Point Honors and Associates, REALTORS®, Duluth, Georgia
When did you choose real estate as a career, and how did you learn about the CRS Designation?
I became involved with real estate right after I graduated from college and got to meet a lot of great people. A little later, I discovered RRC and got involved because I learned its members are the best of the best in real estate. I wanted to be a part of the elite club. And, of course, several of my mentors in real estate hold the CRS Designation, so it was something that I really wanted to be a part of. I also got involved with the local chapter of the Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA), where after a decade of service at the local and national level, I was elected as the incoming president in October 2021.
You’ve acted as emcee for Sell-a-bration®! Do you enjoy the RRC gatherings?
That’s the thing that I can’t say no to. I’ve spoken at Sell-a-bration before, and it was a lot of fun, but I really like being a part of the community that gives back. It furthers our relationships from a multicultural standpoint. It’s great to be a part of the RRC family. Speaking on stage is nice, but it’s great when we can break bread, become better friends, look for opportunities to make transactions together and really learn to love one another.
What is going on in your market right now?
I’m in the metro Atlanta market, and just like everywhere else, we are plagued with low inventory and multiple offers, which is somewhat new to our market in the past year. But we will all survive. I tell everyone the best thing we can do is to not forget to be nice to one another and work hard to get a deal done. Many of my mentors were selling real estate when interest rates were much higher—even I was selling real estate when rates were between 7% and 9%. We will all be fine—it is understandably a tough time. You really need to refine your resources and be acutely aware of what’s going on in the market.
Have you had any unusual transactions lately?
In Atlanta, we weren’t used to multiple offers, bidding up and waiving appraisals—this is all kind of new to a lot of us in the market. We’re seeing a lot more earnest money disputes—some people are just walking away from their earnest money. We represented two sellers not too long ago where the buyers decided just a couple of days before closing: “You know what? I don’t want to buy it anymore.” The sellers kept the earnest money but it’s disruptive. I think the one thing that I have learned from working with a lot of members of the RRC family is the story behind each real estate transaction is important. It’s not about the transaction itself, but really being able to help the client with the story. That’s how we set ourselves apart in our marketing: We don’t talk about the dollar amounts when we make a sale, we talk about the story behind it. That’s what’s really important.
What else are you doing in the community beyond RRC, AREAA and real estate?
I am a Rotarian, and we help with many other nonprofits in the area to try to make sure everyone’s OK. For example, the shootings [of Asian women and others in March 2021] happened about a mile from my house. So, even though we are all very busy with business, we just need to make sure that all of us are doing the right thing. A lot of our team members and people with whom I work are still very much involved with their nonprofits of choice, whether it be through service or religious activities, so we just have to make sure that we’re all doing something positive.
Tim Hur, CRS, achieved the CRS Designation in 2014. He can be reached at tim@pointhonors.com or 404-512-2322.
Photo: Scott Lowden
