By David Fletcher

Is the following statement true or false?

As a real estate agent my primary job is help home buyers find their dream home.

 It 's safe to say the majority of us would answer 'True'.   Orlando Realtor Mary Carpousis, however, would say ‘false’.

“Every now and then a lifestyle comes along that is beyond most of our dreams,” Carpousis said,"a place where homeowners can fish for bass on the way to a movie, for example.”

Carpousis is referring to Hamlin, the new 640-acre master-planned mixed-use community in West Orange County, about 30 minutes to downtown Orlando, the attractions and Orlando’s International Airport, just off of State Road 429.

Three miles of Lake Hamilton lakefront beckon visitors back to old Florida and to the convenience of a town center, boardwalk, and marina with walking trails, integrated park systems, and recreational amenities. 

The $1 billion community is  projected to have a $100 million annual economic impact, and create 8,200 jobs.

“Most of my home shoppers never dreamed of walking out of their lakeside home and driving to work, dinner or a movie in their boat,” but once they see what  is going here they realize that this reality is beyond anything they dreamed they could live,” Carpousis said, “just as I discovered my first time here.” 

That’s why Carpousis encouraged her broker/owner Joe Doher, to do an unconventional, inconvenient thing- move his sales meeting to the Taylor Morrison Homes sales center at Overlook at The Hamlin, a new waterfront, family friendly neighborhood offering a wide range of home choices ranging from 1600 to over 5,100 square feet-including four and or five-bedroom home designs, according toits home builder, Taylor Morrison. brochure.

Why would Doher, who is about to open his sixth Hathaway Berkshire Results Realty  office,  move his sales meeting to the builder’s models,  when he has onsite sales consultants banging his door down to make a presentation at a sales meeting at his place? After all, it a little off the beaten path.

“My agents need to know the market, especially when something like Overlook at Hamlin comes along.” I owe it to my agents to help them, because it makes them better agents, which in turn helps them better serve the home shoppers.“Knowing that the sales office can be hard to find on a first visit, makes it even more important that agents visit the sales center, especially for a community as saleable as this one.

“Agents resist introducing their clients to a community if they fear being embarrassed by not being able to find the sales office,” Doher said.

Lisa Mojo, a Taylor Morrison associate coordinated the meeting  with a brunch and an outstanding presentation by onsite sales consultant. 

“There are not many brokers who can say with assurance that their agents have a good grasp on the market in West Orange County if their agents have not  visited Overlook at Hamlin,and we are more than happy to sponsor a broker brunch at our sales center for any office of any size. After all, eighty percent of our sales are sold to Realtor clients.

“Visiting the community vs having a community representative visit your office is like the difference in telling your prospect about a house and showing them one.’ Wojo said.

“She is absolutely right, Carpousis said. “There is simply no way to appreciate what the agent’s prospects will experience, without giving them the opportunity to experience what they see and learn by making a personal visit.” 

If you are looking for a new homes professional to help you purchase a new home at The Hamlin or anywhere else in Central Florida for that matter, contact Realtor Mary Carpousis.

Carpousis is one of the first Realtors in Orlando to earn her new home co-broker (NHCB) designation by completing a three hour online new homes sales course approved for 3 hours CE credit by the Florida Real Estate Commission. 

“Working with new home buyers and seeing their appreciation for introducing them to lifestyles they had no idea existed or thought were out of their price rand is a dream come true for me ,” Carpousis said, and that goal forces me to dig a little deeper, go the extra mile if necessary to know the market."