Wednesday, June 20, 2012

New Website for Bend, Oregon real estate searches

bend oregon real estate

Have you visited www.thegarnergroup.com lately? We've redesigned and relaunched with your needs in mind - it makes finding just the right property in Bend, Oregon even more simple. The site is built around an informative and user-friendly search module that makes it easy for viewers to locate and map all property for sale in Central Oregon.

You'll recognize the familiar slide show of local scenic views and events on the home page, but the Quick Search feature is brand new! Couple that with the new large buttons that connect to an advanced search, open houses, agentinformation and pages containing builder profiles and information on greenbuilding, and you have a website worth visiting! You can even sign up to receive an email message when new listings come on the market that meet your specified criteria.

As if that's not enough, you can also navigate to information about market trends, local information including an active weather report, buying and selling tips and The Garner Group’s newsletter and blog.

The search mechanism sweeps listing information from the CentralOregon Multiple Listing Service and allows you to choose criteria that will narrow the search to properties of interest. Selections display in list form or on an interactive map using Bing mapping technology. You may choose to show points of interest including schools, health care facilities and shopping venues.

“There has been a fundamental change in the way people use real estate web sites,” observed Sandy Garner, the Bend, Oregon real estate company’s president and CEO. “When our most recent site was designed, emphasis was placed on creating an attractive billboard for your business. We achieved that with some pretty advanced graphics for the time.

“Now, site visitors have made it clear that their number one priority is information about all listings in the area, To be competitive, you have to provide one-stop shopping. It’s not enough just to feature your own listings,” Garner said.

While the previous provided an MLS search, “it was pretty primitive compared with the new technology we have in place now,” Garner said. “People are a lot more tech-savvy.” The site is compatible with mobile devices, offering a simplified display that makes it easy to search and find property on the go.

The new site is hosted by Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies Inc., a company that serves over 9,000 real estate offices in the United States and Canada with software for a variety of business functions including back office accounting, transaction and contact management, lead tracking, data storage, information sharing and web site development.

Visit us today at thegarnergroup.com!

“We have employed Lone Wolf office management products for several years,” Garner said. “They specialize exclusively in real estate and understand our business.”

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Bend Oregon Real Estate Agent News

We are excited to welcome back real estate broker John Anderson to The Garner Group Real Estate in Bend, Oregon! John has been a real estate professional in Bend continuously since 2001 and was previously affiliated with The Garner Group from 2008 to 2010.

Before entering real estate for the first time in 1996 in Corvallis, Anderson was a surveyor with CH2M Hill. Anderson grew up in Klamath Falls and graduated from Oregon State University with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural science and minors in fisheries and wildlife, civil engineering and surveying. He is an avid outdoorsman and horseback rider.


In other news, Patsy Roome, a Bend Oregon real estate broker with The Garner Group has recently earned her GREEN Designation from  The National Association of REALTORS® The Garner Group has more agents who have earned this designation than any other Bend, Oregon real estate company.

The certification by NAR’s Green Resource Council is awarded to those who complete a three-day course focusing on fundamentals of green building practices, consumer awareness and marketing of homes built to green standards. The Garner Group, which specializes in green real estate in Bend, Oregon, has several agents who hold this designation, as well as the Earth Advantage STAR designation.

The Garner Group is headquartered at 2762 NW Crossing Dr., Suite 100, in Bend, Oregon’s NorthWest Crossing neighborhood. http://www.thegarnergroup.com.