One way to ensure survival in the current economic condition is to partner with another organization. Businesses don’t usually consider this option as they think of everyone as their competition. However, Weiss Homes, a homebuilding construction company located in north central Indiana and southwestern Michigan, has decided to take this idea to the next level.

Weiss Homes has decided to cultivate a partnership with local real estate businesses. Any agent who registers a potential homeowner at Lafayette Falls, a community with houses developed solely by Weiss Homes, will be paid the standard agent’s commission, rather than being cut out of the deal by a builder’s sales consultant. This usually happens if the buyer shows up without their agent. The common practice of cutting out the "middle man" has long made agents skeptical about bringing their clients to look at new construction homes. However, Weiss Homes is working to combat this practice so that agents will actually look forward to visiting their new construction sites with their clients in hand.

The deal seems to bring business to Weiss Homes, as demonstrated by local agent Roger Pendl. "If I have someone who is even thinking about building, I can register them with Weiss and if they build, I know I’ll get compensated. They make it real simple. By simple faxing a name, I have the security that this is a builder [I want to] recommend," says Pendl. About 25 percent of Weiss’s sales now come from local agents.

While the commission seems to motivate agents, Weiss Homes has also been recognized for the high level of respect and common courtesy they exhibit."Little things mean a lot—returning phone calls promptly, having refreshments in the models, having real-time pricing," says Kym Baker, Vice President of Sales at Weiss Homes.

To provide the best customer service in the industry, Weiss Homes often brings in speakers for staff training. Weiss Homes even encourages the attendance of local realtors at these speaking engagements, in order to continue the education and learning process of the real estate market. Additionally, Baker and the Weiss Homes’ staff offer their opinions on everything from floor plan models, pricing and customer service. This way everybody is onboard and working together to accomplish a common goal.

"We visit as often as they’ll let us in. It’s our own little focus group…it’s a working relationship instead of an adversarial one," says Baker. Weiss Homes has built a truly beneficial relationship with local agents and is living proof to the saying, "treat others how you want to be treated."