to bring some of that into the show?

[00:05:13] Meredith Rowe: We’ve agreed to keep it lighthearted and fun. We want to stay friends after the show!

[00:05:19] Tracy Hayes: Absolutely! We also talked about what makes for good TV, and drama plays a part in that. But you have to maintain professionalism. We’ll definitely touch on professionalism later, especially with what’s happening in the real estate industry and the perception of agents.

[00:05:39] Meredith Rowe: Yes, the show will highlight the reality of selling real estate. It’s not like Selling Sunset. We actually work hard. I try to show some of that on social media. You’ll see reels of me vacuuming or scrubbing baseboards when cleaners cancel last minute.

[00:07:00] Tracy Hayes: Exactly. There’s so much behind the scenes that people don’t see. Reality TV thrives on showing the “messy” side of life. But there’s a balance between that and professionalism.

Now, back to you! You’re from North Carolina, right?

[00:08:21] Meredith Rowe: Yes, I’m from rural North Carolina. My grandparents owned a restaurant, and I worked there from the time I was 14. My parents instilled a strong work ethic in me. I loved the beach, so I applied to colleges near the ocean and went to UNC Wilmington, where my sister was also attending. I double-majored in elementary education and psychology but ended up quitting my senior year.

[00:09:01] Tracy Hayes: You were so close to finishing! What happened?

[00:09:04] Meredith Rowe: I met my husband, and we had our son. When it came time for student teaching, I would have had to pay for daycare, tuition, and work for free. I was already running a photography business, so I decided to quit school and focus on that. I thought I’d go back and finish later, but here I am, 16 years later, and I never went back.

[00:09:41] Tracy Hayes: That’s amazing! So, your passion for photography developed early?

[00:10:40] Meredith Rowe: Yes, it started in high school with an art teacher who was also an entrepreneur. I learned photography with her and started doing senior portraits by the time I graduated. Later, while working at a real estate brokerage, I continued with photography as a side gig. Eventually, a friend offered to pay me for an engagement session, and that’s when I realized I could [00:13:07] Tracy Hayes: He was like, "That industry, I don't know a lot about it. I can only imagine what's in it, but I know there are some big corporations. I know another real estate family, the Katie family—that's their background, their whole faith. Their father goes way back to doing yearbook photos and all that." Did it just kind of burn out for you, or what brought it to an end? Or, I imagine, you still do some photography on the side.

[00:13:31] Meredith Rowe: Yeah, I did it up until about two years ago. I still have my real estate license—I'm kind of fast-forwarding a bit—but I was really blessed. I taught a lot of workshops and helped others learn what I did. I was into photography, especially newborn and birth photography, for a long time, and I loved it. I had so much flexibility with it.

[00:13:57] Meredith Rowe: I really fell in love with being an entrepreneur. My husband traveled a lot, and I wanted to homeschool my kids. Even though I went to school to be a teacher, I decided to keep my boys home and homeschool them. Photography gave me the flexibility to be with my kids and still bring in income, feeding my creative side while learning what it means to grow a business. As the world was changing, especially with social media, I learned so much—graphic and website design, and how to build a brand.

For a while, I called myself a "serial entrepreneur" because I kept starting things. Then, fast-forward a few years, my boys started attending a hybrid school for three or four days a week, and I thought, "Now’s the time to go back to real estate." I always wanted to get my license, but I knew I didn't have time when the kids were home full-time. My husband was always traveling, and I didn’t want to bring the kids along to showings. So, I decided to get my license. I called a realtor friend, and within three weeks, I had completed my course, passed the test, and got my license.

Initially, I thought I would sell maybe one house a year and still do photography. But six months into real estate, I realized I had to choose, and I retired from photography.

[00:15:41] Tracy Hayes: I’m glad you went deeper into that. It sounds like you took what you learned from marketing in photography and applied it to real estate.

[00:15:57] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. I had learned so much about what works and what doesn’t. If you look at my social media, I don’t have 20,000 followers, but most of them are my customers, and they know me. I learned that people want to see authenticity—they want the real you. Social media allows you to show that real life, behind-the-scenes stuff, which helps build those genuine connections. It’s no longer just a highlight reel.

I’ve rebuilt businesses multiple times—whether it was through workshops, photography, or real estate. So when I transitioned to real estate, it was pretty seamless. I just applied everything I knew from building a business before.

[00:16:55] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, I think for people to be successful, especially in a niche like newborn photography, you have to build relationships that encourage repeat customers. In real estate, it’s similar—whether it’s for a family’s next house or a referral, you want to be top of mind. Repeat customers are key, right?

[00:17:57] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. When I started in real estate, everyone said you have to stay in touch with your clients. It’s the art of staying top of mind—pop-bys, cards, whatever it takes. For me, it came naturally because I’d already been doing that in photography. I still have clients I did sessions for over ten years. I’ve watched their kids grow up, and while I’ve mostly retired from photography, I still did a session recently for a family I’ve known for a decade. They trust me, and that same trust has carried over into real estate.

[00:18:47] Tracy Hayes: Some agents do it, but I don’t know how consistent they are. I remember Kelly Bello—she was on one of my early episodes—offered free family photos as a holiday gift to her clients. That sounds like something you could totally do since you’re already a photographer.

[00:19:19] Meredith Rowe: I’ve actually thought about that! My colleague Amy and I have discussed doing mini-sessions for client appreciation events—like hiring a photographer and offering free sessions to our clients around Christmas.

[00:19:37] Tracy Hayes: Exactly. It’s not just about putting your name on something but creating those lasting relationships. People will remember, "Hey, that’s the realtor who does our family photos every year."

[00:20:06] Meredith Rowe: Exactly! They don’t have to see my brand on everything—they’ll remember the connection. And those kinds of client appreciation events give you a reason to connect face-to-face, which is rare in real estate after the transaction is complete.

[00:20:38] Tracy Hayes: So, you got your real estate license. How did you decide which brokerage to join?

[00:20:41] Meredith Rowe: I interviewed several brokerages. One thing nobody told me is that, in real estate, it’s the brokerages that are interviewing you. They want you to join, so it’s up to you to find the right fit. I met with a few and ended up making a decision, but out of respect for a friend who recommended another brokerage, I went to one last meeting with Atlantic Shores Realty in Jacksonville Beach. I was already ready to sign with another brokerage, but out of respect, I went. Within five minutes of meeting Rosie Hetman and Lisa Murray, I knew this was the place for me. They hadn’t hired a rookie in years but were open to teaching and pouring into new agents, which made all the difference.

[00:21:37] Tracy Hayes: So you had already completed the test and were ready to go?

[00:21:41] Meredith Rowe: Yes, I was ready. I even had a contract in my email from the other brokerage, waiting for my e-signature. But after meeting Rosie and Lisa, I decided to delay signing. I knew this small, tight-knit brokerage was where I needed to be. Their mentorship and support were exactly what I needed as a new agent.

[00:22:00] Tracy Hayes: That’s a big lesson for new agents—take the time to interview brokerages and find the right fit. The mentorship you found at Atlantic Shores seems like it really set you up for success.

[00:22:37] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. They taught me so much, and having experienced agents who had been in the business for over 20 years mentoring me was invaluable. They allowed me to shadow them, ask questions, and even role-play scenarios with them. That foundation was crucial.

[00:23:39] Tracy Hayes: A key takeaway is that you were ready to jump in, but you took one more meeting, which ended up being the perfect fit. The mentorship you received helped you grow quickly, and shadowing experienced agents was a huge benefit.

[00:25:00] Meredith Rowe: Yes, absolutely. I had some knowledge going in, but I knew there was so much more to learn. Being able to shadow agents like Rosie and the team at Atlantic Shores made all the difference. They taught me everything, from listing presentations to open houses, and I was so grateful for their willingness to share their expertise.

[00:26:00] Tracy Hayes: That’s something a lot of new agents miss—the value of shadowing and learning from experienced agents. It’s not about jumping in right away; it’s about understanding the business from the ground up. And you had the patience to do that, which really paid off.

[00:26:30] Meredith Rowe: Definitely. I was lucky to have mentors who let me ask dumb questions and gave me the space to learn. That willingness to learn and ask questions has been a huge part of my success.

[00:28:00] Tracy Hayes: It’s also about how you communicate with clients and other agents. You had years of experience in customer service through photography, which really prepared you for real estate. It’s all about communication, right?

[00:28:30] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. My photography experience was like real estate training in disguise. I learned to listen, to be flexible, and to problem-solve on the fly. Those skills transfer directly to real estate, where every transaction is different and requires you to think quickly.

[00:29:00] Tracy Hayes: You had four-hour sessions with families, and those interactions probably taught you how to handle stressful situations, which comes in handy in real estate.

[00:29:03] Meredith Rowe: Yes, exactly! Babies don’t always cooperate, and neither do clients sometimes. You have to be patient, adapt, and keep things moving forward, which is what real estate is all about.

[00:31:00] Tracy Hayes: She'll be listening to the podcast. I don't know. She'll find out. Um, I think that’s really the differentiator. Sometimes I don’t know if it’s imposter syndrome or what, but we often forget—especially after you start doing enough transactions. I’ve been doing mortgages for 19 years, and you have to reflect on the fact that the clients, they’ve only done this a couple of times, or it’s their first time, or they’ve never run into this. For example, how many times do people buy homes in Florida? It's different than buying in New York, and you have to explain that to them.

They don’t know. They don’t know there’s a difference. They’re just buying a house. You know, if you’ve lived through the nightmare of doing transactions in New York, Florida is a cakewalk. Absolutely. But the negotiations, or now obviously we’re having challenges with insurance and things like that. Talking through that—having done this for a couple of years and with solid transactions behind you—what are you doing now that you maybe didn’t initially do with your clients? How do you start preparing them for what's going to happen?

[00:32:00] Meredith Rowe: That’s a really good question. I think what I probably didn’t do as well in the beginning, but learned quickly, is to really lay out the process. One of the first questions I ask either buyers or sellers is, "Has anyone walked you through what it looks like to buy a house?"

[00:32:18] Meredith Rowe: Or "Has anyone walked you through what it looks like to list your home?" I have a thorough buyer guide and a thorough seller guide that I take to every listing appointment or buyer consultation. It’s all outlined: I’m going to talk to you about this stuff, but I’m not going to read it to you. You get to take this book with you. I have it custom printed for every client so that they have it as a reference point. It literally goes through every step of the process and what to expect. But, of course, things always come up.

I think that's been so huge in preparing them, so they know what to expect. So many people have a lot of pride, and their egos are big, and they don’t want to admit they don’t know what this looks like. People are scared to ask questions. I’m sure you know this, coming from an education background—so many students are terrified to raise their hands and say, “I don’t understand.” So, answering those questions before they’re asked, and giving multiple opportunities for them to ask, is important. Does that make sense? Do you have any questions? And doing this in a way that’s not condescending, just saying, "Hey, when I bought my first house, I didn’t know this, so now I make sure to tell all my clients." People really appreciate that.

[00:33:21] Tracy Hayes: No, I think it's a differentiator, which actually rolls us right into the buyer-broker agreement now. The foreshadowing, because some people think buying a house is no big deal. We buy cars, we buy houses, we do it every once in a while. You know, it is what it is. We roll with the punches. But other people get extremely stressed out. Buyer’s remorse kicks in. They’ve got that mother-in-law or father-in-law in their ear: "Did you do this? Did you do that?" And so they get super stressed out. But if you’re already foreshadowing like, “Hey, we’re going to hit a pothole on day three, and this is how we’ll overcome it,” it helps.

[00:33:58] Meredith Rowe: Yeah.

[00:33:58] Tracy Hayes: Yeah.

[00:33:58] Meredith Rowe: So, I think with the buyer agreements, I was already doing buyer consultations. I'm big on safety—that’s another thing my first brokerage taught me. Part of how I built my business was through open houses, but they encouraged us to use the Forewarn system for safety. My husband will sometimes ride with me if I haven’t met the customer before. Or I’ll meet them for coffee first and then go to show houses.

But I was already doing a buyer consultation because I’m curious. I want to know what you’re looking for, to make sure we’re a good fit. I don’t want to waste your time or mine. I present these agreements as just more disclosure, and, thankfully, most of my business has been with relocation clients. A lot of those consultations happen virtually before the customer even flies into town, so they're not usually shopping for another agent by the time they arrive.

But in the instances where I haven’t met them, I just position it as more disclosure. There will always be new curveballs thrown at you in real estate, business, or life. The key is being adaptable and rolling with the punches.

[00:35:17] Tracy Hayes: Let’s talk about relocation clients for a moment. You mentioned virtual consultations. Are you Zooming with them?

[00:35:40] Meredith Rowe: Yes, absolutely. I think that has changed things a lot. If I’ve just done a phone call, it feels different.

[00:35:40] Tracy Hayes: Do you feel a difference in how things go?

[00:35:40] Meredith Rowe: Yeah, a little. One unique thing is that about 95% of my business comes from social media. So, people feel like they know me more than I know them because they’ve seen my face. I’m not afraid to get on there and share. My biggest tip to others is to just get on social media, show your face, and post those videos, even if you don't like watching them. Just post them. Being out there is better than being invisible. People connect with me because they’ve seen me share parts of my life.

They’ll show up for the appointment and already know my son’s birthday, or ask, "What did you do for homecoming?" They know things about me, which creates an instant connection. It disarms them, and that makes them more open. The virtual face-to-face appointments have been huge because our brains don’t really distinguish between a screen and in-person interaction.

[00:36:40] Tracy Hayes: Yeah, I’ve heard you say that in the podcast. It’s true. I actually stole that line from someone else. But during COVID, everyone was doing virtual calls, and studies showed that our brains don’t register much difference between a face on a screen and in person.

[00:37:00] Meredith Rowe: Exactly. If they’ve just found me through Google or my social media and we’ve only had a phone call, it’s a very different experience than if we’ve had a virtual meeting or they’ve seen me on social media. If it’s based on a referral, then it’s fine because there’s already a trust factor built in. But there’s definitely a noticeable difference without that face-to-face connection.

[00:45:32] Tracy Hayes: Well, so I asked you the question, what you would have done in the past, maybe you would have done it. So let's talk moving forward. What are some of the things that you would like to add to your business right now? Such as farming and neighborhood. Cause I think, having had Krista Mashour on, and Gogo Bethke, but Krista Mishura Pacifici, she's all about farming neighborhoods. It's what she coaches and teaches and has kits, and, you know, the "join her club" thing to do. I think because of the way Florida's developed, unless you're living out in Middleburg where everyone's got their own, if you're living in St. John's County, everyone's living in a PUD, planned urban development. Exactly. 90 percent of them are.

[00:46:11] Meredith Rowe: I think farming is some of the things that I'm focusing on in my marketing, but trying to do that in a really unique way. So to add community involvement, to say, "How am I reaching out to the mom group in that neighborhood? Can I show up and be there?" Yeah. I'm not the cringy real estate agent who's going to be like, "I'm a realtor!" You know, that's just not me. It'll come up naturally in conversation at some point, and hopefully, they'll be like, "Oh, you didn't even bring that up." Like most—sorry, realtors—but a lot of us are really cringy.

[00:46:42] Tracy Hayes: You're going to have to give me an example of cringy, but go ahead.

[00:46:46] Meredith Rowe: So, just different things outside the box. I've always kind of operated outside the box in every aspect of my life. And so I try to not do a lot of what everybody else is doing and really think, "What would I like? How would I benefit? What might somebody else do that would make me want to call them in the future?" And make it human. You know, like our motto, which is the brokerage I'm at now, is "Work hard, be kind." Like, work hard and be kind, and people are going to like you. But part of it too is being different, remembering their birthdays, just doing some of those different things. Maybe we sponsor a wine night, maybe we sponsor an ice cream social, or we bring in a food truck, you know, whatever that looks like. But to do things that are outside the box.

[00:47:29] Tracy Hayes: All right. So, I want to take photography in real estate, and you chime in where—because here's the difference I see to create this question—in photography, people hire you for this service and you were really specializing in infants, and they're only infants for a few days, you know? So, although I’m sure your circle naturally asks, "Hey, do you do photography?" But in real estate, it's a bigger transaction, a much larger scope of people to work with. You can be working with 80-year-olds, single moms, whatever, everything in between, right? All ages, family sizes, no family, that type of thing. Real estate takes a relationship-building process. Now, you may get a lead because you—I don’t know if you buy leads or whatever, but you may get a lead coming in from a lead buy, and it’s that, it’s a direct thing. “Hey, I bought leads, I got a lead.” But the truly successful agents, as I’m sure you saw at Atlantic Shores, right? They had business because they were involved in all these things. They loved what they did.

[00:48:00] Tracy Hayes: They got involved, and you live your life as you are a real estate agent after 5 o’clock, not just because you closed the door to the studio or closed the door to your office at home. That doesn’t shut you off as a real estate agent. You’re going out with friends or whatever, or you’re going over, you know, maybe someone’s having a Halloween party. Halloween’s coming up, right? You’re going to a Halloween party. You are still representing yourself. Now, you’re not going around handing out business cards, particularly being forward like that, but if someone starts talking to you—the great thing about our iPhones, we just tap them and say, "Hey, call me, and we’ll set up an appointment and talk." But you are always representing yourself and creating those relationships. So what have you learned from that—that 24/7, you’re a real estate agent—whereas with photography, I don’t see it being quite the 24/7 representation. You know what I’m saying?

[00:49:27] Meredith Rowe: I joke and say I don’t know what boundaries are. I mean, like, kind of like setting personal time like, "Hey, when I’m off, I’m off." But we don’t really have that freedom as agents. Because it was newborns, and I did a lot of birth photography too, so I was on call, like your doctor would be, for a birth.

[00:49:46] Tracy Hayes: Oh, wow. You’d show up for a birth?

[00:49:49] Meredith Rowe: I did. I had one client who had to decide between having a home birth with a doula and a photographer, and so I was both for her. I went and did my doula training so that I could be both for her. And to this day, I just sold her house. I love her. She became my friend. But I think because I am an extroverted extrovert—I don’t know if I blame it on being from the South or what—but I make friends easily. So even in my photography business, I would have clients asking my opinion or advice about their babies. And just because I didn’t advertise as a family photographer doesn’t mean I didn’t take photos at every stage—newborn, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 5 years, and so on.

[00:51:00] Meredith Rowe: In real estate, you’ll see my feed and notice that I’m a luxury agent, but I also have a $270,000 listing. A lot of the advertising I do is to market myself as a luxury agent, but I will work with anyone. I treat every client the same way, whether they’re buying a $2.3 million house or something else. I am always available for my customers, and that’s not new to me. It’s something I’ve always done because my goal is always to have a relationship with them. If they want to be my friend, I’ve done my job.

[00:51:23] Tracy Hayes: When you were doing photography and you were at a social gathering or event, were people coming up and asking, “How’s the photography business?” Just like how they ask about your real estate work now?

[00:51:47] Meredith Rowe: Yes, people would always come up and say, "You have the best job ever; you get to snuggle babies!" They loved to ask how the business was going or if I had photographed any cute babies that week.

[01:00:28] 2024-09-24 10-33-42 Live: Gonna treat them...

[01:00:30] Meredith Rowe: But, you know, there are different things to know, right? There are different, how many pounds they hold, how close the club is, and other various things. They want to know those details. And if you can proactively answer those questions… I was showing a 5.8-million-dollar home this week, and I was able to say, "Biking to Ponte Vedra and the club." I know that’s important to that customer, versus, you know, a person buying a $200,000 house.

[01:00:56] Tracy Hayes: There are a lot more features involved, like buying a car. The more you spend on a car, the more features there are, even if we don't use all of them. It's like these computers nowadays—it's like our brains; we only use a small portion. You can tell them it’s got everything they might need someday.

[01:01:13] Meredith Rowe: Right, and if you know that, you can tell them, and even if they forget it in 10 minutes, they'll still think, "Oh, this is so amazing."

[01:01:20] Tracy Hayes: It sounds like, listening to you today, that you understand every customer is part of your marketing campaign. You're giving 110 percent, going above and beyond. Not every agent does that. For you, it seems like it's an internal thing, how you were brought up. The agents at Atlantic Shores dealing with luxury clients realize they need to impress the customer because it leads to the next customer. That 2-million-dollar buyer isn't looking for a real estate agent online; they want personal recommendations.

[01:02:00] Meredith Rowe: Exactly. The best marketing you can get is having someone recommend you. People often ask, "What does a real estate agent want as a closing gift?" The answer: your referral. I want you to go on that Facebook group, and when someone is looking for an agent, tag me if you had a good experience—honestly, don't lie, but if it was great, that’s the best thing you can do for me. Your word is more powerful than me advertising myself. As a photographer, I never advertised, not once. Everything was organic, through word of mouth, sponsoring events, and donating to auctions. My goal in real estate is the same: for your experience to be so good that you recommend me. If you don’t, then I’ve failed.

[01:03:33] Tracy Hayes: My wife has had numerous clients who came from those review sites. They've told her, "I saw your review on such and such a site, and that’s why I called you." It’s important to get clients to go on social media and talk about their experience. I recommend doing short videos with clients saying, "It was great working with you," or sharing the challenges they faced.

[01:04:34] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely! Sharing both the good reviews and what went wrong, how you handled the bumps in the road, is valuable. That could be something I incorporate—having clients share their real experiences.

[01:05:07] Tracy Hayes: If I owned a title company, I'd have a room with a camera setup, maybe a green screen. Clients could step in and talk about their experience with their agent, and you could have the company logo or a picture of the house in the background.

[01:05:31] Meredith Rowe: That’s a great idea!

[01:05:33] Tracy Hayes: We should pitch that to Landmark Title. They've got room for something like that.

[01:06:00] Tracy Hayes: Let's talk about the buyer broker agreement. You’ve been doing things differently now. After the summer, what changed about how you handle buyer agreements?

[01:06:06] Meredith Rowe: I wasn’t actually having them sign an agreement before. Now, I’m asking for signatures and explaining things a bit more. I tell them, "If you decide to work with me, we’ll sign an agreement, but for now, I have a pre-touring agreement." I add terms specific to the homes we’re seeing, almost like going on a date before committing to marriage. I also let them know that if they aren't happy with my service, I won’t force them to stay with me.

[01:07:00] Tracy Hayes: Do you present the pre-touring agreement as something temporary and explain that you’re not asking for full commitment yet?

[01:07:08] Meredith Rowe: Yes, exactly. I tell them, "If you decide to work with me, we’ll sign the full agreement later. But for today, let’s sign this pre-touring agreement." I add specific addresses of the homes we’re visiting. If later, you’re not happy, you can tell me, and I’ll release you from the contract.

[01:08:10] Tracy Hayes: It sounds like you’re being real with them, explaining things authentically. Some agents are doing their first buyer broker consultation right now, so it’s great to hear these stories. Some agents still have animosity towards these agreements.

[01:08:58] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. And you’ll find different answers depending on which attorney or broker you ask. That’s why it’s important to familiarize yourself with the process. I’ve been attending trainings for months to make sure I’m giving the right information.

[01:10:00] Meredith Rowe: I think role-playing with other agents is helpful. You’ve got to be real about your explanation and stay within what’s required. When I take clients on tours, I’m confident that if they spend time with me, they’ll want to work with me.

[01:10:25] Tracy Hayes: Confidence is key. If you weren’t confident, you wouldn’t be in real estate.

[01:10:28] Meredith Rowe: Right, exactly. I’m not trying to sound arrogant, but I’m pretty confident that once people spend time with me, they’ll want to continue working with me.

[01:10:35] Tracy Hayes: Let’s talk about the listing side. The conversation has changed a bit now. Have you had any pushback from clients about commissions?

[01:11:07] Meredith Rowe: Some pushback, yes. The media has given a false view of the NAR settlement. Commission always has been and always will be negotiable, and I’ve had to explain that to sellers who think they no longer have to pay a buyer's agent. If two houses are for sale, and one offers a higher buyer agent commission, that could impact which house gets shown. Sellers want to make sure their house gets seen.

[01:12:00] Tracy Hayes: Exactly. Buyers are more likely to choose a house that offers more to the buyer’s agent, especially when there are similar homes nearby.

[01:13:11] Meredith Rowe: Yes, there’s a lot of value in making sure the commission is competitive. My brokerage is recommending a complete decoupling between buyer and seller commissions to make it more transparent. As a buyer's agent, though, that approach can sometimes be challenging. Still, I always try to negotiate for my clients.

[01:14:00] Tracy Hayes: You’ve run your own business for a while, so you understand the value of your time and services.

[01:14:00] Meredith Rowe: Absolutely. I’ve had to tell clients before, "I know my value, and if we’re not a good fit, that’s okay." I value my family time, and I know what my time is worth.

[01:14:23] Tracy Hayes: Anything else you’d like to add?

[01:14:25] Meredith Rowe: No, I think that’s it.

[01:14:26] Tracy Hayes: Thanks for coming on. I’ll send you the raw footage. I think there are some great clips you can use for your YouTube channel.

[01:14:59] Meredith Rowe: I love it! You’re going to be the catalyst for me launching a YouTube channel.

[01:15:03] Tracy Hayes: Awesome! Thanks again, Meredith. Everyone, please leave a review, like, and check out our YouTube and Instagram pages. The edited version of this episode will be out on Friday, along with the podcast audio.

[01:15:24] Meredith Rowe: Awesome! Thanks.