With all the negative press about real estate, it’s no wonder agents feel like they’re under fire. But some RE/MAX Associates are fighting back against the doom and gloom, and telling the real story about housing in their local markets. John Bendall, Mike Cox, Laura Olive and Tom Swanwick are among the growing number of Associates who are trying to change the world – well, their local markets anyway – by using the power of the news media. Here’s how they do it:

John Bendall is one of MSNBC’s trusted real estate sources and is sometimes called on at the drop of a hat to offer his perspective on market conditions. Bendall, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Classic Group, a collection of four offices in New Jersey, appears about twice a month on the network as a real estate analyst. It’s not always easy, however, for the Platinumpress, he says. “It’s hard not to blame them, but if I did push some blame on them they would never have me back,” Bendall says. “So I stick to all the positive signs and figures I can find to state my case. “One thing that can help agents is to stress the local market – and how they fit in to that picture. Agents are more relevant than ever; we’re not in a market that a novice can work in. In the market we have before us, it takes the knowledge and skills of a professional to defend a client’s buying or selling price.”

Laura Olive is a mini real estate celebrity in Fort Collins, Colo. The Broker Associate with RE/MAX Alliance is a mainstay in the Fort Collins Coloradoan – she’s written a biweeklyMost of her columns remind readers that trouble in other markets doesn’t mean trouble in their northern Colorado market. “What may be true in other states is definitely not true here – just like the weather,” says Olive (ABR, CRP, CRS,the 1 percent to 2 percent of homes that areAchievement Award recipient. “It’s human nature to focus on the negative – because that’s what sells newspapers.”

Not all marketks are created equal that’s why Mike Cox, a Broker Associate with RE/MAX Professionals in Highlands Ranch, Colo., does his part to educate Denver news media about local trends. With the help of the Public Relations Department at RE/MAX International, Cox distributes a monthly market report to some of the biggest news outlets in the Denver  The Denver Post, The Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Business Journal. He also was recently interviewed live on the city’s NBC-TV affiliate. “I do this as a way to keep me in tune with current market conditions and create accountability on my end,” Cox says. “I’m not a statistician, but my goal is to put out positive, truthful information aboutSo, you have a local message in hand, ready to go. How do you get busy news editors and TV reporters to pay attention? “You need to know who the players are and make those introductions,” Cox says. “Propose doing something – interviews, columns, a blog – and be consistent about it. You have to approach it with a positive attitude.”