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There is no reason to become a 'Price Slasher'. if we have all (AGENT AND CLIENT) done our due diligence and the price is set, it's all about being seen AFTER THAT. I'm not talking about promoting the agent or agency either. I'm talking about leveraging everything the 21st Century has to offer to make damn certain your home is exposed to the largest and broadest market possible and your open house is filled to the rafters with buyers.
So how do you know if your agent will do or is doing enough to sell your house?
Here are four key areas you want to ask about when talking to a real estate agent:
Digital Presence and Making Your Home Stand Out
In an age when people shop for everything online, digital presence is a big one. Did your agent hire a professional to take properly staged and well-lit photos of your home? Or did he or she come at night and take photos with a phone, catching the reflection of a shoulder in the mirror, overlooking exposed lamp wires or leaving the toilet seat up?
In today’s market, the online listing is the first stop for every buyer, and many buyers will pass over a great home if the photos don’t present it properly.
Not all homes lend themselves well to a video presentation, but many do. If your agent creates a video, is it just a montage of the photos with voice-over or captions? The video should add another dimension to attract buyers, ideally with high production value and some personality. If there are limitations with access to the home or if potential buyers do not live nearby, a virtual tour is a valuable tool.
Although a slick video won’t sell the home, it will help with publicity and the buyers who do come will be more serious about your home. If your home hasn’t sold, make sure that your agent has not only exploited all digital marketing opportunities, but smartly positioned your home among its competitors.
“An agent needs to have a decently sized online presence so that their listings come up in searches which might include keywords like ‘equestrian’ or ‘lakefront’ or ‘ski-in/ski-out’,” says Camille Duvall, vice president and managing broker of Sierra Sotheby's International Realty in the Lake Tahoe area of California. “Buyers are not just looking at the aggregators to find listings these days, they are looking for property-specific features.”
Utilizing More Than Just the MLS
The MLS (Multiple Listing Service) is arguably one of the strongest tools available to real estate agents. the MLS is also one of the most powerful marketing tools as it is available to be seen by real estate agents nationwide.
The MLS also makes your home's information and public realtor comments available for upload to sites like zillow, realtor.com, redfin and others.
What the MLS does not do is make your home stand out from the crowd. Many homeowners feel like their beautiful, lovingly cared for home is getting lost in the never ending sea of listings and realtor headshots and felt it affected the final sales price.
What we have found is that the most successful agents have marketing strategies that incorporate a multiplicity of mediums plus their own secret sauce that the MLS is just a single part of.
Market Knowledge That Goes Beyond Data
Data is important, and most agents have access to a ton of it, as do buyers and sellers. Various websites show supply and demand numbers over specific periods of time, based on price and neighborhood. But data and knowledge aren’t the same things. As important and relevant as data is, don’t let it become an obsessive pitfall, as it can be for many numbers-oriented clients, as well as for green agents. The numbers might not take into consideration the drawbacks of a specific block or the design flaws of a property, but an experienced agent should know how to overcome these challenges.
“Don’t discount time behind the wheel, because an agent’s personal resources, network and time-tested know-how can make all the difference in the world, especially in a declining market,” Duvall says. “If your agent doesn’t get on the phone, but conducts business solely by email and text, that’s not a good sign.”
She adds, “A phone call can go a very long way". They should know who sells in the area, and who might have your buyer. An inexperienced agent won’t have this network of industry colleagues with whom they have been making deals for years. A seasoned agent will also connect a client with the right attorney, escrow agent or lender to create a seamless team package, which is that much more important when banks tighten their standards.”
Furthermore, an experienced pro brings years of knowledge from working through many different housing market peaks and troughs. They should be able to sell in a tough market, not just in the salad days when a home sells itself.
Property Flaws and Workarounds
It’s important to have a frank conversation with your agent about your property’s flaws. Your agent must anticipate the criticism that potential buyers will have and be able to address these issues.
The age of a renovation can surely be a challenge in a home’s ability to sell quickly, and in the last decade or so, staging has become an omnipresent marketing tool to update and often disguise a home. But staging can get expensive, and a good agent should understand how to market your home on a budget, while still achieving results.
“When I sold our starter house, I knew we needed to 'zhuzh' it up,” says Louise Spinner, a Los Angeles-based entertainment executive. “In keeping with how the neighborhood had appreciated, the house needed to look like what current buyers expected. My agent was astute enough not to give me a one-size-fits-all approach to staging. She thought outside the box to hire an inexpensive but savvy friend who staged the house on a tight budget. I placed my trust in her and her team, and the house sold at asking in just two weeks, without my having to spend much money on staging. An agent with fewer logged hours might have given me an overpriced and pre-baked solution to staging, and that would not have worked for me.”
Unfortunately, certain drawbacks in any property cannot be surmounted except for a price concession (eg; homeowner reduces price in leu of necessary repairs) , and while your agent needs to be honest with you about this, you also need to be realistic. Some agents will promise an inflated price to win the listing, only to then make price reductions after the home has been on the market. Overpricing can be a great disservice to the property. Trailing the market downward with small reductions is never a good idea – it’s “like death by a thousand papercuts,” Duvall says.
Ability to Close the Deal
An agent's eye for design or ability to leverage marketing may help to get eyeballs on the listing, but without experience at the negotiating table, there is risk. The business has become increasingly complicated in every submarket, and a new agent can’t pull from years in the trenches to navigate the often complicated aspects of shepherding a deal.
The attractive marketing materials that many real estate agents employ show the glitziest aspects of the job – even unattractive homes can be made to look great. But all of this front-end stuff isn’t the meat and potatoes of negotiating a contract and bringing the transaction to the closing table.
Self-promotion and marketing are important, but your agent’s skills will be put to the test during a contentious negotiation or a complicated financing environment that promises to keep us on our toes for the foreseeable future.
Final Thoughts
while a seasoned agent can bring obvious advantages to your team, team is the operative word. No single agent alone can bring your expectations to fruition. I'm always a bit impressed when I get a document from our escrow team in the wee hours and when i send it off for broker signatures, they get signed. It warms my heart on those late nights knowing my "Team" is just as dedicated as I am to a successful close and their profession.
If you would like to learn a little about how we make your home stand out in the sea of listings, drop us a note below and let us show you a new and different way to market in the 21st Century. Aloha Ka Kou!
Consider Ascentia Maui to be your resource for all Real Estate Needs with a heavy emphasis on Probate, Trusts, Conservatorships and Guardianship Sales. You can also count on Ascentia Maui as your 'Boots on the Ground' for Cleaning, Lawn service Surveys, Inspections, Contractors or anything you may need.
ascentia Maui, LLC is an organization that operates under the brokerage licensing of Keller Williams Realty Maui. Paragraph
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