Home Improvement, Do-It-Yourself Style

BY CHRIS LEPORINI

Do-It-Yourself Sellers

Can’t I just sell my home myself without a Realtor?  Yes, you can, we call that Unrepresented Sellers in our industry.  See our link FOR SELLERS ONLY for tips on selling your home.

By representing myself I’ll pocket more money, right?  Not necessarily.    According to ‘NAR In the News “The Cost of Selling without a REALTOR®: $31,800”  Real estate professionals do more for sellers than make the transaction easier. They make them money. In fact, the average seller who uses a real estate professional makes 16 percent more on the sale of their home than do sellers who go it alone. That’s an average of $31,800 per home.’

All Realtors really do is stick a sign in the yard and run an ad, right?  To get a home sold our agents use their expertise, professional knowledge of the market and just plain hard work to bring about a successful transaction. In addition, our agents are experts in attracting qualified buyers. A professional can show a home more objectively than can a seller who may be emotionally attached to the home, and who might become unnerved by prospective buyers’ critical comments. The real estate pro also checks the financial capability and bona fides of buyers before allowing them onto a seller’s property. Many of the most important services and steps are performed behind the scenes by either the Marks’ Real Estate Agents or the brokerage staff. Here is a short list of the nearly 200 items that Marks’ Real Estate Agents do:

1. Research all comparable currently listed properties
2. Research sales activity for past 18 months from MLS and public records databases
3. Research average days on the market for a property of this type, price range and location
4. Download and review property tax information
5. Prepare a comparative market analysis to establish a fair market value and review this with you.
6. Offer pricing strategy based on professional judgment and interpretation of current market conditions
7. Obtain copy of subdivision plat/restrictions.
8. Research property’s current use and zoning.
9. Perform exterior “Curb Appeal Assessment” of your property.
10. Confirm area schools.
11. Explain market power and benefits of Multiple Listing Service and web marketing
12. Prepare and have you sign all listing contract forms.
13. Make sure all disclosure forms required by law are discussed, filled out and signed by you.
14. Measure overall and heated square footage
15. Measure interior room sizes.
16. Prepare showing instructions for buyers’ agents and agree on showing time window with seller.
17. Install a Marks Realty Co., Inc. “For Sale” sign.
18. Take digital photographs of your home to be used in several tools of marketing your home.
19. Give you suggestions to help increase the marketability of your home.
20. Prepare a flyer with photos of your property emphasizing the desirable characteristics of the property.
21. Have extra key made for lockbox.
22. Install a lockbox on the property for ease in showing your home to prospective buyers.
23. Enter your home in our multiple listing service so all 90+ real estate offices will have easy access to the details of your property.
24. Post your home on our web site www.marksrealty.com and on www.lynchburgva.com a site owned by one of our Realtors, which has won many awards including being listed in the top 1% of all real estate web sites visited in the nation.  Your home will also be posted on www.realtor.com a national site and www.lynchburgmls.com a local site.
25. Do a visual slide show of your property and post it on our web site and on other popular websites like yahoo.com
26. Send flyers of your property to other agents active in the area, as well as, contact them to discuss the benefits your home has to offer.
27. Leave a supply of flyers at your home for open house visitors and agent showings.
28. Prepare several classified ads for your home.
29. Schedule placement of ads for your home in different advertising medias.
30. Obtain current mortgage information
31. Verify Home Owner Association Fees and bylaws, if applicable
32. Calculate average utility usage from last 12 months of bills
33. Meet with you to discuss ways that you can help in the marketing of your home.
34. Arrange an agent tour of your home to familiarize our agents with your home.
35. Arrange for other Realtors to see your home.
36. Coordinate showings with owners, tenants, and other Realtors®
37. Call all potential buyers with details of your listing.
38. Discuss your home with agents who visited it to find ways to enhance its marketability.
39. Office agents will call all likely prospects they are currently working with about your home.
40. Prepare for and conduct an Open House.
41. Follow up on all leads generated by calls about or visits to your home.
42. Make weekly calls to all agents who used the lockbox about the interest of their buyers.
43. Reprint/supply brochures promptly as needed
44. Make price changes and convey to all internet web sites and marketing materials
45. Regularly communicate with you on our efforts and progress with your home, as well as, changes in the area market.
46. Present and discuss all offers on your property with you.
47. Answer all questions that you may have concerning the sale of your home.
48. Continue to make our best efforts to locate a buyer, as well as, internally evaluate those efforts until we are successful.

When Your Property Receives An Offer We Will:

1. Evaluate offer(s) and prepare a “net sheet” on each for comparison purposes
2. Discuss the offer with you and advise you on how to proceed.
3. Contact buyers’ agents to review buyer’s qualifications and discuss offer.
4. Confirm buyer is pre-qualified
5. Negotiate all offers on seller’s behalf, setting time limit for loan approval and closing date.
6. Once both parties sign all paperwork we will post your home as pending in the Multiple Listing Service.  This will stop any further showings of your home if you so desire.
7. Deliver all copies of contract and addendums required by law to all parties.
8. Give you an estimate of your closing costs and an estimate of expected proceeds at closing.
9. Put a Sold sign on the property.
10. Make sure an earnest money deposit has been collected.
11. Coordinate with you for any inspections the Buyer may require, such as, a home inspection, radon, well & septic, etc.
12. Keep in close contact with the Selling Agent to make sure all contingencies, such as financing, are being resolved in a timely manner.
13. Coordinate any repairs to be made to your home if necessary.
14. A few days prior to closing, we will set up a time for an appraiser to come by your home (this is necessary if contract is contingent on financing). You will not need to leave your home for this inspection.
15. Within a few days of closing, we will set up a time for a termite inspection to be done.  If you are on an annual service call with any termite company, please let us know.  We will also arrange for a well and septic inspection if that applies.
16. We will need a copy of your old deed and arrange for an attorney of your choice to draw a new deed for the new owners.
17. We will need a list of all loans you may have on the property, their account numbers, and contact information for the mortgage company and will give this information to the closing attorney.
18. We will arrange for you to sign the new deed.  Since the deed requires that your signature be notarized our office provides this service at no extra cost to you.
19. We will arrange for you to sign any paper work required by the closing attorney or lender prior to or after the closing.
20. We will arrange with you where to leave keys, garage door openers, any appliance warranties, etc., for the new owners.
21. We will deliver your proceeds from the sale directly to you or arrange a convenient way to receive these funds.  (i.e. deposit into your account, mail, wire transfer, etc.)

Call or email one of our Realtors® today to get started marketing your home.

384-5000 or 1-800-230-5001 or URFirst@marksrealty.com