Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
This morning I accepted an offer my home after an insane amount of showings and 29 days on market. We averaged 1.44 showings per day on market. I had a thread around the feedback or lack thereof where I got some great advice. Unfortunately, after a dozen or so pages, conversation took a turn towards the aggressive and irrational. I wanted to pull out what I learned here, as maybe it will help someone else.
- number of showings is meaningless. My realtor was holding this up as an indication of his marketing prowess. But if they don't translate into offers, those showings are just wasting my time and money. I will never hire another realtor who brags on his ability to drive traffic. It's all sizzle, no steak.
- With 40 showings and only 2 homes sold in my zip code while I was on market (including mine), it is obvious that most people who viewed were not serious buyers.
- I'm not clear what marketing techniques my realtor used, but I had 50-60% more showings than the comp houses on the market. I would have preferred to have had fewer showings with more serious buyers. Which ever method my realtor plastered this out attracted lookie loos and that doesn't do anyone any favors.
- staging is BS. I think the MLS photos looked gorgeous from the staging, but see above. I attracted a lot of people who were not interested. After the photos, it was impossible to live in a staged house without losing your sanity. It was not worth the time nor the money, and did not result in a faster sell or more money. I won't do it again.
- realtors: I need more out of you than marketing the heck out of my home. I need guidance when I get offers. When I don't get offers. If I call you every Tuesday and ask what has changed on the market (DOM, inventory, etc), by the third Tuesday it shouldn't catch you off guard. I shouldn't have to ask for this info or guidance. For my 6%, you need to be offering it.
- only a few realtors: I can do math. I'm well aware that a 5-10% home in my price range only represents a very slight decrease in your commission after splitting with buyers agent and taxes. Just because you are eager to sell at a rock bottom price doesn't mean that your seller is. Especially in my case, where I could carry my home for 18 months at the same cost of a 10% reduction. In that case, a seller needs your help understanding historical trends to make the determination if sitting on a home is worth a gamble. This is all established by me prior to me signing a contract with you so spare me the "I have to get my money for time invested to date" line.
- again, to just a few of the realtors I interviewed or spoke with on this board: you know the difference between a buyers agent and a sellers agent to me? The buyers agents actually listen when I ask a question. The seller agents aren't even paying attention because they sure love to hear themselves speak. Some are real blowhards. If the seller asks what the ROI would be on some repairs around the house, we don't want a 2 hour lecture on price. We want to know if the repair/improvement will result in a higher asking price OR a quicker sell. If you don't know, tell me that. But please, please, PLEASE spare me the same speech about how the only thing I can control is price. Or, just say "the only thing you can control is price" and save the lecture.
Other fun things:
- pets trigger a very visceral reaction in some, and not just allergies. If you have a pet when you sell, be prepared to hear some of the most irrational advice or feedback you can imagine from people who aren't going to buy your home under any circumstances.
- apparently a hunter green sink is the most offensive element you can have in your home according to some on this board. I really wish I had sent them some pictures of homes I've visited that had far worse bathrooms. Their heads would explode once they realize that there are people out there who don't update their bathrooms every 5 years.
But most importantly:
- there were mostly very friendly people here who gave me a pep talk when I was losing my mind. I thank everyone for helping me through a tough time.
Congrats on your offer. Yay!! Sounds like you had a 'lessons learned'. I did too and all we can do is remember it for the next time we sell.
The biggest lesson learned is that I will never try to micromanage a sale from another state again. Being VERY Type-A and not actually able to be hands on caused half my problems!
I'm curious as to where the offer came from, since you hint that it wasn't through the marketing efforts of your agent?
The problem I was having in the other thread was that there was a serious quantity over quality issue. It was obviously marketed very well - so many showings! However, it wasn't being shown to people who were buying.... my house or anything else. Then my realtor would pat himself on the back and talk about how great it was that he was able to bring in so many people. There was not the appropriate vetting in bringing people in and that's what I was very frustrated about.
Real estate sales is like any other sales......it's all a numbers game. Sooner or later one sticks.
Here's to a swift and easy closing
The agent did.... After a serious talk with him that I would rather take the home off the market and re-list in the spring than to continue with showings in a market where people are obviously not buying but seem to like to visit other people's homes (I blame HGTV). After that conversation, he followed up with the agents for some recent showings stating that the home would be going off the market. The offer came within 36 hours of my hard talk.
The problem I was having in the other thread was that there was a serious quantity over quality issue. It was obviously marketed very well - so many showings! However, it wasn't being shown to people who were buying.... my house or anything else. Then my realtor would pat himself on the back and talk about how great it was that he was able to bring in so many people. There was not the appropriate vetting in bringing people in and that's what I was very frustrated about.
That really didn't answer the question.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
