During my most recent trip to the great state of Mississippi to visit the Jackson Association of REALTORS®, I had the pleasure of chatting with well seasoned REALTOR® Lee Garland. Lee is the Broker-owner of Remax Alliance in Mississippi. In his 17 years of experience, Lee has many achievements under his belt, including Recruiter of the Year, being recognized as a Certified Residential Specialist, and serving on numerous boards and committees for the Jackson Association of REALTORS®. During the few moments I had to talk with him and get to know the JAR Board members, I learned Lee has a world of industry knowledge and a love for training. One broker told me he is the best teacher she knows. What follows are some of the insights he shared with me:

1) What is your opinion on the health of the market in Jackson, Mississippi?

I have seen an improvement in the market in the last two months. I'm seeing progress in new development areas that we haven't seen since 2005. The increase could be attributed to interest rates. People start to see them go up so they want to make a move before they increase any more.

2) How has technology changed the way you work in the last 5 years?

Everything is getting smaller. Agents aren't dependent on bulky desktops. Everything is going mobile. Also a transaction can be made with the first sit down meeting being at closing.

3) What technical investment, if any, do you plan to make to aid your business within the next year?

It's hard to call them monetary investments because technology is cutting costs. There is the ability to go paperless. Everything is in the cloud so you can get rid of the servers in the office. Investment is in setup and tools to educate the agents on the use of the technology.

4) What is your opinion of the third party data publishers (Zillow and Trulia)? A resource, an enemy or too soon to tell?

I think we should cut it off. From a REALTOR® perspective, it's my job to market the properties. It is a disservice to the public when they are given misinformation. A recent consumer came to me frustrated because the agent he contacted about a listing was not the actual listing agent of the property.

5) In your opinion, what is the greatest challenge facing the real estate industry today?

From an agent perspective, it's meeting all of the demands of the consumers on the level they expect. Some want print material. Some want QR codes with phone details. From a broker's prospective, it is helping agents understand how to use all the information and technology that's available. I know agents that can't attach a photo to an email. So it's training agents on each end of the technology spectrum.

6) Explain a bizarre real estate experience you have had recently.

I recently listed a neighbor's house. The owners had to be in Utah in 72 hours. Once they left, I went over to see what I would be working with. There were still at least three truck loads of stuff left in the house, along with a ball python I found in their son's room. The python is currently living at my house on my mantle and the sellers have no intention of returning for their stuff or their pet snake.

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