Agents: Save Time and Money With Just A Few Minutes of Planning (Part 1)

Most of us wished that there was another hour in each day so that we could have more time for ourselves and to spend with our family.  Here are some simple tips that will not only save you time but will also save you money and eliminate some frustration in the process.   

1. Always use a Listing Questionaire in advance over the phone to learn about the home and the features before you go.  This way you can do your research before you ever visit with the seller.  You will be better prepared and you can spend your time with the seller focusing on their specific home selling goals. In most cases understanding the reason and motivations the seller wants to move is far more important than anything else yet most agents focus on the home which is generally a huge mistake.   
2. Ask the seller while on the initial phone interview if the home is ready to be photographed and if they believe one for sale sign would be adequate or should I bring two for sale signs?  (REMEMBER your ABC's...Always Be Closing)
3. Send a prelisting package and include a sample listing contract, a key ring with tag and have the street address already filled in.  I include a certificate for 3 Free Keys so that they can have extra copies of their keys made BEFORE I come out to the home.  I also include a residential property disclosure and a lead based paint disclosure.  By providing these in advance many of the questions they have are eliminated before I ever meet with the seller.  If when I meet with the seller I see the disclosures are already filled out and a set of keys on the table I know the odds are very good that they are ready to list TODAY.
4. ALWAYS 100% of the time take TWO for sale signs with you and ALWAYS take a lockbox.  This will save you from making another trip later.
   
5. Bring your laptop computer and either a Visioneer Strobe handheld scanner or a Fujitsu S300 scanner.  This will come in very handy when you need to copy their title policy and their survey and it saves you from having to take time to return the originals which will save you a trip (many cases the seller won't let their original documents out of their site).  Having a portable scanner with me on the initial listing has gotten me more than 50 listings in the past 4 years that I would never have had...but because I pulled out the scanner and started copying documents such as power of attorneys, quit claim deeds, trust documents, location surveys, title policies, death certificates, subdivision docs, condo docs...the seller was immediately wowed by the technology and that $300 scanner not only saved me time but landed me the business on the spot.   
6. Always leave several self addressed pre stamped envelopes with them at the listing.  Tell them to tuck them away in their desk for a later time incase they need to send you anything.  Specifically if they do not have a fax machine you will use these envelopes if you need to do a price change or listing extension. This way you can send them the paperwork by PDF e-mail attachment and they can print it out...sign it and drop it into the mail and you will get the paperwork back in half the time.
7. Another hot tip for those using a clean panel sign brochure box (the ones you can see if they are empty without getting our of the car).  Print 50 full color flyers of the home and print 15 black and white flyers.  Put 35 of the color flyers in the front of the brochure box and put 15 black and white ones stuffed behind the color so that the color brochures are the ones that are seen.  Give the seller an envelope with 15 color flyers and explain the following:  "Mr. and Mrs. Seller, Have you ever driven by a home that has an empty brochure box?  (they always say yes).  Mr. and Mrs. Seller, I have a system so that never ever happens and I am going to need your help for only 10 seconds each day.  Every day when you pull into the driveway I want you to glance over at the real estate sign and the brochure box and I want you to look to see if you have color brochures or black and white brochures.  The majority of the brochure box is filled with color brochures but I have placed 15 black and white ones in the back.  This way if you ever come home and you see only black and white brochures, go inside, add the color brochures from the envelope and then call my office and we will print you a refill.  (The key is that there are generally 10 to 15 black and white brochures left and they have 15 color ones left so I can mail them the refill which saves me time and gas money and they never EVER run out).