Cohousing-L Mailing List: Realtors / Marketing

[Crispin Reedy (crispin_reedy]

A question for those who have "been there, done that." We are in the
throes of marketing our community -- got land, got a plan drawn up,
taken some preliminary legal steps -- now we really need PEOPLE
before we can go further with the construction documents & get the
coveted construction loan to break ground.  We've been doing as much
marketing as we can stand ourselves,  speaking engagements, fairs,
flyers, TV & radio occasionally.  But it's just not bringing them in
quickly enough!  

We have consensed on hiring a professional publicist / marketer,
which hopefully will give our home-grown efforts some consistency and
direction, and allow us to focus on DOING things, instead of finding
things to do.  We are also considering using a realtor, on a % basis,
but are still kind of on the fence about this.  

I would like to ask the list about the "Realtors don't sell
cohousing" truism that we have heard around.  I have heard two
reasons given for this point of view:

1. Realtors attract people who aren't as committed to cohousing and
therefore don't fit into the community well.   Has anyone had this
experience?  It seems that if the community was well-explained to the
person, they would understand what the expectations & benefits were
whether or not the home was sold through a realtor.
2. People who to go a realtor are looking for a home right now, not a
year down the road.  I'm not sure about this generalization, although
perhaps a realtor themselves would be the person to ask, about who
their customers are. 

Thanks for your wisdom!
Crispin Reedy -- Meadows on Buckingham Cohousing, Dallas, TX
----------------------------------------------------------
"The community stagnates without the impulse of the individual. The
impulse dies away without the sympathy of the community."
William James

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