It goes without saying these days that the Realtor who does not embrace technology will be replaced by the Realtor who does.  Compared to the way Realtors used to interact with their clients in the “olden days” and the way Realtors interact with the Internet Empowered Consumer (whether they are a home buyer or home seller) of today is like night and day.

The Internet has made all kinds of information about real estate, generally, as well as specific neighborhoods and homes available to anyone who wants to obtain it. Virtual Tours let you take an inside peek at most homes while the average home buyer is still in their jammies. Almost anything is available 24/7/365 from the comfort of your own home.

That’s what I constantly try to stay on top of new technology trends as they hit the street.  One of the ways I’ve been doing that recently is by attending REBAR Camps.  These are quasi-formal (mostly very informal) education conferences that provide a place for people to share knowledge and techniques with emerging technology as it relates to the real estate profession.

As I write this blog post, I am staying at a hotel in the City of Brotherly Love — Philadelphia — resting up from an evening of talking with real estate professionals and technologists from across the country at the requisite Beer with Bloggers.  Tomorrow is the nuts and bolts day of sharing what is new and wonderful to help us as real estate professionals interact more effectively and more efficiently with our clients.

The real beauty of the REBAR Camps is that the information comes from my peers — other real estate professionals, just like me — that use this stuff everyday in their own real estate practice.  Sure, there are a few specialists.  For example, the people from Altos Research who are providing the real time real estate market research (check out the Marktet Trends link in the navigation bar at the top of the page or the form on the right side over there).

It’s a great time to network and a wonderful way to stay ahead of the curve.