Lots of Showings But No Offers

"I had lots of showings but no offers." I hear those words time and time again as I talk to sellers with recently expired listings. Most of the time they blame their agent for not generating an offer.

One of the primary roles of a listing agent is to market the property and drive traffic into the home. In my opinion it starts with great photography and getting all the details of the property into the marketing machine.

When I look at many expired listings I see poor or no photos and incomplete or minimal details available online. Most of the time the sellers of those properties are not complaining about a lack of an offer but a lack of showings as well.

Show me a home with lots of showings but no offers and I'll argue its simply overpriced or not properly prepared. Lowering the price is one way to overcome this issue but it may not be the only way.

Purchasing a home is an emotional decision. While the marketing may be driving traffic in the door, the home may not create the emotion needed to generate an offer. Creating emotion means appealing to the senses--sight, smell, and sound. New home builders model homes are a great example of the ability to create emotion. They appeal to all the senses.

While many sellers may be able to recreate the look of a new home model, many people should consider professional staging. In the Dallas market, the cost is often under $300 for a few hours of a stager's time. $300 is nothing compared to your first price reduction and can make the difference in getting the property sold.

Locally, the first part of 2012 has seen a return to a seller's market with less that 3.5 months of inventory of homes under $500k. Homes that properly prepared, show-ready, and priced correctly are flying off the market.

If you're on the market and getting lots of showings but no offers, it's not marketing...

Photo Copyright 2009 The Branch Team

Origianlly posted at http://www.thebranchteam.com/wordpress/2012/03/18/lots-of-showings-but-no-offers/

 

Tom Branch and Gina Branch, The Branch Team with RE/MAX Dallas Suburbs, service the greater North Dallas suburbs including Dallas, Plano, Allen, McKinney, Frisco, Lewisville, and Carrollton.  While Gina concentrates on traditional listings and buyer/tenant representation, Tom specializes in assisting distressed homeowners to avoid foreclosure.  Tom and Gina have published two books (Achieving Rock Star Status and The Field Guide to Short Sales) and are available for speaking engagements in the greater Dallas - Fort Worth Metroplex. Subscribe to The Branch Team Blog.

                   

Copyright 2009-2012 - The Branch Team
The Branch Team - Texas Real Estate Broker 547597 | Team Members are Texas Licensed Real Estate Professionals
Tom Branch - National Mortgage Licensing System 341963 

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