We started accepting reviews of loan officers a long time ago, but last December, we expanded our program to include more than a dozen additional categories of professionals. The result was a flood of information for our customers:

Redfin publishes reviews from every client to make it easy for future clients to assemble a team of top-notch local pros. The best service providers in each market get a Redfin Certified badge  on their profile to show that they have a proven track record of great customer service, and have been personally vetted by the team at Redfin. These providers typically rate 30 points higher than other service providers used by Redfin customers.

We are proud to reach the 5,000 review milestone because it means we’re providing that much more value and service to our customers. Milestones like this are like mile markers in a marathon. They’re good because they let you know how far you’ve gone, but they’re also a not-so-subtle reminder of how much road is still in front of you. That’s the implicit challenge in milestones: It’s 5,000 today, but we’re already thinking about how we can get to 50,000.

The post Five Thousand Voices Helping You Buy or Sell appeared first on Redfin Real Estate Blog.

So we asked the top-rated home inspectors in Redfin Open Book for their honest advice to home buyers. Redfin certified home inspector Dylan Chalk sent such a great summary that I basically inserted it verbatim below (thanks, Dylan!) along with the wisdom of Keven Swartz (Seattle), Larry Robbins (Chicago) and Jamie Hawks (San Diego). So before you sign an offer on your dream home, be sure to to consider these three main aspects of a home:

1. Foundation: It is a cliché, but the investment you make in your house rests entirely on the foundation. The most proven type of foundation is poured concrete. But don’t rule out block, post and pier foundations since they are common in older homes. If the foundation is a hodgepodge of additions, that may be a red flag. Other red flags include: sloping floors or cracked drywall. Look for 45-degree cracks coming off window and door headers. If you find this sort of evidence of settling, don’t run for the hills, but be sure to consider its severity and ask your home inspector to take special note of the home’s structural integrity.
2. Maintenance and care: Is this an engineer’s house, a flip or an old meth house? You’ll probably be able to tell without any technical knowledge. Does the house appear well cared for or does it feel…unloved? Are weeds, vines and/or mold growing all over the house? Is the kitchen sink clean? Would your mother use the bathroom? Are there regular service records on the furnace? Does an old wrench hang from the gas meter? (In case you were wondering, this is a good sign; the wrench would be useful for turning off the gas in case of a leak, and shows that the owner is conscientious.) These will give you an idea of the repair list you are likely to get after a structural inspection.
3. Building design: There is nothing wrong with a house with three rooftop decks, stucco siding and 240-degree views, but don’t expect the building to be low maintenance. Consider the amount of exposure in the exterior design of the house against your own appetite and budget for maintenance. Exposure provides natural light and improves views, but keep in mind that it means more maintenance. Low-maintenance buildings have simple roof lines and large roof overhangs to protect the building. Dysfunctional rooflines indicate additions. This lack of clarity often translates into similar chaos inside the building. Sight your eyes along the plane of the roof and look at the ridge: Are there excessive sags, bows and dips? Strong homes usually have clean lines.

For even more inspection info, check out Redfin’s Home Buying Guide where you’ll find great resources like our Interactive Home Inspection Tool. And if you’re looking for your own inspector, lender, attorney, handyman or other real estate service provider, check out Open Book on Redfin.com where you’ll find real reviews from Redfin clients.

Have you gone through the home inspection process recently? Is there anything you’d add to the list? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Read (this) before you write (your offer) appeared first on Redfin Real Estate Blog.

Earlier this year, Redfin launched Open Book, a local review site for lenders, inspectors, stagers and other service providers that work with Redfin’s home buyers and sellers. We ask every client how their service provider(s) performed, and we post every single review on the Redfin, whether the deal closed or not.

Every service provider who works with a Redfin customer is profiled in our Open Book review system.  For the providers who get outstanding reviews from Redfin customers and endorsements from Redfin agents, we go through an additional screening process to ensure they share our values. If they do, we put our badge on their profile and they join the ranks of our “Redfin Certified” service providers. It’s like if Yelp read every review, talked to the locals and sat down with the chef in order to tell their readers which 5-star rated restaurants are truly the cream of the crop. And don’t worry–they don’t pay us a dime.

Redfin Certified service providers deliver ridiculously good service
We measured Redfin’s certified service providers’ performance against the other providers in Open Book using net promoter score (NPS), a customer loyalty metric that indicates likeliness to recommend, and our Certified providers blew away the competition.

Net Promoter Score (%)

Redfin’s Certified service providers boast a net promoter score of 87% versus 57% for non-certified providers who worked with our clients. That’s 30 reasons to look for the Redfin Certified logo when you’re choosing a lender, inspector, or attorney for your transaction.

Why do Redfin’s Certified providers get higher marks from consumers than Amazon, Costco, Trader Joe’s, and Apple?

• We certify the best of the best: Our agents work with lenders and inspectors daily; agent feedback and client reviews give us the best insider info, and the Open Book team screens every potential partner. We also know which questions to ask, so when we talk to a lender, we know to ask whether she has access to her underwriting department if she needs to get them on the phone. When we talk to an inspector, we make sure that he provides a prioritized breakdown of his findings and can quickly provide a customer with an easy-to-read PDF inspection report.
• Certified service providers love working with Redfin: Because we send so much business to certified providers, we hold them accountable to deliver the best results for every Redfin customer they serve. We publish every review to their profiles and, like Apple, we follow up whenever a Redfin client is dissatisfied with the service they received.

No matter where you’re at in the process, if you’re looking for a professional service provider, Open Book is the first place you should go to get verified reviews from Redfin clients who actually worked with that provider.  And for an extra measure of confidence look for the Redfin Certified logo.

We currently include: lenders, inspectors, title/escrow, attorneys, stagers and handymen in our six largest markets – DC area, Seattle, Southern California, Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco Bay Area with more markets and more categories coming soon.

The post 30 Reasons to Find Your Inspector & Lender on Redfin appeared first on Redfin Real Estate Blog.

Listed by Chris Iverson, Intero Real Estate Services

Small House, Big Bucks in Palo Alto, CA

Beds: 2
Baths: 1
Sq. Ft.: 971
Listed: Mar 27, 2012
Closed: Apr 26, 2012
Days on the Market: 9
Asking Price: $948,000
Final Sales Price: $1,350,000
Sale to List Ratio: 142.4%
# Offers: 12

“My clients came in with a competitive all-cash offer of $970,000, 2.3% above asking,” said Redfin Agent Brad Le, “but we couldn’t compete with the winning all-cash offer 42% above the list price.”

Listed by Jeremy Cunningham, Redfin

Listing Agent Considers Unlisted Phone Number in Springfield, VA

Beds: 3
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,559
Listed: Mar 29, 2012
Closed: Apr 30, 2012
Days on the Market: 4
Asking Price: $339,950
Final Sales Price: $381,000
Sale to List Ratio: 112.1%
# Offers: 14

“For the three days after I put this listing on the market, my phone did not stop ringing, and there was a steady line of cars lined up in front of the house,” said Jeremy Cunningham, Redfin Listing Specialist. “The winning offer had essentially no appraisal contingency. We chose it because even though it had VA financing, which requires an appraisal, the buyers agreed to cover any deficit in the event that the appraisal came in low.”

Listed by Simon Kiang, Re/Max

Cash is King, And Time is Money in Sunnyvale, CA

Beds: 4
Baths: 3
Sq. Ft.: 1,933
Listed: Mar 1, 2012
Closed: Mar 21, 2012
Days on the Market: 9
Asking Price: $1,029,888
Final Sales Price: $1,083,000
Sale to List Ratio: 105.2%
# Offers: 6

“My clients made an offer of $1,081,000, almost $60,000 over the asking price, with a 14-day closing, no contingencies, and a 90% down payment,” said Redfin Agent Miawand Bayan. “The seller ended up accepting an all-cash, non-contingent offer with a 7-day closing, with a price only slightly higher than our offer.”

Listed by Loic Pritchett, TTR Sotheby’s International Realty

Burning the Midnight Oil in Washington, DC

Beds: 2
Baths: 2.5
Sq. Ft.: 1,496
Listed: Nov 9, 2011
Closed: Dec 15, 2011
Days on the Market: 7
Asking Price: $649,000
Final Sales Price: $667,000
Sale to List Ratio: 102.8%
# Offers: 6

“My clients, their lender and I were up until 2:30 a.m. negotiating with the sellers and their agent,” said Redfin Agent Stuart Gavan. “We managed to beat out the other offers by reducing our contingency deadlines significantly and offering well above the list price.”

Listed by Erica Johnson, Coldwell Banker

Get Your Offer In First, Then Make Necessary Adjustments in Seattle, WA

Beds: 3
Baths: 2.25
Sq. Ft.: 2,460
Listed: Mar 29, 2012
Closed: Apr 30, 2012
Days on the Market: 1
Asking Price: $587,000
Final Sales Price: $600,000
Sale to List Ratio: 102.2%
# Offers: 4

“Ours was the first offer submitted, and once we found out a second offer had come in, we added an escalation clause,” said Redfin Agent Chad Pluid. “In the end, our offer wasn’t much higher than the competition, but I made sure to respond quickly and honestly to every request the listing agent had, and I think that helped us win out.”

Listed by Nick Chaconas, Redfin

Seller With Cash Stands Out Among the Rest in Washington, DC

Beds: 2
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,500
Listed: Feb 3, 2012
Closed: Mar 16, 2012
Days on the Market: 9
Asking Price: $799,900
Final Sales Price: $803,418
Sale to List Ratio: 100.4%
# Offers: 3

“The top two offer contenders were just a few hundred dollars apart and had nearly identical financing,” said Redfin Listing Specialist Nick Chaconas. “We asked both buyers to come back with their best and final offers. The winning bidder quickly turned hers into an all-cash offer above list price with a rent-back period and no contingencies.”

Listed by Irene Bremis, Bremis, James J. Inc.

We Asked What the Seller Wanted, And We Gave It To Him in Somerville, MA

Beds: 5
Baths: 3.5
Sq. Ft.: 3,056
Listed: Mar 20, 2012
Closed: Apr 30, 2012
Days on the Market: 16
Asking Price: $759,900
Final Sales Price: $754,900
Sale to List Ratio: 99.3%
Estimated # Offers: 3

“We won this bidding war not only because my clients’ offer was all cash, but also because we included a Use of Occupancy agreement so that the sellers could close early and move out later,” said Redfin Agent Matt Zborezny. “We ended up negotiating $5,000 off the sales price after the inspection, but the sellers still preferred our all-cash offer so they could use the money toward their own home purchase.”

The post In the Trenches: Behind the Scenes of America's Bidding Wars appeared first on Redfin Real Estate Blog.