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We’re selling our condo and have it narrowed down to two agents. We can’t decide which will be best. One wants to list the condo in January; we worry that he/she is pushing us to go early because he/she wants to have inventory during a traditionally slow time. The other wants to wait ’til March and we worry that it’s because he/she traditionally takes Dec. and Jan. off and just doesn’t want to bother with it ’til then!
Also, one agent prides him/herself on selling homes quickly. We worry that it’s because he convinces owners to list too far under market (he does want to list lower than the other agent). Or maybe the other agent is just trying to get the listing by dangling a higher listing price?
I guess we just have a hard time really believing that any agent has our best interest at heart. If I’m an agent, quick turnover will be my goal (even if a bit lower than I might have been able to get if I had been more aggressive with listing price). And I definitely want more listings during the slow time.
So… which agent should we go with? Should we go now and avoid competition in the market, or wait ’til Spring when there are more buyers. Should we push the listing price up or trust the strategy of listing close to market in order to increase interest & competition?
How did you find this agent? Was it through a referral?
There are a couple of senior posters here (who have been extremely helpful) who are actually agents. MikePRU is one of them
We’re selling our condo and have it narrowed down to two agents. We can’t decide which will be best. One wants to list the condo in January; we worry that he/she is pushing us to go early because he/she wants to have inventory during a traditionally slow time. The other wants to wait ’til March and we worry that it’s because he/she traditionally takes Dec. and Jan. off and just doesn’t want to bother with it ’til then!
First thing's, first . . . you need to be able to trust the agent you hire 100%. It sounds like you don't trust either agent you interviewed. So, you need to decide if you don't trust one or both of them because of your preconceived notions about real estate agents or if it's just that neither is worthy of your trust.
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Originally Posted by snapplegate
Also, one agent prides him/herself on selling homes quickly. We worry that it’s because he convinces owners to list too far under market (he does want to list lower than the other agent). Or maybe the other agent is just trying to get the listing by dangling a higher listing price?
Selling a listing fast is a bad thing because . . . ? Is your goal to have your condo on the market for a year or more? I can't imagine it is. Pricing low is rarely a bad thing. I don't know where you're located but if there's a decent level of activity you'll get multiple offers which will drive the price up. If done right and under the right circumstances, you can actually get more money for your house by pricing low than you would if you priced higher. Pricing too high on the other hand will just result in your condo not selling. Regardless, both agents should be able to provide you with evidence (comps) showing you why they've suggested the prices they have. Have them explain why they chose the comps that they have.
Keep in mind, price is determined by you and your agent. It's just a marketing tool that helps you attract buyers and hopefully offers. Market value on the other hand is determined by the buyers.
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Originally Posted by snapplegate
I guess we just have a hard time really believing that any agent has our best interest at heart. If I’m an agent, quick turnover will be my goal (even if a bit lower than I might have been able to get if I had been more aggressive with listing price). And I definitely want more listings during the slow time.
Sounds like you need to get over your preconceived notions about real estate agents.
Isn't a fast sale your goal too? I've never heard anyone say they wanted a slow, drawn out sale.
Also, as a real estate agent, I want more listings all year long. I don't really care when I get them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by snapplegate
So… which agent should we go with? Should we go now and avoid competition in the market, or wait ’til Spring when there are more buyers. Should we push the listing price up or trust the strategy of listing close to market in order to increase interest & competition?
It's hard to say definitively which one to hire. However, it does seem one has a pretty solid track record of getting properties sold (you didn't mention the other one's track record). Sure there are more buyers in the spring, but there are also more listings. Like buying, I usually tell people to sell when it's convenient for them and don't worry too much about timing the market.
When choosing between agencies/agents, ask them each to present you with a written marketing strategy for selling your home. This would include, but go beyond, the boilerplate stuff like realtor.com listing and open house. What exactly would each do for you that shows real strategy? Don't ask questions, just let them talk and notice their presentations. Does one say the usual and the other say she'll post on Craigslist and also in other venues such as college faculty listings, etc?
Do either of them mention the dreaded term "DOM"—days on market? Will they suspend the listing and then relist if the DOM gets too numerous? Are you locked into a contract for six solid months (not a good idea) or will they accept a 3-month? If a relative or personal friend wants to buy your condo and approaches you directly, does that let you out of the contract? etc etc
I sold my home 3 years ago myself because everything the agents would do for me I could easily do for myself, including listing on MLS and realtor.com, doing the open house, advertising, etc. I realize that is not for everyone, so I suggest getting a good book on how to find a good agent and pour over it. Believe me, realtors are not all alike.
BTW, back to DOM...in New England, do not list in January. That's a huge risk for the DOM. March 1–15 is the date, not before. Try for the 3-month contract, the end of which ends the DOM, and you can re-contract almost immediately.
When choosing between agencies/agents, ask them each to present you with a written marketing strategy for selling your home. This would include, but go beyond, the boilerplate stuff like realtor.com listing and open house. What exactly would each do for you that shows real strategy? Don't ask questions, just let them talk and notice their presentations.
This is really great advice. I would also add that when an agent comes in to do their marketing presentation listen to what they talk about. Are they just bragging about how great they are or instead are they constantly asking you questions about what you want? Remember, in the end this is about you so a prospective agent's #1 job should be learning about you and your property first and foremost.
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Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
Does one say the usual and the other say she'll post on Craigslist and also in other venues such as college faculty listings, etc?
Craig's List is absolutely useless in my experience. It's so full of scams that honest ads are just lost amongst all the dishonest ads. Also, depending on the price point you may not be effectively reaching your target audience. If this is a $300K condo then maybe put it on CL, but if this is an $800K it's unlikely those buyers are scouring CL. It's the same thing for college faculty listings. If the condo is in Canton, that's probably not a great idea. However, if it's in Cambridge that's a very effective strategy.
The bottom line is your agent should be coming up with imaginative strategies to get your house sold. They should, however, be well thought out and appropriate strategies.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
Do either of them mention the dreaded term "DOM"—days on market? Will they suspend the listing and then relist if the DOM gets too numerous? Are you locked into a contract for six solid months (not a good idea) or will they accept a 3-month? If a relative or personal friend wants to buy your condo and approaches you directly, does that let you out of the contract? etc etc
The length of the contract is really irrelevant. You can fire your agent any time if you want. If you're really unhappy with your choice of agents, don't be afraid to drop them before the end of the contract.
Very few agents will allow what are called "exclusions" in the contract. This is simply a person who could buy the property outside of the terms of the listing contract. If an agent is going to commit their time and money to marketing your property, they are going to want to get compensated for that. Also, finding the buyer is only part of what we do. Once there is a contract in place, you'll still want an agent by your side to help you with things like negotiating the inspection, negotiating the purchase & sale agreement, and generally making sure this buyer buys your property just to name a few things we do.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
BTW, back to DOM...in New England, do not list in January. That's a huge risk for the DOM. March 1–15 is the date, not before. Try for the 3-month contract, the end of which ends the DOM, and you can re-contract almost immediately.
This not true. A listing has to be off the market (i.e. "canceled" status on MLS not "withdrawn" status) for 90 days before the DOM counter resets. Even if you fire your current agent and move to a different brokerage, the counter picks up where it left unless the property has been off the market for 90+ days.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with listing in January as I said. There are fewer buyers but also fewer listings to compete with. It does depend on what the RE market is like in your area. If your market is already slow, it might not be a good idea to list in the winter. However, if you're close to Boston there's enough demand all year long and you'll be fine.
The one thing I wanted to add about selling your house in January is that you need to keep in mind if your plan is to buy something to move in to that there will not be very many properties to choose from. There will be less competition to buy them but the chances of you finding something you like will be lower.
I am curious if OP is buying as well? That will make timing better for Feb/March since more properties come out. But then again January might be perfect time to get better deal... It really depends on location and demand.
MikePru is giving you spot on advice.
I own a real estate company and I think you should interview a third agent. It is like Mike said "you need to trust your agent100%". Don't settle there are lots of great agents out there that would be happy to list and sell your condo.
Craig's List is absolutely useless in my experience. It's so full of scams that honest ads are just lost amongst all the dishonest ads. Also, depending on the price point you may not be effectively reaching your target audience. If this is a $300K condo then maybe put it on CL, but if this is an $800K it's unlikely those buyers are scouring CL. It's the same thing for college faculty listings. If the condo is in Canton, that's probably not a great idea. However, if it's in Cambridge that's a very effective strategy.
Craigslist has its place. Not everyone looking to buy a home wants to immediately sign on as a client with a buyer's agent. They want to peruse, and believe it or not, the majority of people may not know to look on a national website like realtor.com. Many are novice/first-time buyers and just want to see what's out there. A friend in WMass sold her home FSBO immediately to a professional from Minnesota relocating to one of the colleges here. The Minnesota woman found the listing on C-list. The friend also had her home posted on Five College News online. Most realtors would not think to go the extra mile to post on these other sites. There are other sites to post on, depending on the draw. Someone listing a horse farm should be listing in those interest magazines, for ex.
The length of the contract is really irrelevant. You can fire your agent any time if you want. If you're really unhappy with your choice of agents, don't be afraid to drop them before the end of the contract.
It can be complicated. You can fire your agent and then someone whom that agent had shown your house to may come back within a few weeks (after the firing) and the seller will owe that commission if the client buys. Breaking a contract is not something I'd personally want to do, I have experience with that and it was not good. For me, three-month renewable contracts are enough. Again the DOM is part of the decision to keep the listing time short.
Very few agents will allow what are called "exclusions" in the contract. This is simply a person who could buy the property outside of the terms of the listing contract. If an agent is going to commit their time and money to marketing your property, they are going to want to get compensated for that.
I have sold several houses in the past through agents and negotiated the exclusion of family buyers. No family member came forward, but one of them might have. It is also fair to stipulate that if a family member steps forward to buy during the contract period, the agent would still get a commission, say 2.5%.
Also, finding the buyer is only part of what we do. Once there is a contract in place, you'll still want an agent by your side to help you with things like negotiating the inspection, negotiating the purchase & sale agreement, and generally making sure this buyer buys your property just to name a few things we do.
[color="RoyalBlue"]Good real estate agents work really hard. They don't just "list," they aggressively market. I listed one house FSBO and invited realtors to bring their clients, offering 2.5%, and in the end, it was a realtor who sold that home for me and imo worked for it. I certainly don't recommend FSBO for most sellers. I do recommend interviewing realtors. It's easy to "like" a realtor's personality but not feel confident that they have a tough strategy.
In addition to the marketing strategy, a good realtor will send in a staging specialist. That is more important than many people think. Not only that, but I'd say most online photos on the listing do not do a home justice and are actually downright terrible. Shame on the realtors who allow this to happen. Some photos look like the photographer was drunk. Who needs to see a photo of a corner of a room or a closeup of a doorknob, or some unflattering photo of the front of the house. Poor photos are the biggest downfall in a marketing plan.
Social media should be a prime part of the marketing plan these d[/COLOR]ays.
A listing has to be off the market (i.e. "canceled" status on MLS not "withdrawn" status) for 90 days before the DOM counter resets. Even if you fire your current agent and move to a different brokerage, the counter picks up where it left unless the property has been off the market for 90+ days.
I stand corrected.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with listing in January as I said. There are fewer buyers but also fewer listings to compete with. It does depend on what the RE market is like in your area. If your market is already slow, it might not be a good idea to list in the winter. However, if you're close to Boston there's enough demand all year long and you'll be fine.
Listing date should be determined by the market research for a particular property. If an agent finds that in your neighborhood in January there are 20 colonials just like yours and it's not a hot area like a college town, that is not a good time to list. Better to wait till buyers come out of the woodwork in March.
In a hot area (much truer around Boston) any month may be OK to list. It the property's area is not hot, listing in winter months sends a message to buyers that the seller is desperate (particularly if the home is not staged and shows all empty rooms), and lowball offers will come in and the pressure will be high on the buyer to accept.
The other problem with listing in winter up here is that the home doesn't show as well; the grounds aren't green, dirty snow is often piled high, the atmosphere is bleak, and lookers trudge in doing a number on the floors. If the home is huge the buyer will wonder what the heating costs could be.
March 1 overlaps winter but nudges more toward spring, and though winter conditions are still apparent, touches of spring can be incorporated into the staging. A pyschologically better time, if the seller has an option.
Craigslist has its place. Not everyone looking to buy a home wants to immediately sign on as a client with a buyer's agent. They want to peruse, and believe it or not, the majority of people may not know to look on a national website like realtor.com. Many are novice/first-time buyers and just want to see what's out there. A friend in WMass sold her home FSBO immediately to a professional from Minnesota relocating to one of the colleges here. The Minnesota woman found the listing on C-list. The friend also had her home posted on Five College News online. Most realtors would not think to go the extra mile to post on these other sites. There are other sites to post on, depending on the draw. Someone listing a horse farm should be listing in those interest magazines, for ex.
I would absolutely agree that CL has its place. It's just my experience that CL is ineffective in the area close to Boston. Western MA is a completely different RE market. Also, you really don't have to be a savvy real estate buyer to find sites like Realtor.com, Zillow, and Trulia. Just go to Google and type "homes for sale in [name of town]" or "real estate in [name of town]" and you'll see these sites are at the top of the search results. These sites almost find you.
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Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
It can be complicated. You can fire your agent and then someone whom that agent had shown your house to may come back within a few weeks (after the firing) and the seller will owe that commission if the client buys. Breaking a contract is not something I'd personally want to do, I have experience with that and it was not good. For me, three-month renewable contracts are enough. Again the DOM is part of the decision to keep the listing time short.
The agent still being due a commission is a standard clause that you'll find in just about every listing contract. It's in force for a time period specified in your listing contract and it takes affect when the contract ends. Whether the contract ends because you fired your agent or because you reached the expiration date doesn't matter. The clause still comes into affect. The problem with this clause is you have to prove that you actually showed the property to this buyer. A smart seller will ask for a list of people this clause applies to when the contract is either terminated or it expires. I can virtually guarantee you that the majority of agents will not be able to provide the list which would make the clause difficult to enforce.
Again, DOM will not reset at the end of your listing contract. So, you might as well start giving out those 6 month listing agreements.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
I have sold several houses in the past through agents and negotiated the exclusion of family buyers. No family member came forward, but one of them might have. It is also fair to stipulate that if a family member steps forward to buy during the contract period, the agent would still get a commission, say 2.5%.
No wonder you decided to FSBO your last house. It sounds like you're a better negotiator than the agents you hired. I would personally never agree to such a clause. It's not fair to me and it's not fair to the other buyers who could potentially be competing with your family members.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
Good real estate agents work really hard. They don't just "list," they aggressively market. I listed one house FSBO and invited realtors to bring their clients, offering 2.5%, and in the end, it was a realtor who sold that home for me and imo worked for it. I certainly don't recommend FSBO for most sellers. I do recommend interviewing realtors. It's easy to "like" a realtor's personality but not feel confident that they have a tough strategy.
Couldn't agree more. You have feel not only that you are going to be able to work with your agent (i.e. get along with them) but also you have to feel that they are going to work hard for you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
In addition to the marketing strategy, a good realtor will send in a staging specialist. That is more important than many people think. Not only that, but I'd say most online photos on the listing do not do a home justice and are actually downright terrible. Shame on the realtors who allow this to happen. Some photos look like the photographer was drunk. Who needs to see a photo of a corner of a room or a closeup of a doorknob, or some unflattering photo of the front of the house. Poor photos are the biggest downfall in a marketing plan.
One of the worst photos I've ever seen on a listing was taken at night, in the rain, from the inside of the agent's car. You could barely tell there was even a house in the photo.
Most agents are horrible at marketing. They use photos which make you wonder if they're trying to sell you a bed and not the actual bedroom.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
Social media should be a prime part of the marketing plan these days.
Social media is definitely growing in importance.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
Listing date should be determined by the market research for a particular property. If an agent finds that in your neighborhood in January there are 20 colonials just like yours and it's not a hot area like a college town, that is not a good time to list. Better to wait till buyers come out of the woodwork in March.
In a hot area (much truer around Boston) any month may be OK to list. It the property's area is not hot, listing in winter months sends a message to buyers that the seller is desperate (particularly if the home is not staged and shows all empty rooms), and lowball offers will come in and the pressure will be high on the buyer to accept.
Absolutely. One cannot make the blanket statement that it is or is not a good idea to list in January. A prospective seller has to do their research to determine if that's right for them and if it works in their market.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newenglandgirl
The other problem with listing in winter up here is that the home doesn't show as well; the grounds aren't green, dirty snow is often piled high, the atmosphere is bleak, and lookers trudge in doing a number on the floors. If the home is huge the buyer will wonder what the heating costs could be.
For some homes, not being able to see the yard is a plus.
Also, we're talking about a condo. So, I don't think having snow on the ground is going to have quite the same impact as it would with a single family home.
I've sold homes in every season of the year and honestly I haven't seen it make a major impact in my ability to get the job done or to get a fair price based on comparable sales.
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