The beagel blog

Real estate articles, tips & tricks.
Understanding the Legal Aspects of Selling a Home

Selling a home involves more than just finding a buyer and agreeing on a price. There are several legal aspects that sellers must navigate to ensure a smooth and legally compliant transaction. This guide will help you understand the key legal considerations when selling your home.

Curb Appeal: Make your home stand out!

Enhancing the look of your home from a street perspective is a great way to attract potential buyers. After all, the ‘curb appeal’ of your home is like a major plus for people driving through your neighbourhood or who see your house in a real estate for-sale photo. By putting in a little extra effort, you can improve your home’s curb appeal and increase your chances of an earlier sale at a higher price.

Title Insurance: Do you need it? What is it?

Buying a home is a significant investment. A title insurance policy helps you protect that investment against potential losses that may occur after your house deal closes and you discover that someone else has an ownership claim to the property.

Open House: How to make the most of the visit

Open house is a great opportunity for both the buyer and the seller. It gives the seller the chance to showcase their home and the buyer can view the home in all its glory. Buyers love to scope out potential homes and many offers are made at open houses. After all, open houses are really sales presentations. In order to have a successful open house, there are some tasks that should be completed by the seller beforehand.

The Future of Real Estate Offers: How Beagel is Empowering the Market

In a world where fast beats strong, the real estate game – traditionally seen as a slow-moving juggernaut – is ripe for change. This is where Beagel steps in, ready to turn the creaky wheels of real estate offers into a turbocharged engine of efficiency, transparency, and trust.

How You Can Boost Faith in the Offer Process with Notifications and Transparency

Learn how increasing buyer trust can benefit sellers in the home selling process, by opening a wider pool of potential buyers, increasing the chances of completing the sale, and avoiding disputes and legal issues.

24/7 Real Estate: The Advantages of An 'Always On' Business Model

In the fast-paced world of real estate, responsiveness is key, and the traditional 9-to-5 model no longer meets the demands of today's clients. Enter Beagel, an innovative and forward-thinking solution that has redefined the real estate landscape with its 'Always On' business model. In this article, we'll delve into the distinct advantages that Beagel brings to real estate professionals, enabling them to be available to clients 24/7.

Navigating Agent Fees: Success vs. Hourly Charges

In the realm of real estate, agents play a pivotal role in connecting buyers and sellers. Their expertise, negotiation skills, and market knowledge are invaluable assets. Traditionally, agents have been compensated through success fees—a percentage of the transaction value. This model aligns with the idea that their reward is directly tied to successful outcomes. When a property sale or purchase goes through, the agent receives their well-earned commission.

Why Home Buyers Trust Matters To Home Sellers

Learn how increasing buyer trust can benefit sellers in the home selling process, by opening a wider pool of potential buyers, increasing the chances of completing the sale, and avoiding disputes and legal issues.

How Increasing Your Home’s Offer History Visibility Attracts More Buyers

If you are selling your home, you may wonder how to make it stand out from the crowd and attract more buyers. One of the ways to do that is to increase your home’s offer history visibility. This means disclosing and displaying the previous offers you have received or rejected for your property, as well as the current offers you are considering or negotiating.

How to Use Technology to Streamline and Simplify the Home Selling Process

Selling your home can be a daunting and complex task, especially in today’s competitive and dynamic real estate market. You have to deal with multiple steps, such as listing, marketing, negotiating, inspecting, appraising, financing, closing, and more. You also have to coordinate and communicate with various parties, such as buyers, agents, brokers, lenders, lawyers, inspectors, appraisers, and title companies.

How to Increase Transparency and Trust in the Home Selling Process

Selling your home can be a stressful and complex process, especially in today’s competitive and dynamic real estate market. You have to deal with multiple parties, such as buyers, agents, brokers, lenders, lawyers, inspectors, appraisers, and title companies. You also have to manage various steps, such as listing, marketing, negotiating, inspecting, appraising, financing, closing, and more.

How to Stand Out As A Real Estate Agent

The real estate industry is booming, but not all agents are enjoying the benefits. According to a recent study by HousingWire, there are more than 1.5 million active real estate agents in the U.S., but only about 10% of them have more than 10 sales per year. The majority of agents have fewer than five sales, and some have none at all.

The pros and cons of disclosing offer history to potential buyers

If you are selling your home, you may receive multiple offers from different buyers. This can be both exciting and stressful, as you have to decide which offer to accept and how to negotiate with the rest. One of the questions that may arise is whether or not you should disclose the existence and amount of other offers to potential buyers. In this article, we will explore the pros and cons of disclosing offers, and how beagel.io can help you manage the process with ease and transparency.

How to Increase Your Client Satisfaction and Retention with Beagel.io’s Transparent and Trustworthy Offer Process

The real estate industry is booming, but not all agents are enjoying the benefits. According to a recent study by HousingWire, there are more than 1.5 million active real estate agents in the U.S., but only about 10% of them have more than 10 sales per year. The majority of agents have fewer than five sales, and some have none at all.

How to leverage beagel’s data and insights to optimize your real estate marketing and sales strategy

Learn how Beagel’s data and insights can help you create effective real estate marketing campaigns, generate more leads, and close more deals.

How to Integrate Beagel with Your MLS and Portal Listings to Generate More Offers and Conversions

Learn how Beagel, a fully customisable and integrated digital offer system, can help you integrate your MLS and portal listings to generate more offers and conversions for your real estate business.

How Beagel Helps You Comply with Fair Housing Laws and Avoid Discrimination in Real Estate

Learn how Beagel, a fully customisable and integrated digital offer system, can help you comply with fair housing laws and avoid discrimination in real estate transactions.

How Digital Offers Can Boost Your Real Estate Business

Digital offers are the new way of handling real estate transactions online. They offer many benefits for real estate agents, teams, and brokerages, such as saving time, increasing revenue, and enhancing customer satisfaction. Learn how you can leverage digital offers to grow your real estate business with Beagel, the ultimate digital offer system for real estate brands.

How to use beagel to streamline your real estate transactions and boost efficiency

Beagel offers a fully customizable, integrated, and branded digital offer system for real estate brands, brokers, team leaders, and agents.

How to Negotiate Like an FBI Agent and Close More Deals

As a listing agent, you know that negotiation is a crucial skill that can make or break your success. Whether you are trying to get the best price for your seller, persuade a buyer to make an offer, or handle multiple offers and counteroffers, you need to be able to communicate effectively, influence the other party, and create a win-win situation.

How Beagel.io Can Help You Avoid Communication Pitfalls in Real Estate Transactions

Communication is key in any business, but especially in real estate. As an agent, you need to communicate effectively with your clients, your colleagues, and other parties involved in a transaction. You also need to comply with the rules and regulations of your industry, and avoid any potential legal issues that may arise from miscommunication or misinformation.

Track and Prove Your Communication with Clients

As a real estate agent, communication is essential for your success. You have to communicate well with your clients, your colleagues, and other parties in a transaction. You also have to follow the rules and regulations of your industry, and prevent any potential legal problems that may come from miscommunication or misinformation

How to Protect Your MLS and Grow Your Business with Beagel.io

The real estate industry is facing a tough legal challenge from the Department of Justice (DOJ), which is probing the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and its rules and policies for possible antitrust violations. The DOJ claims that NAR and its affiliated multiple listing services (MLSs) have engaged in anticompetitive practices that harm consumers and agents, such as restricting access to listing data, setting commission standards, or limiting competition from alternative services.

How to Leverage Data from Beagel.io to Win in the AI Race in Real Estate

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the real estate industry, creating new opportunities and challenges for agents, brokers, and consumers. AI is enabling faster, smarter, and more personalized transactions, as well as providing valuable insights and analytics that can help improve decision making and performance.

The Benefits of Beagel for the MLS

In recent years, the real estate industry has been experiencing a rapid digital transformation, and the MLS is no exception. The emergence of digital platforms has revolutionized the way people buy and sell properties, and the introduction of Beagel, a digital real estate offers company, is a testament to this shift. In this article, we will explore the benefits of this system to the MLS.

How Beagel Can Help Associations Manage Their Members Better

If you are a real estate association, you know how challenging and time-consuming it can be to manage your members and their data. You have to deal with multiple applications, forms, documents, and databases, and ensure that they are accurate, complete, and compliant. You also have to communicate and collaborate with your members and other stakeholders, and provide them with value and service.

Revitalizing Revenue: How Property Portals Can Monetize with Digital Offers

Real estate portals are constantly seeking new ways to monetize their platforms and diversify their revenue streams. One approach that many portals have pursued is offering mortgage services. However, the largest global real estate portals, including Zillow, Redfin, and Australia's REA Group, have all struggled to achieve profitability in this area, despite making major forays into mortgage with large acquisitions.

How to Build a Scalable Real Estate Team

Building a scalable real estate team is one of the most effective ways to grow your business and increase your income. However, scaling a team is not as simple as hiring more agents and giving them leads. It requires a strategic plan, a clear vision, and a reliable system that can support your team's growth and performance.

Open-api microservices in real estate

In today's rapidly evolving real estate industry, the need for innovative technology solutions is more important than ever. Open API microservices are emerging as a game-changing offer technology for MLS providers, real estate brokers, and realtors. This technology offers numerous benefits that transform the real estate industry and improve the customer experience.

How MLSs Showcase Their Value

Multiple listing services (MLSs) are the backbone of the real estate industry, providing the listing data and platforms that support more than 90% of real estate deals in the United States every year. However, many realtors may not fully appreciate the importance and benefits of MLSs, and may take them for granted or overlook them.

Ten “No No’s” for the Home Buyer

There are several things that should be avoided before purchasing a home. If you aren’t careful to avoid these common mistakes, it is possible that your closing will be delayed or even canceled. Your adherence to the following rules will put the keys to the house in your hands quickly.

Historical Homes: Things to know before you buy

Historical homes can be breath taking and fascinating. They are a wondrous form of beauty. The ones that have lived for many years can hold secrets and stories passed down for generations. Buying a historical house can be used for later for many different reasons, from personal living to renovating for historical tours. When choosing a historical home for any reason, there are some things you should be aware of.

Adjustable Rate Mortgages: What you need to know

If you’ve been trying to buy a house you may have noticed there are a lot of numbers to consider: the price of the house, your savings, the amounts of the down payment and monthly payments you can afford, as well as a host of other figures and fees. Trying to find a mortgage that meets your needs is another numbers game, but this one can work in your favor.

The Real Threat to Real Estate Agents Is W2 Designation 

There is no doubt that changes are coming, but I believe that the real threat to the industry is not technology, as some may suggest. Instead, the biggest challenge will be the legal battle surrounding the classification of real estate agents.

Digital Offers: The Future of Estate Agency Efficiency and Profitability

The estate agency industry has historically been one that relies on personal relationships and in-person interactions to buy and sell properties. However, with the rise of digital technologies, businesses are increasingly turning to digital tools to improve their efficiency and profitability. 

Investment homes: Things to look for

Investing into real estate can be an expensive lesson. Before deciding to attempt this for a business or hobby there is much research that needs to be done. The type of business this requires is hard work, plenty of time and an abundance of money. However, this type of venture can pay off enormously in the end. The thrill of this type of dealing, buying, fixing and selling is a magnificent step.

The Real Estate Bubble: Do you know how it can effect you?

The real estate bubble is a much discussed phenomenon used to describe a situation in which property values, both or either commercial and residential, expand very rapidly. The result is an over-inflated market that sees buyers purchasing property at prices far above standard value while fearing the market will burst and property values will plummet as fast as they rose. Buying in such a market can be risky for those who cannot afford to lose on their investment.

Why Bright MLS's Decision to Allow $0 Buyer Broker Commissions Is a Bold and Smart Move

The real estate industry is facing a major legal challenge from two class action lawsuits, known as Moehrl and Sitzer, that allege that the industry's commission practices and policies are anticompetitive and harm consumers. The lawsuits claim that the industry's standard practice of requiring home sellers to pay a buyer's agent commission as a condition of listing their homes on the MLS is illegal and inflates the cost of buying and selling homes.

Why a Digital-First Strategy is Non-Negotiable for Real Estate Agents

The real estate industry is undergoing a transformation, and it's becoming increasingly clear that a digital-first strategy is essential for real estate agents looking to sell to younger generations such as Millennials and Gen Z. These younger generations have grown up with technology at their fingertips and expect seamless, intuitive digital experiences in all aspects of their lives, including real estate transactions. In this article, we explore the importance of a digital-first strategy for real estate agents and how it can benefit their business.

Buyer Agents vs Seller Agents: Should they be two different people?

You want to either sell or buy a new home, but you are unsure of what realtor to go with in the process. Understanding the role of a realtor and how they relate to you if you’re a seller or buyer is extremely important. For the first time home buyer or seller you need to be aware of a few facts, and clear out the cobwebs of confusion on the responsibilities and duties of a realtor.

Streamlining Your Offer Process: Essential Features to Look for in Offer Management Software

Real estate agents face a myriad of challenges when it comes to managing their property listings and client relationships. One critical aspect of their job is handling offers for properties. In the past, this was a manual process that relied on paper-based systems, phone calls, and emails. However, with the advent of offer management software, agents can now streamline their processes and reduce transaction times. In this article, we'll take a closer look at the top features to look for in offer management software for estate agents, including how CRM integration can help reduce double entries and how digital offers can reduce transaction delays and fall-through rates.

Meeting the Needs of the Largest Home Buying Demographic with Data-Driven Solutions

As the real estate market continues to change, it becomes increasingly important for agents to target the largest cohort of home buyers: millennials and Gen Z. These digital natives expect on-demand service and value transparency, efficiency, and trust in their interactions with businesses. That's where beagel.io, a Microsoft-supported startup, comes in to help real estate brokers meet these buyer demographics and better serve their seller clients.

Digital customer journey and it's importance in real estate

It is difficult to determine a precise percentage of people who trust real estate agents, as this can vary depending on a number of factors including personal experiences and individual perceptions.

However, research has suggested that trust in the real estate industry as a whole may be relatively low. A 2018 survey by the National Association of Realtors found that only 58% of respondents had a "great deal" or "quite a lot" of trust in real estate agents. Other studies have suggested even lower levels of trust, with some finding that only around 40% of consumers trust real estate agents.

Real-time data is the key to success in real estate

At beagel.io, we firmly believe that data-driven insights are the key to successful real estate transactions. Our cutting-edge technology is designed to empower sellers to make informed decisions and get the best value for their property. By leveraging the power of data, we aim to streamline the real estate transaction process, improve customer service, and provide greater insights to business owners.

The search is on: Ways to make the most of your house hunting trip

It has been said that moving and divorce are the two of the most stressful events a person or family can experience. Divorce is a subject for another time. Let’s consider the event of moving and look at some ways to make your house hunting trip less stressful and more effective.

Location, location, location

How do you investigate a potential neighborhood? There are a number of factors and issues to be considered in your evaluation. Some of them can be covered merely through visual observation; others will have to be explored with the assistance of community and government organizations.

Ten Tips for the First Time Home Buyer

Buying your first home is one of the most exciting things you will ever do. If you have spent years living in apartments, there is nothing more satisfying than owning your own property. The process can be a little lengthy and you might hit a few bumps in the road to home ownership. The following tips will help the first time homeowner avoid some of the hiccups.  

Appraisals: The facts about Real Estate Appraisals

Real Estate Appraisals are a necessary step in the home buying process. There is a lot of confusion out there regarding the truth about appraisals. Some people are confused about their purpose and often think of them as home inspections. Some people think that a low appraisal for their home is the kiss of death. People should take the time to learn the facts about real estate appraisals. The more people learn beforehand, the better prepared they will be to tackle this crucial step 

Resale value - it is important

A home is more than a place to live. It also represents a major financial investment. Most of us will buy and sell several homes over the course of our lifetime, so it is important to consider the resale potential of each home you purchase —before you buy it.

Ten Mistakes To Ensure Your Home Doesn't Sell

Just as there are many things you can do to improve your chances of selling your house at a great price, there is an equal number of things that will drive away potential buyers and leave you scratching your head. 

Easements, rights of way & covenants

When you are in the market to buy a home, you are going to come across a lot of terms and real estate lingo that you have probably never heard of before. Buying property is like stepping into a whole new world with so much to learn, processes to endure and rules and regulations that must be followed to a T.

Why great homes don’t sell

You have a fabulous home in a great location, yet it’s been sitting on the market for months with little or no interest. What can you do?

The Fixer-Upper: How much work is too much?

The term “fixer upper” may often strike fear in the hearts of home buyers. There are no strict measures in defining exactly what a fixer upper is.

Closing costs: what to expect

It might surprise you to find out that there are many fees associated with buying a home. Often future homeowners are shocked at the added costs of buying a home because of the varied closing fees for things such as document preparation and other types of administration fees. 

In the news

What the press says about beagel.
Most buyers are suspicious of competing offers
by AJ LaTrace

According to a new survey, the majority of buyers are concerned about transparency in the homebuying process.
Key points:

A new survey from real estate software company Beagel.io found that 80% of buyers had suspicions about fake offers on a home.
Most buyers said they want to know how many offers are made on a home, and they would like to get offer alerts in real time.
According to the NAR Code of Ethics, this information can only be shared if a seller gives permission to do so. Read more..

Beagel's custom offer management is more than it promises: Tech Review
by Craig C Rowe

Beagel doesn’t really want you to know who they are. In other words, the company provides a fully branded back-end sales solution that is invisible to the outside user. In short, the company aims to be a deeply integrated software partner leading with an in-browser, open-offer solution that allows buyers to bid on homes and agents to manage the process. Read more..

Could AI technology replace property portals?
By Marc Shoffman

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology could change the way buyers search for property and alter the way portals operate, a proptech boss claims. Read more..

Ten Questions with Healy Hynes: CEO & Founder of Beagel
by Edmund Keith

This week we are asking ten questions to get to know another innovative proptech company: Ireland based Beagel, which uses technology to power property transactions. Read more..

Industry papers

Academic resources & presentations on the future of real estate.
Finance & the good society
by Robert J Schiller

Challenging the public and its leaders to rethink finance and its role in society, Shiller argues that finance should be defined not merely as the manipulation of money or the management of risk but as the stewardship of society's assets. He explains how people in financial careers--from CEO, investment manager, and banker to insurer, lawyer, and regulator--can and do manage, protect, and increase these assets. Read more..

Emerging models in real estate
by Mike Del Prete

Mike is a global real estate tech strategist, and a scholar-in-residence at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is internationally recognized as an expert and thought-leader in real estate tech. His evidence-based analysis is widely read by global leaders, and he is a sought-after strategy and new ventures consultant. Read more..

The Labor Illusion: How Operational
by Ryan W. Buell, Michael I. Norton

A ubiquitous feature of even the fastest self-service technology transactions is the wait. Conventional wisdom
and operations theory suggest that the longer people wait, the less satisfied they become; we demonstrate
that because of what we term the labor illusion, when websites engage in operational transparency by signaling
that they are exerting effort, people can actually prefer websites with longer waits to those that return instantaneous results. Read more..

The Digital Advantage:
by MIT Sloan

New digital technologies like social media, mobile, and analytics are advancing rapidly on the economic landscape. These innovations are used widely by consumers and employees alike. Facebook has more than 1 billion users.1 There are more than 6 billion mobile phones.2 Employees often have better digital solutions at home than they do at work, and many customers are more technology savvy than the people trying to sell to them. Read more..

Defence against digital disruptors
by Healy Hynes

How can realtors protect their business from billion dollar disruptors.  There is no Amazon of real estate yet, but one is coming. Find out:
* why the industry is being disrupted now
* who is coming after the existing stakeholders
* what the realtors advantage is
and
* how this can be built upon.
The opportunity exists to strengthen a business before it's challenged but will the shot be taken? Read more..

Extreme trust
by Don Peppers & Martha Rogers

The bar for trust­worthiness is higher than ever and continuing to rise. Don Peppers and Martha Rogers argue that the only sane response to these rising levels of transpar­ency is to protect the interests of customers proac­tively, before they have a chance to spread negative buzz—even if that requires spending extra money in the short run to preserve your reputation and cus­tomer relationships in the long run. The payoff of gen­erating extreme trust will be worth it. The authors show how this trend is playing out in many different sectors. Read more..

Beyond the bricks
by HSBC

Beyond the Bricks is HSBC's international study on home ownership, providing insights into how people really feel and behave when buying, renting and owning their own home. Read more..

Meet our founder

Healy Hynes

"Technology has raised customer expectation for a service to be available on demand and real estate is no different.
My goal is to help you meet this consumer need, getting you more business.  If you are an ambitious professional looking to improve your business, let's chat."

Healy Hynes - CEO

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