What You Should Look At Before Extending Your Listing !

If your home has been on the market throughout the spring and summer the listing is likely to expire soon, but it may not be in your best interest to pull it off the market just yet.  Now I am not saying to stick with the broker that your using in order to keep it on the market if your not happy with your broker or you want to interview others than by all means do so.  

Anytime I take a listing that will be on the market during the fall/winter season I always let my clients know that business does not stop during these months but you will see less activity.  This is actually better for homeowners, you may not have the quantity of buyers but you will have a better quality of buyers.  If someone is out in snow and cold weather you can bet that they are serious buyers, they aren't just out in the cold for no reason.

Now if you listed during the "busy" season, take into consideration how hard did your broker work for you while he/she had your listing?

• Did you recieve feedback after your home was shown ? It is not always easy to get feedback from other Realtors or Buyers but it is our job to get it for you, a week is more than enough time for your Realtor to inform you of what they thought of the home.   

• How often did you review your market position ? The spring and summer months provide alot of inventory for buyers to choose from so keeping on top of your market is very important.  How often did you and your Realtor discuss your homes position compared to others that were on the market, and those that had come off ? 

• How many open houses did they do, and what was the status of those buyers ? Each Realtor has a different opinion on open houses, I personally think they are important because it gives your buyers an immediate way to see your home.  You should have discussed this with your Realtor before you listed, if you didn't I suggest you do so before extending your contract with them.  You can not be angry if there are none or not enough if you did not discuss what your expectations are.  

• Did you recieve any offers ? Not all offers are good offers, just because your home received an offer does not necessarily mean it was worth you taking.  Did your broker try to work that offer ? Just because someone offers is very low does not mean that this is all they are willing to give.  Sometimes you have to work an offer for quite sometime to make it worhtwhile, but you will never know unless you have someone who is willing to put in the time. 

Before you extend your contract with your Realtor you should take the time to review in detail all of these things regardless.  Pulling your home off the market isn't necessarily a good idea, even 2 or 3 months off the market doesn't change the fact you were trying to sell it. Thanks to technology it takes about a half a minute to find out how long someone has been trying to sell for and buyers do quite a bit of research on their own.  

There are a few things you will need to do if you plan on extending that you may not have thought of, it is not just about signing the report of change form, you will want to update your listing.

• Perhaps re-word the description sometimes less is more, if you have a lengthy description it may be too much or visa versa.  
• Update your pictures, the change of seasons will be upon us sooner than we would like to think so be ready to take updated pictures of your home so your listing doesn't look dated. 
• Update your show instructions with your Realtor, if you think you will need your agent to attend more showings discuss it so when those quality buyers want to see your home they can !

If your new to selling a home than you should refer to my blog which explains the common terms and paperwork that you will need to understand Click Here For Blog.

I will be writing another blog this week reviewing exactly what the difference is between a full service real estate agent, and what other brokerages will offer, I will link it to this blog once it is completed.

What You Must Know When Selling Your Home !

Many homeowners listed their homes back when our spring market started, which was early this year around February when we started seeing alot of buyer activity.  With the summer market quickly approaching those same homeowners are starting to wonder why their home may not have sold yet.  Now some of you may be thinking that is has only been 4 months since buyer activity picked up, but with a home correctly priced we will normally see them go under contract within 60 days.  There are only 3 things you & your Realtor have control over, and if your home is not selling than you should look at those 3 things first and foremost !!

Price

• When a person is searching for a home with the same characteristics as yours (bedrooms, baths), where does your home fall in the list? Look at the homes as if you are a buyer, if you are finding all the homes are priced below yours offer more you may want to consider adjusting your price. 
• Ask your Realtor to pull recent comps, meet with them and discuss market conditions.  This is also important because your Realtor will need to have these to support the price of your home once you have accepted an offer.  

Myth: Not all homes are created equal, sometimes your home may not be selling as quickly as you would like not because of price but because it is for a particular kind of buyer.  An example of this is if the home your selling is a cottage, or a high-end home because there is a smaller buyer pool for that kind of home.  The most important part of selling a home with a small buyer pool is making sure that you have the best exposure, and easy availability to make sure your don't lost out on any buyers.  

Tip: If your home is priced above market value, it will be impossible for your Realtor to get potential buyers to come and view your home.  Many homeowners will agree to taking a much lower offer than the listing price, but there is no way to convey that to buyers who are viewing your house online, they will rule it out simply because of the price.

Availability

• If your home has very strict restrictions on when potential buyers can come and see it, you may want to reconsider how/when you are showing it.  If you are unavailable to show your home during the week because of your work schedule, you should speak with your Realtor about allowing them to accompany showings during the week to take the burden off of you, and allowing more buyers to be able to get in.  
• This next one is something that not all Realtors agree with, but I am a big believer in open houses.  I schedule all of my open houses for the month in advance because I want to give buyers an open invitation to come in and see your home the moment that they see it online.  
• Taking it a step farther you will want to make sure your Realtor is getting back to those that are inquiring about your home in a timely manner. Sometimes it is not always about how quickly buyers can see your home, bu how long it takes for your Realtor to get back to them! 

Myth: Some sellers believe that by requiring 48 hours for their home to be shown gives them a better chance of preparing their home to make sure it shows well.  Unfortunately, not all buyers give their Realtors 48 hours notice that they want to see your home, it is better to ask for a reasonable amount of time to prepare than possibly lose that buyer. 


Tip: When potential buyers are viewing your home whether it is a private viewing, or an open house do not follow them around.  Often times buyers will feel as if they are intruding on the homeowners by being there, you want to give them space to take it all in! 

Condition

• First thing you should do is look at  your pictures, if you took pictures before the spring flowers and grass became green you should ask your Realtor to update your pictures.  Remember you need to sell the house first via the pictures to get the buyers to want to come and see it in person.  
• Spruce up your curb appeal, give the front door a fresh coat of paint or add some solar lights and plants.  Buyers spend their weekends driving around looking for open houses, even if your home is not having one you still want to catch their attention!  
• If you have broken screens/doors/cabinets/tiles take the time the time and replace them if it is not a huge expense those are the things that make buyers look at your home and think of "projects" although they have quick fixes.  

Myth: Many homeowners think fixing up your home is a waste of time and money when you are attempting to sell it. Now this is only somewhat of a myth, doing major renovations may not be the best idea, but doing small projects to fix or update your home is normally recommended to help your homes chance.  

Tip: Take the time to look at your home objectively, remember although you can not make every buyer happy you can help the chances of your home selling quickly by doing some small projects.  The best place to start is by doing all those things that were on your "honey do list" that you hadn't had time to get to! 

There are so many different factors that come into play when getting your home sold, but these are the top 3 that are the most important ! Over the next few weeks I will be blogging more about some tips for sellers, but as always if you have a question I did not cover please feel free to comment or email me directly! 

How Long Should I List My Home FOr ?

How Long of a Listing Should Your Agent Expect to Take?

As you will see the way to determine how long to list your home for is according to the market.  So really although it is up to you to choose, you should be sure you are basing your decision on solid facts! In today's market it takes more than listing your home on MLS get it to the closing table.  You need an agent that is actively marketing your home in all venues internet presence, direct mail and open houses are just some of what needs to be done.  For today's market you should be listing your home with an agent for atleast 180 days, with the option to be released if they are not doing all that they agreed to do to market your home. 
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage does offer you this gurantee, if we are not doing everything we agreed to do, we will release you from the contract with us at anytime!

Reasons for a 30-Day Listing

• If your market is steaming hot and homes are flying into pending status within days, your agent might be agreeable to a 30-day listing.
• This way, if every other home on your street is selling within three weeks and yours is still sitting without an offer on day 29, you can easily get rid of your agent and hire somebody else.
• Before you refuse to relist with your agent, though, first look at the price. If your price is too high, no agent is going to sell it.

Reasons for a 90-Day Listing

• In normal markets, 90-day listings are more common.
• During the first 30 days, you should get a lot of showings if you are priced right.
• Ask your agent for buyer feedback and follow up on suggestions to improve the condition of your home and / or price.

Reasons for a 180-Day Listing

• If the average DOM exceeds two months, you're probably trying to sell in a buyer's market and will need a longer listing term.
• If you go into contract on a 90-day listing, your listing might expire while in escrow. In that event, your agent may require that you extend the listing, so it makes more sense to start out with a 180-day listing.
• Ask your agent when you initially sign the six-month listing if the agent will give you a personal guarantee that you can cancel at the end of 90 days if you are unhappy. If the agent won't give you that guarantee, then list with an agent who has more confidence to make you that offer.

Reasons for a One-Year Listing

• If you live out in the boondocks where nothing ever sells under one year, then a 360-day listing might be the norm in your area.
• Unique properties, large parcels and expensive estates might take longer to sell because they may appeal to a limited number of buyers.
• Private islands and lavish vacation homes require a longer marketing time, and agents might not be willing to shell out the big marketing bucks for a short-term listing.