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Many clients I meet at valuations know they can use one or several estate agents. They also know using more than one agent could cost them more on the fees. What they might not have considered is the small print of each type of agreement or the relative merits of using one, two or many agents. Here’s our brief guide to each;

Sole Agency

Contracts of this type should read as follows –

‚You will be liable to pay remuneration to us, in addition to any other costs or charges agreed, if at any time, unconditional contracts for the sale of the property are exchanged:

•with a purchaser introduced by us during the period of our sole agency or

•with whom we had negotiations about the property during that period, or

•with a purchaser introduced by another agent during that period.‘

The agent gets paid if they „introduce“ a buyer during their contract period, or if you let another agent „introduce“ a buyer within the original agent’s contract period. The definition of „introduced“ is a wide ranging one. It may well cover negotiations with a buyer, viewings, sending details, discussing on the phone as well as all these scenarios:

•A buyer who knocks on your door as a result of seeing a „for sale“ board.

•A buyer that views through one agent but later makes an offer through another agent.

•A buyer that is given details of your property by an agent and then realises that they know you.

•A buyer who views through an agent but suggests that you do a private deal

Contracts must have a set period of time (the average is 12 – 14 weeks). Please note that a contract almost always has a notice period at the end – add this to your stated contract length to work out the real amount of time you’ll be locked in to your chosen agent. This type of agreement does allow you to find a buyer for your home yourself without paying the estate agent (a private sale). A „sole selling rights“ agreement (best avoided) would mean the agent would get paid even if you did find a private buyer.

Sole agencies are the most common of the agreements – most agents want an exclusive shot at selling your house. If the estate agent is any good, you shouldn’t need another agent to help in selling. However, you might want to check how comprehensive an agent’s marketing is before you agree to a sole agency – if they don’t cover all the bases (or have over valued your house to get the business), you don’t want to be locked into a contract lasting months and months.

Joint Agency

If you appoint two estate agents to act together for you in selling the property, this is known as ‚joint agency‘ or ‚joint sole agency‘. A joint sole agency contract is where the estate agents involved share the commission when the property is sold. In practice, the agent that actually finds the buyer usually gets a higher split of the commission but this percentage share would need to be agreed at the start of the contract between owner and both agents.

Joint agency is often a useful way to get out of a sole agency before the end of the contract – if you tell your estate agent that you’re not happy and are considering terminating their contract at the earliest opportunity, then give them the option of being retained on a joint agency basis, they might be smart enough to see the merits of a slice of a fee rather than none at all. This type of agency is also useful when you want to use two agents that offer different services (for example a city agent and a country agent if you live on the border of a city). Do bear in mind the majority of the public have a negative perception about properties on with more than one agent („I’ve seen that before – there must be something wrong with it“). If you’re thinking about joint agency, try to choose two agents that can communicate/work together happily.

Multiple Agency

More than one agent is appointed and there is no fixed contract period. You can add as many agents as you like, remove one at any time and so forth. However, only the agent that actually finds the buyer gets paid.

Often used when a property fails to sell with a sole agent, this is an extreme measure to take as the total fees will be considerably higher plus the property may become over-exposed very quickly. Confusion and disputes can also arise if agents argue over who introduced a particular buyer – make sure you keep a track of each agent’s activity.

Fees in General

Estate agents fees are due on completion and should have been invoiced at exchange of contracts. The invoice is sent to the solicitor acting for the owner, but the owner should also receive a copy to check. Most agreements are based on „no sale, no fee“ so you shouldn’t pay anything if your house doesn’t sell (however, see below re extra fees).

Fees must be clearly stated on the contract – if the fee is a percentage of the sale price, a maximum amount in pounds and pence should also be displayed.

Although estate agents fees are often expressed as a straight percentage of the sale price, do remember they are also subject to VAT at the prevailing rate (currently 20%).

Some estate agents charge extra fees over and above the sale fee – we have recently seen these expressed as „advertising fees“ or „withdrawal fees“ ( a charge if your property doesn’t sell or you take it away from an agent). Costs up front for production of brochures and professional photography are also relatively common with upper market agents – it would always be worth making sure you know the total of ALL fees you may be liable for before signing a contract.

Watch out if you agree to a fixed fee from an estate agent – the fee is usually agreed based on the asking price so, if your property sells for less, you’re likely to be overpaying the agent compared to a normal percentage fee (which is charged on the final sale price)

If you want to give your agent extra motivation to achieve a top price, consider negotiating a tiered fee (eg 1% if they get under £240,000, 1.2% if they achieve between £240,000 and £250,000, 1.5% if they get over £250,000). Set the levels carefully to reward superb service and penalise an average result.

Extra Hints

If you change estate agents, make sure the previous agent gives you a list of names of the people they have „introduced“ to your property. If one of those names goes on to buy the house (in practical terms within 6 months from the date of termination of the agent’s contract), the old agent is entitled to their fee. Make sure you don’t get into a scenario where you owe fees to both agents because you didn’t do your homework.

Always ask estate agents to confirm their contract terms in writing (you would think this is standard practice but you might be surprised!) and, if you do end a contract with an agent, make sure they confirm that as well.

You can go from one sole agent to another, from a sole agent to joint agents or any other permutation.

Don’t go backwards in marketing terms – if you leave an agent because they aren’t marketing your home effectively, take a breather and make sure the next one you choose can do better BEFORE you appoint them.

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Makler Heidelberg

Staging is an essential, and cost-effective, part of the home selling process. Staging your home to show off its qualities can only add to your final selling price. On average, people receive $2 in increased sale price for every $1 they put into staging a home.

When staging your home for sale, there are five golden rules to take into consideration as you work your way through each room of your house.

Five Golden Rules:

De-Personalised

The buyer needs to picture themselves in the house – not you. That wedding photo may mean the world to you, but the buyer it’s a distraction that prevents them from seeing a home for their family.

Maximise

Declutter and maximise the space in your home. Closets packed tight with all your clothes make a place like it lacks closet space. Consider temporarily storing the overflow offsite.

Sanitize

This golden rule is the easiest and cheapest way to stage your home – clean it. A sink full of dirty dishes is as unappealing to you as it would be to the buyer. It is well worth the elbow grease in cleaning floors, walls, baseboards, ceiling fans and windows.

Modernise

Unless your home has exceptional period built-ins, all home could benefit from some updating. If someone feels the house is dated, they will reflect that feeling in a lower offer. Consider a few simple changes like swapping out expensive fixtures for nickel or chrome.

Neutralise

Colour can make or break a buyer’s interest in your home. You may love that shocking red wall, but all the potential buyer sees is a great deal of painting in their future because of red clashes with their style. The picture is one of the most inexpensive ways to change a look of a home.

Bonus Tips

Closets

Clear closets of unnecessary clutter, and organise to maximise the amount of open storage space you are showing off to potential buyers. Use boxes stacked together to keep up and hide the clutter.

Use matching hangers for clothes – hooks are inexpensive so splurging on higher quality are inexpensive, so celebrating on higher quality hangers to replace free wire hangers from the dry cleaners will modernise your closets with visual impact and a more luxurious feel.

Bedrooms

A quick and inexpensive way to improve the appeal of your bedroom is to use gender-neutral colours when touching up paint jobs and re-accessorizing to have the broadest possible appeal. Colour coordinate where possible bedspreads, walls, curtains etc. should have a clear theme to their colours if possible.

Bathrooms

If walls are grimy, spray them using a standard spray bottle filled with a mixture of one part bleach and one part water, follow up with a fresh coat of paint.

Clear countertops of everything but the essential to make space look more open and more extensive.

Kitchen

Modernize your dated cabinets; they can be touched up for less than $200 with a coat of new wood stain and or even a good sanding a coat of paint. Replacing brass or wooden cabinet hardware with brushed silver or stainless steel is an effective way of updating dated cabinets as well.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

I was hanging out with a few people at a wedding recently and the conversation turned to

today’s real estate market.

One of my friends, John, from a town near San Jose, CA told a fascinating, yet familiar,

story. I thought I would share it with all of you.

John and his wife, Liz, decided to sell their home. They bought the house in 2004, saw it

increase in value, and this summer decided to sell it. They interviewed four different

agents to sell their home and finally decided on the one who agreed to sell their home for

what they wanted to sell it for.

They believed the home was worth $625,000. The first three agents who came in to

interview for the listing told them the house would never sell at that price and that they

should consider listing it below $600,000. They all felt $589,000-$599,000 was the

„magic“ number.

John is a commercial real estate broker. He knew that his asking price was high but he

was in no hurry to sell. He also didn’t like the fact these three agents weren’t offering

any „solutions“ they were only discussing the „problems“ he would face at the higher

price.

These agents told John and Liz about the current market conditions for their area. If

their home sold, it would likely take up to 120 days. There was a 55% chance that the

home wouldn’t sell at all during these four months. Based on what they wanted for their

home, they needed to be prepared for this. The agents told them they needed to consider

lowering the price.

John and Liz talked very seriously about lowering their price. Then they met a fourth

agent named Lynette.

Lynette came in and presented her case. It really wasn’t much different than the rest.

She also told them about days on the market and the chances of selling their home. She

also suggested they may be priced a bit high but then she offered an option.

„Let’s stage your home using a professional home staging company,“ Lynette suggested.

„This is going to cost you about $4000. We will list the home at the $625,000 you want

but to offset some of this expense, when I sell your home, I will split this expense with

you.“

Whereas real estate professionals, like Lynette, are highly skilled in marketing, selling

and closing your home, home stagers are designers. They are artists who prepare your

home for resale.

Home stagers work with the „flow“ of your home. They will remove and re-arrange

furniture. They will eliminate clutter. They may even add pictures, bedspreads, paint,

art, rugs and other items to make it more appealing. They may even assist in enhancing

curb-appeal.

Their goal is to make an incredible first impression on potential homebuyers the moment

they pull in front of your home.

Lynette explained that although the décor of the house was very nice and contemporary,

the home was cluttered because of their three young boys and busy lifestyle. The home

didn’t feel as large as it was because it was packed with too many items to display it

properly. The home was „too personal,“ she told them. They had picture of the boys

all over the house from birth to last year’s soccer playoffs.

She told them that they needed to compete with new home builders who are offering

buyers the most incredible purchase incentives. She said that when you walk into the

model homes of the builder you are „blown away.“

„THAT is your competition,“ Lynette said. „You need to blow away the people who

walk into your home too.“ She also explained that the last few clients who hired her

home staging company sold their home in less than 60 days and didn’t discount their

asking price.

John and Liz were not crazy about spending $4000, and certainly not thrilled about taking

down pictures of their beloved family, but they were encouraged by Lynette’s creative

idea. At the end of the day, what they really cared about was selling this home, so they

did it.

John said the home staging company came in and made the house seem like a „hotel.“

„They took out way more things than they put in, but it did look better, like a nice bed

and breakfast hotel,“ he said. „It almost made me want to stay there,“ he joked.

It worked. Their house sold in three weeks….at the $625,000 list price. Lynette did an

amazing job from start to finish!!

Just this month, I sold my very own investment house that was staged in 11 days. There

were three like models listed in the subdivision at the same time. Mine was the highest

priced. My incredibly talented real estate agent did an amazing job too but I truly

believe staging was a real key as well. I did take a small loss on this home. However a

sale in 11 days is no small accomplishment in today’s market.

Experts say that if you are hiring a professional staging company, plan on spending

between $2000-$5000 based on the size and condition of the home. If you just want

consultation, plan on $100 or so per hour.

Experts, like StagedHomes.com, say that a staged home sells in half the time as a similar

home that is not staged and that a staged home sells for 7-10% higher.

Coldwell Banker tracked nearly 3,000 properties, ranging in price from $229,000 to $4.8

million, in eight major U.S. cities.

During this time, they determined the average home was on the market for nearly 31

days, the typical staged home sold in less than 14 days.

The average home sold for 1.6% over the seller’s asking price. The staged homes, in the

Coldwell Banker study, over the same time, went for a 6.3% more.

This means, if the average home price is $300,000, you can expect the average staged

home to sell for $318,000-$330,000. Obviously, this makes the $2000-$5000 investment

a no-brainer.

Inventory is at an all-time high in many areas. The National Association of Realtors

recently reported the biggest drop in home prices since the trade group began compiling

price data in 1968. Many experts are now saying housing prices will continue to decline

though 2007.

So do you take your home off the market until 2008, and hope it gets better, with the

possibility it gets even worse, or do you separate yourself from the competition and do

what it takes to give your home the very best chance it has to sell today?

We are in a slower real estate market, however the people who are most committed to selling their

home will likely still be successful. When you are selling real estate it’s no different

than selling any other product. You have to market to find a capable buyer and then you

have to impress him.

Your real estate professional will market the property to bring the buyers but the product

and how it’s displayed will determine if it sells and at what price. This is where the

professional home stager comes in.

OK, so you want to give Home Staging a try? Here’s how.

There are many websites out there. Just type „professional home staging“ into your

favorite search engine like Google, Yahoo!, or MSN and you can start looking for the one

that best fits you.

If you want to try doing it yourself, take these tips from professional home stagers like

StagedHomes.com and others:

HOW TO „STAGE“ YOUR HOME YOURSELF

MAKE AN AWESOME FIRST IMPRESSION

Look at your house like you will look at the homes you want to buy next.

Prospective buyers make up their minds about your house even before they get out

of the car.

This is your chance to WOW them. Clean up the yard; rake the leaves and sweep

driveways and porches.

Get out the rags and cleanser and spend 30 minutes scouring your front door,

porch, railings and steps.

Make sure all of all your trash cans, recycling cans, other bins, discarded wood

scraps, extra building materials, etc., are in the garage.

Check gutters for roof moss and dry rot. Make sure they are swept and cleaned.

Look at all plants. Prune your bushes and trees. Keep plants from blocking

windows.

Weed and then mulch all planting areas. Keep lawn freshly cut and fertilized.

Remove dead plants or shrubs.

Clear patios or decks of all small items such as small planters, flower pots, charcoal,

barbecues, and toys. Box them away and store them.

Check the paint condition of the house, especially the front door and trim.

UNCLUTTER YOUR HOUSE

Empty your closets to a minimum, clear out the cupboards, and get rid of the small

appliances. Take books off the shelves, get rid of all of the magazines, the CDs,

video games, and DVDs, and lose the kid’s toys. Minimize it all.

Rent a storage unit or box what you want to keep and toss the rest.

Now is the time to say goodbye to your house and your stuff and transition. Your

life may be a bit uncomfortable during this time but you are now in the business of

selling your home.

GET RID OF THAT FURNITURE

An easy way to „unclutter“ and create a much greater sense of space is to get rid of

some furniture.

Consider moving your sofa, extra chairs, and end tables into storage so you can

make the home feel like it is larger and has much more space.

If your furniture is old, you may want to pack it away and rent a few more

contemporary pieces.

The goal is to sell your home, not display your old furniture.

MAKE YOUR HOME „THEIR“ HOME

The goal here is to get the potential buyer to imagine that he is living in your house.

If he feels like an intruder during his tour, your chances of selling the house are less.

That means put away anything connected to your family or personal interests. Like

trophies, family vacation photos, and personal mementos. Box it all away!

Clear refrigerator fronts of all messages, magnets, pictures, reminders, etc.

Stagers say the bathroom is a crucial place to pay close attention too. Shampoo

bottles in the shower and toothbrushes near the sink make it very hard for the

buyer to picture himself there. Box it away during the day and bring it out at night

for your use.

Keep the towels to minimum as well. Think „neat hotel bathroom“ on the day you

checked in.

MAKE THAT HOUSE AS CLEAN AS POSSIBLE

If your house is clean, the buyer tends to believe everything else is great with the

house as well. This means clean everything! The mirrors, walls, floors, carpets,

drapes, bathrooms, kitchen, and even door handles, light fixtures and pantry

cupboards.

If you hate cleaning, bring in a professional maid service regularly while your home

is listed and get someone in to do the windows, driveway and walkways. Remember,

it costs money to make money.

HIRE A PROFESSIONAL HANDYMAN

As I mentioned, I recently sold an investment property of mine that was staged in 11

days. I staged it myself by following all of the items listed here.

The day before my agent officially placed my home in MLS and started contacting

all of his previous clients, I called a handyman to come out and fix a few things.

I had a missing face plate for a light switch. I had some mold around one of the

toilets. One of the sinks had a broken drain valve. The door leading out to the

garage was dinged up a bit and needed a coat of paint. This was less than $100

worth of work. Many sellers would simply have ignored these items, offered the

buyer a blanket repair credit, and said „get it fixed yourself when you move in.“

Because of my research on this topic, I knew better and made an appointment to get

the handyman out to fix it. He was busy so he committed to come in a week.

However, my home went on the market the next day.

Two days later, five days before the handyman came; the eventual buyer of my

home toured my house. He came back a week later, after the handyman had been

there, and bought it. When I finally met the buyer at the final walk-through, I

asked him whey he didn’t make the offer the first time through.

He told me the missing face plate on the light switch and the dinged up garage door

really bugged him. When he came back and it was fixed, he was impressed and

knew I cared about the home.

A $3 item from Home Depot and a simple coat of cheap grade white paint almost

cost me the sale of my home.

Don’t wait! Fix those minor problems today!

COLOR UP THAT HOUSE WITH PAINT AND CARE

A fresh coat of paint in key areas of your home really makes a big difference. If

your home feels „special“ like you care, that will translate to buyers. Experts say

flowers in the entry or near the front door make your home feel more special, warm

and inviting.

FACE IT, YOUR HOUSE STINKS…MAKE IT SMELL BETTER

Stagers say that people don’t realize it but many of their homes simply stink. They

stink from pets or just everyday family use. The easiest way to overcome this is to

keep your windows open for 10 minutes a day.

This strategy works better than deodorizers, says Barb Schwarz, president of

StagedHomes.com, since a lot of people have allergies to artificial room fresheners.

The oldest trick of all? Leave chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven. The smell

helps buyers bond with your home.

MAKE YOUR HOME BRIGHTER AND MORE ALIVE

When things are lighter they feel more vibrant and alive. Dark is depressing. You

don’t want the buyer feeling depressed walking through your home.

Staging experts say clean windows let in as much as 30% more light than dirty ones.

Get them cleaned.

Clean the shades on your light fixtures and add floor lamps if an area seems dim.

Get rid of those energy-saving 60-watt bulbs and go with higher wattage lights for

maximum illumination.

When it comes time to show your home, make sure all the lights are on.

GET HOMEY AND CREATIVE

Flowers, plants, candles, expressive art are all items that are not overly personal

that give a good vibe to the buyer walking through your home. Show these off or go

buy some to add that touch.

You want your home to feel like a model home you see at a new house tract or,

better yet, a comfortable hotel lobby.

For real estate agents, in my opinion, this is a great tool to separate yourself from your

competition in trying to get a listing and sell the home. I think it’s a good idea to take a

few home staging classes or have a professional home stager as part of your team as an

option to present sellers.

StagedHomes.com offers two-day home staging workshops for real estate agents.

For homeowners with a lot of equity, I think hiring a professional stager is a tremendous

idea as well.

If you don’t have as much room financially and the costs of hiring a professional stager

seem preventative, you may want to try the „do-it-yourself“ ideas listed above first.

If those still don’t work, but you notice the feedback is more positive, you may want to

then consider hiring a home staging professional.

From all indications, and I can tell you first-hand, the price of staging your home is small

compared to the benefits you can realize.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

In this DIY (Do It Yourself) age, it is no surprise that many consider selling their home on their own when they are ready for a move. There can be some great benefits – lower cost; more control; a chance to „test the waters“ – but there are many pitfalls too. In the US, For Sale By Owner („FSBO“) transactions accounted for 10% of home sales in 2011 but sold for considerably less (up to 25%) on average than agent-assisted home sales. [1]Other than the possibility of a lower selling price, consider the following if you are thinking about listing your home on your own:

Time and effort involved

Roll up your sleeves and prepare to spend significant time preparing your home, researching the market, developing sales strategies and marketing materials, answering calls, showing your home, and eventually managing negotiations and paperwork. Realtors have well developed tools at hand and typically have a team of resources to count on, including front office staff that may be available 24 hours a day. It all looks easy, but the work is surprisingly detailed and complex and mistakes can be expensive.

Pricing it right

Pricing correctly can be a challenge for anyone, but when you are emotionally attached to a property, it can be even more so. Too low and buyers may be suspicious; too high and your property will sit while others around you sell. Realtors rely on current and historic market data along with industry and marketing experience to help establish the right price for a motivated seller. The right price for a well-staged home can have a significant effect on attracting a high number of qualified buyers; and that leads to a sale.

Legal and financial implications

How much should you disclose about that leak or buried wiring? What about the well and septic system? The insight and paperwork involved in putting together a secure and binding sale agreement that protects both parties is considerable. Professional Realtors, their Associations, and their Brokers have the training and experience required to identify potential issues along with developed contract language to help ensure your interests are secure. Major problems that are not visible and remain undisclosed can lead to litigation and other costly consequences. Missing clauses in a contract can have the same costly effect.

Needless to say, there are many FSBO success stories, however, we have all seen FSBO signs that linger on a front yard for what seems like months before being replaced by a Realtor’s sign. If you have time on your hands and want to „test“ the market, a FSBO strategy may work for you. But if you are a motivated seller with a deadline and top dollar in mind, then perhaps a Realtor is your best bet. I have worked with more than one FSBO client who was exasperated with the process – „… never again!“

[1] National Association of Realtors, 2011

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

So you want to sell your own house? Perhaps you want to save money on a commission that would be paid to a broker. Perhaps you are one of those individuals that believe that selling a home is a simple process because it appears so easy on TV. I understand it’s probably not as difficult as performing a root canal on yourself, but if attempted without preparation it might feel like you attempted the aforementioned.

The first thing to consider when selling your own house is to determine what the current market is like in your local area. This does not mean you should buy a copy of the Wall Street Journal and try to extrapolate what your local market is like based on national or worse yet, international trends. Some markets never experienced a large up or down over the last decade despite what was going on elsewhere. So how can you find out information that is pertinent to the local area? One way is to contact a local real estate agent and ask, but that can bring on some unwanted pressure to list with them instead; which I actually suggest for the vast majority of homeowners. Another way is to check local papers that may disclose certain statistics such as average days on market, a comparison of sales prices to listing prices (they are rarely the same, except perhaps in a hot market), and local interest rates. Now what do you do with all this information? For now hold onto it, as we will be using it to help price your home.

Once we have gathered some basic data the next step is to start finding some comparable properties. A comparative market analysis is the most accurate way to price a „normal“ home. It may not be the best way to assess the value of a new home, historic home, income property, or commercial property. What you will want to do is gather the SOLD price of at least SIX comparable homes, that have sold in the last 6 months. If you use home sales older than that, you risk the comparison not being very accurate. Comparable homes should be as similar to your home as possible, but do not have to be identical. These homes should be in the same school district, zip code, and if possible same housing complex if applicable. Explaining exactly how to do this process can be very verbose, so what I will say is that for an amateur analysis make sure your home is priced less than homes offering greater amenities and size and greater than homes offering less size or that are not as updated. Knowing exactly how much these differences effect the price of your home from the comps takes market knowledge that most homeowners don’t have. Remember that money spent on renovations does not correlate 100% to an increase in value.

Ok, so we now have an idea about the list price. The next thing we need to do is go back to what is happening in the local market. If homes are selling fast, I would suggest sticking near your estimated price for a quick sale of your home. If homes are selling at an average rate 3- 6 months (again average is different depending on location) I’d consider sticking at your estimate list price or as much as ten percent less if you are hoping for a quick sale. If homes are not selling on average in less than 120 days, as a for sale by owner you will need to price yourself well below the competition 10% or more. My reasoning for this is that highly marketed homes are not selling, where your home will have a fraction of the advertising versus those listed with a broker. You will need an edge to beat out the competition.

Well, we accomplished step one; pricing our home. This is actually one of the easier tasks we will have to do. Step two will be determining our budget for marketing the home. This is actually the main reason I suggest hiring a broker, since advertising if done haphazardly can cost MORE than hiring an agent. Now you can advertise on sites that cater to for sale by owners, but honestly the traffic they generate is simply pathetic compared to many of the better known sites. If you are serious about this, I suggest you list on a big name site. As far as advertising in the local paper goes, it certainly does not hurt, but realize that more buyers find their home online than through the local paper. The local paper though does appeal to the older generations and can help with a cross generational marketing campaign. Another consideration is that according to the national association of REALTORS 89% of surveyed home buyers in 2011 used an agent to buy. That means, whether you want to or not, you will likely have to deal with and or pay an agent. As a for sale by owner you can offer to pay an agent for bringing a buyer to you. This may help you save some money compared to having an agent list it as well. A good number to start with is offering a 2-3% commission to any buyer’s agents. This will ensure that the 89% of buyers searching for a home with the aid of an agent will not totally avoid your home. Another marketing tool you can use is a yard sign. These can be obtained relatively cheap from a local printer or online. If you are gutsy enough to let total strangers roam through your home, you can also host an open house. It is estimated that nearly 5% of home purchases are done on impulse, so it cannot hurt your sales effort. I would like you to consider that bringing strangers in your home can be unsafe so proceed with caution.

Alright, we are moving right along to getting our home sold. We have a price, we know how we are going to market it, and we are ready to list right? No, I’m sorry we still have some work to do. The next thing we have to do is complete a seller’s disclosure form to give to potential buyers. This form can be obtained from a local housing authority or online. In addition, we need to provide potential buyers with a lead-based paint disclosure act if your house was built in 1978 or earlier, thanks to a 1992 law. In addition, this is the time to neutralize your home, fix peeling paint (trust me, fix peeling paint), and complete any other small maintenance tasks that need done.

Ok, now we can go ahead and list the home. The easy part is done, we are moving onto the hard and hardest parts of selling a home. Now if you listed it yourself I suggest purchasing a land line phone number to use for advertisement purposes. There are many places where you can find one cheaply. When your first perspective buyer calls, greet them politely and share whatever information they need. As tempting as it may be, before having them over to view the house, make sure they have be pre-approved, or at least pre-qualified for a loan; ask them to bring their pre-approval letter. People have no problem wasting your time. If they refuse to bring any such paperwork, skip the viewing because it is likely they are not that interested in your house anyways. In fact, they cannot even make a real offer at this point. Show buyers around that have met the pre-qualifications, but refrain from harping about anything personalized within the home, as they will likely be envisioning how they can change your house to suit their needs. If they are interested in making an offer, please do not entertain a verbal negotiation of price. First, their offer is not legally enforceable by the statute of frauds and back and forth negotiations may elicit an emotional response on your part. Instead, insist on a written offer and binding contract. It is likely they will be working with an agent, so this is usually a mute point. When the offer is presented, remain emotionless whether it is more than you had hoped for, or less since most buyers will expect the savings you received from not paying a commission to be passed onto them (Now if you used my suggestion of offering a buyer’s agent commission you might find that you receive a more reasonable offer). You have two options; accept or reject the offer. If you reject the offer, you can always counter-offer. Some things to expect during this time is the buyers wanting you to purchase a home owners insurance warranty (which you should do to save yourself a headache 6 months from now when your water pipes burst or your furnace dies at only 4 years of age). The second is that they will likely place several contingencies on the offer, which are completely normal. These contingences may include a home inspection, land survey, title insurance, dye test, as well as several others.

Ok so you have found a buyer and your home is under contract. The coming 30-90 days will be the roughest yet, but hang on because you are almost there. During this time a home inspector after examining your home will come up with a list of several hundred problems that your house has. If you already disclosed these items in your seller’s disclosure there should be little concern, as they will not be items that your potential buyer could use to back out of the transaction. Now for the things you were unaware of, buyers may try to haggle the price even lower. I suggest for small ticket items, hold your ground. Bigger ticket items will likely require some concessions on your part. Your other option is to not give any concessions and try the whole process over again, disclosing the newfound issues. If things do progress past this point, prepare for yet more expenses at closing. You will need to pay transfer taxes on the property, as well as, prorated property taxes if you have not yet done so for the fiscal year. Again, there will be some other expenses and rather going into detail here, I suggest you take a look at a HUD-1 form to get a strong understanding of what expenses are dealt with at closing. If closing is not being taken care of by their agent, I suggest you hire either a transaction licensee or lawyer to handle the paperwork. DO NOT attempt to complete this stage on your own unless you are an agent or an attorney.

Well if you made it past closing, you have done what only 15% of for sale by owners are able to! Congratulations, and when you go to look for your next home use an agent.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

I would assume that when you decided to become an FSBO and sell your property, you have done your homework and researched on how to be an FSBO. If you haven’t then I urge you to first research on what to expect when you sell your property as an FSBO. Now if you’re able to do your homework, you might have come across some articles that states that there are about 90 percent of for-sale-by-owner that fail to sell their property. However, you have to also understand that this number may not be accurate as the success of an FSBO would highly depend on how much effort you put in. It is not enough to have your property to have a for sale sign, you also have to make every effort to make sure that you will be able to put your property for sale in front of as many eyeballs as possible. More people who knows that you have a property for sale means the higher possibility of having a potential buyer of your property.

So how do you increase the visibility of your property for sale? Some would use traditional media to advertise their property for sale, although that may be one way to go it is going to be very expensive and a problem for FSBO. But do not fret there are other ways on how you can promote your property for sale. One of them is to use the services of a flat-fee mls provider, flat-fee mls is a process where you only pay a flat-fee to have your property be placed in hundreds of MLS listing sites among other services inclusive.

Another possible way to have your property for sale, promoted is to use the power of social media. It is free and it would not cost as much as traditional media if you choose to use social media paid advertising. You might be wondering on how do you start advertising your property for sale via social media. Here are some easy steps which you can follow.

1. Choose Your Platform – you do not have to look far, everyone may have a social media account, this is where you should start, choose the platform where you are already in and have friend and or followers to which you can promote your property for sale. If you do not have an account in any of the social media platforms out there then it is time for you to have one. In this case choose a platform that you know that your friends are mostly using. Once you sign up start adding your friends and start posting your property for sale. And start the word of mouth about your property snowball.
2. Post Your Property for Sale – nobody wants to have their property social media timeline to look like an advertising platform. Although we have suggested that you post your property for sale on your account, do not post the same thing everyday. It pays to also post something interesting to your friend even if such is unrelated. Make sure to also nurture your relationship with your friends using your timeline rather than having your timeline turn into a newspaper classified ads. In addition, make sure that you make your post public so that anyone can see it.
3. Engage and Answer Queries – once you get queries on your post about your property for sale, make sure that you immediately answer their questions and do so professionally. Remember with social media, as long as your post is public, people can freely see your posts.

These three simple steps is a start for you to use social media to make sure as an FSBO that your property for sale can get much more exposure beyond the traditional media could do, not to mention that this could be done only for a fraction of a price if not free and with the aid of flat-fee mls listing, you will surely get that deal.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

Selling the house put people in a dilemma whether they should hire a real estate agent or not? Well, if you are capable of selling your house on your own then why hire a real estate agent with whom you have to share your profit.

Usually, property owners are expected to pay 5% to 7% of the sale price to an agent. However, if you choose to sell your property yourself then you will not only be able to save on the real estate agent fees but also will get the freedom to sell your property in your own ways.

Before you move further to sell your house yourself, do consider the following discussed factors that will make your selling easy:

The location of the property is believed to be one of the crucial factors. Since no one can change the location of your home to take it to the more desirable place, thus, the price you expect should be realistic. You will get nothing if you offer a much higher price in comparison to the other properties that are being sold in the same area. Therefore, it is recommended to do proper research to find out what neighborhood properties have been selling for.

What is the status of the housing market like at the moment? Find out the worth of the property a few years ago and now? Considering the history of the property prices, it is important that you price your property in line as per the current market conditions.

Check out the condition of your property at present. Before you advertise your property for selling, it is good to allow a property inspector to visit and value your home. On sell your house yourself; you may not be able to see the little defects and repairs that a professional can observe.

In many cases, the reason for selling your house influences the decision of the buyers. So, you should be clear about your words that describe the reason.

Next, you need to think like a potential buyer. You simply cannot show your emotions to get in a selling way. If any corner of your house needs repairs or changes, then you should get it repaired or changed immediately. Prior to starting the process of selling your house, think from a buyer’s point of view.

Sell your property yourself can save you from long meetings with agents and their representatives. By listing it on a reliable listing portal, you will be able to reach millions of potential buyers, investors, and renters. Such a quick reach is not possible with the traditional methods of selling homes that include putting advertisements on newspapers, television, and handing out flyers. These property listing portals will make you connect with more and more people by putting your minimal efforts. Furthermore, the cost-effectiveness of the internet cannot be overemphasized as it allows you to create the perfect online presence with an affordable advertising budget.

There are various portals online that allow you to advertise your property without charging any commission or hidden costs. Among such options, choosing the best one is vital to get the quickest outcome of your property.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

When selling your home, it is extremely important to show your home at its potential. Here are a few simple things you can do to increase the attractiveness of your home to potential buyers while still keeping within a budget. Some of these items are do-it yourself projects and some require the help of a professional. Either way these changes will help you get top dollar for your home and also have a great return on investment.

In cost ascending order, here is what you can do to better present your home:

1) De-clutter, De-clutter, De-clutter – This is probably the most cost effective improvement you can choose to do. When it comes to showing your home, less is more. Remove religious items, family photos, gadgets and knickknacks. Keep in mind, you want the buyer to remember the home and not your collection of seashells.

2) Clean – I know you are busy, but grab the glass cleaner and the vacuum and get rid of those dust mites and smudgy windows.

3) Upgrade hardware – Are those handles on your kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors still from the 70’s? Changing the hardware is a simple and cost effective way to give a new, modern look to an old cupboard door.

4) Upgrade light fixtures- Along the same lines as #3, change old, outdated light fixtures and electrical cover plates. These are cheap to replace yet make a huge difference in the appearance of a room. Don’t forget to make sure to replace burnt out light bulbs as well.

5) Paint – Freshen up the interior of your home with a new coat of paint. Use a neutral colour to make the space appear larger than it is and also to allow the buyer to envision their own furniture in the space. Neutral colours are the best way to go as it allows the buyer to remember the space and not the bright orange wall colour you chose in the 80’s.

6) Upgrade flooring – I know the old shag rug in the living room is a classic, but a potential buyer probably won’t agree. If it’s in your budget, replace it with simple, neutral broadloom or hardwood floors. If hardwood is way out of your budget, opt for laminate.

7) Kitchen Upgrades – We all know women make the final decision when buying a home. We also know that one of the first rooms a woman looks at is the kitchen. If it’s not in your budget to re-model the kitchen then consider replacing those old appliances with stainless steel. Stainless steel appliances are sleek and will give your home that modern touch.

8) Curb Appeal – OK, so the interior of the home is looking spiffy, we can’t forget about the exterior – after all the front yard is the first thing the buyer sees when they pull up to the home. Make a good impression and make the home more inviting. Grab that lawn mower and hedge trimmer and add a few flowers. In today’s market climate it is more important than ever to make your home more attractive to potential buyers. After all, you only get one chance at a first impression so why not make it a good one!

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

When you want to sell your property by yourself, without taking services of a real estate agent, such a property sale is termed as a ‚For Sale by Owner‘ or FSBO property.

Though FSBO has advantages to it, you should also be aware of the many drawbacks that it can entail and this is applicable for both the sellers and the buyers. Let’s take a look at the negative aspect from both aspects.

As A Seller

As someone opting for FSBO, here is a look at things that can be a cause for concern here:

The FSBO property sale property is as such quite cumbersome – While you enjoy the freedom to work by yourself without the interference of a broker, you face an uphill task to sell your property on your own. You need to work a lot to make it possible – the research work, pricing your home, putting ads, screening applicants, conducting open houses, showing the property and so on. This, at all times, seems like heavy burden on your shoulders.

Emotional attachment: You have an emotional attachment with your property and value every small detail about it. This has perils of its own –

1. You tend to over-price the property

2. You tend to describe very minute details of your house to the irritation of the prospective buyer when you are showing your property to the latter.

Also, you find it very difficult to market your house as a product, to speak in that ‚marketing language‘ which is required to satisfy buyers.

Lack of market, legal and financial know-how: Being the owner of a property and not a real estate broker, you fall short of the knowledge you need to possess to facilitate a house sale. Not only are you unaware of the market conditions, the prevailing prices, the prices of similar houses in your locality but also all the other legal and financial matters that go along with it.

Time consuming – A lot of information is available to you at the click of a button through the internet, but you don’t have the time to go through the huge web and also get utterly confused with the enormity. All this research work, the task of choosing where to place ads, how to place them, what to write and so on takes a lot of time. Investing that much time is difficult.

Limited exposure – If you avail the services of a real estate broker, your property gets more showings and a greater exposure than if you sell it by yourself.

Higher costs – Although you feel that by selling your home on your own, you can cut down on the costs the real estate broker would take for the purpose, you actually end up spending more! The advertisement costs are huge. Many real estate brokers include the costs in their services; you get it as a package. Also, you incur costs running around for placing ads, opening bank accounts, doing research and so on. Above all, is the cost of losing your peace of mind over the sale!

As A Buyer

You are attracted to an FSBO as in this case you are not required to pay the real estate’s commission. Here is a look at problem issues that you need to be aware of:

Unsure of the ownership: As a potential FSBO buyer, you are not sure about the ownership of the same. The person who has put up the house for sale might only partially own the house and the other owner might not actually be interested in selling it!

Unsure of the price: As FSBO houses are generally over-priced and there is no agent involved, you don’t know the market and are hence you are unaware of the ideal price of the property to help you bargain well.

Unaware of the faults: As the owner is putting his house for sale and values every little bit of it, he/she will not come out with the faults to the prospective buyer. This creates a difficulty as the latter is deprived of the right to know all the aspects before deciding to buy.

Unaware of technical details: The owner of an FSBO home isn’t aware of the exact measurements – the total area, the carpet area, dimensions of each room, section etc. Hence, he/she will not be able to provide you with details on the same!

Bereft of expert advice and help: A real estate owner’s job is facilitating the buying and selling of homes! He comes up with his expert advice from time to time which an FSBO home owner cannot provide! He can think about the property neutrally, without any bias and hence you can value the same. Also, a broker helps the buyer throughout the entire process including interpreting the agreement, handling registration details etc.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg

What Is For Sale By Owner?

For Sale By Owner or Owner Assisted Real Estate is the process of selling your own home without the aid of a real estate agent. Whilst most may not have heard of the For Sale By Owner approach or believe that it is an allowed practice, you can be sure that it has been around for an extremely long time and it is 100% legal, despite what a real estate agent may tell you. Most people who use the For Sale By Owner Real Estate method are Property Investors and those who are looking to make an extra buck or two when selling their home or investment property.

How Does It Work?

Selling your own property is a multi-faceted process that only the brave normally take on but if you do your research, like reading this article, you will have no troubles. First, you need to think about how you are going to market the property such as writing listing copy, taking images for the property etc. This is something that doesn’t cost you a cent and can be done in little over an hour, all you need to do is sit down and write a description of your property and then walk through your house taking some nice photos that will appeal to potential buyers.

The next step is the negotiation and sales side of the process. You would be wise (if you have not had previous sales experience) to speak to someone who you know that knows about the art of sales and negotiation, like a friend. You would also be wise to speak to a lawyer or conveyancer about contracts and agreements for the sale of your property.

How Much Does It Cost?

When it comes to selling your own home, it will only cost as much as you would like it to cost. Below are some of the things you may need to consider purchasing when you are going down the For Sale By Owner path.

• Listing Your Property (Free & Paid Options)
• Photographer (Optional)
• For Sale Signage (Optional)
• Conveyancer / Lawyer (Essential)

Are There Any Hidden Surprises?

If you do your research, no. The whole For Sale By Owner concept is fairly transparent and you have full control over the process, the only catch is that you have to do most of the work yourself. Creating your advertisement or property listing, taking the images of your property, posting it online, erecting „For Sale“ signage at the front of the property for sale, handling enquiries, negotiating with potential buyers, sealing the deal and having contracts or agreements written up.

It may sound like a lot to do but when you think of it, the bulk of the work goes into the advertising of the property which may only take you an hour depending on how quickly you can write a spiel on your property and how good you are with a digital camera, the rest is simply taking phone calls and having someone like a conveyancer draw up the contracts for your property sale.

Immobilienmakler Heidelberg

Makler Heidelberg