Of Bytes and Brokers : Computer Programs Designed for Realty Firms Speed Agents’ Work, Expand Client Access to Listings and Mortgage Information

Ten thousand index cards. That’s what Sylmar realtor Rich Weiler would be dealing with today had he not gotten a computer a year and a half ago.

Instead of using index cards, his company, Realty Professionals, now keeps track of clients by using sophisticated software that sorts clients into various categories such as those interested in purchasing property in a specific geographic area, those interested in purchasing property in three months, six months, a year, those interested in commercial property and so on.

By categorizing clients and keeping detailed information on them, Weiler can now refer to his data base and match appropriate clients with available properties more quickly and easily.

Like a growing number of realtors, Weiler has turned to computerization to help run his company more efficiently and more profitably.

“The computer helps me keep in contact with all my clients,” Weiler says. To do this, he uses a customized version of “Real Quick” in conjunction with “Q & A.” He can then program his computer to remind him when it’s time to telephone clients. Or his computer can assist him with written correspondence. For example, it easily generates form letters that keep clients up to date on their escrows.

Overall, Weiler says, his computer has made it easier for him to handle more clients and, in turn, do more business.

Although computers are not new to the real estate industry--for more than a decade, agents have had access to computerized versions of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS)--in recent years there has been a substantial increase in the number of real estate professionals who use computers.

According to a 1990 nationwide survey conducted by the National Assn. of Realtors (NAR), 78% of real estate firms use computers. In comparison, firms with computer capability amounted to only 44% in 1983, 55% in 1984, 59% in 1985 and 65% in 1986. Locally, of the 1,200 realty offices that are members of the San Fernando Valley Board of Realtors, 85% of those offices are now using computers in some capacity. (The SFV board has 8,500 individual members.)

Among Los Angeles’ largest real estate offices, the move toward computerization started slowly but has picked up obvious momentum.

At R&R; Gable Inc., headquartered in Northridge, company President and founder Roger Hance said he has spent about $2 million on automation. All 400 agents in the company’s nine offices have access to a computer network that links 500 terminals and personal computers.

Gable, as well as other companies such as Coldwell Banker and Jon Douglas Co., now have in-house management information systems (MIS) departments to meet their programming needs.

As interest in computers increases, so too has the number of software programs designed or adapted especially for realtors. Among the most popular programs are those that:

--track real estate clients and contacts.

--produce computerized comparative market analyses (CMAs), which compare a specific listing to other properties within the same geographic locale with regard to list and/or selling price, size and features.

--determine whether a buyer will meet the financial requirements of a lending institution to qualify to buy a specific property.

--assist realtors in creating their own brochures, flyers and other printed marketing materials.

More than 700 software programs designed especially for realtors are listed in the Real Estate Applications Software Directory, a publication compiled by the Real Estate Center, a nonprofit state agency at Texas A&M; University.

Among the most popular and best selling programs are “The Real Estate Edge” (contact management), list price: $395; “Realty Ally” (tracking program with word-processing system), list price: $395 (single-user version), $1,895 (network version); “Realty Works” (including tracking, computerized CMAs and MLS access), list price: $149; “Sales Dominator” (including tracking, word processing, daily planner and finance qualifying), list price: $495, and “Top Producer” (including tracking, appointment organizer and direct mail), list price: $495.

Realizing the increased interest in computers, the NAR, in association with a dozen computer firms, has developed the Realtor Computerization Project aimed at educating and motivating agents to buy and use computers. The four-hour video-based seminar program is now being distributed to 1,800 real estate boards and 50 state associations nationwide.

One of the more popular programs, tracking software, allows agents to keep tabs on their past, current and potential clients. Various program features assist realtors by planning an agent’s daily schedule, preparing correspondence for targeted mailings and even tracing transactions from the initial contact through closing. Because the program can store in memory everything a realtor does on a specific property, detailed activity reports can be compiled with ease.

Steve Owen, owner of Century 21 Choice Realty in Mission Hills, uses about 30 software programs in his business and always carries his notebook computer in his briefcase. Owen uses software called “REACT.”

“It’s the most valuable of all the programs I use. It tracks everything you do with a client or piece of property,” he said. “REACT” is like his personal secretary, Owen said. When it’s time for important meetings, open houses and the like, the program will remind him by signaling his beeper.

There’s a benefit for his clients, too. “They have access to more information, more quickly,” he said.

Paul Thorpe, a resident of Mission Hills who has his home listed with Owen, agreed.

“I know Steve is using all the latest technology and I appreciate it,” Thorpe said. “Every so often, he gives you a computer printout with all the things that have been done on your listing. For example, arrangements he’s made for an open house, a new flyer he’s made or contacts he’s made with other realtors.”

Mark Kaplan, regional manager for Fred Sands Estates Offices in Beverly Hills, said that a key feature of his tracking program is one that first divides his data base by category into buyers, sellers and prospects and then automatically addresses the appropriate form letters to each individual.

Because Kaplan no longer has to individually address each piece of correspondence, his software saves him a lot of time and increases the volume of mail he is able to generate.

“It’s great for marketing,” Kaplan said. “It allows me the capability of taking on more responsibility and work.”

Clifford Rowe, an agent at Rodeo Realty in Brentwood (a division of Prudential California Realty), relies on a program called “RES” (Real Estate Specialist).

“The only way to effectively stay in contact with my clients is to use this software,” he said. The computer makes it a lot easier for Rowe to compose, address and send written correspondence. He, like Weiler and Owen, also uses his computer to remind him to call clients on specific dates.

With his computer, Rowe has been able to expand his client base and keep track of them with greater ease. Having a larger client base, he explained, often means more potential listings and buyers.

Software that prepares CMAs is very popular among realtors. In the past, a handwritten analysis could take two to three hours to complete. Now an agent can have a thorough analysis in 20-40 minutes. The computerized version also will generally provide him with more comparable properties. Some programs even enable a realtor to make dollar adjustments when a comparable property’s features do not exactly match those of the seller’s.

Operations support technician Joey Albert at Jon Douglas Co. said the company began using an in-house CMA program at their 30 offices in the spring of 1991.

“At some listing presentations, there may be three or four other brokers,” he said. “(Computerized CMAs) give our people an edge by having an up-to-date presentation that is professionally done. The handwritten ones look tacky.”

Prudential California Realty started using a similar software system in October. In their Brentwood Office, marketing coordinator Laura Daley is responsible for preparing all the computerized CMAs for the agents. Like many other realtors there, agent Andrea Tzadik said the computerized CMAs look a lot more professional than those done by hand.

To determine if a potential buyer can afford a particular house, there are several programs that can quickly evaluate the buyer’s income, expenses and debts to come up with an accurate answer.

Owen uses a portable handheld unit (Hewlett-Packard 19B 2) that requires a separate software package. After entering a series of variables including price of the property, down payment, interest rate, client income and monthly debts, Owen can immediately present his client with monthly mortgage payment information. “It’s a realistic look at what they can afford,” he said.

Another way agents are getting a competitive edge using computers is by creating their own flyers and brochures. For this, Weiler uses a program called “Sell More.” After he establishes the basic format for the brochure, the template can be used over and over for different properties by simply substituting all the pertinent information.

“Now, I can take a listing and in a couple of days I can have a brochure,” he said. “I don’t have to wait for the printing shop anymore.”

Two of the newest software innovations for the San Fernando Valley Board of Realtors and the 4,000-member Los Angeles Board of Realtors are a mapping program and a program that facilitates photo imaging by which realtors can access photos of properties over their computer screens.

This June, the San Fernando board began testing a mapping program that has been in development for the past 18 months, said Lorrie Griffey, SFV board president and realtor at Pinnacle Estate Properties in Northridge.

The program, currently being tested in five sites throughout the San Fernando Valley, uses a specific property address to plot a location graphically on a map.

There are several advantages of this program, Griffey said. For the seller, the program can pinpoint the geographic location of the comparables. For the buyer, the program can determine a property’s proximity to churches, temples, schools, hospitals, fire stations, parks, shopping centers, freeways, bus lines and more. And for realtors, when it’s time to preview properties, after entering the first desired stop, the program can subsequently figure out the best routing plan.

Greg Pawlik, president of the Los Angeles Board of Realtors and assistant manager at Jon Douglas’ Pacific Palisades office, said his board expects to implement a similar mapping program within a year. The board is interviewing suppliers of mapping systems in Los Angeles.

The computer transmission of photo images of properties will soon be possible using Pacific Bell’s Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) system. The process entails first taking the photos with a special digital camera equipped with a floppy disk or developing regular photos and then scanning them and digitizing them for computer transmission. The high-speed digital network, called ‘Pacific Bell Realty Link,’ is now in the development phase and is expected to be fully operational by early 1993, Griffey said.

Explained Jack Robertson, ISDN marketing manager for Pacific Bell, although such technology has been around for about 10 years, until now, its main application has been video-teleconferencing.

Because ISDN can integrate voice, data, video and imaging all over the same phone line with a data rate speed of up to 64,000 bits a second, realtors will be able to download full color pictures of properties from the SFV board’s MLS service within about eight seconds, he said. (Commonly used modems generally transmit data at 1,200 or 2,400 bits a second.)

After viewing photos of the interiors and exteriors of a variety of properties on the computer screen, buyers can select those they wish to visit and exclude those they find unappealing.

“Photo imaging will eliminate unnecessary travel and save us time,” said Owen of Century 21 Choice Realty.

As such innovations become available, the move toward computerization will only accelerate, experts say. Companies such as Coldwell Banker, which began using computers in their 80 offices for sales and listings information this past January, are investing heavily, said Carl Maggio, vice president and branch manager of the company’s Hancock Park office. “In another five years, everyone will have a terminal on their desk,” he said.

However, making the transition to computers is not always easy. Between 25% and 35% of Jon Douglas agents do not use computers, said Albert, Douglas’ operations support technician, mainly because they are intimidated. To assist agents, the company plans to begin offering extensive computer training this year. As a result, it’s expected there’ll be many more computer converts.

At R&R; Gable Inc., computer training is a priority. New hires are required to complete a full-time training program that lasts four weeks. Hance, Gable’s president, is adamant that his agents learn how to access the extensive pool of information available through the company’s sophisticated computer network.

His two full-time programmers are constantly developing and updating the computer system to meet the needs of the agents. For example, since each property in the system is coded by number, an agent can simply enter the appropriate code, push a button and within two minutes have a detailed information sheet regarding the specific property. Another innovation allows agents to take advantage of the company’s unique version of a multiple listing service of buyers.

“We’re in the information management business,” Hance said. “Our computers are a marketing advantage that improves salespeople’s skills.”

The local real estate boards are also trying to help their members become more computer-literate. The San Fernando Valley board offers a variety of free computer classes to its members, including how to use the MLS service, how to put a listing into the MLS system, how to use a personal computer in the real estate business and how to utilize tax assessor’s data. Pawlik said the L.A. board will soon be offering computer classes, too.

There are realtors, however, who still balk at the idea of automation. Explained Mary Lou Williams, assistant executive vice president of the SFV board, about 10% of its members continue to shy away from using the computerized version of the MLS. Instead, they rely on printed versions of the MLS that are issued twice weekly. With so many new developments, computer illiterate realtors, however, may soon be forced to take heed.

“A lot of people are trying to fight the Computer Age, but they can’t. It’s here to stay,” Maggio said.