SELLING YOUR HOME
Selecting the Right Real Estate Agent
There’s no doubt about it, your real estate agent has a huge impact on whether or not your home sells quickly, how much you get for your property, and your experience throughout the process. So you’d be smart to ask, “Why should I sell with you?”
The best way for me to answer that is in a Personal Consultation meeting. I will meet with you at your home, explain how I work with clients, and give you an initial idea of what to expect in terms of selling price and timing. This meeting will give us an opportunity to get to know each other; for me to explain about Dotcom Property Sales, my skills, experience and how I work; and for you to ask questions and see if there is a good fit. There is absolutely no obligation to proceed.
In the meantime, here are a few highlights of what to expect from me as your real estate agent:-
* I listen carefully to your needs and goals, and keep those top-of-mind throughout the whole sales process.
* I’m accessible. I’m never more than a phone call, text or email away when you have questions or concerns.
* I provide you with practical suggestions on how to prepare your home so that it impresses and excites buyers.
* I recommend a listing price that’s the highest possible, without discouraging buyers.
* I prepare a game plan to promote your property to qualified buyers to ensure it sells.
* I prepare the promotional materials, including photos and property description.
* I create an excitement in the marketplace about your listing.
* I tell my other private clients, who may have missed out on a similar property, about yours.
* I work with you to schedule inspections and open houses, with as little inconvenience to you as possible.
* When someone makes an offer on your property, I skillfully negotiate so that you get the best price and terms.
* I take care of the dozens and dozens of details involved in selling a home, so you don’t have to worry about them.
* I help to ensure everything goes smoothly between signing the offer and closing the sale.
You want your house to sell quickly and for the highest price possible. You also want the whole process to be stress-free.
That’s what I do for my clients every day!
SELLING YOUR HOME
When selling real estate, various Selling Options or Strategies may be used. These include...
No Price Selling
- Terms such as 'Market Preview', 'Contact Agent', 'Price on Application', 'Expressions of Interest' etc are often used.
- The property is advertised with no price.
- The plan is that you will get more buyers, including ones with a lower budget that may spend more once they see the value your place offers. Unfortunately many buyers will not even make an inquiry or waste their time contacting an agent, when not knowing if this place even fits their budget, meaning less inspections and a lower price.
- Some agents use this method when selling real estate, that either don’t know the price of your home or are too scared to tell you what they really think. It is often easier for them to say ‘the buyers will tell us what they think your property is worth'. It is also used to just build their Data bases. A real waste of time for Vendors!
Fixed Price (e.g. $749,000)
- A popular option for some agents when selling real estate.
- Sometime used by agents that have ‘bought your listing’ – They may say...“Lets start at $749,000 and see what the market feedback is”
- Often the starting price is higher than what the market can bear which means less inspections and less competition and therefore a lower price.
- Soon the agent will begin working on you to lower your price.
Show Price Range (e.g. $695,000 to $750,000)
- Generally the best way to sell and my preferred option.
- If you hope to fetch $700,000 plus, then advertise the property at say $695,000 – $750,000.
- You attract buyers at the lower end who may have set a maximum budget of $700,00 in their on-line search criteria, who would not even have seen your property if it was marketed at say $749,000. After seeing the value in your property these buyers will often be able to extend themselves to pay more. This stimulates demand.
- The additional competition gives buyers confidence there is a lot of interest in the property and helps secure a better price.
- There is still room to go above the price range, if there are several offers on the table.
Auction
- A popular method of selling real estate when demand is high and supply is limited (like the Sydney market in 2021-2023).
- Creates urgency and a competitive environment which sometimes creates a higher price.
- Sellers are protected by the reserve (or minimum) price.
- There is no cooling off period.
- The vendor knows when the Sale and Settlement dates will be, so they can make future plans.
- Requires a high impact and structured 4-week marketing program with strong communication between the agent and seller.
- Chance to get the best possible price or sell at the true market value.
- Opportunity to sell before the auction or on auction day.
- A good auctioneer is important, but getting all the buyers there on the day and in a position to bid, is vital.
- $700 - $1,000 cost for the Auctioneer plus a necessary high impact (and high cost) marketing campaign.
- Some buyers are put off by the possible embarrassment of having to stand and make bids in public, also for some buyers there may be 'Loss of Face' in missing out.
- Auctions are not for everyone.
How to Attract Qualified Buyers
When you list your house, it must attract the attention of qualified buyers eager to get into a property like yours. Otherwise, your house may take longer to sell and you may not get the price you expected.
As a real estate agent experienced in the local Toronto area market, I can get the word out about your listing to all the right people. I know how to attract serious buyers – so a good offer comes in quickly.
To achieve that success, I’ll implement the appropriate marketing plan. After all, there’s more to selling a house than hammering a For Sale sign on the front lawn. I’ll work closely with you to create a marketing plan which may include some or all of the following:-
- Organising professional photos and floor plan and gathering the unique details on your property.
- Preparing a compelling property profile and creating effective marketing materials.
- Uploading your listing to major on-line portals like realestate.com.au and domain.com.au, as well as 6 or more other real estate sites that buyers may use to search for houses.
- Showcasing your listing on dotcompropertysales.com website.
- Leveraging social media to promote your listing.
- Utilizing my extensive data base, to call, text or send emails to contacts who may have recently missed out on a home similar to yours.
- Scheduling and promoting Open Houses & Private Inspections (in consultation with you) to attract a multitude of buyers.
My job as your local real estate agent is to get the right buyers to see your house, fall in love with it, and make a good offer.
Want to learn more about how I’ll aggressively promote and market your home?
Please call Murray on 0417 695 143 or email me (on the Contact Us form below) for a no-obligation Personal Consultation.
The Sales Process
As mentioned above, selling real estate isn’t quite as simple as hammering a ‘For Sale’ sign into your front lawn and waiting for the buyers to come to you. It can be one of the most stressful times of your life!
Whether or not you use me as your real estate agent, the following are the common steps to selling a property in NSW:
Deciding to sell. Once the decision has been made, consider the local and broader market. Check out prices for homes similar to yours and what you may be able to afford in the area you may be considering moving to.
Selecting a real estate agent. Your agent will be in charge of advertising, showing your property and completing the legal requirements of selling your property, so choose carefully. Choose an agent that you feel comfortable with and can prove they can get you the highest price possible. Some agents may try to ‘Buy your Listing’ by promising an over-realistic sale price that is not backed up by facts. Make sure the agent's commission structure offers value for money.
Decide how you want to sell. You and your agent will work out a plan for marketing, listing, showing and selling your property.
Determining your selling price. Your property’s location, size, age and features will be assessed, as will the current market and area trends. I will give you a complementary Comparative Market Analysis for your home and area, which shows prices in your area for similar homes that are either currently For Sale or that have Sold within the last 12 months. This should give you a good idea of your home’s value as well as what properties you may be competing with.
Sign an Agency Agreement. This legally binding contract will detail the commission structure, the estimated sale price, duration of the agreement, advertising costs, etc.
Order a Contract of Sale. This is done through your solicitor or conveyancer. The Contract of Sale will include all of the details prospective purchasers and their solicitors will need.
Preparing your home for sale. A professional agent will be able to guide you on the small details that buyers look for when inspecting your home. They can provide important suggestions on the home presentation that can have a significant impact on your sale price.
Going on the market. Once listed, prospective buyers will contact your agent and arrange times to view your property, or attend your open homes. Following each inspection your agent should provide detailed feedback.
An offer is made. Your agent will negotiate the best price possible from the buyer and discuss any special terms of the offer. They will then present these to you for your consideration. The agent is legally obliged to submit all offers to you (even the ridiculous ones)! However the final decision on any offer is always yours.
The offer is accepted. After discussions with their solicitor and lender, the buyer will then pay a deposit (usually 10% of the agreed purchase price), at which time contracts are 'exchanged'. There buyer is usually allowed a 5 day "cooling off" period following this payment. If the buyers pull out of the agreement during this period, they forfeit 0.25% of the purchase price.
Contracts are Unconditionally Exchanged. Both seller and buyer’s lawyers and banks will work out the details of the sale to ensure both parties meet all legal and financial requirements. Following the cooling off period (if applicable), both parties are now unconditionally committed to the sale.
Final Inspection & Move Out. You should plan to move out on or before the day of settlement. Your agent should be able to help with advice re removalists etc. prior to this time. A final inspection is usually done at his time to check that all the agreed inclusions are present and that the condition of the property is acceptable.
Settlement day. Usually 4 to 6 weeks after exchange. All going to plan, you’ll relinquish the keys and legal rights to your property in exchange for the balance of payment from the buyer or their bank.
Congratulations, you have sold your home!
