For the last few years the news about the housing market in terms of both the number of homes sold and selling prices has been phenomenal. Today’s Bend Bulletin had one of our local multiple listing service managers touting how most homes have average 10% gains in their value since 2012.
Many folks are looking at these gains and the time it takes to capture them with great curiosity. Maybe you are one of these folks who are considering cashing in on your good fortune. There is no doubt that our homes are our single largest financial asset making the right choice of who to partner with is critical. For many sellers’ understanding the commission paid to real estate professionals is difficult. The sum is a healthy cut of the gain and you have the right to understand what your broker will provide for you. In sharing your gains via the commission you have a right to hold your broker accountable to your high expectations.
Your objective as a seller is pretty straight forward; you want your home sold for the highest price possible in the shortest amount of time with the least amount of fuss and inconvenience. Selecting the right broker, one who does not sit around and wait for a buyer to find your home on Zillow or other such sites is imperative. Brokers like myself are actively seeking out and marketing your home to all possible qualified buyers.
To make sure you have the right broker one who will get your home is sold quickly and for the best price, here are questions you should ask before you select your real estate marketing partner to sell your home.
How are you going to get my home in front of local buyers?
Real estate is and always will be local. Even with the huge influx of folks from outside of Central Oregon most buyer’s for your home already live in the area. Since they already are in the area how is your broker going to reach out to those potential buyer’s? The decision to buy a new home is a well thought about process often beginning months before a buyer ever signs a offer contract. In those months leading up to their purchase they are perusing Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com looking at the photos crunching numbers, figuring out how much they can afford. They are asking their friends and colleagues what experiences they can share to help them make their decision. Knowing these folks are looking well in advance of buying ask prospective brokers how are they going to reach these folks.
With so many folks moving into our area, how will you reach those prospective buyer’s?
Recently Bend made the national news as a place where folks are moving to live and then commute back to the Bay area to work. This highlights the allure of Central Oregon to folks in larger cities that hold jobs that are not bound by an office setting. We also have a large number of folks that are just flat out relocating to Central Oregon. How is your new real estate partner going to reach out to these folks? Obviously getting your home out onto the internet is one way but with today’s marketing agreement any broker can do this for you. What other tools does your broker have for getting your home out there in a unique fashion? With today’s innovations an ad can be created to follow prospective Bend home buyers all around the internet with floating ads. It is these types of aggressive marketing you want hear about from your broker.
How do you connect with other brokers in your area to get the word out about my home?
The age old method for this has been holding the open house for office and MLS brokers tours and if with all of our technology this is still an effective tool for brokers. Today we have other networking opportunities with Facebook, Instagram and Twitter we can effectively reach out to our colleagues in ways never previously imagined. It’s a way to have them actually see your home’s coolness and the opportunity it offers for their clients without leaving their work space. Having professional quality photos is essential in today’s marketing efforts as most brokers and their clients are going to see you home online first. Your broker can use these fabulous photos to create high quality printed materials like flyers and postcards, pieces that keep your home in front of folks long after they’ve walked out the door.
Okay we’ll be online, how else will you reach out to buyers?
Life is a constant barrage of marketing, electronic waves that bombard the sense and sometimes we just have to turn it all off. So how will you reach the folks who have tuned out? Ask your broker what other media means are they utilizing to grab folks attention? Will they be placing your home in local real estate magazines, are direct mailings like post cards an option, will it be placed in the Bend Bulletin? Being on the web is important as the majority of buyer’s will find your home there but do not discount the low tech options, make sure your broker is exploiting all options.
Home prices are changing so rapidly, how do you know that you have calculated a realistic price for my home?
Everyone wants to get the best price possible but when price rise as steadily as this market has there is a tendency for sellers to be a bit greedy and reach too far past what is realistic for their home to sell. All my best efforts will not sell an overpriced home; today’s buyers are too savvy. They have more information at their finger tips than ever before making it easy for them to understand a home’s value.
A popular marketing tactic in today’s seller’s market is to under price the home making very attractive to many buyers who end up competing for the home. I feel your best option is price it fairly and correctly.
To better understand your brokers pricing talents ask if they can provide past history of list price to sold price and days on market on their past listings. Be sure to ask the back story on listings that lingered or had a large price reduction, sometimes there are issues beyond the brokers control but they should have a good story to explain.
It is pretty simple though homes that are priced right sell more quickly, with less hassle.
When you Calculate the commission you pay to get your home sold and we think you will agree that you have the right to expect a very aggressive campaign. The best agents in our town will meet or exceed the expectations that have been laid out here and you deserve to work with only the best.
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