A couple of years ago I was getting a haircut and sitting in the chair and listening to the barbershop banter, chiming in here and there. One of the women cutting another customer’s hair was talking about how she had recently listed her home with a big name Team in town. I told her that they were a good choice and asked how she decided to use them. She replied something like: “I have a million Real Estate agent customers who get their hair cut here and determined that I couldn’t just pick one at the risk of offending the others. So I picked someone that I didn’t know and their name kept coming up for lakefront listings.”
I Replied, somewhat confused: “Sooo, you don’t really see any difference across agents, it's just what your relationship is with them?”
She replied: “No, there’s no difference! (Chuckle) they all have access to the multi-list system”
I…WAS…FLOORED!!! I guess I should have appreciated this nuance, but I had never thought about it like that. “The General Public Sees Very Little Difference Between One Real Estate Agent to The Next!” I can’t tell you how profound this was for me, looking at it like that. Since I was 21 years old, I’ve looked at the industry as an insider and not as a consumer.
This led me to leave a local large brokerage that I was working under and start my own company.
Real Estate sales is a quasi-profession with extremely low entry barriers and tremendous possible upside. This attracts a lot of agents. A LOT OF AGENTS! Most sell their parents or cousins a house and leave the industry after a few years. Admittedly, my construction business has allowed me to hang on during the lean years during the crash when it didn’t really matter to my bills if I sold anything or not.
My point is I feel it is imperative to provide VALUE as a Real Estate Pro. The vast majority of my colleagues and competitors are excellent and competent people who do a great job at selling homes…They’re just interchangeable. They’re just isn’t any additional value. At least to the public and the untrained eye. And we all know that the lines of perception and reality blur quite easily.
I position myself and my business to bring exceptional value to customers lives, not found anywhere else in our marketplace, through:
-Our extensive knowledge of the building trades that helps buyers choose the right home and helps sellers get their home Ready-To-Sell.
-Our ability to get repairs and updates done.
-Our devotion to our ethics and principals.
-And my 20+ years of selling homes.
Michael Cawley is the Broker/Owner of Veritas Realty Group. Michael was originally licensed in 1998 and started with Century 21 Val-U-Way in Waterford at 21 years old. He has sold property at Remax Encore in Clarkston, Keller Williams Clarkston, Chicago Real Estate Finders, American Real Estate and opened his own company in the spring of 2016.
Our office is at 3255 Dixie Hwy in Waterford.
Michael is a 1994 graduate of Waterford Kettering and 2005 Graduate of Oakland University (BA)
Michael lives in the Drayton Woods Subdivision of Waterford with his Fiancé, Rebecca and his two daughters, Emma and Anna.
He also has been a Remodeling Contractor for most of his adult life and owns MC Real Estate and Construction Services. MCREC advertises under several assumed names including: Veritas Construction, Cawley Building & Remodeling and Ready-To-Sell.
Michael’s hobbies and interests include: Politics and Current Events (Have served as an elected delegate and on the NOCBOR Gov. Affairs Committee), Writing (Minor in Creative Writing), Reading (Michael Lewis and The Economist lately), have traveled to 14 countries and 28 states, Bruce Springsteen concerts (Love The Boss), Occasional guitar playing (I’m not good, but its relaxing and fun) and playing with my fat lovable Beagle; Bella.