Marketing Hype in the Real Estate World

Santa Clarita homeowners are constantly bombarded with all sorts of marketing pieces related to real estate. These can be from Realtors, lenders, attorneys, insurance agents, and more.

How do you know what to believe and what is simply marketing hype? The first step is simply to use your common sense.

Have you ever received a pre-printed or photocopied postcard or letter stating that Mary and John are interested in buying a home just like yours? There are times when this is absolutely true, but most of the time there is no specific buyer and that Realtor is simply looking to list your home for sale.

If everyone in your neighborhood received the same letter or postcard, then this is a big clue that they’re not looking for a home "just like yours" for a particular buyer. How can that buyer be looking to buy every model in your development? This can be fairly effective marketing for the Realtor, but not so great from the homeowner’s point of view. In fact, this type of marketing is taught in many of the real estate courses as one of the better ways to get listings.

How about the letters from lenders claiming that they have $20k or more in free money waiting for you, and all you have to do is cash the check enclosed in the letter? Again, a marketing technique that will obligate you to a high-interest-rate loan if you do go ahead and cash that check.

Same goes for the letters stating that you can save a bundle by refinancing. Sometimes you can, but you’ll have to do your homework to know for sure!

And of course there are the various law firm marketing pieces that claim that you can receive bucketloads of free money by suing your boss or your builder, or by claiming serious personal injuries from that minor car accident you had 10 years ago.

Even better are the ads for homes for sale. Ever try to figure out what "adult occupied" meant? While it’s meant to imply "clean and untainted by children’s handprints", quite often it means "smelly and filthy and this is the only positive thing we can say about the house"!

Santa Clarita homeowners receive tons of marketing materials on their doorsteps and in their mailboxes on a regular basis. Some of it is very much on target with the homeowner’s needs, some of it is useful and informative, some of it is marketing hype, and some of it is just pure entertainment.

Basic common sense is the first line of defense in determining whether the marketing piece is fair and accurate, or if it’s simply marketing hype. And of course, when in doubt, make sure you do some investigation before you sign any contracts or cash any "free money" checks!