To List or Not To List!

To List or Not List......that's the question!

I've been reading many articles lately, where some of them say that you shouldn't spend all of your time and money on listings right now, because the market is saturated. I've read other articles, where they say to list, list, list. The more listings you have, the more buyers will call you.

Well, I think everything works well in moderation.

To not have any listings forces you to work solely with buyers. Do you want to do that?

I believe that a pre-approved and motivated buyer is as good as a listing right now. Yes, you do have to spend your time driving around showing properties, but by having the buyers preview the properties online, that will reduce the number of homes you have to show them.

To build a listing inventory in today's buyer market, you need to better educate your sellers about the market conditions more than ever or you could end up spending lots of money on advertising your listings. You see, most sellers think that traditional, institutional advertising (like newspaper & homes magazines) sells homes. The reality is a very small percentage of homes are sold from a buyer looking through those types of periodicals. Most buyers today search through the Internet. (They don't have to talk to an agent until they're ready...they like staying "invisible"!)

So how can you handle more listings today and not go broke?

Here are 5 effective strategies to implement:

1. Complete a Detailed Market Analysis - Share with the sellers all of the various factors that can play into their home selling or not selling...supply & demand, days on market, absorption rate, seller financing options, property conditions, interest rate fluctuations, etc. You have to lay it on the line with the seller. If a seller wants too much money for their home and you don't think the market will bear it, tell them. If they insist, consider recommending them to another agent and get a referral fee (if) it sells. If it doesn't, then they may call you back later.
   
2. Showcase the Property - You need to make recommendations to the sellers to prepare their home in its best light. I have a contractor come out and make recommendations for repairs/improvements and give an estimate to do the work.
   
   I also recommend that a seller have a pre-sale home and termite inspection, so that they aren't surprised by a buyer's inspection findings and have to pay more money out of their pocket. I go through properties all of the time with clients and I just shake my head...I can't believe they leave the property in the condition that they do and they expect to get top dollar too.
   
3. Communicate with Area Agents - To keep yourself updated on the pulse of the market. Call other agents with listings in the area and see what their activity level is on their listings.
   
4. Make your Advertising Dollars Work for You - When you do advertising, don't just write the typical '3 bd, 1bt, fp, gar' in the ad. What's the highlight of the property? People buy on 'Emotion' or 'Greed'. Which is it for each listing? Give the consumer a reason to contact you. Offer them something of value, like a free report about buying a home in today's market.
   
5. Seller's Net Proceeds Sheet - Always fill out a net proceeds sheet for the seller. I use 3 different price points to show them what they could walk away with at the closing. IMPORTANT POINT: You must have them get a verbal pay-off amount of their mortgage(s). Sellers can easily guess wrong and end up paying several hundred to several thousand dollars more, because they guessed on what they owed. Also, if a seller has been behind on their payments, you want to know that before they accept an offer. Short sales are becoming more common today and you have to be prepared to deal with that situation.
   
   When you're on a listing presentation, I believe it's more important than ever to use consulting skills vs. sales skills, because consumers don't want to be 'SOLD' anything. I just read where we'repractically ranked at the bottom of the salespeople list. Consumers need to know what their options are, especially in today's market. It's your role to help them decipher what's in their best interest.
   
   Do you want to know what the truth is about selling homes today?
   
   At the completion of your listing appointment, you'll know if the property is going to sell or not. Based on how the seller answers your qualifying questions, accepts the market data that is presented to them and is willing to prepare their property for sale, you'll have all of the information necessary to determine if the property is salable or not....and if you want to list it or not.
   
   In my opinion, look for quality listings. You can still build your inventory to a workable level, but don't just take any listing to have a listing. You'll just end up saying to yourself, "Why did I list this one?"
   
   To your success,
   Dan