Janet Choynowski
Founder & CEO, Immobel.com
After an unexpected career in International Real Estate in Warsaw, Poland where I worked with multi national corporations and diplomatic missions moving into that market after the fall of communism, I wanted to do something to make the practice of International Real Estate a little easier, and a little better. With Immobel, I believe we have done that. Since 2001 when we introduced services in the USA, we saw a growing understanding of the need to reach across language barriers, and national borders to find the greatest opportunities. Now we provide 13 language MLS and IDX services to over 350,000 Real Estate Professionals in the USA and Europe, and are constantly looking for new ways to bring International Real Estate Professionals together.
Our latest launch, the International IDX Alliance is getting a great deal of interest because of the networking and referral opportunities, as well as the chance for members to market International properties while at the same time having real estate professionals around the world market US listings to their clients. It really is win-win.
Everybody gets a chance to profit, no matter who is buying, no matter where they are buying. More US clients are buying abroad for retirement of vacation homes, while foreign investors are the only bright spot in some US markets. Without co-operation between professionals and easy referrals, someone is always going to be left out of the deal. So we look for ways to keep REALTORS® in the center, whether clients are buying here, or abroad. There are a lot of opportunities in this market, but it is sometimes hard to see them when you have been trained to look at the business in a certain way.
People are afraid of trying to deal with clients who may speak another language, or of trying to make contacts in other countries. I know how intimidating that can be, from my own experience. But I also know that it is really not as difficult as you think, and the payoff can be extraordinary. Having been forced by circumstance to live a global life, with children on three continents, my office in Europe, my home in South Carolina, clients all over the world, I can say that the world really has gotten smaller. So life is different, and it is probably inevitable that business is different, too. Opportunities may not be where they used to be, but they are still out there. I like showing fellow Real Estate Professionals how to find them. I guess that is my work as well as my hobby these days.
jc@immobel.com