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  • 1.  Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-16-2023 16:27
    Edited by Mary Anne Harris 11-16-2023 16:27

    When real estate professionals have to downsize due to a downturn in the market, they sometimes make the error of turning highly professional responsibilities over to a valued employee who – while truly stellar in their field of expertise – is rarely trained in the complexities of the tasks demanded by a completely different role.

    For example, while your business development rep may be highly proficient at bringing in orders from a competitive market, they may have no idea how to navigate the intricacies of creating and managing a marketing and social media plan.

    Rather than burden a great employee with work they can at best only stumble through in their downtime, consider outsourcing tasks that require specific expertise.

    Benefits of outsourcing in a downturn

    There are a lot of advantages to outsourcing in general but let's focus on three that are specific to managing business requirements in a recession.

    Cost savings

    Let's start with the obvious. If you have full-time work for a full-time employee, that is probably cost effective. But when that work is cut in half, it may make more sense to outsource the work, even if it is only for the short term.

    In addition, one great advantage of outsourcing to a company who is focusing only on one aspect is that they are well-prepared to grow with your particular needs, so there is no worry about losing momentum as the market starts to gear up again.

    Must have

    There are some tasks within a title agency that you can temporarily suspend when cutting costs, but there are others that are absolutely mandatory to meet legal and regulatory requirements.

    If some area of your work has diminished to a point where you are no longer in need of a full-time employee in that position, but you absolutely must have this work managed, outsourcing to a competent third-party provider allows you to maintain the high standards demanded.

    Reducing errors

    The title insurance industry is highly specialized and takes years of training to manage much of the complex work. And as everyone in the industry knows, you can't hire someone out of college with the requisite skills to reduce salary costs in a recession. The curriculum doesn't yet exist to provide a ready-made title expert.

    However, you may be able to outsource to a firm who handles specific tasks you may need help with or identify a highly experienced person who has retired who is willing to step in as contractor. Either way, the important thing is to ensure you have the most competent person handling the task to reduce potential errors an untrained in-house person would no doubt commit.

    And finally, downsizing your agency in a recession is stressful for everyone. Your team no doubt wants to pitch in wherever necessary and you may end up with some employees over-committing to tasks while neglecting their own important role within the agency. This can only lead to burnout of your most valued staff when you need them the most. Collaborating with your staff to determine what to outsource and what can be more easily managed in-house will create a cohesion to the plan and sufficient buy-in to make it successful.

    At Positively Balanced, we offer many services that could be of tremendous help to you as you navigate an uncertain market in 2024, including, bookkeeping, escrow reconciliation, positive pay, audit preparation, and escheatment of unclaimed property.



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    Mary Anne Harris
    Owner/President
    Positively Balanced, LLC
    Acworth GA
    +1 (770) 975-1475
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    ALTA Marketplace


  • 2.  RE: Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-16-2023 18:25

    Hi Mary Anne:

    Are your bookkeeping services for the Title industry only or for anyone with  bookkeeping needs? We as a Tax Firm used to have a bookkeeper but we had to downsize and we are referring out when we are asked for that type of services, let me know, I will be glad to refer you out.



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    Mary Enzi CAA
    Tax Solutions – FIRPTA Consulting
    mary.santiago@taxss.com
    +1 (281) 578-1040
    Barker TX
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    ALTA Marketplace


  • 3.  RE: Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-17-2023 05:18

    Yes we can assist with bookkeeping needs from paying bills, reconciliation of accounts including credit card statements. The only thing we don't do is handle payroll but we have someone we can refer our clients for a HR platform that handles benefits and payroll. 



    ------------------------------
    Mary Anne Harris
    Owner/President
    Positively Balanced, LLC
    Acworth GA
    +1 (770) 975-1475
    ------------------------------

    ALTA Marketplace


  • 4.  RE: Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-17-2023 10:42

    Mary Anne:

    Fantastic,

    I will send bookkeeping clients your way, this is good to know!

    Enjoy the weekend!! 



    ------------------------------
    Mary Enzi CAA
    Tax Solutions – FIRPTA Consulting
    mary.santiago@taxss.com
    +1 (281) 578-1040
    Barker TX
    ------------------------------

    ALTA Marketplace


  • 5.  RE: Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-17-2023 17:40

    Shout out & a BIG Thank you to Mark at Tax Solutions – FIRPTA Consulting--- I reached out to their office yesterday

    with Firpta/IRS Questions and he walked me through several tips AND later called me when he had another tip 

    for me - Im very grateful.  Him and I have never worked together before, but he took my call and provided a lot of assistance. 

    I would highly recommend calling for FIRPTA questions.  - Thanks again Mark !!



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    Valerie Mason
    Settlement Officer/Manager
    Foundation Title, LLC
    Hamilton NJ
    +1 (609) 586-7077
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    ALTA Marketplace


  • 6.  RE: Why Outsourcing is a Better Solution than Doubling up in a Recession

    Posted 11-17-2023 17:44
    Edited by Mary Enzi 11-17-2023 17:57

    Valery:

    Thank you for calling, please feel free to pick up the phone and call us anytime you have FIRPTA or federal tax questions, we will be glad to assist you and make FIRPTA easy for you! 

    Happy Thanksgiving Day!! 🦃🍂



    ------------------------------
    Mary Enzi CAA
    Tax Solutions – FIRPTA Consulting
    mary.santiago@taxss.com
    +1 (281) 578-1040
    Barker TX
    ------------------------------

    ALTA Marketplace