Dear Ralph,

This edition of Title Wise is packed with important news shaping our market. First is a concise article on the 8 necessary attributes of an agent in 2024. Second is a YouTube on cybersecurity you MUST WATCH! And finally: two articles one on the Zillow forecast for the spring and the other one is about the shrinkage of the middle class in New Jersey.

Please feel free to email me at ralph@counsellorstitle.com if you have any questions or would like to follow up on any of this edition's articles.

Ralph Aponte

Founder & President

732.914.1400

The Checklist of 8 Elements Necessary for the 2024 Agent

by Anthony DiMaio

These are just 8 attributes that distinguish the exceptional real estate agent today:

1. Data-Driven Decision-Making: Beyond conventional industry knowledge, agents can leverage the analytics from Facebook to get ahead of market trends. By using the analytics tools, agents gain understanding of buyer behavior and insight into sellers’ mindsets. The response you get from the ads can also alert you to shifting pricing dynamics, and thereby put the right strategies into effect. Messages such as, “Hello, I have a buyer looking for a 3-bed 2.5-bath with no pool zoned to X elementary school.” This may elicit a response from folks saying, “They’re thinking of listing soon,” or “Thinking of listing at some later time.”
2. Artificial Intelligence Integration: Today’s agents seamlessly integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into their workflow. AI-driven tools assist in predictive analytics, helping agents anticipate market shifts and tailor recommendations to align with individual client preferences. Automating routine tasks also enables agents to focus on high-value, client-centric activities.
3. Digital Marketing Skill: Mastering your digital marketing platforms is a prerequisite. Potential clients will recognize such proficiency by high search engine optimization (SEO) metrics, social media engagement, and targeted advertising of properties receiving maximum exposure by reaching potential buyers with speed and accuracy.
4. Industry Collaboration: Connectivity, especially in this digital age, is the lifeblood of real estate agents. If your reputation and collaboration scores aren’t high, it becomes an uphill battle. I call it RCQ – your Reputation | Collaboration Quotient.
5. Utilizing Video Conferencing: Virtual property tours, online document management systems, and Zoom calls keep your business platform functioning with a sense of seamless integration – all of which lead to the transaction.
6. Cybersecurity Intelligence: Today more than ever, cybersecurity protocols are mandatory! Data security and movement of escrow payments must be given the utmost attention. With fraud infiltrating every part of the process, agents and their partner affiliates, such as title companies, can bring a great deal of confidence to buyers and sellers. Safeguarding sensitive client information and transactional data is not just about regulations, but it speaks about the agent's commitment to professionalism and client trust.
7. Continuous Professional Development: As we have all witnessed, the landscape that makes up the real estate industry is subject to change, not just in market demand, but as it rests upon the ongoing information impacting the industry. By staying abreast of industry trends, changes in laws, and technological developments, agents maintain their relevance within the entire process.  
8. Predictive Pricing Analytics: There is a never-ending flow of data gushing into the market today; the ability of the agent to make sense of the ocean of news makes the real estate agent the captain of the ship, helping to navigate the hopes and dreams of buyers and sellers to a safe, predictable arrival. Through the analysis of present and historical data, agents are able to chart buyer behavior patterns, determine proper property pricing, that lead to the anticipated and acceptable sale price that reflects actual and historical values.

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Cyber Security in Real Estate: David Tandy on Guarding the Gates

Zillow Forecast for New Jersey

by: Anthony DiMaio

A Zillow New Jersey Real Estate Forecast for Spring

Zillow has forecast that New Jersey home prices are estimated to rise on average of 2% through May 2024. Prior to this report, Zillow had been forecasting for the last 2 years that prices were going to experience a decrease, not an increase. Now it is predicting this 2% increase in general but not for all zip codes.

Mercer, Camden, Salem and Cumberland counties are projected to rise between 2.9% and 2.6% by May 2024. But on the whole Zillow is "spit balling it" by saying home prices will only rise on average 2% for the majority of New Jersey's 547 zip codes. According to this report only 10 towns in New Jersey are forecasted to see a decrease in the home values through May 2024.

Part of these projections are based upon inventory increases statewide. Both Monmouth County and Ocean County reported increases in the numbers of new listings for the month of February: 1.2% and 4%, respectively. Ocean County even saw the months supply of inventory increase by 4.2%.



Still there is significant pent-up demand, and as long as the economy remains stable, buyers may be forced to pay up to get that house so that their children can register for the fall semesters.

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Is the Middle Class Disappearing?

by: Anthony DiMaio

A recent report draws concern over the cost of living for a middle-class family to survive in the New York metropolitan area. According to the report, the middle class represents fewer people than it had in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, according to Oliver Rust, who is the head of data for Truflation.

The report indicates that since 2000 the percentage of the country that is described as being middle class has been substantially reduced. And where the increase comes in is in the extreme bottom of the spectrum and the top of the economic spectrum.

According to the Pew Research Center, the share of adults who live in middle-class households fell from 61% in 1971 to just 50% in 2021. One of the largest sources of that economic erosion has been the inflation of the last two years, especially in 2022, when inflation peaked at 9%.

Consumer Affairs put together some numbers and calculated these assessments with the Pew Research Center, stating the middle class in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut to be $81,396, $80,163, and $80,163, respectively.

It costs more to be a middle-class family in New York State than any other state, and New Jersey came in at second place. According to the report Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, West Virginia and Mississippi are the five most affordable states in order to be considered middle class, respectively.

According to the US Census, the nation's median household income in 2021 was $70,784.

One of the other scary figures, according to Smart Asset, is that in New York City, it will require a family to make over $300,000 a year to raise two children comfortably; that figure is exactly said to be $318,406.

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About Counsellors Title Agency

We are an award-winning agency and one of New Jersey's leading title insurance businesses, based in Toms River. Counsellors is known for its team of knowledgeable service professionals recognized for its exceptional title, settlement and escrow services, for all 21 New Jersey counties. Its glitch-free signature service provides confidence to home buyers, sellers, and industry professionals. The knowledge base of its staff has processed over $17 billion in orders and established itself as a pillar of trust and benchmark of excellence within the real estate community.

What Is Open Mindedness?

You like to consider new ideas and try new things. You examine things from all sides and don’t jump to conclusions.

Open-mindedness is the willingness to actively search for evidence that goes against one’s favored opinions, plans,

or goals. Open-minded individuals are able to weigh all

evidence fairly, when it is available. They see the other

side and fight the tendency to have a bias for their own

views. And, rather than favoring the socially dominant views, they give attention to those that are less dominant.

This character strength helps individuals build knowledge

about specific issues or points of view – and provide sound

recommendations and advice. Open-minded people do not

jump to conclusions. Instead, they seek out and examine

all of the available evidence before forming an opinion.

Click here to download or on the cover above.

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