• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Sacramento Appraisal Blog | Real Estate Appraiser

Real estate appraisals for divorce, estate settlement, loans, property tax appeal, pre-listing and more. We cover Sacramento, Placer and Yolo County. We're professional, courteous and timely.

  • About
  • Appraisals
  • Order
  • Ask Ryan
  • Areas
  • Classes
  • Press
  • Trends
  • Share
  • Contact

5 Reasons why graphing is a vital skill for real estate professionals

May 1, 2014 By Ryan Lundquist 5 Comments

Can you teach an old dog new tricks? That’s questionable. It’s certainly not easy for us humans to learn new things either. But let’s talk about one skill in real estate that is HIGHLY attainable, yet something that most will ignore (which can be good for you). Knowing how to graph neighborhood sales sounds really dull, but it’s truly something that can be an amazing tool to help you stand out from the crowd and look like a rock star to your clients.

Real estate geeks - Image purchased and used with permission by Sacramento Appraisal Blog

5 Reasons why graphing is a vital skill for real estate professionals

  1. We live in a visual world, so graphs help clients see the market.
  2. Neighborhood data can be far more powerful than zip code data.
  3. Why let Zillow or Trulia make all the graphs? Show your skills.
  4. Graphing helps you understand trends first before talking with clients.
  5. Graphs are perfect for sharing on your blog or social media.

A tutorial on how to make trend graphs: I made a tutorial below for you to check out. I recommend watching it and then pulling up your MLS so you can create a graph by following the steps I took. This is good for Sacramento MLS, but it’s also good for any MLS so long as you can export data (which is probably only a matter of clicking one button). Ask your MLS how you can export data to a spreadsheet if you cannot figure it out. I use Gnumeric in the video (a free version of Excel), and you can download that here for free. Or just use Excel, which is similar and what I use all the time for my fancier graphs.

You can watch the video above or directly here on YouTube. If it’s too small here, watch on YouTube for a larger version. Does this image help illustrate the market? What story does it tell? Should this seller in Rancho Cordova list at $230,000?

Rancho Cordova Example - trend graph of sales - by Sacramento Appraisal Blog

Some Quick Advice: The only way to add skills in business is to take a stab at learning something new, but one big reason why that doesn’t happen is because it can feel intimidating to take that first step. When it comes to graphing it’s easy to think it is only for techies, but trust me, you can do it. The more you practice, the better you’ll get. Remember, you are going to impress your clients by showing them the market visually. Don’t just tell them. Show them. I recommend trying out a graph every time you need to comp a neighborhood or maybe whenever you get a new listing. There are so many different types of graphs too. You can look at my market trends category for some examples. Whatever you do, get into a rhythm so you are practicing regularly. If you have some questions too, don’t hesitate to ask.

Questions: Was the tutorial helpful? Anything you need clarity on?

If you liked this post, subscribe by email (or RSS). Thanks for being here.

Share:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Random Stuff, Resources Tagged With: education, growth in business, how to, how to make a graph, Metrolist, real estate professional, Sacramento MLS, Scatter Graph, tips from appraiser, trend graphs, tutorial, using MLS data

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tom Horn says

    May 2, 2014 at 5:40 AM

    Thanks for the very informative post and video Ryan. Graphing sales is certainly something that can make any agent or appraiser stand out since not many do it.

    Reply
    • Ryan Lundquist says

      May 2, 2014 at 5:48 AM

      No problem at all Tom. Thanks so much. I agree with you too. Knowing how to graph is an amazing skill. I hope this helps others. If it’s a good resource I may show how to do a few different types of graphs eventually. I’ve tinkered with the idea of holding a class this year for agents (for a nominal fee), but I don’t know if I can find the time. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Sandra Scott says

    June 22, 2014 at 1:23 PM

    Great post. I’ve struggling with wanting to create graphs but not being able to grasp instructions from other “teachers” . Yours seems so simple. I’ll sure I’ll be creating graphs this afternoon!

    Reply
    • Ryan Lundquist says

      June 22, 2014 at 1:42 PM

      Thanks Sandra. It is definitely a learning curve at first, but with repetition it becomes very easy over time. I plan to do a tutorial using Excel soon, so hopefully that will help others also. I tend to use both Excel and Gnumeric for different types of graphs. If you have any questions, please let me know. I’m around. Best wishes.

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 5 Reasons why graphing is a vital skill for rea... says:
    May 2, 2014 at 5:44 AM

    […] Can you teach an old dog new tricks? That's questionable. It's certainly not easy for us humans to learn new things either. But let's talk about one skill in  […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Connect with Ryan

 Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube Instagram

Subscribe to Weekly Post

* indicates required

Search this site

Blog Categories

  • Appraisal Stuff (408)
  • Bankruptcy (3)
  • Divorce (4)
  • Estate Settlement (6)
  • FHA Appraisal Articles (56)
  • Internet (53)
  • Market Trends (485)
  • Photos from the Field (126)
  • Property Taxes (70)
  • Random Stuff (231)
  • Resources (566)
  • Videos (161)

Blog Archives: 2009 – 2021

Lundquist Appraisal Links

  • Appraisal Order Form
  • Appraisal Website
  • Rancho Cordova Appraiser Website
  • Sacramento Appraisal Blog Sitemap
  • Sacramento Real Estate Appraiser Facebook Page
  • Twitter: Sacramento Appraiser (@SacAppraiser)
  • YouTube: Sacramento Appraiser Channel

Most Recent Posts

  • An explosion of appraisal waivers. Is that good or bad?
  • Skyrocketing prices aren’t happening everywhere
  • The housing market feels like a crazy auction
  • Are appraisers keeping up with rapid price growth?
  • How much have prices risen since the bottom of the market?
  • How long can this market keep going?
  • What is your housing persona?
  • Rapid price growth & the Gilmore Girls next door
  • Are first-time buyers targeting 2-4 unit properties?
  • Stale real estate headlines & buyers flocking to El Dorado County

Disclaimer

First off, thank you for being here. Now let's get into the fine print. The material and information contained on this website is the copyrighted property of Ryan Lundquist and Lundquist Appraisal Company. Content on this website may not be reproduced or republished without prior written permission from Ryan Lundquist.

Please see my Sharing Policy on the navigation bar if you are interested in sharing portions of any content on this blog.

The information on this website is meant entirely for educational purposes and is not intended in any way to support an opinion of value for your appraisal needs or any sort of value conclusion for a loan, litigation, tax appeal or any other potential real estate or non-real estate purpose. The material found on this website is meant for casual reading only and is not intended for use in a court of law or any other legal use. Ryan will not appear in court in any capacity based on any information posted here. For more detailed market analysis to be used for an appraisal report or any appraisal-related purpose or valuation consulting, please contact Ryan at 916-595-3735 for more information.

There are no affiliate links on this blog, but there are three advertisements. Please do your homework before doing business with any advertisers as advertisements are not affiliated with this blog in any way. Two ads are located on the sidebar and one is at the bottom of each post. The ads earn a minor amount of revenue and are a simple reward for providing consistent original content to readers. If you think the ads interfere with your blog experience or the integrity of the blog somehow, let me know. I'm always open to feedback. Thank you again for being here.

Copyright © 2021 Sacramento Appraisal Blog