Just like our clocks this weekend in the majority of the country, the housing market is preparing to “spring forward!” Similar to tension in a spring, the lack of inventory available for sale in the market right now is what is holding back the market. Many potential sellers believe that waiting until Spring is in their best interest, and traditionally they would have been right. Buyer demand has seasonality to it, which usually falls off in the winter months, especially in areas of the country impacted by arctic temperatures and conditions. That Hasn’t Happened This Year Demand for housing has remained strong as mortgage rates have remained near historic lows. Even with the recent increase in rates, buyers are still able to lock in an affordable monthly payment. Many more buyers are jumping off the fence and into the market to secure a lower rate. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently reported that the top 10 dates sellers listed their homes in 2017 all fell in April, May, or June. Those who act quickly and list now could benefit greatly from additional exposure to buyers prior to a flood of more competition coming to market in the next few months. Bottom Line You need to start educating the buyers and…Read More
We can’t tell you how many different opinions we hear from agents across the country on whether or not you should advise your home seller to invest in staging their home. We all know the points on each side of the argument and we’ve heard it all. So we decided to stop guessing and look at the facts. We did some research and here’s what we found… Top Findings From Seller’s Agents: 25% of sellers paid to have their homes staged before listing 50% of staged homes saw a 1-10% increase in dollar value offers from buyers The Breakdown: That means that of all homes sold between October 1st, 2017 and December 31, 2017, those homeowners who opted to have a professional home staging company deck out their home, half of them saw an increase in the offers that they received. It’s easy to see just from these two data points that the listing agents who were able to articulate the value of having the homeowner stage their home prior to putting it on the market would unanimously agree that, on average, staging was a wise investment for their clients to make. Top Findings From Buyer’s Agents: 77% said staging made it easier for buyers to visualize the home as their…Read More
Congrats on the sale! Now, promote your success and maximize your efforts by connecting with potential sellers in surrounding neighborhoods by sending them this Just Sold Postcard made for teams. GETTING STARTED: Modern in design, this sleek Just Sold Postcard is the perfect addition to your marketing mix. To create this postcard you will need three property photos and your team’s contact and branding information, and headshots. PROPERTY PHOTOS: Use your top three listing photos when creating this postcard. We recommend photos that represent both the interior and exterior of the home. AGENT’S MESSAGE: Use the message space on this postcard to sell your teams services, specifically noting the benefits of working with your team. What is your USP (unique selling proposition), or more specifically, why should they choose you? CALL TO ACTION: Add a phone number or URL where you want them to take the next step. FINISHING TOUCHES: Your final proof should be printed on both sides of a heavy, postcard-style stock. It will then be trimmed to 6″x 4″ postcard size.Read More
Negotiation is a subtle art in real estate, but skilled negotiators can usually find some common ground that satisfies all parties. On the other hand, using the wrong negotiation tactics can sink a deal pretty quickly. Here are some negotiation tactics buyers (and real estate professionals) should avoid: Lowball offers: Going far below market value when you make an offer damages your credibility as a buyer and can be insulting to the seller. The seller has a range in mind that they’ll accept, and if you’re not even approaching the low end of that range, they won’t even consider the offer. Incremental negotiations: Don’t continue to go back to the seller with small increases in your offer ($1,000 or less). The constant back-and-forth can grow tiresome and lead the seller to consider other opportunities. “Take it or leave it”: Try not to draw a line in the sand with your initial offer. The seller can get defensive and consider other offers if you immediately show that you’re unwilling to budge. Even if it’s true, don’t make a show of it. Nitpicking after inspection: Obviously, if an inspection reveals a major issue, it should be factored into the final sale price. But insisting on a lower price for every minor repair can…Read More
Seller Lead Generation Can Be A Powerful Strategy To Build Your Listing Inventory. You don’t need to be a genius to convert these leads effectively, but you do need a strategy. To make that strategy work effectively, you must attract your seller leads, nurture them and then convert them consistently. Need help converting seller leads while you grow your listing portfolio? [themo_button text=”Click here to find out how we can help you do that” url=”https://schedule.appointmentstoday.com/” type=”ghost” target=”_blank”] As with all strategies, you’ll get good results if you do the work. Much like getting fit, you could have Arnold Schwarzenegger as your trainer, but if you don’t lift weights and eat the right goods, you’re not going to get good results. Now, you don’t necessarily have to do these things yourself – you can hire an ISA and some administrative staff members to help you. That said, you’ll at least have to hold the people who are doing the work accountable. Either way, you must take action. Here’s what you need to do in order to build consistency in your seller lead conversion efforts. If you do these things regularly, you get the results you want and need in your listing business. 1- Attract Enough Seller Leads Seems…Read More
It’s That Time And You And Your Prospect Both Know It. A commitment needs to be made. You’re close to getting one…but there’s an objection lurking in the wings that needs to be addressed before you can get that “Yes”. Your ability to make sales – and earn consistent commissions – relies heavily on your ability to handle these objections and convert these speed bumps into into commitments to do business. There are a ton of objections out there, but some of them come up way more than others. In our world, there are three that come up pretty regularly. “I/We need to think about it.” “I/We want to pay a lower commission.” “I/We have a friend/family member in the business.” You may have cringed while reading those. But at the end of the day, not handled properly, these three objections can stop your sales efforts dead in their tracks. To help you smash these objections like a homerun over the left field wall at Jacobs Field in Cleveland, I’m sharing with you what works for me. I know it will work for you. Overcome These Three Tough Objections… “I/we Need To Think About It” This objection is the granddaddy of them all. It’s not only a…Read More
Having an Inside Sales Associate isn’t an expense…it’s an investment If you’ve been a real estate agent for even a week, you know that there’s no shortage of places where you can invest your hard-earned money to generate listings for your business. Many of them suck…plain and simple. Unfortunately, for many agents, they don’t find this out until it’s too late and they’re either out of money – or worse – out of business. The key when deciding where to put your money is to look at whether or not you’ll actually make money BEFORE you plunk down your cash. [themo_button text=” Click here to find out how an ISA can help you generate more income in your market.” url=”https://schedule.appointmentstoday.com/” type=”ghost” target=”_blank”] When you do, you’ll find that a little research goes a long way. Of the myriad places you can make an investment in your real estate business, there’s a short list of options where you’ll actually get a huge return on that investment. Hiring an Inside Sales Associate (ISA) sits at the top of that list. Yes, it can be a larger investment, but the return on it is one of the best you’ll experience. Three Ways An ISA Can Make You More Money Here are three key ways…Read More
If you have a name, phone number and/or an email address…you have a lead. Nothing fancy. No secrets here. If you have that information, you’ve got yourself a lead. Need help doing a better job with your leads? Click here to find out how we can help you convert more of them. Now, while you’d much rather have a phone number, an email is at least an entry point for getting in contact – and staying in contact – with your listing prospects. As well, if you have a name, there are other entry points to making and staying in contact with your leads, including any social media access point: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. For what it’s worth, Facebook is easily one of the best places to gather information on the leads you generate. Many people make available lots of intel on their Facebook page, making it possible for you to get to know them in a way you wouldn’t through texting, email or even IM’s. If you’re not comfortable with how to work a lead through Facebook, this overview of generation and conversion process is extremely helpful. It’s Not An Opportunity Until You Work The Lead Now that we agree what a lead is, let’s agree on something…Read More
It’s not time to chill…it’s time to turn up the heat and get on the phone. It’s the end of the year and most agents are shutting down their prospecting efforts…”waiting ‘til next year” like many of their prospects are planning on doing. This is unfortunate for two reasons: 1) it’s going to upset the real animals that hibernate like bears, bats and groundhogs and 2) these agents are going to miss out on a ton of opportunity to get sales now and build their pipeline for early next year. If you’re willing to fight the urge to take a long winter’s nap and put in the effort while your competition is settling in for the next 60 days, you could put yourself in position to be very busy come next January and February. Three Reasons To Prospect During The Winter While you’re warming up your phone, consider these three reasons to take action now: 1) Homes Sell Faster And For More Money In The Winter Say what? You read correctly. One of the biggest misconceptions out there is that homes don’t sell during the winter. The fact of the matter is that not only do homes sell during the winter, they fetch higher sales prices and stay on…Read More
Hey everybody. Matt Milia of Appointments Today. I want to talk about the importance of having a home value script. We have had an amazing level of success on some of our Facebook leads that our clients are generating. A lot of the leads that we’ve been calling on have been home valuation. What I want to do is run through what a typical home valuation call would look like, because without having a script in front of you, it is very difficult for you to really convey what you’re offering, what you can do, and it’s hard for you to differentiate your value from some of the other people that are calling. I’m going to run through just a quick rundown of what our script looks like, and hope that this will help you out in building your own script. The 4-Minute Home Value Script First things first. I always start off… Intro “Hi, I’m not sure I’ve got the right number, I’m hoping you can help me out. I’m looking for the homeowner at 2730 Main Street. Is that you by any chance? Great. Hey, my name is Matt. I’m giving you a call with Stasek Real Estate Experts. I’m reaching out because I got…Read More