Inventory problem? What inventory problem?

That was one of the central themes discussed by iconic real estate business coach Brian Buffini, founder and chairman of Buffini & Company, at RISMedia’s 2020 Real Estate CEO Exchange – co-presented by the National Association of REALTORSⓇ – held yesterday, in an all-virtual format.

In this exclusive, one-on-one session with RISMedia Founder, CEO and Publisher, John Featherston, Buffini shared his insights on the challenges of having to conduct real estate business during the coronavirus pandemic, the importance of staying connected, key ways agents need to differentiate themselves and even how to overcome the inventory challenge with just a simple change in mindset.

“People are always singing the blues, ‘there’s no inventory…we have a housing shortage,’ Buffini said. “And you know my answer—it’s been the same for years, which is, there is no shortage of housing. There are 80 million households in this country. What there is, is a shortage of listed inventory.”

The solution, he says? Go out and get it.

“We have to become proactive,” he said. “We’ve got to stop waiting. Get into the mindset of, ‘I’m going to go find the inventory.'”

To help that effort, Buffini offered a complimentary download of his “I May Have a Buyer For Your Home” letter to conference-goers and RISMedia readers. Real estate professionals can download the flyer here. The letter, laid out in a clean, text-only format, offers a simple message from the agent to homeowners in their market: they have buyers if they’d like to sell their home.

“If you are working with a buyer as an agent and you can’t find inventory, drive around the streets in the neighborhoods that look familiar and send out this letter,” Buffini said. “People are afraid to put their homes on the market, that they won’t find another house. But when you’re an agent and you say, ‘I can help you find a house, even if it’s not on the market; I’ll go get it for you. I’ll go canvas the neighborhood,’ that’s being a proactive agent. It’s a different mindset. It’s saying, ‘I’m going to be an inventory creator, not an inventory wait-er.'”

Buffini also shared many more insights, including his thoughts on the decentralization of the real estate business because of the pandemic, the consequences of agents operating in isolation and the importance of staying connected. He touched on the importance of differentiation, especially in today’s market, as well as ways agents can best to do that. Finally, Buffini predicts 2021 to be a record year for real estate. Hear what’s behind his prediction and view the full one-on-one session below.

Watch for continuing coverage of RISMedia’s 2020 CEO Exchange, co-presented by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), in the days and weeks ahead.

Beth McGuire is RISMedia’s online managing editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at beth@rismedia.com.