Hotel du Louvre

Jim Walberg – East Bay Realtor In Paris – Part 3

Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate International Conference – Paris, France.  Day-2 – all day seminars and networking opportunities.

After Wednesday night’s cocktail reception and formal dinner, the real work of the Luxury Real Estate  Paris Conference began.  With delegates from 14 countries in attendance – from Australia to Poland, Day-2 of the conference focused on how we can expand our real estate company networks in order to create a more global presence in each of our local markets.  The Hotel du Louvre  was the perfect venue for the work of the conference.  It was agreed by the delegates that the international members have barely scratched the surface of what is possible when all of us expand our sharing of information, experiences, and our luxury listings.

Day 2 of the Paris conference opened with John Brian Losh  welcoming the delegates from 14 countries. What an impressive group of professionals who have come together to share their best ideas.  The 60 delegates had the opportunity to introduce themselves and give a brief assessment as to the condition of their real estate markets given the world economic crisis. It was again a reminder that ALL real estate is local. We also had the chance to highlight one or two of our top listings that may be of interest to a room of Realtors from around the world.

Day 2:  The first conference session was titled Your International Marketing Plan – Marketing Your Listings Abroard.  Michael Audet  from the WAV Group was the moderator, with myself – owner of The Bay Area Team, Olivia Hsu Decker – owner of Decker Bullock Sotheby’s International Realty – California, USA, and John Brian Losh  - founder and president of Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate, Seattle, Washington, as the panel members.  The second session of the conference was titled Developing Your Global Brand – Perspectives From International Companies.  Marilyn Wilson  from the WAV Group was the moderator, with myself,  Ann Chiasson  – owner of Sea to Sky Premier Properties – Whistler, Canada,  and Ole Jespersen  - owner of IRG International Realty Group, Portugal.  Some of the highlights that were a part of the open discussion were;

• In the midst of the global economic crisis we need to change/adapt or die. Personal

  relationships are still the key to serving our customers at the highest levels. The Internet is merely the beginning of connecting to people – but it is THE critical tool to master given how people want to start a relationship with a Realtor.  Make sure your business is leading with revenue regarding any financial decisions. Running out of money is why good businesses close their doors. Cash is KING.

• The business and marketing tools provided to the Luxury Real Estate membership are vast in order to assist all of us in the expansion of our businesses. The key is for each of us to understand what they are and then implement them. The day ended with me having pages of notes, and  a significant expansion of my professional and personal global network.  It has already opened many new doors for the marketing of our Caribbean real estate projects.  We then enthusiastically moved on to the nightlife of Paris.  Stay tuned for the next report!  The next one will be about our adventure in Switzerland.

Hotel du Louvre

Jim Walberg – East Bay Realtor In Europe – Part 2

London to Paris for the start of the Luxury Real Estate International Paris Conference at the Hotel du Louvre.

We took the EuroStar  train from London directly to Paris and a taxi to the conference hotel – Hotel du Louvre.  What a civilized and efficient transportation system Europe has.  We arrived a day early in Paris so we could do more walking in this city that we love so much.  It was hovering around 32F degrees the entire three days we were in Paris!  We are so glad we live in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Our first destination was the Notre Dame.  It is a place we visit each time we are in Paris, not only for the overwhelming beauty, but to light candles for both of our fathers and Ann Marie’s sister who have died.  It was so inspiring to walk in and have this monumental place uplift our spirits.

On Wednesday the 21st, the excitement began with cocktails and the formal welcome dinner for the 60 luxury real estate delegates from 14 different countries.  The Bay Area Team  is a member of “Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate”,  and the president of LRE invited me to be on two of three conference panels during the event.  The panel topics were creating a global brand for your real estate company, and what are the most effective methods of successfully marketing luxury properties internationally.  I was honored to be a delegate and to again be a contributor as I was last November in Philadelphia.

During the cocktail party each of the world markets represented had unique perspectives as to how the world’s economic meltdown is effecting their bottom line profits,  remembering that all real estate is local.  And, there are markets that are still thriving and markets that are in dire straights.

It was refreshing to bring the news of what is happening with the East Bay real estate market to the group.  We are actually holding our own in the midst of the world chaos.  There are pockets of healthy activity and there are some regions that are a mess in the East Bay.  However, after listening to other company’s real estate updates, the East Bay is very fortunate to still be in such a desirable location. 

As of the first of the year, the East Bay markets have become very active in the 680 corridor.  We have assisted with four purchases already this year totalling $5.2 million in sales.  We will see if the Buyers continue to finally take action throughout the first quarter.  Until next time… your East Bay Realtor in Europe is on duty, and he is very cold.  Contact me  anytime for more information today!