Listing Your Home, What You Should Know !

This week I am going to write about something I don't talk about very often which is sellers who are new to the process of selling their home.  Now some of you might be thinking this doesn't apply to you but it just might so I have compiled a quick list of sellers that is a sign you should take the time to read this blog:

• You purchased your first home from a For Sale By Owner 
• You have not sold a home in the last 5 + years 
• You inherited a property or are an Executor of an estate 

One of the most important steps to selling your home is the paperwork, not only signing it but reading it and understanding it! I can't tell you how many homeowners who have not sold a home recently are very surprised by the amount of paperwork that now goes along with listing your home. 

NYS Agency Disclosure 

New York State requires that anyone who is buying/selling a home fills out the agency disclosure paper, it clearly defines who it is that the Realtor is working for.  Obviously you will sign that the agent will be working for you, but NYS has changed with the times and they now address Dual Agency before it exists.  

Dual Agency is when your agent works for both you as the seller, but also works for the buyer.  This can sometimes cause a conflict of interest, if the deal requires negotiating it can blur the lines of who your Realtor must disclose what to.  It is my recommendation that when it comes time for you to sign this piece of paper that you require if Dual Agency exists that it is Dual Agency with a designated sales person.  What this means is if a buyer walks into your home and wants to negotiate a deal that your Realtor will have an agent from their office work for this buyer rather than representing both sides of the deal.  

Multiple Listing Service Contract

This is a very important contract for you to read most Realtors will tell you it is standard and direct you straight to the bottom to sign.  They are correct when they tell you it is a standard form, but you should be reading it because this is the detailed description that will be on not only on MLS but all of the additional websites that your home will be listed on.   

You want to check certain things in particular: 

1. Taxes are correct (Ex: If your taxes are not correct you may end up with a buyer who is unable to purchase because they were mis-informed, remember pre-approvals do include the yearly taxes)
2. Make sure the number and descriptions of rooms are correct (Ex: If your kitchen is an eat in kitchen, you must make sure it is accurately inputted. These are things buyers will be placing in their search criteria and you wouldn't want a oversight to cause potential buyers to not see your home.  
3. Be sure your floor plan is accurately described (Ex: If you have an entry hall, or a laundry room you want buyers to know that because these might be important to them)
4. Utilities are described completely (Ex: Some people will have a preference when it comes to these things, again you never want to misrepresent your home, even a simple mistake can turn off a buyer) 
5. This last one may upset some Realtors, but the 2nd page of your MLS Listing agreement is where it shows what the commission will be, and where it will be going.  Remember there are 2 sides to every deal if your agent has told you that they will be taking a 6% listing because they split it equally with the buyers broker make sure that it is written that way in your contract.  

Exclusive Listing 

This is something that you may or may not see, if you are listing your home on Multiple Listing Service you should not be signing this paper unless there is a beginning and an end date filled out.  I will sometimes hold a listing as an exclusive until I have the pictures uploaded, & the virtual tour online but when I do I always write that the end date is at the homeowners request.  You might wonder why I do this, and it is just the way I run my business I want to make sure that my listing is up to not only my standard but to my sellers as well.  Once the homeowner sees the listing and approves it we than release the listing onto MLS for it's big debut !! 

Property Condition Disclosure 

The property condition disclosure is pretty much self-explanatory, it is a semi-large packet that details the history of the property.   Most Realtors, and your Real Estate Attorney will recommend that you do not fill this out. Instead you at closing you provide the buyer with the  $500 opt out credit.  The reason we recommend you do this is to simply protect yourself from future liability, even the most knowledgeable homeowner can be unaware of hidden issues in their home.  

Lead Based Paint 

If your home was built prior to 1978 than you are required to fill this out, and your Realtor is required to give the buyers a informative booklet about Lead Based Paint.  This is a common form that you, the buyers, and all Realtors involved will need to sign and is required.  If you are not sure what year your home was built it is always better to fill one out to be on the safe side.  

Seller Services Guarantee 

Unfortunately not all companies offer this, but if you are going to list your home I would recommend not signing with a company that does not provide you with one.  This is your guarantee that the Realtor will provide you with all the services he/she agreed to do in order to get your home sold.  It also gives you the ability to walk away from the contract with them if they are not providing all the services, I can't tell you how many unhappy expired clients I come across because the Realtor did not do what they had assured the client they would do, always remember that you have your guarantee and if your Realtor isn't doing the job perhaps they need to be reminded of that guarantee.  

Now, I have to take a moment to remind you that in order for you to be able to hold your Realtor accountable for the work that they are supposed to be doing, you must also do your part.  Mis-communication about the marketing plan for your home, can often cause a strained business relationship between Realtor and homeowner so you want to go over the details prior to signing anything.   

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage does have some additional paperwork that your average Brokerage does not have.  The reason is very simple, we are not your average company we offer additional services to our sellers that not only get their home sold but to make it a easy and enjoyable experience.

Affiliated Business Agreement

If you are one of my frequent readers than you have heard me talk about all of the additional services we are affiliated with.  For today I will not be going into the description of them, but I will link the appropriate information so you can look at the ones you may not be aware of.  Our affiliated business agreement, is to let you know the different companies and services we offer but we as agents do not profit from our buyers or sellers using them.  The reason each of these are so important to our company as a whole is the difference it makes for our clients.  

Coldwell Banker Mortgage Company

Coldwell Banker Home Warranty

Coldwell Banker Title Services & Insurance

Coldwell Banker Concierge Services

You will also receive a copy of your Comparative Market Analysis, be sure you keep this in your file for future reference.  Also make sure you keep full copies of everything that you signed, as well as additional paperwork you may sign during the time your home is listed.  Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, does have a system set up on a secured server that will store copies of all the paperwork you will accumulate during the transaction.  This is a great tool for someone who is on the road for work,  lives out of state, or just prefers keeping documents stored online rather than filed away.  


I hope everyone finds this blog helpful, if you have any additional questions please always feel free to comment and I will respond to your question as quickly as possible ! 

Open House Event Weekend !

This is just one example of what makes Coldwell Banker Residential Homes different from your ordinary brokerage.  We think outside of the box, and reach out to all buyers in new and creative ways!

This is a wondeful opporutnity for homeowners to take advantage of, now is the time to list your home, for the next 2-3 months their will still be serious buyers shopping around.  Someone who is still looking for their dream home, WILL make a purchase before the holidays get into full swing!

Tattoos In Real Estate

So I have decided to write about something a little bit different today, not so much about real estate but about "Business" and tattoos. 

Now your probably wondering why ?

Well I had a interesting experience that took place this morning, and although it only lasted about 4 minutes, it got me thinking.   Whether I had tattoos or not this woman still would have been stuck at the red light with me, and I still would not have been able to move my car out of the way.  That being said, while she was screaming and cursing did she think that because I have tattoos, I would be ok with my 3 year old son listen to her curse and scream like a lunatic. 

Here is my question for everyone.

What is your take on tattoos, and business ?

Some people beleive that tattoo's should be covered at all times in business, they don't want to see them they normally can't give you a solid reason for them to be covered but they make it clear that it is a deal breaker.  I found this in my career with car dealerships, unless you were one of the mechanics even the smallest tattoo would cause a stir, and almost everytime you would be told to cover them up!

There is another kind of person, one who beleives in the "Time and a Place Theory" for tattoos.   Now I personally have my tattoos covered about 80% of the time when I am at work.  When I am in the office you will almost always see them unless I am expecting a client to walk in the door.  When I hand out my newsletters to the neighbors though, they are "out on display" because these are people that would be more shocked if they saw me trying to cover them up!

Than there is the rare find, someone who can look at your even if you are covered from head to toe in tattoos, and talk to you about business without asking you "Why did you do that to yourself"! This is something very rare and they will normally have tattoos of their own, they are completely open minded and don't understand why people think the ink on your skin, could affect your business !

As tattoos are becoming more and more common, I am finding there are more people today that beleive in the "Time and a Place Theory". 

I decided to do some research about tattoos and real estate, and I came across a Realtor who not only has tattoos but literally has them on display he even calls himself "The Tattooed Realtor".  I have to say I was surprised at his approach, but I absolutely loved it! The way he was so open about it would make me feel instantly at ease, but what about those that still had one of those awful stereotypes.  I would be curious what inspired him to do be so bold, or maybe the courage is a better word.

I did a facebook poll, I have a very large "friend pool", it does not only consist of family, and friends but has business owners, investors, my homeowners and my buyers as well.  I like to get honest opinions and many people were of the opinion that it will soon be the "norm" to see tattoos in business.

I do hope in the future that this stereotype of those that choose to have tattoos fade, just as they did for many other stereotypes.  Of course there will always be someone who is against it, but that is life.  I have always been very open about my tattoos, and my favorite reactions always come from children, not because they will always think they are great, but because children are always open enough to ask to see it, ask what it is and that is something I do love because I spent all those hours having this done because I wanted to share it with others.

When I chose to get these pieces of artwork done, I did consider what affects it would have not only on my life, but my sons and my business.  I have spent over 30 hours in a tattoo chair, it came me more than enough time to sit and think about it.  

For anyone out there who is hesitant about hiring someone because of the artwork they choose to display, I ask you this, do you want someone who will work hard on your behalf, or someone who looks like they can ?

After a very long day, I have come up with one absolute perk to my tattoos, if I could spend all that time in a chair in excruciating pain for the sake of art, negotiating with another Realtor to get my client a great price on their dream home is a cake walk !!