For Sale By Owner- Why Not?

It has been a tough couple of years for sellers. It seems like we all know someone who lost their job,
then their home. It is sad and terrible and unfortunately, so very common these days. Something I am
seeing is also a lot of people who are trying to sell their house on their own. Yes, I am a Realtor, and
I think you need me, however, I get it! I recently sold my house and had to pay commission to the
buyers agent and even give money to the brokerage I work for. (Yes- Realtors have to pay commissions, too!) It was a lot of money, but being in the business I understand that my chances of selling go up drastically by using a Realtor. Less than 5% of sellers are able to sell their home without using a Realtor. Here are a couple of things to consider when contemplating selling your home on your own.

How soon do I want to move?

If your answer is "I don't really care", then selling your home by owner could be a good option for
you. Most Realtors want to sell the homes they list. They aren't interested in "testing the market" with
overpriced listings. One reason being is that we are only paid if our listing sells, the other reason is
that it doesn't give us much credibility if we have clearly overpriced listings but aren't selling any of
them. Who would want to hire a Realtor who doesn't actually sell houses?

Do I have time to take on a full time job?

This is the thing I think people overlook most often when trying to sell their own home. While it
might appear to some that all a Realtor does is simply stick a sign in the yard and then sit back and
relax, there is actually a lot going on behind the scenes. A good Realtor makes it look easy, just like
with any profession. When I get a new listing I start out by helping the homeowner stage and prepare
their home for photographs and showings. Once it is ready, I take the interior and exterior photos and
then edit them. I plug all of the details of the home into the local MLS and then feed your listing to
dozens of real estate websites. (Truila, Zillow, Coldwell Banker etc.) I send out Just Listed post cards
to targeted areas. I reverse prospect. This is a tool the MLS grants to Realtors that allows us to see
which other Realtors have clients who are looking for homes in certain parts of town and the price
range they are looking for. I contact these agents to let them know I might have a listing their client
could be interested in. I set up showings. This is a BIG one. Anytime someone calls about a listing
and you don't answer, chances are they move on and you miss a prospective buyer!
These are just some of the things I do before negotiating an offer and helping my clients get to the
closing table.
Some people are cut out for it and actually make it work without the help of a Realtor. Many, will
give it a go and realize they aren't up to the task and end up calling a Realtor to do the job. Just a little
food for thought if you are one of the many people considering taking on a new "full time job" this
Spring.

 

Bring on Spring...cleaning?

This has been an exceptionally mild winter across the country, so I am going to go there. I am ready to be done with the gray skies, the early sunsets, seasonal depression... Yes, if it starts snowing the second I hit send for this post, you can blame me. I say we can skip this one. We haven't had to shovel yet, so why now? This Winter has been a bust, so I say we should look ahead.
Even without me willing Winter away, MLB Spring training is rapidly approaching. GO REDS! So, it is time to dust off your baseball hats and maybe also to tend to a less fun task on your list, its time to start preparing your home for Spring- especially if you are planning on putting it on the market! There is one big thing that we can all do that will make you feel better about your home once the sun reappears and Spring officially arrives, de-cluttering.
Do you save every magazine you subscribe to? Do you still have wrapped holiday gifts for family you didn't see in December? Do something about it! If you aren't good at it, enlist a friend or family member who is organized and on top of things. Chances are if they have all of their belongings in order, they would love to help you get yours in order as well. Start small or it could be really overwhelming. If there is a lot to tackle, start with a closet or the garage. The key is to open up the space to make it look clean and bigger.
One place to start is with closets. If your clothes haven't fit in over 3 years, get rid of them. If donating your prom dress or favorite skinny jeans to Goodwill makes your eyes well up with tears, put them in a box. Put it all in boxes! Label these boxes and store them away for safe keeping. Get rid of the wire hangers and and put everything all on hangers of the same color. Stack folded clothes and shoes according to season or color coordinated to give a nice fresh look.

Just remember, if you haven't looked at, worn or used the item in over a year, you don't need it laying out. Put it away and the house will start to look bigger and cleaner than you can imagine. The benefits of organization and de-cluttering will help you no matter if you are thinking of selling your home or if you plan on staying put for years.

Why can't I put my iPhone down?

I started out with one of the bigger ones. Cell phones, that is. Not the ones with the over-the-shoulder bags, or one of the Zach Morris from Saved by the Bell ones, but it was large.  I can't even remember the name of the phone company, but it was across the road from the Florence, Ky mall back in the late 90's. Ameritech?? Anyhow- back then, I never remembered to bring it with me. I remember getting a flat tire on the expressway at 2 a.m. (after my shift at Jillians) and of course, I didn't have it that night.

Things have changed so much.

I started texting. A few years ago I  made the big move to a smart phone and had a blackberry. This was life changing. Instant email notifications. Internet in my pocket, all day long. I am not sure if this is good for my type of personality or not.

I have found that there are two types of people. Those who have dozens of unopened emails in their inbox, or those who immediately open every email, no matter who it is from. I am the latter. I don't miss an email, and I usually respond to the emails that come in at all times of the day. (I do draw the line when I am with friends or family at dinner... I will not be one of those unengaged people who misses out on real life due to my phone) No texting while talking to another person! How rude.
Fast forward to 2010- Verizon finally got with the program and has the iPhone and I splurged and bought the new 4S. I already had the iTouch and LOVED it, so I knew the iPhone was a better match for me than my dear old Blackberry. In my line of work, contracts and Hud statements need to be viewed on the run and the BB wasn't cutting it. I kept finding myself emailing my husband and his Droid from my Blackberry in order to view the contracts if I got them when I wasn't at home. This was unacceptable for an immediate email opener so I had the obligation to buy the iPhone, right? It wasn't a frivolous purchase. It was essential...for work.

 Side note- I love the quality of pictures and Facetime. My heart skips a beat just thinking about it. The video is great for capturing precious moments and milestones that my son is making... ok, so even without the work stuff, it has some luxurious qualities that I am thoroughly enjoying. I digress... and my question is as follows...

Is it bad that I can't go anywhere without it?  It sits on my lap more than my toddler.

I have mixed emotions about it. I know it is important to stay connected for my business as this is something I take pride in. Being available to my clients and quick to respond to problems and questions. Am I missing out on life though? I am not the only one, and I know I am not the worst. I can turn it off and leave it alone for a few hours at a time. I definitely have friends who can't do that. I am conflicted. Where was the class on balancing life, family, work and your iPhone? I saw an interview of Amy Poehler recently who was saying that she thinks when her children reach college age, that they will probably take a course called "Eye Contact". So true.

I'm Selling My House....In The Spring.

Even if you are not a Realtor,  real estate is a topic that comes up in conversation regularly. Think about it. Did you hear a family member talking about a recent move, a future move, or getting the house ready in order to move, over the holidays? I did. I heard someone talking about it at Quatman's in Mason last week. I heard it in the locker room at the gym I frequent. Ummmm, frequent is a strong word. Lets say I heard it in the locker room at the gym I took a spin class at yesterday.

Real estate is the topic everyone likes to weigh in on, that everyone feels they are an expert on and that is actually socially acceptable to speak about in public. So why does everyone seem to agree that the time to sell is not the winter months but is in the spring? It is a common misconception that you shouldn't bother with selling your house in the winter. Let me share a few reasons why this is a great time to go against the grain and put your house on the market now.

1. Inventory of competition is lower, so your home stands out better to the serious buyers. Your odds of selling go UP during the winter.

2. One of the highest percentages of "Listings Sold" to "Listings Taken" occur during the winter months.

3. People stay at home more in colder weather and online searches go way up. With today's technology and a certain expertise in online marketing (from yours truly) the chances of selling faster increase greatly.

4. Decreased demand on lenders, appraisers, home inspectors, movers and other vendors during this time can cause your closing process to go much more smoothly than at other times of the year.

5. January is traditionally the biggest transfer month, and corporate transferees, who need to buy a home now, CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SPRING. You might miss out on some great buyers if you are sitting around drinking hot coco waiting for baseball season to start. They can't buy your house if it isn't for sale!

While the yard might not be as beautiful and the showings won't be as frequent, the buyers who are out there looking at your home in January and February are serious. If you put your house out there at the right price, it could sell fast and you could end up looking for your new house...in the spring.

Hello- my name is Brianne and I am a Real Estate Agent

As this is my inaugural blog, I feel like I need to explain why I feel my words might be of interest to anyone out there. For today I will keep it simple. There are not very many of us out there. Young(er) real estate agents, that is. The average age is about 50 for most real estate agents. I know when I bought my first house, I used one of those older agents. While he was a dependable, knowledgeable, trustworthy guy, he didn't have a cell phone, a gps, or even an email address at the time. All things that would have greatly helped our communication and in the end, probably would have helped me find my house faster.

I want to let everyone know that there are some of us out here. Some of us who respond to texts, who understand that buyers have already virtually toured most homes prior to wanting to physically visit them, and who appreciate technology and all it has to offer buyers and sellers in today's market. I closely watch local and national market issues and plan on offering insight to different aspects of this topic that everyone already has an opinion on, but is continuously changing. I hope that it will inspire buyers and sellers to not be afraid of the economy, the mortgage process, and most definitely not just settle and use that agent your parents used 25 years ago.