Face Lift anyone?
No, this is not Hollywood, but I do believe some Real Estate Agents could take lessons from the stars - and get a face lift on your business! We cannot expect things to change if we remain in the same state of mind, doing the same things that are not working and not taking the time to pick up on new ideas and tips. Talking about how bad the market is and how long you think it will be before it is better. Remember the blog I wrote called We are Winners - well we are, but only if we take our blinders off and realize that we will not be successful in this business if we are not up for a face lift. I'm ready -- how about you.
Now that we are faced with pre-foreclosures, defaults, short sales, deed in lieu of, trustee sales.... etc. Let review what we have learned and heard about being a professional listing agent.
First let's give credit where credit is due..... Let's rank some of the major nagging problems in real estate. What is #1 on the charts for enabling a house to sit on the MLS listing for months on end?
RANKINGS Defined:
-- Blue ribbon could cause Price Reductions and low to no profit from sale, and no matter how you try to fix it --- stress to sellers and agents!
-- Red ribbon could cause you low to no profits, hugh number of Days on Market = stressed out sellers and agents!
Home Pricing Mistakes: Takes the award for 1st place (Just know that this is a mistake and you will probably not be rewarded for it in real life)!
- Hanging the wrong price tag on a home could cause major problems. List Right! List Right! List Right... is the same to a seller as Location! Location! Location is in seller a home. If the home is priced too high, buyers won't look at it. If it's priced too low, sellers will worry that they'll give away profits.
- Part of the market value is based on comparable sales, but other factors to consider include market movement, demand, the home's location and its condition. Agents should pay close attention to the condition of the house. Especially in this market time where there are so many short sales - when you need to be able to describe the drawbacks of the property. This will help the lender make a smart decision for the short sale.
- Remember when a home is overpriced there may be no offers to consider. And sellers and agents need to be aware of buyers that will give lowball offers. Lowball offers can result in an immediate offer rejection. These extremely low offers tend to infuriate and insult sellers.
- Some agents deliberately overstate the value of a home and push a seller to sign an overpriced listing. There are many reasons why agents do this, but the bottom line is when sellers reduce the price, they tend to lose the competitive edge.
Sellers remember when you test the market - you could get stung.
Overpricing, only adds to the problem:
Agents have to be careful not to overstate the value of a home and/or push a sellers to agree to an overpriced listing. Sellers should know that by doing this they lose ground when they have to come back and reduce the property.
These are some other award winning "AVOIDS" for both sellers and agents: (These problems are a leading follow up to bad pricing).
Avoid Hiring the wrong Agent
Avoid common marketing mistakes
Avoiding Home Preparation Mistakes
Tips on these problem areas:
Avoid hiring the wrong agent (SELLERS): They all cost about the same. Get someone that you feel comfortable with, that is knowledgable in real estate and one that project a positive attitude and marketing plan. There are several types of agents: full service, discount agents, Realtors/agents - find out the different first, then sign listing agreement. One tip: make sure you agree to pay a decent commission so that your agent has incentive to show your home and work hard at selling your property.
Avoid common marketing mistakes (AGENT): Make sure the Agent has a well polished MLS listing: Photos are clear and you have as many photos as you possible. Make sure you update the photos for the season -- if it is summer don't have snow pictures.
Do not overlook preparing your home for sale (SELLERS/AGENT): A broken down house is probably not going to sell and at least not at the price the seller would want to get. Do repairs to boost chances of a reasonable timeframe for sale. Remember broken items or evidence of lack of maintenance will make buyers wonder what else is wrong. They will run!
There are options to help you get your HOME IN ORDER: Staging a home, which can be simple or complex - from the seller doing it themselves to hiring a professional stager.
Come one, come all - lets get that face lift started. Its won't hurt!
A winner - the Mother and Daughter Realty Team
;)
;)
