Tag: selling home

How to Get the Most Money When Selling Your Home

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Every homeowner wants to make sure they get the best price when selling their home. But how do you guarantee that you receive maximum value for your house? Besides helping buyers fall in love with your property by using Home Staging Tips. Here are two keys to ensuring you get the highest price possible when selling your home.

1. Price it a LITTLE LOW 

This may seem counterintuitive. However, let’s look at this concept for a moment. Many homeowners think that pricing their home a little OVER market value will leave them room for negotiation. In reality, this just dramatically lessens the demand for their house and buyers’ desire to submit an offer (see chart below).

Instead of the seller trying to ‘win’ the negotiation with one buyer, they should price it so that demand for the home is maximized. By doing this, the seller will not be fighting with a buyer over the price, but will instead have multiple offers fighting with each other over the house.

Realtor.com gives this advice:

“Aim to price your property at or just slightly below the going rate. Today’s buyers are highly informed, so if they sense they’re getting a deal, they’re likely to bid up a property that’s slightly underpriced, especially in areas with low inventory.”

Also Read:

What Renovations Will Get You the Most Bang for Your Buck?

2. Use a Real Estate Professional

This, too, may seem counterintuitive, as the seller likely believes that he or she will net more money if they don’t have to pay a real estate commission. With that being said, studies have shown that homes typically sell for more money when handled by a real estate professional.

Research posted by the National Association of Realtors revealed that:

The median selling price for all FSBO homes was $185,000 last year. When the buyer knew the seller in FSBO sales, the number sinks to the median selling price of $163,800. However, homes that were sold with the assistance of an agent had a median selling price of $245,000 – nearly $60,000 more for the typical home sale.”

Bottom Line

Price your house at or slightly below the current market value and hire a professional. This will guarantee that you maximize the price you get for your house. Ready to start? Click here to schedule seller consultation.

And please, don’t forget to download

My Sellers’ Guide:

“Learn How to Have a Successful Home Sale”

This guide is a supplement to the information provided above, and it describes in detail traditional and modern marketing techniques and lists my real estate services you can expect me to provide including:

  • Accurately pricing your home.
  • Enhancing the perceived and real value of your home, enabling you to command a higher asking price by using latest marketing techniques.
  • Providing unmatched marketing including professional staging, photography, video and custom property web sites.
  • Showing latest statistics on how buyers search for homes today.
  • Securing a qualified buyer within your specific time frame.
  • And More!

The best part is, my Guide is free and available to download right now.

Just provide your name and email, and I’ll send it directly to you.

Is Your Real Estate Agent Using Latest State-of-the-Art Technologies to Sell Your Home Fast?

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If not, you may need to find someone who is

Much of your potential success when selling your home quickly and for the most money lies is in the hands of your real estate agent. And your agent’s success largely depends upon the marketing tactics they use to promote your house and attract potential buyers. So, how can you evaluate if their strategy for marketing your home is sound, effective, and more advanced than what everyone else is doing?

You can look at their years of experience, testimonials, or the number of homes they’ve sold in the past as an indicator of the potential value they offer to you as your home’s listing agent. Or you can evaluate the way today’s home buyers are searching for their next homes and see how your potential new agent measures up.

Times are changing…

Just because a marketing strategy worked a decade ago, doesn’t mean it is going to work today. Evaluating your potential agent on years of experience alone may cause you to overlook the fact that marketing has gone digital, and your next buyer is just a click away.

According to National Association of Realtors latest Buyers Profile report, over 95 percent of contemporary home buyers use the Internet to search for homes – not signs in the front yard, classified ads, local magazines, an agent’s physical office, or TV ads.

Just look at the graph below! It shows the influence of the Internet on Home Search Process from 1995 to 2016.

Need more prove? The table below demonstrates that only 3% of home buyers are using TV and 16% are using print advertisement as sources used during their home search.

How would your real estate agent showcase your home online, since that’s exactly where your target buyers will be looking for their next home? By hiring an agent that is well versed in the demands of digitally savvy consumers, you’ll reach an audience that you wouldn’t with a traditional agent, and you’ll sell your home faster.

Posting the listing with MLS is only the beginning

If you question your potential real estate agent about listing your home online, and he or she responds that the MLS should cover all online marketing, it may be time to rethink your choice in agent.

Every agent will list your property on the MLS, from where your listing will be pushed to such websites as Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow, but that is far from enough to take advantage of the huge opportunities that exist online today.

Real estate agents that have their fingers on the pulse of the fast-moving real estate market, in addition to using traditional marketing tools such as: installing front yard sign, printing flyers and holding Open Houses, will incorporate many or all of the more advanced methods of marketing, to include:

• Creating a separate website to market your property.
• Developing a Facebook and/or Twitter ad campaign strategy.
• Sharing professional property photos on Pinterest and Instagram.
• Uploading home tour to YouTube.
• Reaching out to international buyers.
• Promoting your property on Adwerx.
• Showcasing your home in the best light through fusion photography, 3D home video tours, aerial photography and other cutting-edge technologies.

Unique Value through Digital Advertising

Think about how real estate agents have advertised your property in the past. It usually meant a classified ad in the local newspaper or a spread in one of the real estate publications. The problem with this approach is that your agent’s marketing dollars would be quickly depleted by exposing ads to an audience that may or may not be interested in your property.

Facebook Advertising

Digital channels, such as Facebook, have given technologically savvy agents more options than ever to sell your home fast. Using specifically targeted Facebook ads, real estate agents can not only target your area, but they can reach a pool of home buyers who are actively searching to buy a home just like yours, at the specific price point, at the specific proximity to their office, and so on and so on.

The level of targeting digital marketing focused agents can reach with Facebook ads is almost eerie! Can your agent offer that?

Adwerx

You may not have heard of Adwerx, because it’s a tool built specifically for real estate agents. Adwerx is an advanced online technology for retargeting ads that allows agents to advertise your home to buyers online.

How do Adwerx Ads work? Do you remember that time you searched for shoes on your favorite department store’s website, and then you saw those same shoes on the ad bar while you were online banking or looking for a recipe? This is the power of retargeting ads! After the buyers look at your property online,  they’ll be reminded about your property over and over again when they aren’t even thinking about it.

Also Read:

Selling Your Home with me: Step-by Step process.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of those extremely important elements of digital marketing that happens behind the scenes. What does your agent know about SEO? Do they have an expert SEO strategist on staff?

SEO is the process of creating content on the web and through social media that will increase the likelihood of buyers finding your home through a simple web search. It often includes complicated algorithms, a keyword strategy and technical skills required to optimize a website or listing for it to be pushed to the front of the line on a Google search. And no buyer will find your home on your agent’s website, if it is hidden on the 29th page of search results on Google.

How does your potential real estate agent measures up against technologically savvy agents that use these important tactics to reach the buyers who are looking for your home on the Internet? If you mention SEO, and his or her head spin, it may be important to keep searching for your next agent!

What kind of marketing team does your agent employ to support the marketing efforts?

Agents running full-scale marketing campaigns for each and every one of their listings usually can’t do it alone, and they know how important it is to get it just right to sell your home fast and at the highest price point the market can handle.

Providing a state-of-the-art marketing strategy takes a team of: in-house professional writer for persuasive and clear content, an SEO specialist to drive traffic to your listing, and a web developer and graphic designer to give your online presence just the right look. Have you asked your potential real estate agent what kind of team they have in place?

Working with Natasha Lingle

I understand the role a flawlessly executed marketing strategy plays in selling a home fast. I also know exactly what it takes to compete in today’s digital marketplace. I’m not afraid to invest the money needed to have access to the latest technologies that will increase the probability of in-person showings and, consequently, persuading the buyers to bring an offer and buy your home.

I’ll happily talk to you about the power of Facebook and Adwerx ads, SEO, and why high quality photography is one of the most important aspects of real estate on-line marketing.

I will work tirelessly with my team of marketing experts to showcase your property on-line in order to attract quality buyers.

And please don’t forget to download my Seller’s Guide!

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How to Price Your Home for Sale: CMA and Beyond

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Pricing your home accurately is the most effective way to ensure a successful sale.

Innovative marketing plan will help to bring the buyers through the front door, but no amount of marketing can sell an overpriced home. Please keep in mind, the agent will evaluate the price of your home to determine the current market value, but at the end, the agent doesn’t set the price, the seller doesn’t set the price – the market will set the price, or value, for your home.

Comparative Market Analysis

So, how will the right sales price will be determined? Real estate agents frequently use a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) to estimate a property’s probable selling price. CMAs help sellers decide on a listing price, whereas buyers will use them to determine how much they want to offer for a property.

While sellers and buyers have naturally opposing price preferences, a CMA is designed to be a completely  objective evaluation, and it’s based on recent and actual selling prices for comparable properties. Since real estate markets can change quickly, it’s essential to recognize that a CMA only provides a “snapshot” for a particular point in time.

The comparable properties included in a CMA should be similar recently sold homes. When selecting “comps,” the date of sale, location, and size of a home are the most important factors, but amenities, floor plan/style, age, number of bedrooms/bathrooms, garage size, improvements, and potential negatives may also be considered.

Also Read:

Insider Home Staging Tips: Here’s How To Sell Your Home Fast and For The Best Price

When reviewing a CMA to determine sales price on a particular property, it’s also helpful to examine the following:

Competing properties:

These are substantially similar homes that are currently listed for sale. Since they haven’t been sold yet, they’re usually distinguished from other “comps” in a CMA. Buyers know that sellers are competing against these properties, so it’s important to factor currently listed homes into the pricing strategy.

Days on market:

May indicate how appropriately a property has been priced for sale, especially when compared to absorption rates. If, for example, the absorption rate is two months, but a competing property has been listed for over three months, a potential buyer of that property might have a stronger negotiating position.

Absorption rates:

Are used to analyze the strength of a market, in terms of the supply and demand for current competing properties (the number of homes on the market relative to the number of homes sold). A low absorption rate indicates that sellers are in a stronger position, whereas a high absorption rate is favorable for buyers.

Sales price/List price ratios:

For specific categories of homes, statistics for Sales price to List price ratios will help you understand how much less than the listing price you can realistically expect to achieve.

Advantages of CMAs for

 

Sellers

  • Sellers receive a fact-based, objective assessment of their home’s value
  • Sellers don’t experience the stress and disruption that can occur when homes languish on the market.
  • Sellers are protected from undervaluing their home, to their financial disadvantage.
  • Sellers avoid the delay that occurs when they accept a high offer and the property does not appraise.

Buyers (experienced buyers’ agent will create CMA for their clients)

  • Buyers receive fact-based, objective information about homes where they might not be familiar with the local market.
  • Buyers are less likely to lose the home they really want because their offer is too low.
  • Buyers are less likely to encounter problems obtaining a mortgage because the house appraises below offer price.
  • Buyers are less likely to overpay for a home, thus preserving financial resources for other important home and life expenses.

Professional Home Appraisal

As a special service to my clients, I offer another very effective method of pricing your home – Professional Home Appraisal. When you list – and close – your home with me, I’ll pay for a pre-listing appraisal.

Benefits of having a professional appraisal:

  • You receive an unbiased third party opinion of the market value of your home by a trained professional.
  • You are positioned to quickly recognize and respond to a market offer.
  • You are positioned to effectively challenge a low lender’s appraisal of your home, maintaining your higher contract price. A lender will consider a well-known appraisers valuation – they will not consider an estimate provided by a real estate agent.
  • You avoid the common practice of a real estate agent “buying your listing” by suggesting a higher price than can be achieved. Because the agent would then be reluctant to suggest a price reduction early in the marketing process, you lose valuable time during those critical first several weeks on the market.

Your real estate agent is your best resource for professional insights on current market conditions. With your agent’s assistance, you’ll be in a better position to make an informed and realistic decision on  the sales price of your home.

If you are ready to make a move, please contact me to schedule a free no obligation Seller Consultation.

Natasha Lingle Your Pricing Strategy Advisor (PSA).

And please, don’t forget to download

My Sellers’ Guide:

“Learn How to Have a Successful Home Sale”

This guide is a supplement to the information provided above, and it describes in detail traditional and modern marketing techniques and lists my real estate services you can expect me to provide including:

  • Accurately pricing your home.
  • Enhancing the perceived and real value of your home, enabling you to command a higher asking price by using latest marketing techniques.
  • Providing unmatched marketing including professional staging, photography, video and custom property web sites.
  • Showing latest statistics on how buyers search for homes today.
  • Securing a qualified buyer within your specific time frame.
  • And More!

The best part is, my Guide is free and available to download right now.

Just provide your name and email, and I’ll send it directly to you.

[red-button url=”https://natashabackupadmin.truedes.com/have-successful-home-sale/”]Download Your Seller’s Guide HERE[/red-button]

Buying A Home? How Working with a Real Estate Agent Will Save You Money

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Why Use a Real Estate Agent

One of the most common questions that comes up when people start their house hunt or begin the process of listing their home is – do I really need a real estate agent?

Often this question is the result of a misconception that not using a real estate agent will save a buyer or seller some extra cash or that it’s easier just to negotiate independently. Most of the time, the decision to do it alone is misled or un-researched. So, we’re laying out some of the common misconceptions that will likely cause you to reconsider your decision to not work with an agent.

Doing it alone doesn’t cost less

One of the primary reasons a buyer might shy away from using a buyer’s agent is the idea that it is an added expense in the home buying process. In fact, using a buyer’s agent is absolutely free to the buyer and usually saves you money in the long run. A buyer’s agent works on commission, which is traditionally paid by the seller.

And for those sellers hoping to save a little green on their home sale, the idea of selling a home by owner is often short sighted. Because 90 percent of buyers and sellers use agents during the real estate transaction, homeowners selling their home on their own may be losing out on a huge market of buyers that want to work with an agent-listed property.

Additionally, there is something to be said for working with an agent who can list the property on MLS because 95 percent of home shoppers will go online to search for properties at some point during their house hunt. By selling a home by owner, homeowners could be eliminating a huge pool of buyers who will look to the MLS themselves or through their agent to find their dream home.

You’ll actually save money working with an agent

During the home buying process there are several ways a buyer’s agent will earn their commission. Your agent will search for homes within your criteria and sometimes even preview those homes, set up appointments to view them, and ask all the right questions during the viewings. With inventory in many places at an all-time low, a buyer’s agent is also a resource for finding properties that aren’t even on the market yet. With a good agent, there won’t be one rock left unturned.

Once you do finally decide on your dream home, the buyer’s agent will handle the negotiation process, draw up offers, schedule the inspection and oversee the escrow process. In some states a lawyer will need to be present, but in most parts of the U.S. the buyer’s agent can handle all the steps in the process!

While a cost savings is often argued when it comes to a seller’s agent, the money saved by not paying commission almost never makes up for the overall cost savings associated with using a seller’s agent that will sell your home faster and at a higher price.

According to National Association of Realtors (NAR), homebuyers who use the Internet to search for a home (which is a whopping 95 percent) are more likely to purchase a home with a real estate agent than buyers who don’t use the Internet. A seller’s agent will almost immediately list your home to every Internet outlet through the MLS, and will usually advertise your property in other places online like through social media or search engines. As a seller, you can also tap into their network of agents that are in the ear of hundreds of buyers through their agent open houses or general networking.

Additionally, do you know how to market yourself and your property without the help of an agent? What are the hot marketing methods or technologies that tap into motivated buyers so that you can sell your home quicker than your neighbor? An experienced real estate agent has a method for selling their homes as quickly as they do.

You’ll have access to everything on the market and buyers will hear about your property first

A buyer’s agent will have access to all databases and listings that might not be as readily available to someone searching for their next home. For instance, a buyer’s agent will have access to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) Coming Soon properties and the searchable database of homes currently on the market. They can easily send listings your way when you provide your basic search criteria.

Also, because you might be too busy or focused on selling your current home, you may miss out when new listings come on the market. A buyer’s agent is focused on all things real estate all day, so your perfect home will be top of mind for them when it might not be for you. And if you’ve ever worked with a buyer’s agent yourself, you know that much of your home search is driven by the suggestions of your real estate agent.

If you’re selling a home by owner, you can almost guarantee your home will never be part of that list of suggestions from a real estate agent to their buyer. While you could save a small fraction of your selling expenses by not paying agent commission, you’ll lose a lot more with the extra time your home will sit on the market and the potential losses during the negotiation process.

Real estate agents are an excellent source of information

If you’re spending a lot of time googling information about home inspections, mortgages, title companies and laws around home buying or selling, you should instead be spending that time looking for a reputable real estate agent.

Whether you’re buying or selling, your agent will be a wealth of information. They will walk you through every step of the process without you having to consult other professionals. They can even provide names of mortgage brokers or attorneys for you to work with since they interact with these professionals on a regular basis and know who in your city has the best track record.

When you’re selling a home it’s likely you’ll have endless questions about the process and your own personal investments. Does the A/C need to be serviced before putting your home on the market? Is it worth the investment to repair the roof? Should you offer buyers closing costs or allowances for repairs? It’s almost guaranteed that many unknowns will come up and you’ll only be fully prepared if you have an experienced real estate agent to support you.

Bottom Line

Purchasing or selling a home is not a process that should be taken lightly. It’s a huge financial and personal decision so why not use all the resources available to you when purchasing your dream home or selling your existing home – especially when an agent can likely save you money or prevent unexpected expenses or mistakes! Using a real estate agent will be the easiest decision you make when purchasing or selling your home.