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The general manager of my company recently lost her father-in-law and her family is preparing to sell his home. If you have ever wondered why consumers don’t get your value or challenge you on the commissions you receive, their experience illustrates why this is the case.
Since my general manager has worked for me for 19 years and has read virtually everything I’ve ever written, she felt well-prepared to embark on the listing process and interviewed three different agents, each of whom was a personal referral.
What she and her husband were unprepared for were the incompetence and lack of follow up they encountered.
The ‘Award Winning Team’
The mother-daughter team they interviewed first had sold the house down the street and were recommended by one of the seller’s cousins. The agents arrived, notepad in hand, and were nicely dressed. Their comments, however, were so over the top that the sellers felt like “They were about to list the Taj Mahal, not a $250,000 property.”
In response to the sellers’ questions, here’s what they said:
- The agents had no recommendations for staging.
- When asked how the agents would market the property, they said “We don’t do print marketing. We only do the internet. We will put your listing on the MLS, Zillow and Trulia.” However, when pressed for more information about their marketing materials, they emailed a 12-page stock marketing piece from their company stating they advertise in the Homeseller Magazine and the Real Estate Book.
- They walked the 5-acre property and suggested a list price of $239,000 but failed to provide any comparable sales. They also didn’t bring any listing, or agency or disclosure paperwork with them.
- They claimed “the normal commission is 7 percent, but we’ll do you a favor and lower it to 6 percent.”
Eight days after their initial appointment, however, they still hadn’t followed up.
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The Local Area Expert
The second agent was recommended by a friend who grew up in the area. She had two comparable sales and explained that nothing had sold in the last six months. When the sellers asked about the house across the street that sold six weeks earlier, she responded with, “I don’t know why I didn’t see it.”
The agent was very nice. She explained her marketing budget, that posting on the MLS, Zillow, Trulia and Realtor.com was free, and that she paid for enhanced listings on all of these sites. She also brought examples of her advertising from the local newspaper and a local real estate magazine.
Bernice Ross
However, she didn’t walk the property, she didn’t explain the two comparable sales she had supplied, and she had no recommendations on how to stage the house.
The kicker was that she wanted to price the property at $188,000 and have the sellers pay the buyers’ closing costs, even though the property is in a highly desirable area and this location is currently in a seller’s market.
Five days after her initial meeting, the sellers still hadn’t heard back from her.
The Agent Who Got the Listing
The third agent was recommended by the sellers’ financial planner. She arrived on time with a full packet of information. After walking the entire property and viewing the interior of the home, she did a detailed explanation of each of the eight comparable sales and how they differed from the sellers’ property in terms of the price per square foot, age, amenities and other features.
The agent advertises her listings locally in print as well as on the web through the MLS and the portals using professional photos.
When the sellers inquired about staging, the agent suggested power–washing the house so it would look bright white, rather than the current greenish tinge.
She also pointed out the empty mantle looked bare, that different–color towels were needed in the master bath, plus a several other items. She then offered to let the sellers use several large bags of staging items she owned, and they jointly staged the house.
After the staging discussion, the agent discussed where to price the property, how much the sellers would pay in fees, plus the other costs of sale. The agent also suggested listing at a price that would give the sellers some negotiation room, but also warned them to be prepared for ridiculously low offers.
The agent then explained each part of the contract in detail, answered all the sellers’ questions, and addressed how to handle the disclosure statements since the property was inherited and they hadn’t lived there. The sellers felt no sense of being rushed or pressured.
The sellers ultimately listed with this agent at a 6 percent commission at $250,000.
On your last listing appointment, were you adequately prepared with detailed comparable sales? Did you take the time to construct a marketing plan? Were you prepared to assist in the staging of the property? Did you take the time to explain your CMA and the contracts in detail? Did you follow up after the appointment?
If you didn’t get the listing, did you make any of the mistakes above or fail to use the best practices from the third agent? If so, don’t make the same mistake on your next listing appointment!
Bernice Ross is a nationally syndicated columnist, author, trainer and speaker on real estate topics. She can be reached at bernice@realestatecoach.com.
