Five Questions With: Dawn Stevens

Dawn Stevens recently was appointed as new global relocation and corporate services director for Randall, Realtors, Page Taft Christie’s International Real Estate and Kinlin Grover Real Estate. All are part of The Randall Family of Companies, based in Charlestown. Stevens has worked for nearly 30 years in residential real estate, and has 18 years of direct experience in relocation services. She responded recently to questions posed by the Providence Business News on her new role.

PBN: You have two titles with Randall Family of Companies. What will be your role as both global relocation and corporate services director?

STEVENS: My role as global relocation director is to assist our agents with finding and placing outbound referrals, that is, referrals beyond our coverage area and place them with our affiliates around the globe. In addition, when we receive business from around the globe, I will then place those referrals with our trained relocation team agents.

As a member of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, the [Randall Family of Companies] is among 565 independent companies within the network, covering over 65 countries across six continents, so we are able to find our clients fabulous representation just about anywhere one would want to move. With more than 80 percent of membership inquiries being turned down by LeadingRE, you know that network members are the best of the best in their market areas. This provides significant value to our customers because they know they will be handled by top companies wherever they want to buy or sell.

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As the corporate services director, I work with relocation-management companies and corporations, who are transferring employees to fill a position in another location, many times in another country.

PBN: What do relocation services include, and are more corporations and midsize companies offering these as a benefit to employees, or are they still somewhat rare?

STEVENS: Providing services such as home sale, home finding in the destination location, orientation tours, and even rental assistance when needed, are some of the services provided by the relocation division. More and more corporations are offering these services as a way to assist the transferee in making the move as easy and stress-free as possible. Some companies provide these services in-house, but others look to relocation-management companies to partner with, in order to provide the services needed.

Employers need to get their employees up and running in their new positions as quickly as possible, with little down time at both the origin and destination areas. Depending on the level of the employee, some corporations are now offering lump sums, where they provide a new employee or someone who is currently renting a specific amount of money to make the move on their own. This has a cost savings for the corporation but doesn’t necessarily always work. The transferee is then responsible to find housing, move household goods, etc. on their own and the money is not always spent appropriately. Finding a Realtor and a mover is easy, but finding a good Realtor and reliable mover can be tricky.

PBN: What particular issues are involved with global/international relocations, and how often is this happening in Rhode Island?

STEVENS: Some issues that are still around but we are seeing less and less of is the ability to sell the home, having bought in the height of the market. Many times, transferees are underwater and can’t sell their home for what they paid for it a few years back. Therefore, they either will not accept the assignment or will need to rent out their house and rent in the destination area.

Waiting to get work visas to come into the country can sometimes be a challenge as well. Many times, we are assisting with a rental that a transferee is renting simply from the pictures you’ve sent them and then their visas get delayed, which causes issues as well.

Moving household goods can be another challenge, sometimes waiting months for delivery. Sometimes the ability for the spouse to be able to work is a challenge when moving to other countries. I don’t think these issues are happening any more so in Rhode Island than any other part of the Northeast.

PBN: What do sales agents need to know about these services? 

STEVENS: There is a lot involved when someone moves, especially from out of state. Our agents are trained to handle these needs. Many times, transferees are given a limited amount of time to find a home in the destination area. Agents need to be tour guides and help a transferee narrow down their search as quickly as possible. Sometimes there is sticker shock. The Northeast can be a very expensive place to live compared to other parts of the country.

Educating the transferee so that they can make an educated decision is crucial to the success of the move. Our agents are taught to be empathetic and understanding. After all, the move may not be an ideal situation for all family members involved, especially if teenagers are involved, as they are giving up a lifestyle and their friends, or possibly an elderly family member who needs to stay behind. There are so many things that are involved, not just the nuts and bolts of the transaction.

PBN: How did you get involved in real estate and how did you find this specialty?

STEVENS: I got involved in real estate 28 years ago. My mother was an agent and it always interested me. I sold real estate for about 10 years when I got a call from the company headquarters at the time, asking if I would be interested in coming into the relocation department. I thought to myself, why would I do that? But my husband encouraged me to go for the interview. The more I thought about it, the more I was intrigued.

Today I love what I do. Helping families move globally has been very rewarding for me. Introducing clients and customers to experts, whether that is our own agents in the Rhode Island area or a warm introduction to an expert in another area, and seeing it result in a happy customer is what it’s all about for me.

Mary MacDonald is a PBN staff writer. Email her at MacDonald@PBN.com, or you can follow her on Twitter @MaryF_MacDonald