Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Tired of Making the Wrong Choices?

Not all real estate agents are equal, so it’s important for you to understand the criteria by which to compare them when making your selection to market your home for sale.

Some of the criteria will apply to the individual agent, while others will apply to the agent’s company. While both play important roles for creating a positive outcome for you, it’s ultimately the agent who determines your level of service and results.

A real estate agent’s value should be separated into two general areas, SERVICES and RESULTS.

SERVICES describe what the agent does; the things in which he/she has control and does during a listing period.

RESULTS describe what you the seller receive; the measurable outcomes. An impressive list of services is only meaningful if it produces a closed sale in a reasonable amount of time.

Services don’t stop just when you receive and/or accept an offer. The agent oversees the sale of your home from 

·         Putting it on the market

·         To negotiating an offer

·         To direct involvement throughout the listing process until the final closed transaction

You are not paying for just the time it took to receive an offer. You are paying for the years of experience the agent has and for the service and experience that insures the listing results in a closed sale. Agents are not paid for their time, but for the results they create in that time.

With that in mind, it’s important for you to understand the “EIGHT” major events that occur in every transaction. Typically, #8 will not happen unless the first seven are performed properly and in a timely manner:

1.       Marketing Management

2.       Exposure to Agents

3.       Exposure to the Public

4.       Secure Prospects

5.       Demonstrate Your Home

6.       Secure an Agreement to Purchase

7.       Closed Transaction

8.       FINAL EQUITY PAYMENT* (This obviously only occurs if it’s an equity sale)

You may have noticed that the determination of “asking price” is not a step in this sequence. This is because it is not a criteria in which to select an agent. Too many homeowners make the mistake of selecting an agent based on the selected “asking price” the agent recommends instead of their ability to perform the above mentioned steps and ultimately achieve market value. We call this technique, “buying the listing”.

Some agents use this technique to convince the homeowner that they have the ability to get more money for their home because of their marketing plan, their performance history, the company they work for, etc., and are looking to “buy the listing” through false promises. Although each of those areas is of importance when selling a home, the agent cannot control or increase the “market value” or “buyer value” of a property. Just like an agent cannot control the motivation to sell on the part of a homeowner, or the motivation to buy on the part of the buyer. And, more times than not, the agent will usually come back to the homeowner with price reductions after days, weeks or months on the market because there are no showings and no offers. The listing becomes stale and nobody wants to show the property until the price is down to market value. In the meantime, valuable time has been lost and potentially money left on the table. The only one who benefits from this technique is the agent because he/she may get other leads through their marketing efforts and exposure of the property.
Be aware of this selling technique and contact us before making a decision.
Our goal is to make sure you select the real estate agent/company that will save you money, free up the stress of moving and make this new chapter in your life an easy experience.
If you are considering selling your home then we need to meet.
Jeff Petsche
951-316-6400

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