Getting Your Ducks In A Row A Guide to Selling Your Home Quickly & Efficiently! E m a i l : a n d y p a r k e r @ c a r e r e a l t y g r o u p. o r g l Te l : 7 6 0. 6 7 0. 2 1 0 6
Introduction...2 Choosing a REALTOR...3 Home Valuation...5 Steps For A Quick & Efficient Sale...11 Pricing Strategy...18 Marketing 2.0... 22 The Paperless Agent...25 Negotiating The Deal...29 Agent Commissions...29
Introduction Knowledge is power! This is true for sure with most things and real estate is no different. This ebook is designed to help you get your ducks in row, which means making sure you are doing everything you need to do in order to accomplish the goal of maximizing your sales price and selling your home in a quick and efficient time frame!
Choosing a REALTOR Many home sellers are not truly aware of the real value that an experienced Realtor provides during the course of a real estate transaction. Realtor s provide the expertise, knowledge, and the behind the scenes hard work that go into bringing about a successful real estate transaction. A true real estate professional will provide to you: A complete pricing and marketing strategy to maximize the buying pool Expert knowledge of the area he or she does business in, including recent data on the home market A high level of service, loyalty and accountability Assistance with updating, staging and getting your home show ready Open, honest and timely client communication Available for showings and open houses until the home is SOLD Negotiate the highest possible price at the best terms Handle all aspects of the transaction from listing to close Available to assist with the move, relocation or other needs after You hire professionals to do your taxes, fix your plumbing, invest your money, etc. Why would you want to sell your house by yourself? Finding a qualified is the first essential step in getting your ducks in a row! There is a difference between a real estate agent and a REALTOR. REALTORS are members of the National Association of Realtors and operate under a set of Code of Ethics the close of escrow, as needed
Home Valuation Getting a feel for the value of your home is really the first step when it comes to selling your home. If you don t want to hire and pay for a professional appraisal, then you can rely upon your REALTOR to provide to you a comparable market analysis or CMA. The CMA is based on the local area homes that are currently pending, for sale and those that have sold in the last 6 months. Once you established the potential value, then the REALTOR can come up with their pricing strategy for you to agree on. There are third party services out there can provide valuations prior to performing the CMA. Here are two examples: www.perfecthomefinder.com www.zillowzestimate.com The question is is there a pricing strategy that can maximize the buying pool, while at the same time maximizing the sales price? If you can find a REALTOR that has the answer to this question, then you should hire them on the spot!
Steps For A Quick & Efficient Sale Realizing a quick sale is not hard simply maximizing the size of the buying pool and providing the motivation for them to place an offer. This is easy to say, but not so easy to do. This is why you need to have a REALTOR that understands what to do. Some agents simply don t have the know how or tools available to them, so they over price the house, cycle through potential buyer after buyer and watch the days on market go up and up. The days on market can be very detrimental to a listing and something you should avoid if at all possible. As a general rule, there are three things that sell a home price, condition and location. You can control the first two, but location is what it is. If the location is poor, then the price and condition really need to be spot on. Here are the steps your agent should follow:
1. Condition: Ask yourself the question, how does my home look in person and online? If it shows like a model home, then you are good. If not, then there is some work to be done: - Smart Fixes: To get your home show ready you probably will need to hire a professional to go through your home to discuss the smart fixes, how to declutter and create a neutral environment or one that will allow the potential buyer to see themselves in your home. This may also involve some repairs, paint, new carpet or flooring, new counter tops or other upgrades in the kitchen, bathrooms and back yard. - Staging: This is where a professional is worth their weight in gold! Some homes are able to re-purpose some of the existing furniture and items, but the main thing is to declutter and organize all areas of the house, including the closets, garage, etc. You may need to go to GoodWILL or have AmVets come to your house and pick up some older items, but keep in mind that the agent is attempting to make your house into a model home. This means they need to create a neutral setting with no clutter. They want to create an emotional response and help people see themselves living in your home. Price, condition and location are the main things that drive buyers to make their offers. The days on market can be very detrimental to a listing and something you should avoid if at all possible.
2. Price: Price can maximize the buying pool, which can create the best chance to generate multiple offers. Multiple offers expedites the time frame in which a buyers and seller can agree on a price as well as create the competition in which to drive the price as high as the buying pool is able to go. Simple supply & demand rules apply here. More on this later
2. Comprehensive Marketing: Proper marketing, high quality photography, online tours, etc. creates the excitement, the emotional response and motivation for buyers to attend open houses or contact their agent for a private showing. More on this below.
3.Incentives: There are many ways to incentivize the buying pool and some agents are more creative than others. Here are some good samples of how to energize your homes buying pool: - Buyer Agent Incentives: One way to possibly motivate agents to show your home over others or attract more agents with their buyers is to provide a higher commission to them. All things being equal, if there are three homes on the same street and all are about the same, then the one where the Buyers agent will make more money is the one they will likely show first. This incentive will need the Sellers permission, but can energize the agents very well to bring their buyers to you. - Buyer Incentives: Buyers have a lot of expenses they have to cover when buying a house the down payment, appraisals fee, closing costs, etc. If a buyer can pick up some rebate cash, or something of significant value like a car or get their closing costs paid for at the close of escrow, they would be more motivated to buy your home over others.
Pricing Strategy This is one of the biggest challenges for a real estate agent as well as one of the most important things an agent can bring to a listing a solid pricing strategy. How the agent prices the home can, in many instances, dictate how long the house will stay on the market and create an environment that will help the owner net more than they could on their own. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) pricing pyramid basically states that the lower you list the house, the more buyers the agent will expose to the listing. However, here is the rub, every owner wants to get the most money for their house, listing it at 15% below market value may give the home great exposure, but the owner probably will not go along with that strategy. If the agent prices it too high, then they may have satisfied the Seller, but demotivated and shrunk the buying pool. It s a tough dilemma The question is is there a pricing strategy that can maximize the buying pool, while at the same time maximizing the sales price? If you can find a REALTOR that has the answer to this question, then you should hire them on the spot!
Marketing 2.0 Comprehensive Marketing: Marketing your home is not for sissies. This means that you need to be willing to pay for the highest quality and most technologically advanced tools available to you. From - high definition photography - 3D virtual tours - drone video, - signage, - flyers, - neighborhood mailers, - email exposure campaigns, - third party syndication, - social media campaigns, - crispy clean website, - and so much more. This is definitely part of your level of service and may be part of your sacrifice. Having open houses, paying for the extra social media boosts and flyers, etc. is what a good agent is willing to do. It almost becomes an all encompassing endeavor to make sure you are doing everything correct and possible to maximize the opportunity to generate the best result. The goal with marketing is to maximum exposure, create a great first impression, position your home above all others and finally to create an emotional response that takes over and drives the buyers to action a good REALTOR can make this happen!
The Paperless Agent One of the most intimidating and arduous aspects of the home selling process for the homeowner is the paperwork involved in listing the house, entertaining offers, making it through the escrow process and eventually closing the transaction. Finding an agent or brokerage firm that has adopted the paperless process will save you so much time and create a potentially much better experience for the homeowner. Having to download and print all the documents, sign them, scan them back into the computer, fax them back or somehow get them to your agent is a huge hassle. Thanks to technology and electronic signature services such as DocuSign, has streamlined the paperwork and minimized the arduous steps. Now more than ever, the paperwork needed to close a transaction is immense, you will be very happy to find a REALTOR that has gone paperless. Now more than ever, the paperwork needed to close a transaction is immense, you will be very happy to find a REALTOR that has gone paperless.
Negotiating the Deal The key to negotiation is to create a demand or a multiple offer scenario. A good pricing strategy, buyers incentives and marketing strategy is essential to creating the leverage to negotiate with. If the agent has done their job to do the above, then it comes down to the buyers motivation. Having options puts the Seller in the drivers seat to maximize the price. However, keep in mind that the agents goal is to create a fair price for all parties, and in doing this, sometimes there is a little give and take on both sides. Communication is key here, as well. Making sure that the Seller is agreeable with the net sheet will help the agent to negotiate all kinds of incentives into the deal, as long as the house appraises. The key to negotiation is to create a demand or a multiple offer scenario.
Agent Commissions What will the agent charge you to sell your home? This is where some homeowners go off the rails and decide to try to sell their home themselves. While on the surface, this may be an attractive option due to the potential savings, the risks, in our opinion, totally out way the rewards. Quickly explained, if you choose to sell your house yourself, you run the risk of minimizing your buying pool, exposure to legal issues, increase days on the market, and a reduction of value or a sales price that is lower than you had hoped for. The end result for trying to save a little money could be a costly endeavor that may not net you any more money in the long run.
The sentiment with many homeowners is that real estate agents don t do much and they make 6% off the sale of a home. While this, on the surface, may have some merit, I must tell you REALTORS earn every penny of what they earn. Let s break it down First, the competition is really fierce, so opportunities may be few and far between. Second, 6% may seem like a lot, but let s break it down: Generally, 50% of the 6% goes to the Buyers Broker. The 3% left over is broken down roughly as follows: 1% to the REALTORS Broker % goes to marketing 1% goes to the agents Third, we know that condition, price and location are the main components that sell a house. So, for about 1% the REALTOR is working hard to do everything they know how to do to maximize the buying pool, price it right, avoid the legal pitfalls, protect and maintain their fiduciary responsibility they have to you and create a quick sale. If the house does not show well, or if it is over priced or if the location is less than ideal, they may not ever get paid for their efforts.
Unlike other real estate firms, CARE Realty is a nonprofit, pioneering new ways to advance real estate best practices to another level as we serve the local affordable housing community. What s more, our higher standard of agent support allows CARE Realty professionals to offer unmatched client service. The success of our agents, and our firm as a whole, helps support the needs of CARE Housing Services Corporation, an organization helping build stable communities with affordable housing and resident services designed to help improve individuals and families with the basics of daily living. http://carerealtygroup.org
Mr. Parker, a San Diego native, was a professional athlete for 7 years, drafted by the Raiders and played a while for the San Diego Chargers. He graduated from the University of Utah and has been married for 30+ years with three grown kids. Andy has been in real estate since the mid 80 s and has owned and operated many businesses. He enjoys being a real estate broker, a health enthusiast and an entrepreneur. Andy joined the CARE Housing Services staff back in the mid 90 s after he retired from professional sports, where he helped CARE with obtaining new clients, creating new programming such as the Resident Education Program and the Affordable Homeownership Program. In addition, Andy founded CARE Realty Group, which is designed to be a development company, a support to CARE Housing Services and a state-of-the-art real estate brokerage firm. This real estate firm has many new concepts, features and a philosophy like no other that may very well revolutionize the real estate industry.