Let me introduce to a few of the ten members who were interviewed on the show:
Lakeisha Cunningham
Has been in the real estate business for 18 years, she first started with Weichert Realtors, worked at RE/MAX, and then Keller Williams. Three years ago, she and her husband opened an EXP Real Estate office in New Castle and they now have a team of ten. The Cunningham Team specializes in downsizing and upsizing, and unfortunately with COVID, a lot of divorce sales as well.
Herb Cunningham
Has been in the real estate business for eight years, six years full-time. Previously, he worked for the city of Newark for 25 years in construction but had to leave after being diagnosed with two brain aneurysms. He got his real estate license and joined the family business.
Brianna Cunningham
Decided to join her parents by getting her Real Estate license while she was attending St. John’s of Queens college in New York. She dived into the business doing the back-end tasks and helps everyone to look good on the front-end.
Adreanna Johnson
Received her Real Estate license during the pandemic and has been with the Cunningham Team for about a year. She loves the Cunningham culture, the vibe and of course it feels like family. She previously worked in Corporate America before switching to real estate and stated that it has been the best decision she ever made.
The Cunningham Team brokered by EXP Realty is a family real estate team serving the entire state of Delaware, specializing in residential real estate, multi-family, corporate relocations, and short sale/foreclosure properties. They proudly offer over a decade of combined expertise to prospective clients.
The Cunninghams also specialize in Airbnb, investment properties and vacation rentals so when you are ready to travel with the family this summer, make sure to connect with them.
They pride themselves in exceeding the expectations of their clients, vendors, business partners, and colleagues as they conduct their business in a caring, respectful, and competent manner.
The Cunningham Team believes that they can accomplish more working together with their clients as a team, so they carefully consider not only the task at hand but also the individuals whom they are serving in every real estate transaction. Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results!
Relationship Building
One of the secrets to their success is whenever they start working with someone, it is very important that their clients are educated and fully informed about the entire process. Before showing properties they schedule a buyer’s consultation meeting at which time they explain the process to make sure that they have a complete understanding of the real estate process. They want to know why their potential buyers want to make the purchase; their motivation is a major part of this conversation.
When they bring a client into the office and spend an hour or so talking, they ask about their motivation for purchasing a home; what’s important to them; and what they visualize about the process. This communication session gives the team member something to latch onto that emotionally ties them to the purchase. This definitely helps when things go right as well as when things go wrong, because they are committed to the process and really knows what is motivating their clients.
This also builds a relationship that continues even after the transaction is complete. They continue to have a relationship with the buyers and oftentimes will reach out to wish a Happy Birthday, Happy Anniversary or just to ask about how the kids are doing, the Cunninghams want to keep the relationship going.
The Cunningham Team takes pride in being able to educate clients, especially new home buyers, working with them, helping them to understand pre-existing home problems or not as well as the nuances of new builds. Delaware is a very attractive state in which to purchase real estate and this helps build a wide client base. It also allows them to expand their borders and bring in clients from surrounding states such as New York. They also use social media to connect allowing them to expand their reach even further.
Scam Alerts in Real Estate
Using social media to expand the business reach is great, but it can also be a scamming nightmare and I spoke to Lakeshia and Adreanna about what potential home buyers should be made aware of and they shared this story.
“A lot of the scam artists are actually taking our real pictures and posting them on Craigslist. Stating that the property is for rent and then they get someone by posting an attractive rental rate, one that is lower than what someone would normally pay to buy the house.
After posting our professional pictures, people will reach out to the scammer on Craigslist and tell them that they’re interested in moving forward. The person who is the scammer will usually say, I’m out of town. However, if you’re very very interested, then you need to send the deposit and the first month’s rent and they’ll give a reason as to why not to contact the realtor like stating that they were recently fired.
So, people will send the first month’s rent and security deposit, not wanting to miss out out on the opportunity and then when they don’t get they keys they end up calling the realtor listed on the sign.
Of course, we don’t have any idea what they’re talking about and they’re like you know today’s the day I’m supposed to move in and they’re not moving in because this house isn’t even for rent, it’s for sale. That’s a very, very common scam in social media, so please be aware.”
The Cunningham Team is a family that works together in real estate and they are not only leaving a lasting legacy; they are also creating generational wealth!
Take a listen to the entire podcast interview to learn more about the Cunningham Team and if you are interested in connecting with them, give them a call at 302-533-8087 or check them out online on Facebook/Instagram/TikTok.
