Real Estate News & Advice

CORNELIUS, NC April 21, 2004 -? How do you sell the American dream when it is in the framing stage?

That?s the question a recently pilot program launched by Castleview Construction is designed to answer. ?Framework? takes a group of REALTORS in literally from the groundwork up on new home construction. The goal of the program is to educate REALTORS on selling new construction during the early phases of construction. Newport Properties heard of the program and quickly volunteered to be the first group to try out the innovative concept.

?We discovered that it isn?t something REALTORS have a handle on simply because they are apprehensive on the ins and outs of the building process,? explained Pete Galloway, co-owner of Castleview. ?Its daunting. You might enter a home under construction with just the framing, wiring everywhere. How do you sell that when you are used to selling a nice, complete home??

Many REALTORS are unaccustomed to selling speculation, or ?spec?, homes during the building process. But, as Galloway is quick to point out that is the best time for a homeowner to come on board.

?What we?re showing the REALTORS with Newport Properties is that the earlier a buyer signs on, the more they can make the home a true ?custom? home,? he said. ?For instance, we?re showing them at what phase you pick the hardwood, the faucets and the countertops. Most people haven?t a clue at what stage of construction those decisions are made, unless they?ve been involved in homebuilding either as a builder or a homeowner. It happens much earlier than you think.

?Our goal is to get the REALTORS involved, excited about being involved in the planning and decision-making process of new construction so that enthusiasm will transfer over to their customers.?

Newport Properties? Kate Gaither is extremely pleased with the pilot program thus far.

?In my years of residential real estate, no one has ever approached us with such a comprehensive training program,? she said. ?We?re all gaining valuable information on new construction, from how to properly read a blueprint and in what ways a home plan can be customized to the different phases of construction.?

The group meets once a week either in a classroom setting or on the job site. Castleview is encouraging Team Newport to view the home as its own. They?re picking cabinets, fixtures, flooring and exterior materials. The home is that of Galloway?s partner in Castleview, Jerry McSorley, and is being constructed in The Peninsula.

?I want them to get a taste for building as a homeowner,? Galloway said. ?I want them to come away from this knowing that building a custom home requires planning, but the end result is something that?s unique. It doesn?t look like the house next door, inside or out. It?s something that is truly custom-built, for that homeowner.?

He also wants to eliminate the hesitation REALTORS have for showing properties under construction.

?A goal of mine is to get them comfortable with showing from a rendering and blueprints,? Galloway said. ?That?s the point at which it is most difficult to walk someone through a spec home because there literally isn?t anything to walk through. You?re looking at site work, a foundation ? it isn?t easy. But, it can be done. Builders do it every day. I think REALTORS, once they learn the process, can sell spec homes at any phase of construction as well, if not better, than a builder.?

Castleview plans on working with Team Newport through the pilot project, then will add other REALTORS upon request. Optimally, new groups would start as new site work begins on spec homes so that each group learns about new home construction from the ground up.

For more information on Castleview, its Builder/REALTOR program, current listings and homes under construction, please visit www.castleview.ws.