Secrets,advice for selling

Secrets, advice and tips for selling your home, that most do not want you to know. This is posted by an Exclusive Buyers agent/owner with no other motive except to help you.

If you are not serious about selling your home for top dollar, skip this page. If you are, take the time to read all of it.

These are real secrets and tips to sell your home that few are privy to. These are based on combined experience of 35 years. This is a free education that has unbelievable truth and results if you read and follow up on even some of what is provided.

Now you can be sure it is done right with these tips.

Cape Coral and Fort Myers home sellers are not unique in that these secrets tips work across the country.

This will be done in two sections.

1. How to choose an agent and company to represent you.
2. What to watch out for after you chose the agent and Company. Make sure you read; Biggest reason for not getting showings or offers below.

How to choose and agent and company.

What not to do or look for.

1. Groups or teams take credit for all members giving a false success ratio.
2. The bigger the company is not always better. All agents are in competition and just because it is a company listing does not give it an advantage. All agents want to find a home the buyer will buy. That is the hardest task. They do not care that the home is listed by their company.
3. New agents are energetic and usually very hard working. However too many mistakes can be made.
4. Experienced agents may say, “I have been doing this for ?? years.” Yes, but have they been doing it right?
5. An agent that only works 9-5, 5 days a week. Most buyers look at homes on the weekend. Agents try to set up showings during those times. If the agent or buyer cannot set up a showing they show other homes.

What to look for.

1. Call the company of interest. Call and be a buyer wanting to see a home. Call days, evening, weekends up to 6pm to see when they are available to buyers. Many you cannot reach. Trust me! Try to get information on a home you picked out at random (a neighbors). Ask a question that is usually only known by the listing agent like,” is the entry way tiled?” or “how large is the Lanai?” Most of the time they will have the agent get back to you. When? How long? Buyers will not wait. The other possibility is the agent on duty gets the call knowing little about your home with no motivation to sell you that home. Buyers will call on another home if they do not get answers right away and that agent will try to sell his listings. You lost out! Do this more that once with a different question to see if they were available just by chance. Do it different times and days of not only the week but weekend. Many agents are not available to buyers because they are out trying to list more property not sell your home.

Next Set up an interview

1. with the agents you selected. Tell them upfront that you are interviewing them but others as well and you will not make a decision now. Ask if they agree. They know that once they leave without a listing they only have 2% chance of getting it. They will try to get it. Ask them to write a description that they will put in the MLS for all to see and send to you via email or mail. This is key to find out if they have a sales back round. That is what you need and must hire, a sales person. Rarely does the listing agent sell his listing. Odds are very high against that with thousands of other agents and buyers agents. Agents are not trained by Brokers or R.E. courses in sales. Some have been in sales before and know how to write ads and descriptions. That is the most important. It must be a story about the home, not details unless very pertinent. It must make buyers or agents want to show the home. I have seen too many one liners like “Very nice home clean and neat, show before it is gone. Seller very motivated.” Never say the seller is motivated. That invites low offers.

Example of a good ad;

The ambiance of this unique and very well built home has all of the extras you, as a buyer, would love to have. When you view and buy this home your comfort and security was our consideration as well. The floor plan allows you to comfortably flow through and view all of the upgrades that will make this home your choice at a price that will demand consideration.

See what I mean above? Doesn’t it make you want to see it? That is one very big secret. Showings = Sales.

Most real estate pros around the world believe they are selling houses. Sadly, most ads in this business reflect just that. In fact, many real estate ads only seem to prove that practitioners can count — e.g., “4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 dining room.”

Consumers also need to know what living there is all about. What are the neighbors like? How close are the schools? Where are the nearest golf courses? Where is all of the retail? What transport is available and where? What are the best ways to get to work? Are there other children in the area for the kids to play with? The list goes on. Great real estate advertising will answer all these questions for them.

Once an ad matches the picture the prospective buyers have in their minds about what it will be like living there, you have a match and have now attracted the right buyer

It is vitally important to understand that you are not selling a house. What you are selling is: living there.

2. The second most importantis pictures. “A picture is worth a thousand words“. We are allowed up to 10 pictures. Many have a copied picture from the tax records years ago or are so dark you cannot see the home inside or out. Make absolutely sure they are good. These pictures are seen on the Web around the world. This is what agents and buyers use to determine if they want to show your home or another. If they do not have a lighting system, then ask for one. Take pictures at noon (no shadows) and on a sunny day. If the agent does not want too many pictures, they know your home does not show well. Find out what is wrong and fix it. If landscaping hides your exterior or blocks the view, then you should remove or trim it back.

Most important to check!

The Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is where the agents list the homes for sale. From there the information is auto-populated around the world on the internet for all buyers and agents to search for your home. Here is where grievous errors are made .

Mistakes that I have seen;

1. Homes listed as condominiums.
2. Living area shown as 180 sq ft instead of 1800 sq ft or no square ft.
3. Sailboat access homes listed only as saltwater. They forgot unrestricted access or did not know.
4. Age of the home built, wrong year entered as much older.
5. Forgot to list pool.
6. There are many many more. You get the idea.

How this is done and how it effects your sale?

All agents and many web sites have searchable fields, like waterfront, age, bedrooms, living area, unrestricted access etc. I search and show my buyers all homes that meet their criteria. The sad fact is that due to errors many homes are missed due to lacking, missing or just plain wrong information. How does this happen? Lack of knowledge by assistants or agents or just putting a check in the wrong box. I have seen some of this by even the very top listing agents.

Biggest reason for not getting showings or offers.

Buyers are much fewer than homes for sale. Many agents charge you a total commission promising to share 1/2 with the Exclusive buyers agent or selling agent. Greed plays into this. Listing agents many many times keep much more than they should. I have seen where they only offer 10% of the commission to the agent working with the buyer. These agents work very hard to sell homes for months, travel, do research, set up appointments and more. They feed their families from this. If the split is not enough they will not show the home.

Solution

Get the listing agent to put it in writing that he or she will share the commission equally with selling agent. Tell him or her you will check through another agent periodically “so they cannot change it later“.

The secrets to fixing these potential errors!

Ask your chosen agent to print out a copy of agent only MLS print out of the listing. Some of this information is in code and you may not understand it. Tell your agent you want to show it to a friend which was an agent and check for errors. You agent will now look very closely for any errors before showing you. If you have a friend, show it to him or her because there still may be serious errors the agent does not know about like unrestricted access or pools etc. Have it printed in color to see the pictures.

Some reasons for not selling can be your fault.

• You told the listing agent you do not care if it sells.
• You paid $$$ for the home and want to get $$$
• You think you know more about the market and value than the agent you chose.
• 75% of sellers think their home is the best one and it justifies over pricing. Extras help sell the home over the others.
• You restrict time and days for showings.
• You have an uncooperative renter.
• Your home is full of stuff making it look small and cluttered.
• You do not remove animals for showings.
• You have landscaping that prevents good pictures.
• You have kids there during a showing.
• You did not make your home neutral in color and taste to appeal to the vast majority. Few can envision what it would look like with new paint or carpet.
• Ask you agent what needs to be done before listing the home. Few will tell you before. Why? They lose the listing by the time you get around to it or another agent will tell you what you want to hear. “The home is just fine as it is and I can get $$$”
• Do not let agents play on your greed by over pricing the home. It is the worst thing you can do. Why? Initially buyers can save and reject homes. They reject yours never to see your price reductions thus your home. You are trying to sell a home and get on with your life. Do what you have to to get the  job done. Do not blame your realtor for buyers viewing but not buying. That is your job to have the home in top shape, clean, priced right and neat inside and out. Lights on during showings. Getting agents and buyers to look is the listing agents job.

Here is what I provide for free to help sell the home.

1. I have and pay for a certified appraiser do an appraisal. $350.00 value to show potential buyers and assure them of being able to get a loan and the value of their purchase.
2. I have and pay for a Licensed inspector to inspect the home and provide a detailed report for potential buyers to view. $325.00 value.
3. I personally inspect the inside and outside and provide a written report for you. The report, “What is needed to get top dollar for your property“. Prior to listing your property for sale.

All that you have to do to get these gifts started is fill out the form below or call me. While I do not take listings I can give the information to an agent I know very well and trust.