Maximized Money
August 9th, 2017
Do you like losing money or just not getting all the money, you deserve for everything you have invested into something? Well, in this case, we are talking about Real Estate of course. In my experience, I have seen tens of thousands of dollars left on the table because of some, or all, of the following things, have or have not occurred. The first thing is the lack of market knowledge on a realtor’s behalf. Secondly, A homeowner’s inability to listen to the market and honestly assess the feedback they are getting. (what is someone willing to pay for your house?) Lastly, lack of strategy and tact on behalf of the Realtors.
Although these are some ways I have seen money left on the table, if we examine them in more depth we will find out not only how to avoid these pitfalls, but how to maximize the money we are getting for the Real Estate we own or hope to own. There are several things a Realtor should be looking at when investigating the correct price to list a home for or the correct price to advise clients to pay for a home. When listing a home, the realtor should be looking at comps within the immediate subdivision, if the house is located within a subdivision. They should also be looking at the homes that are as like the home they have been hired to list. If there is nothing in the immediate area. Then I suggest doing searches based on certain customizations in that home such as a pool, acreage, square footage, garage space etc. When these customizations are searched you can truly get a very good idea of the value of that home, and what people are willing to pay for the product that you will be providing. The same goes for when you are representing a buyer. Ask your agent, to provide the comps that were used by the other agent to justify the price they are asking for the home they are listing.
When it comes to clients and the home they are listing. It is my job as a Realtor to provide the honest feedback that they are getting on their home. In extremely hot markets like Nashville is right now; the market will let you know very quickly whether you need to make a move in pricing. However, there are exceptions to this when it comes to homes that are very customized. If your clients have invested thousands upon thousands of dollars into their home then you need to move a little slower in changing the price point of the home. Clients do need to be ready to change the price point of a home if the market is telling them that people are not willing to pay what they are asking.
Changing the price is not always the correct solution. So many times, I see a house get slapped on the market and then that is all the Realtor ever does. Realtors need to be ready to work. What I mean when I say this is, Realtors need to be creative in their approach to listing a home. Realtors should try new tactics on behalf of their clients. Here’s an idea, don’t just “do an open house” “DO AN OPEN HOUSE!” Realtors should do things in such a way that separates them from their competition, and their client’s competition. Realtors should be going above and beyond for their clients even in a good economy because if they don’t why in the world would a client come back to Realtor that barely sold their home in a good economy; in a bad economy.
All in all, selling a home is a team effort, but the brunt of the work should truly be on the shoulders of the Realtor over the operation. If you hired a caterer for your wedding day then you would not want them to show up with a half-cooked bucket of fish. NO, you would want them to show up with an elegant presentation of the food you discussed and ordered for your very special wedding day. It is the same thing with listing a home or helping clients buy a home. Once the expectations are set then there should be follow through. If you are not getting follow through from your realtor then money is not being maximized.