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Discount Real Estate Agents. Should You Hire One If You Need To Sell?

By
Real Estate Agent with SAMSON PROPERTIES 0225018862

Do you hire your Realtor based on commission?

Interesting....

In today's real estate it is far more technical than placing your listing in the MLS, placing a sign in the yard and praying for a buyer to come. St. Joseph Statues have sold out everywhere and homes still sit. Many homes today that go on the market Expire with no offers.

Today's real estate demands a strong online presence! Your home must be easy to find when a buyer does an online search? Not just on one site, it should be on dozens of sites.

When your first thought is "commission" when beginning to start your Realtor search - You are already starting out at the bottom of the list.

Think of it this way.  Most Top Producing Realtors would never consider discounting their commission. My position is this, if the Realtor you hire cannot protect their own commission, the income that puts gas in the car, food on the table, how the heck are they going to protect your equity?

If they fold like cheap lawn furniture in negotiations, will they be able to negotiate on your behalf? 

"I highly doubt it!"

As a Technology Realtor my valuable time along with the rest of our team is spent marketing your property online. Over 80% of buyers find their home on the Internet. Most Realtors do not know the meaning and value of a Blog, Tag, Meta tag,video tours,viral marketing, Search engines, and National online real estate marketing.   In many conversations lately at holiday gathering, so many Realtors  have said "oh, blogging takes to long, I can barely handle email, how do you make those great flyers and do all that marketing?  I just can't find the time. I see your name and your posts everywhere and it's beginning to make me mad. Humm.....again interesting. I learned long ago to stay ahead of the crowd, always be out in front with the new idea's and market the heck out of my clients homes.

           Ask yourself a simple question: 

Do You Want To List Your Home For Sale or Do You Want To Sell Your Home?  

There is a difference. If you just want to LIST your home for sale, there are hundreds of Realtors who will do that for you. However if you want to SELL your home, give Erick and Company a call.  Still not sure....do an online Google search for Erick Blackwelder, Peggy James, Erick and Company, Erick Sells Homes, Woodbridge Top Producing Realtor. Go ahead and give it a try.This will present just the tip of the marketing efforts we have created to sell Lake Ridge and surrounding area homes.

Contact Me Today  

Contact Erick Blackwelderor Peggy James of Erick and Company of Exit 1st Choice Realty, Woodbridge  VA. Realtors®, call 703-851-3085 (Peggy) or 703-590-2252(Office) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Lake Ridge, Westridge, Old Bridge Estates, River Falls, Middle County, Manassas, Montclair, Dumfries, Occoquan, Dale City, Gainesville area's

  

 Google Peggy James Lake Ridge Va or Erick and Company

Comments (8)

Charles Stallions
Charles Stallions Real Estate Services - Pensacola, FL
850-476-4494 - Pensacola, Pace or Gulf Breeze, Fl.

I totally disagree, but what is a discount? The agent that gives a friend a lower commission, the one that reduces his commission to get a deal closed or the one that charges 2% less if he sells it.

Three out the top agents in my area meet these examples including myself. I perfer to be paid whether the house sells or not. I will tell a client what it takes to sell there home and they can keep it for sell with me for as long as it takes. Most wnt to start out as high as they can imagine. When I list it I give them the price and what I will do, then we go from there I get paid upfront.

Dec 28, 2008 05:08 PM
Peggy James
SAMSON PROPERTIES - Woodbridge, VA
Woodbridge Virginia Area Real Estate Specialist

Hi Charles,

Thank you for your comment. It's interesting to learn that you have modeled your company to take a listing well over the market price and "then go from there".  I would imagine you get lots of sign calls from buyers, who just move on to the next home that is more affordable. Of course they do and I would imagine you are happy to help them. And round and round the business model goes.

For me personally,selling a home is not about a DEALor lining my pocket with $1495.00 Up Front whether the home sells or not.

Here in Virginia our MLS days on market clock starts ticking on day one. If a sellers home is listed in MLS and it's overpriced, they run the risk of being a dated property. Buyers always want to know "how long has this home been on the market?" The longer it's on, the lower the price goes.

"It upsets me when I get a call from a seller who paid $1495.00 up front and the home did not sell. "

This year I've listed several failed Discount situations. Here the latest one. This house like many others was Sold with hard work, attention to detail and always working toward the sellers goal. To sell the home for the most money, in the least amount of time with the least amount of stress.

How is overpricing a listing helpful to sellers?

 

 

 

 

Dec 28, 2008 10:22 PM
Janice Roosevelt
Keller Williams Brandywine Valley - West Chester, PA
OICP ABR, ePRO,Ecobroker

Peggy: what a grat blog post and youtube segment. Good for you in terms of ustilizing this new technology. It is so importnat in reaching younger buyers. I also thought your response to  Charles was excellent.

Dec 28, 2008 10:55 PM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

I recently ran an ad in my local "showcase of land and homes" when other agencies in the area were advertising they offered "discount" commission my ad was saying discount commissions did not offer "full service" and if they wanted to list their home that was fine, but if the plan was to "sell" their home they needed to pay for full service and expect results.

Jan 07, 2009 04:50 AM
Stephanie Davis
The Boulevard Company - Charleston, SC
Broker Associate and REALTOR®

Great post Peggy. I've blogged about this as well. It makes perfect sense to me but can be hard to convey in a 30-second commercial to potential sellers. It really is painful to watch people who NEED to sell waste their time and money with discount brokers who take their payment upfront and have no incentive to get the home sold. In the end the seller pays the price through the nose because the list price of their house keeps dropping as the clock keeps ticking. Days on the market are VERY important right now, as each day that passes means (at least) a dollar less in the seller's pocket. What a shame.

Jan 08, 2009 12:50 PM
Peggy James
SAMSON PROPERTIES - Woodbridge, VA
Woodbridge Virginia Area Real Estate Specialist

Stephanie, I counldn't agree with your more.

 In fact I have a perfect example of a seller who listed with a discount internet FSBO Company. The result was money down the drain and three months of agony for the seller. It was such a beautiful house, I asked the seller if he would like some Free Advertising. He said "by all means yes!". Here is the post I wrote for him For Sale By Owner Home In Lake Ridge Virginia  and when he was totally frustrated and only had thirty days to move, he called me around Thanksgiving!

 This is one sample of what I used to get this home SOLD!

13025 Merganser Ct, Woodbridge Va 22192

Well, I'm thrilled to say,the result of listing with me was titled Home Sold In 30 Days After Failed Attempt As For Sale By Owner !

 

 

Jan 08, 2009 01:19 PM
Stephanie Davis
The Boulevard Company - Charleston, SC
Broker Associate and REALTOR®

That's nice Peggy, what is it? Did you mail it as a postcard, or was it an internet banner you ran? If you mailed it who did you send it to, and if you ran it, where did you run it? I'll read the blog link you posted, maybe my answers are there. Thanks!

Jan 08, 2009 01:33 PM
Peggy James
SAMSON PROPERTIES - Woodbridge, VA
Woodbridge Virginia Area Real Estate Specialist

Hi Stephanie,

To answer your question that photo was run in a blog post. Since 87% of buyers start on the web, and homes are first purchased on emotion. It was Christmas, I only had 30 days to get it sold and it had a main level master bedroom. This is the photo I had it posted in our MRIS system as well.  I have marketing plan that I use with every home. However I always customize and tweak the marketing weekly so that the home appears fresh to the consumer.  

Jan 08, 2009 09:42 PM