Unable to Sell Your Macomb or Oakland County Home?
Before you re-list Read This!!
There are many questions you should have asked your agent before you placed Your largest financial asset in their hands! But that is now in the past. So before you relist your home here are some questions to ask your next real estate agent.
Questions to ask Before hiring another agent
- Real Estate Agent vs. REALTOR® - not all real estate agents are created equal and not all agents are REALTORS®. You must belong to the National Association of REALTORS® to be one. They follow a strict code of ethics.
- Hiring New Agents - Many sellers simply hire a friend or family member new in the business to help them out. The problem is they are not experienced enough to know the marketplace nor do they have enough capital to properly market the home. Some sellers even call the neighborhood real estate office and hire the agent who answers the phone. Typically, this agent is new and answering the phone because they need the business.
You should ask your agent how long they have been licensed or check with the State of Michigan's licensing department. We recommend at least 5 years...that way you know your agent has the experience and the capital to Market your home.
- Part-time Agents - Many real estate agents are Hobby real estate agents. In other words they have a full time job to pay their bills but work as agents part time for extra cash. The 1st problem is they are not always available. The 2nd problem and the biggest is their business is not successful or they would not need another job. That means ...NO money to market.
- Choosing your Agent - Any agent can place your home in the MLS and put up a For Sale sign. But it takes an Experienced real estate agent to know how to read the market and how to market your home to today's buyers. Today over 87% of buyers search for a home via the internet, months before contacting an agent, so your home MUST be exposed to them. Many times buyers see your home the day it hits the market, so it must not only shine but also be comparable to what else they are seeing.
Today there are over 1 million Realtors® in the U.S. it seems everyone has a real estate license. So again make sure your agent is Full time and Experienced. You should know how many homes your agent sells. What their average market time is. What their ratio between list and sell is and where you can find them on the web.
- Communication!! - While your home is on the market it's important to know what perspective buyers are saying about your home. You need to know how it compares to other homes those buyers are seeing. You should also be kept abreast of what is happening in the marketplace. You should know when new homes are hitting the market and what homes have sold. Was your agent honest with you about things you could have done to your home.
- Marketing your Home - Again many agents simply place your home in the MLS and hope another agent sells it, this way they do not have to spend their money on marketing your home. How did your agent market your home? See how we market your home. Mc Donald's is very well known and they still advertise and market their product. Yet, some agents do not think this is important in real estate. They say put it in the MLS and they will come! Wrong, you never know where a buyer will come from so you Must fully expose the home to the marketplace.
- Internet Exposure - Since 87% of the buyers do come from the internet your agent needs Web exposure. Most agents today can't even be found on the web... and that means neither will your home. Just type their name in the search box of any search engine. By the time buyers call us they have narrowed down the amount they want to spend, the city, style, school and sometimes even the subdivision. Currently we have hundreds of buyers that we are in contact with daily.
- Companies vs. Agents - Whether a company is big or small the Agent is who you are really hiring. In other words whether the company is big or small if you have an ineffective agent your home will not be fully exposed to the market.
- Pricing - This is the MOST important but it's natural to want top dollar for your home. Many times sellers price their home way too high in beginning thinking the buyers will make an offer. Truth is many buyers may never even see your home. Since buyers buy in brackets it's important that you see where the price breaks are and what they can get for that price.
Did your agent Pick your Price? Did they prepare and review a market analysis with you? - Did they compare apples to apples? In other words, ranch to ranch, split to split, in your specific area, etc. Was your home priced according to homes currently on the market or homes that have sold and closed? Was the price based on what you need for your new home? Or what You want? Were price adjustments made while your home was on the market?
Pricing too high can eventually cost you money! If a home remains on the market for a long time, buyers and agents begin to think something is wrong. Keep in mind buyers and agents know how long the home has been on the market via the MLS. They can also do a history and see if you're being negotiable.
- Feedback - Knowing what buyers and agents are saying after viewing your home is Very important. It helps the agent determine what types of things you can do to improve the home. How the price is. How it shows compared to the competition. What other areas you are competing with and how it compares.
Did your agent call with feedback - Many agents feel this is a waste of time and do not do it. This is the biggest complaint of sellers. They did not hear from their agent. Good or Bad you must be informed. The agent and seller must work as a team. We're not saying that you should hear from your agent after every showing but at least once a week you should receive an update. Once a month you should be reviewing the market activity with your agent. You should also know what type of internet activity you are receiving.
- Location - Yes, it's true you cannot move your home but you can price it accordingly. If your home backs to a main road, freeway or commercial you will be limited to the number of buyers that will look at your home. But if priced properly you will find a buyer.
- Condition - Your home should ALWAYS look like a model home. We understand you are still living in the home, we understand you have children; we understand people grow out of their home. But bottom line your home must show better than the competition and be ready to show within 30 minutes. If you have excess stuff - pack it up and move it out. If your home is lacking curb appeal - spruce it up. If you home is in need of minor repairs - get them done. If your home needs updating - adjust the price. Today the big word is "Staging". For a small amount of money you can clean, declutter, repaint and even move around furniture and make rooms look different. The key is what items will give you the best bang for your buck. Click here for a list of Selling To Do's!!
NOTE: If your home is currently Listed please disregard this information!!
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