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I don't think real estate agents are lazy when it comes to marketing. Most that I've met are just not very creative. They're stuck in another time when you could simply get a multiple listing, hold some open houses and -- voila! -- the offers would appear. I have yet to see an agent be proactive and target pockets of potential buyers. In my area, for example, Wall Streeters, doctors, dentists and business owners are likely buyers, but the media for those groups rarely, if ever, contain any residential real estate advertising. I have talked to ad reps at some of these media and they are baffled as to why they don't get more listings since they serve high net worth audiences. In addition, most agents don't even know what social media are, much less how to use those channels to market a home.
I have found some laziness among agents who don't have reasonable knowledge about their own listings. I ask normal questions about a home -- the heating system, construction, upgrades, boundary lines, etc. -- and too often I get a blank stare. I end up having to get the information myself (probably a good thing since so many agents wing it or outright lie). I have looked at several gated HOA communities and not a single agent could produce an offering plan or bylaws, nor could they clearly delineate for me the maintenance obligations of the association vs. the homeowner.
BTW, I'm not talking about average-priced homes. I'm sure selling those can be a grind and the payout isn't as great as you would like. I'm talking about high-end homes, where the commission would pay for a full-time marketing person for a year. You pay out $50,000+ in commission for what appears to be about $5,000-$10,000 worth of work -- if that -- on the part of the agent.
I don't think real estate agents are lazy when it comes to marketing. Most that I've met are just not very creative.
There is only so much you can do-nice pics, good description, easy access for showing. After that the house has to be priced and conditioned appropriately for the buyer to make an offer. Buyers don't come in and say, "Gee, these are such nicely done fliers I think I'll pay a few grand more." When it comes to the negotiating price all marketing is out of the window and has no effect on price. Sorry bud, there is no "magic bullet" in real estate and if you overprice you lose money in the long run. Prices decline and/or people lowball after you've been for sale for half a year thinking you're desperate by now if they offer at all. Generally they just don't come look at it at all thinking if nobody has bought it after all that time there must be something wrong with it.
There is only so much you can do-nice pics, good description, easy access for showing. After that the house has to be priced and conditioned appropriately for the buyer to make an offer. Buyers don't come in and say, "Gee, these are such nicely done fliers I think I'll pay a few grand more." When it comes to the negotiating price all marketing is out of the window and has no effect on price. Sorry bud, there is no "magic bullet" in real estate and if you overprice you lose money in the long run. Prices decline and/or people lowball after you've been for sale for half a year thinking you're desperate by now if they offer at all. Generally they just don't come look at it at all thinking if nobody has bought it after all that time there must be something wrong with it.
If you think that this covers all available methods for marketing a home, then you've proven my point about agents not being very creative. If commissioned sales people in other industries took this laid-back approach, they couldn't make a living.
I don't want to pay a $50,000+ commission to someone who says, "There is only so much you can do . . . "
Prudent in most cases is to let the local market set the price, by pricing the home a bit below comps. A potential for multiple offers, and a quick sale.
I am in the UK, so don’t know how common a practice this is in the US, but it is common over this side of the pond.
At the moment I’m assuming about 10 to 15% on the prices that are realistically expected for the property, but I’m never really sure.
This is something that niggles me somewhat, I don’t want to insult the vendor, but also don’t want to get ripped off.
I’ve walked away from many properties that I may have bought, if I had just known how much was really wanted.
I realise you may not want to answer this question, but just an idea of how much would be good.
In my area this is agent specific. I can tell you which agents price well at market, which ones price 10% over, and which ones are in la-la land. There is no general formula. Seller motivation is also a factor. Sellers that want to be closed quickly will price more aggressively than those that don't have a strict time frame for selling. I would spend less time trying to figure out the psychology of the price and just focus on your needs and desires and whether or not the property meets your needs at a price point that works for you. Rural properties are more difficult due to the incredibly variations in them, but after you have been in a few, you will start to get a feel for their value on the current market.
You said you are in the UK and I'm really hoping you are not trying to buy sight unseen. You aren't trying to do anything crazy like that, right?
I don't want to pay a $50,000+ commission to someone who says, "There is only so much you can do . . . "
It's the truth...sorry you don't like it. There is fluff you can do to make a seller feel good like open houses that aren't effective in most markets but at the end of the day the home must sell itself. If it's in good price and condition someone will find it and make an offer.
From a recent NAR survey (going off memory so numbers should be close): 38% buyers found their home through their buyer agent, 37% internet, 14% yard sign/fliers, 7% Builders, 3% friends/family, 1% Print Media, less than 1% open houses, less than 1% other.
Sources used for information: 99% internet, 98% agent, 40something signs and fliers, 17% open houses, the rest is pretty inconsequential.
So based on that information what sort of "creative marketing" are you looking for?
It's the truth...sorry you don't like it. There is fluff you can do to make a seller feel good like open houses that aren't effective in most markets but at the end of the day the home must sell itself. If it's in good price and condition someone will find it and make an offer.
From a recent NAR survey (going off memory so numbers should be close): 38% buyers found their home through their buyer agent, 37% internet, 14% yard sign/fliers, 7% Builders, 3% friends/family, 1% Print Media, less than 1% open houses, less than 1% other.
Sources used for information: 99% internet, 98% agent, 40something signs and fliers, 17% open houses, the rest is pretty inconsequential.
So based on that information what sort of "creative marketing" are you looking for?
I think they mean doing creative marketing online. So for example, we have two large acreage parcels listed and we had someone come out and certify that the soils would work well for wine. We are doing some targeting advertising to that industry. We have homes that are close to our law school in town and we target the law students with some advertising on their bulletin board on campus. Stuff like that.
I think LI means agents taking the time to understand the demographic of a likely buyer for a home and targeting that market as well as the general market coverage that we agents do.
It's the truth...sorry you don't like it. There is fluff you can do to make a seller feel good like open houses that aren't effective in most markets but at the end of the day the home must sell itself. If it's in good price and condition someone will find it and make an offer.
From a recent NAR survey (going off memory so numbers should be close): 38% buyers found their home through their buyer agent, 37% internet, 14% yard sign/fliers, 7% Builders, 3% friends/family, 1% Print Media, less than 1% open houses, less than 1% other.
Sources used for information: 99% internet, 98% agent, 40something signs and fliers, 17% open houses, the rest is pretty inconsequential.
So based on that information what sort of "creative marketing" are you looking for?
Once again, thanks for proving my point. Marketing professionals would laugh at the limited range of techniques used by most agents. You don't even mention social media, yet that's being used by successful agents to market homes.
Let me ask you a question. Exactly what do you do to go out and network among potential buyers? In my neck of the woods, a successful agent would be involved in charitable groups, hospital boards, business organizations, golf and country clubs, etc. to mingle with high net worth buyers. It would mean advertising in publications directed to business owners, Wall Street execs, doctors, dentists, etc. It would mean finding a way to get to foreign buyers who regularly show up in New York with bags of cash and might like a nice country home on Long Island.
I could go on, but I'm guessing from your comments that you do the ho-hum stuff and then sit back and wait for people to show up. That's what most agents do and it's why most don't stand out from the crowd. Maybe that works for you, but it's not worth $50K+ to me. If commissioned sales people in other professions acted with such a laid back attitude, they wouldn't make a dime. And if the home could "sell itself," as you maintain, then we really wouldn't need agents at all, would we?
I think they mean doing creative marketing online. So for example, we have two large acreage parcels listed and we had someone come out and certify that the soils would work well for wine. We are doing some targeting advertising to that industry. We have homes that are close to our law school in town and we target the law students with some advertising on their bulletin board on campus. Stuff like that.
I think LI means agents taking the time to understand the demographic of a likely buyer for a home and targeting that market as well as the general market coverage that we agents do.
Yes, from the example you cited above, you get it. You proactively target potential buyers for a property and then pursue them. Some of these folks might not even realize that they're ready to buy until they see how attractive your parcels are -- or how attractive you've made them through your marketing techniques.
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