Business View Magazine - Sept 2023

59 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 9 FI RST WEBER make sure they are well equipped to be out there and be a great spokesperson for First Weber.” Ongoing Inventory Shortages The challenge of limited housing inventory persists, and Alt emphasizes that a significant portion of the population either owns their homes outright or enjoys interest rates below 5%. “They’re sitting on a ton of equity. The COVID years were all about buying a house because you wanted to. Now, the people that are buying have to, so we’re back to a traditional market in that regard.” Another emerging issue is the prevalence of property investors. Alt acknowledges, “Back in the recession, we didn’t have the Airbnb’s, you didn’t have Wall Street getting into the real estate market and buying up all sorts of residential properties and turning them into rentals. There are a lot of different factors that are playing into our inventory issue.” She highlights that Wisconsin is not prone to the same extreme fluctuations as coastal regions and has maintained a strong market despite interest rate increases. “It is true that we don’t have enough homes to sell to the people that want to purchase them,” she admits. Embracing Technology in a Relationship- Driven Environment First Weber is a very relationship-focused company, as Maddente stresses, “There is no transaction without the relationship.” Alt continues, “Our people are not numbers, our clients are not numbers. Real estate is incredibly important. It’s the basis of wealth in this country.” Technology is seen as a means of enhancing the client relationship, rather than replacing it. Alt points out that real estate, especially residential transactions, is about emotion. “It’s where you raise your family, it’s where all of your memories come from, it is your home. It’s where your security comes from. It’s where your future is built. Technology helps us communicate better with a buyer and a seller, it makes a transaction