By Kelly Miller
It can be extremely stressful when buying or selling a home and figuring out who to trust to handle one of the biggest transactions you’ll ever make is of the utmost importance. That’s why you should consider partnering with the real estate professionals at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Properties Group (aka Berkshire Hathaway). The firm specializes in guiding you through every step of the process, providing you with a worry-free plan of action for your residential and commercial real estate needs.
Berkshire Hathaway has been in The Shoppes of New Tampa (located at the intersection of S.R. 56 and Bruce B. Downs {BBD} Blvd.) in Wesley Chapel since 2003. Although the big Prudential Tropical Realty sign is still (at our press time) out in front of the office, soon new signage will read Berkshire Hathaway Florida Properties Group. Prudential Tropical Realty joined the Berkshire Hathaway real estate brokerage network in January of this year.
A leader in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel residential and commercial real estate markets, Berkshire Hathaway is locally owned and operated by Dewey Mitchell and Allen Crumbley, who’ve been doing business together since 1959, when they opened a real estate business called Dewey & Allen.
Then, in 1988, Mitchell and Crumbley joined the Prudential network, where their firm was called Prudential Tropical Realty for 26 years, before becoming Berskshire Hathaway.
The Berkshire Hathaway name comes from the holding company Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., of which famed billionaire financier Warren Buffett is the chairman and CEO. Because Buffet believes so strongly in his real estate division, for the first time ever, he attached his holding company’s name to another business.
“Berkshire Hathaway is built to be forever,” Buffet said. “It’s true of all the businesses we own. You want to be part of an organization that’s not looking to sell out next week or next month or next year, or where the place will crumble when the founders leave. In terms of permanence, we can’t be beat.”
Berkshire Hathaway operates globally and was recognized as the top company in Barron’s financial news magazine’s annual ranking of the world’s most respected companies last year. There are 17 Berkshire Hathaway real estate branch offices within the four-county area of Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Hernando, and the newest office opens later this year in downtown St. Petersburg on Beach Dr.
The staff at the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel office prides itself on creating clients for life. Not only does Berkshire Hathaway provide the best residential and commercial real estate services, the local office also offers:
•Mortgage & Title Services
•Home Warranties
•Homeowners Insurance
•Relocation Services
•Property, HOA & Condo Management Services
Berkshire Hathaway regularly partners with Shelter Lending Services for mortgages, Capstone Title for titles and Capstone Insurance for P & C (property & casualty) insurance.
Other real estate companies may make you find your own mortgage company and insurance agent, something that takes a considerable amount of time and research. But, Berkshire Hathaway eliminates the guesswork and is a full-service Broker that can meet all of your real estate needs. Managing Broker and VP of Core Service Operations for Berkshire Hathaway Rob Hilliker says, “I don’t want to tell a client to go out on the internet and shop for a mortgage, because I don’t know what they’re going to get. If I refer them to Shelter Lending Services for a mortgage, that’s a relationship I have and I know that company operates at a high level of integrity and that they’re going to do the right thing for our client.”
Hilliker has been in the real estate business for 25 years, serving the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel areas for the last 17. He’s a Meadow Pointe resident who started working as an agent for the Wesley Chapel Prudential Tropical office in 2001 and took over as Managing Broker two years later. Hilliker is proud of his company’s philosophy of Teamwork, Integrity, Passion & Excellence. He calls the 51 agents in his office “Real Estate Solution Providers” because they are that one-source solution provider for all of their clients’ real estate needs.
Lexington Oaks resident Linda Keener was so impressed with her Real Estate Solution Provider Cynthia Filippi that she’s worked with her three times. Keener purchased a house where Filippi was the listing agent and then a few years later, decided to sell the house. So, she called Filippi again.
“Cynthia is professional, but very warm,” Keener said. “I like that’s she’s so knowledgeable and available.”
Keener wanted to move to Lexington Oaks and when there were no houses available, Filippi took the initiative to walk through the neighborhood asking folks if they knew of any neighbors who wanted to sell their homes. Filippi ended up finding Keener a house before it even went on the market.
“I was very impressed with Cynthia’s initiative,” Keener says
Hilliker explains that, “70 percent of Berkshire Hathaway’s business comes from previous clients and referrals from those clients. That’s the highest reward we can receive because that tells me we did a great job.”
Dennis Lawler worked with Tammy Hellman and Kim Hilliker of Berkshire Hathaway when he recently sold a house in Meadow Pointe. He appreciated the ease of the selling process from beginning to end. “We listed our house on a Wednesday and had seven showings during a two-day period. We received two offers and on that Saturday we accepted a cash offer.”
Lawler also appreciated the speed of the actual closing itself. “We were only in the office for a half hour on closing day,” Lawler says. “We signed our paperwork and went home with a check.” Because Lawler was so pleased with his experience, he used the same Real Estate Solution Providers when he decided to purchase new home construction at Lake Jovita on S.R. 52. Hellman and Hilliker were able to negotiate a $15,000 discount with Inland Homes on Lawler’s behalf.
Your High-Tech Real Estate Partner
When you partner with Berkshire Hathaway, you have access to some amazing technology that helps your house sell faster. Properties are listed on more than 50 popular national websites, including Trulia.com, Zillow.com, and Yahoo.com Real Estate, as well as Berkshire Hathaway’s own websites: BHHSFloridaProperties.com and BerkshireHathawayHS.com.
On Realtor.com, a seller’s property will be listed in the “Company Showcase” section, where properties are viewed first and clicked 72-percent more often, which generates more leads to potential buyers. Through Berkshire Hathaway’s Seller Advantage program, sellers receive email notifications of activity on their property’s listing, as well as specialized detailed summer reports of buyer search activity in their area. In addition, Berkshire Hathaway offers its CITY 24/7 mobile technology that allows buyers to enter a code from the curbside hanging sign in front of a seller’s house in order to get instant property information for buyers.
Berkshire Hathaway also is a member of the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) and many of the Real Estate Solution Providers are Rotary members in New Tampa and Wesley Chapel. And, the entire office has a long history of community involvement, participating in the Hillsborough Reads program (which connects Hillsborough County elementary students with adults who serve as one-on-one literary tutors) and the location itself serves as a drop point for the U.S. Marines’ Toys for Tots program.
Berkshire Hathaway’s national charity is the Sunshine Kids Foundation. The organization’s mission is to improve the quality of life of children with cancer by providing them with exciting, positive group activities. But, Berkshire Hathaway doesn’t just fund raise or simply write a check to the organization; they roll up their sleeves and help chaperone vacations for the kids. Twice a year, about 20 kids (plus their families and team of health care professionals) will travel to Orlando and spend a week visiting all the theme parks. Hilliker says that his office is the primary coordinator and that about 90-percent of the volunteers come from his office. However, other volunteers can come from the other Berkshire Hathaway franchise offices, too. The Real Estate Solution Providers volunteer their time to assist the kids in the park, pushing them in their wheelchairs and doing anything they can to provide a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“I’ve gone and taken a child in a wheelchair into the parks and ridden rides with them,” Hilliker says. “It’s important for a kid to get to be a kid.”
Besides English, Berkshire Hathaway has Real Estate Solution Providers who speak Portugese, Spanish, Tagalog, Hindi, Pelugu, Mandarin and Chinese.
To find out how Berkshire Hathaway can assist you with all of your residential and commercial real estate needs, including those in the luxury market, call 907-8200. Berkshire Hathaway is located at 1830 BBD in Wesley Chapel. For more information, visit NewTampa.BHHSFlorida Properties.com.
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