When you are a real estate agent in a slow market you need to focus on your strengths. Some enterprising real estate agents in Portland, Oregon have gone one step further. They have recognized that the green lifestyle is popular and have incorporated it in their sales techniques.

They sell real estate by bicycle.

Yep, instead of driving around in their Mercedes Benz, or even their Prius, they are targeting those who love to bike around town and are showing homes using their bicycles. And they are successful doing so.

So agents, when you look around wondering why you do not have generic buyers clamoring for your attention, why don’t you focus on a specific type of buyer and become an expert? Those that share a passion will much more likely to buy from those than the generic real estate broker.

Some even show houses exclusively by bike, wheeling through the neighborhood with potential buyers to show off bike lanes and bike-focused businesses and repair shops.

Clad in a purple helmet with plastic flowers dangling from her handlebars, Kirsten Kaufman, of Portland, is part of a new generation of agents eager to replace the stereotypes of hauling clients around in fancy sedans or sport utility vehicles.

The mother of three started hosting bike tours earlier this summer, doling out energy bars and apricots to a growing tail of clients whose passion for pedaling weighs heavily in their choice of homes. Some are hard-core cyclists. Others are moving into the city to avoid increasingly expensive and onerous commutes.

“It’s becoming more common to see families committing to driving less,” Kaufman said. “I think it’s a part of the market that will continue to grow as gas gets more expensive.” via Seattle PI

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