 Whether you're selling your home on your own, or hiring a Real Estate professional, marketing your home aggressively is one of the most important factors in getting your home sold.
For Sale By Owner
The days of solely placing a sign in your yard with flyers are long over. Welcome to the new age of Internet advertising.
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Consider placing an ad on ForSaleByOwner.com, or other such home selling service websites, that also offer the option of listing your home on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service). Getting your home listed on the MLS when not using a Selling Agent (Realtor) is important, so that Realtors who represent buyers are able to see that your home is available.
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When placing your home’s ad on any Internet listing website, make sure that you change or freshen up photos of your home every 25 to 30 days, in an attempt to generate the interest of those who may have already seen your ad before. |
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If the listing service allows you to post virtual tours of your home, get out your video camera or consider hiring a professional. |
- Classified advertising in local newspapers is still a good marketing venue. However, make sure that your newsprint classified listing also includes a listing on the newspaper’s classified Internet home sales section.
- Review your ad. Does it disclose the price, location and number of bedrooms? Is the location spelled out in the headline? Is the ad direct and to the point? Is the ad descriptive enough?
- Get flyers out to the local broker offices for the buyers’ agents.
- Host open houses for buyers’ agents, as well as for the public.
- Utilize other sales-type Internet listing sources, such as Zillow.com, Craigslist.com, Yahoo Real Estate, Livedeal.com and Trulia.com.
- Visit other seller’s open houses and see what they have that you do not. It may not be cost effective to redo your kitchen, but it might be cost effective to re-mulch your front shrub beds.
Selecting the Right Broker/Agent
As selling and buying a home is likely to be the largest financial transaction you will face, it is important to find someone to represent your home that has experience, and who you can trust. Your first step should be to ask your friends, family and co-workers for referrals, then interview those agents. Things you should ask during the interview process:
- Can I see your resume? How many homes did you list and sell in the last year? Can you provide me with a list of past clients I can contact as references? Do you work solo, or as part of a team?
- What is your marketing strategy? Do you list online, in newspapers, magazines? (You do not want your home only listed on the MLS.) Do you hold open houses? How many and how often?
- How often will we hear from you?
- Will you represent me exclusively in the transaction, or the buyer as well?
- What are your commissions and fees?
- What is your impression of my home?
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