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What RLI Is All About – A Personal Story

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Our daughter, Jess, and her husband, Brian, are Air Force and were being transferred from Maryland to Texas for a brief six to nine month period. Her husband was stationed in Alabama for three months prior to that and our daughter and 19-month old grandson lived with us during that time period. Jess was responsible for finding a rental home in Texas.  She had planned on making a two to three day trip for house-hunting, signing a lease, etc.

Just like everyone else, we started with online searches for rentals.  No sooner would we find something that looked ok, we would call and find out it was already rented.  Consequently, I recommended she not make a trip and save the $1000+ for a house-hunting trip that would probably end up being wasted time.

So, next steps – Mom to the rescue, as I am an ALC and can network with other land REALTORS® all over the country.  A search through RLI’s Find a Land Consultant tool helped me to find someone in the area that Jess and Brian were being transferred to, and a call was made to RLI Member Michelle Rushing, an agent with United County/M & M Ranch Land Investments.

Michelle was super to work with! From providing information on available rentals and information on rentals we asked her about to even answering texts and emails when she was away from the office at a class! Then, Jess finally found a rental that looked promising and was available; completed the lease application, etc., but the leasing company wouldn’t finalize the lease until she walked through the house.  Creativity again by Mom, I called the leasing company and asked if a proxy could walk through the house on our daughter and son-in-law’s behalf. The company said yes. So, I placed yet another call to Michelle, who graciously agreed to do this for us. She provided great information on the home, the neighborhood and surrounding area, and Jess and Brian were able to move forward with the lease!

I cannot say enough about the willingness of Michelle as an RLI member. I later discovered Michelle had just joined RLI two weeks prior to my call, and she was impressed that she had already received a referral call from the Find A Land Consultant on the RLI website, just because she had invested in being an RLI Member! This to me is part of what RLI is all about – networking, helping each other, and trust in each other… even when members may not have met each other before.

Special thanks to Michelle and I hope to meet her at an upcoming RLI class or event!

About the Author: Terri Jensen, ALC, served as the 2015 RLI National President and is currently a Broker with National Land Realty based out of Minnesota. Of 18,000+ REALTORS® in Minnesota, Terri is one of only 14 to have earned the elite ALC Designation (Accredited Land Consultant).  This designation, through the REALTORS® Land Institute, requires rigorous experience, education, and expertise in the areas of real estate, auction, appraisal, 1031 exchange.

Put the Power of the RLI or ALC Brand Behind Your Name

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Being a part of REALTORS® Land Institute comes with a lot of benefits that you probably already use: amazing networking opportunities, deep discounts, and our property marketing tools The Land Connections and e-Properties. But there is one benefit that isn’t as obvious: the power of the RLI or ALC brand. In this article, we’re going to explore how you can put the power of the RLI or ALC brand behind your name.

How can you, the RLI Member or ALC, make the most of our brand power? We asked Terri Jensen, ALC, a land broker with National Land Realty and 2015 Past President of RLI, what the ALC Designation means to her. Of 18,000+ REALTORS® in Minnesota, Terri is one of only 14 to have earned the elite ALC Designation, so we knew she’d be a good person to ask. Here’s what she said having the RLI and ALC brands means to her:

  • “Provided the education, experience, and expertise needed to better assist my clients
  • Continued education on hot topics to stay current in the marketplace
  • Ability to lobby for legislation on behalf of landowners, as well as real estate practitioners
  • Always having someone to call on with a question
  • The ability to better market my services given the very small number of ALCs in my state vs. the total number of REALTORS®
  • Networking and a sense of family with those who know land
  • The opportunity to participate in, and be part of an organization that strives to be The Voice of Land and make its members the best in the business!”

So, what can you do to make the most out of your ALC and RLI Membership? Here are five ways:

1. Use The Logo

Use the RLI Member or ALC Logos* on all your property listings, business cards, email footers, and other marketing materials. You can even visit the RLI or ALC Logo Brand Shops (access them from your RLI Member profile page) to order clothes, office supplies and more branded with our logos! Plus, RLI Chapter Members can take advantage of using the new RLI Chapter Member Logo if you’re an active member of an RLI Chapter. The more you promote the ALC logo and RLI Member Logo, the more brand recognition there will be in the industry – which means the more valuable holding the designation or being a member becomes for you!

Need marketing materials? We’ve got you covered. You can order ALC Brochures online, and we also have press release templates for new ALCs and RLI members in our Member Resources page.

2. Keep Your Find a Land Consultant profile Up To Date

With the boom in use, you’ll want to make sure your most current information is on your FALC profile. This includes your specialties, contact information, where you are licensed, a head shot, and more. Check out our article Top Six Find A Land Consultant Profiles article for tips on how to improve yours.

3. Continuing Education

There’s always something new to learn, and sometimes it costs nothing! ALCs and RLI Members get exclusive discounted member rates on classes and even get a few free webinars each year.

Now is the perfect time to check out our course schedule, since we just finished up an education update to make the courses even better. The content in all of our classes has been updated to provide you with the most relevant industry trends and best practices. The format of the classes has also been updated to enhance engagement with both the content and other students. You can view all of our upcoming classes here.

4. Attend the Annual National Land Conference (NLC)

This is a great event to see and be seen. RLI Members and ALCs get discounted member rate registrations. Plus, you can be sure to get an even deeper discount on the networking event of the year with early bird registration rates by registering before December. And if you are a new member of RLI*, you’ll automatically get an additional 25% off registration. How does attending NLC help your brand?

“Anything you do to develop yourself professionally is an opportunity for you to demonstrate to landowners, lenders, attorneys and others with whom we all share the agribusiness space, that you embrace the notion of lifelong learning within your craft,” says Allison Worrell of Worrell Land Services, LLC.

5. Keep Us In The Loop!

We love promoting members who have won an award or gotten an article published. Contact us at rli@realtors.org so we can extend the reach of your industry success.

Now that you know how to make the most out of your RLI Membership and ALC, see how RLI promotes its members.

*Reminder: RLI Members and ALCs – please be sure to use the logo in accordance with the RLI Visual Standards Manual.

About the Author: Laura Barker is a freelance writer based out of California for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She has been with RLI since October 2017.

 

Top Six Find a Land Consultant Profiles

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ALCs have so much on their plate. Between meeting new clients, keeping up with land news, and closing deals, updating your Find a Land Consultant profile can seem like a low priority. However, those profiles could be your secret weapon for landing your next big client. The Find a Land Consultant profiles are the first thing many potential clients and other land experts see when they search your name. To get a better understanding of how to make the most out of your profile, we picked some of the top profiles to see what sets them apart.

Best Bios

Kyle Hansen, ALC, the RLI 2018 Vice National President

Kyle’s biography paints a clear picture of his career in the land industry. He talks about how he got into his current job, his involvement with RLI, his awards, and his background. He separates each topic into his own paragraph. This is a great way to make your profile easy to read, and clients will have no trouble finding the information about you they need.

Terri Jensen, ALC, RLI 2015 National President

Terri’s profile reads like a resume. She includes the need-to-knows (years of experience, places she has worked, awards she has earned) and fun facts about her (out of 18,000+ REALTORS® in Minnesota, she is one of only fourteen to earn the ALC Designation). Little facts like that are a great way to let potential clients know how you stand out from the crowd.

Best Service Specialties

Norma Nisbet, ALC

Many people use the Find a Land Consultant tool to find people with expertise in specialized fields. For transactions that require a specialized education (such as 1031 Exchanges), clients want to make sure they are getting the best in the business. Norma Nisbet, ALC, lists out all her service specialties, including commercial land, timberland, and marketing. Having an organized section lets clients find exactly what they are looking for quickly.

Best Contact Information

Jeramy Stephens, ALC

Contact info can be tricky. Yes, you want potential clients to be able to reach you, but you also don’t want your phone to be blowing up with spam calls at all hours of the day. Jeramy Stephens, ALC, navigates this by including his work e-mail, cell phone, and fax number. He also includes a link to his company’s website. By providing primarily work contact information instead of personal, you’ll be able to reduce spam calls during your down time. Once you’ve made personal contact with the client then it is up to you if you want them to have more personal contact information.

Best Photo

John Dean, ALC

Having a recent, high resolution picture makes your profile look professional and polished. John Dean, ALC, does a great job of this. When adding your photo, remember that it needs to be under 20mb and should be high resolution.

Including a photo in your profile may seem like a trivial thing, but studies show it can drastically increase the chances of people viewing your profile. In fact, a recent study by Inc.com shows that LinkedIn profiles with pictures got twenty-one more views than those without one.

Best Regularly-Updated Profile

Randy Hertz, ALC

Anytime you get a promotion or an award, there are lots of platforms to celebrate on: Facebook, LinkedIn, the dance floor. You should remember to also update your Find a Land Consultant profile. Awards and promotions are a great way to show clients your hard work and talent. Randy Hertz, ALC, keeps his profile up to date with new skills, accomplishments, and roles and different companies.

We hope these six profiles will inspire you to take a second look at your Find a Land Consultant profile. And keep your eyes peeled, you might be featured in the next edition of Top Find a Land Consultant Profiles!

Want to learn more about how the Find a Land Consultant tool can help you? Find out how users find agents and more here.

About the Author: Laura Barker is a Marketing Assistant Intern for the REALTORS® Land Institute. She graduated from Clark University in May 2017 and has been with RLI since October 2017.

What’s Right for Your Client?

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When assisting a client with a land transaction, it’s not only important to be able to answer your client’s questions, but also to be able to ask your client the right questions. Below is a sample scenario of a new client and a few examples of questions a land professional may ask in order to help the client determine the best decision regarding their property.

The scenario
Your client owns land composed of agricultural land, but which also has some woods and water (and you know the highest and best use is continued use of the land as agricultural land and hunting/recreational ground). Your client is reaching a time in their life to make decisions on how best to handle their land for the future and there are many options in today’s world. Some of these could include:

  • selling it for row crop land and the woods/water for hunting/recreation;
  • or, once sold, complete a 1031 exchange to purchase another income-producing property or retirement home;
  • or, keep the farm via leasing it out so that your client has an income in retirement;
  • or, work on a succession plan to keep the land in the family;
  • or, enroll the land in an exclusive ag covenant or conservation easement;
  • or, use the land to build their retirement home or cabin so they can enjoy their retirement and have a wonderful, memory-filled family retreat to pass on to their heirs.

Questions for your client when considering the above options

  • Are you prepared for retirement?
  • Do you need an additional income stream into the future besides other retirement funds?
  • Do you want to continue to farm yourself?
  • Do you have children who want to farm?
  • Do you strongly feel you want your land to continue into perpetuity as ag land or recreational land?
  • Do you already have a retirement home?
  • Do you have funds and time to build and enjoy a family retreat that can be passed on to the next generation?

Starting points
When the future of your land is in question, an appraisal or broker price opinion will provide an opinion of the worth of the land. This factor alone may assist in helping answer some of the above questions for your client. Your client may decide, based on the number of children they have, the number of acres of land and rent or income from that land, there may not be enough income to divide between the number of children and they will elect to sell the land. Or, on the reverse side, they may decide, depending on the number of children and amount of agricultural land, there would be enough income to warrant keeping the land in the family.

Then, are there children who are interested in farming or not? If yes, succession planning can be handled and there are a number of extension offices, attorneys, etc. who can assist with succession planning. If there are no children interested in farming, a professional farm manager could assist the children in managing the farm.

Should the client decide to enroll the land into an ag covenant or conservation easement? An Accredited Land Consultant (broker/REALTOR®) can assist in locating the appropriate agency/entity.

In deciding whether to add a family retreat to their land, the question again is dependent on their financial situation, age, the number of children/grandchildren they have, and so on.

Conclusion
Your client’s land is probably their largest asset and assisting your client to make an educated decision is the goal, even though it may involve tough questions. If you are interested in working with landowners, you can obtain the education, experience, connections, and expertise you need to better assist your client with the tough questions through the REALTORS® Land Institute.

Terri Jensen, ALC, is a Broker/REALTOR®, Auctioneer, and Appraiser in Minnesota and is currently VP of Real Estate/Appraisal at Upper Midwest Mgmt. Terri served as the 2015 RLI National President of the REALTORS® Land Institute, a commercial affiliate of NAR, and is still an active member of the organization, holding their elite Accredited Land Consultant (ALC) Designation.