Although it’s been shouted in real estate circles enough times to have lost its sizzle, the phrase “List to last” is more relevant than ever before. As inventory rises and market sentiment remains volatile, there is one tried and true way to thrive in any market environment: Take listings. The good news is there are more opportunities to do just that than there have been for several years. It’s also true that, as days on market tick up and offers per listing declines, it’s crucial that real estate professionals hone their conversion skills in order to build their listing inventory. If you want to take more listings, here’s what you should be focusing on right now.
Pricing
The days of putting a home on the market at, seemingly, any price and still getting offers are over. Sellers are going to want to understand your pricing strategy and expect it to be logical, data-driven and lead to the highest possible offers. You’ll need to be able to articulate this clearly.
Pricing a home is a substantial part of an effective marketing strategy. Pricing correctly from the start is one of, if not the most important, factor in getting your listings sold. If you list too high, the home will languish on the market and likely sell for less than it would have had you priced it at market value to begin with. On the other hand, if you list too low, you could be leaving money on the table for your sellers.
As a professional, having a dynamic pricing strategy based on a deep understanding of the comparable sales in the area, current market trends, and expert knowledge on how the specific features of the home affect its market value is crucial.
Your pricing strategy should also include a statistical analysis for different pricing brackets that showcases the expected amount of showing traffic and online views for different price points. This will help you make an educated decision on where to price the home to maximize exposure and, ultimately, sales price and terms.
Marketing
The marketing of your listings should be thoughtful, targeted, and strategic. With the vast majority of buyers starting their search online, it’s more important than ever that the listings you market have a strong online presence.
While there are nearly infinite ways to market a home, your marketing plan should straightforward, easily executable, and effective. You want to be able to sit across the table from a potential seller and clearly articulate exactly what you’re going to do to drive qualified buyers to their home. Many agents simply put a sign in the yard, list the home on the MLS and call it a day. An elite agent must have a tangible marketing plan to present, and be accountable to executing every step.
Transaction Management
Transaction management is the process of shepherding a real estate deal from start to finish. This includes everything from contract negotiation to loan pre-approval to home inspection and appraisal coordination.
While most agents are able to get a deal done, an experienced agent will make sure the transaction runs smoothly and efficiently, with as little stress the client possible. For effective real estate teams, this process is usually handled by their transaction management department. You, as the agent, will be responsible for negotiating the best possible offers for your listing, and once a contract is executed, the transaction coordinator will take over and ensure a smooth closing.
The simple truth is that great agents are often not great transaction coordinators and the more clients an agent is representing at any given time the more important it is to have a dedicated expert handling every detail of the transaction process. This can be difficult to implement from a mental standpoint in times of uncertainty in the market. Hiring a transaction or listing coordinator can feel like an unnecessary expense. As a business person, it’s vital to understand that leverage is what allows you to stay in your genius zone and do the thing that only you can do at the highest level, such as lead generation.
We’ll do an entire series on the process of building out your operations team, the most important thing to know for now is, if the only reason you haven’t hired it out is the fear of the expense, that’s likely exactly why you need to leverage it.
Follow these steps, build your tool belt and you can set yourself up for the best possible chance to thrive in a shifting market by taking more listings, and building the habits and structure that lead to long-term success.
