How do you compete with the other 6,000 plus home owners selling their home as a short sale?

A distressed situation has forced you to list your home contingent upon the bank agreeing to accept less than you owe. This type of listing transaction is referred to as a short sale. Short sales are a common occurrence throughout Central Florida including; Osceola, Seminole, Orange, and Volusia counties.

Your situation is not unique. Short sale listings make up a large portion of the active real estate inventory. So how do you compete with over 6,000 plus home owners selling their home as a short sale? That's right, right now in the 4 counties mentioned there are over 6,000 homes listed for sale subject to the lender accepting a short payoff.

How do you make sure your home attracts buyers and receives an offer? You accomplish this the same way it has always been accomplished. The process to market and secure a buyer for your home remains unchanged even though it is a short sale.

• Proper Pricing. A home priced correctly will always attract the attention of buyers qualified in that price range. One of the first steps should be to research sales in the area in order to determine a price that is not to high or to low. Listing the home at real market value will result in offers.
• Market the home correctly. What makes your home standout from the competition besides the price and the fact that it is being sold as a short sale? Don't let yourself be short changed by the marketing efforts of the agent you hire. MLS comments are require to notify all that the home is subject to a short sale but even with the proper disclosure verbiage, there is plenty of room to describe features and amenities that buyers will find desirable. You should expect to receive full marketing efforts from the company you hire.
• Choose and experienced agent. It is important to make sure the agent you hire has short sale experience. When I say experience I am talking about not just in listing short sales but in getting them to the closing table. Ask if the agent has any formal training. Do they have the CDPE designation? Certified Distressed Property designated agents understand the process from beginning to end and are more than capable of helping you out of your situation by selling your home.

I understand you are under a tremendous amount of stress right now. You can reduce some of your stress by listing, receiving offers, negotiating with your lender and closing the sale with an agent who knows how to compete and win against the competition.

Make sure you review an estimated proceeds document before signing an offer to sell your home

Once of the issues I deal with from time to time are sellers who are upset when they receive their HUD statement prior to closing and they find that they are not receiving an amount they expected. When questioned about receiving and signing off on an estimated net proceeds document at the time the offer was presented, some claim they never received such an accounting.

A seller should have the opportunity to receive and review an estimated net proceeds document on at least 2 different occasions during a normal listing contract period.

The first time being when the home is listed for sale. An agent should provide in writing to the seller the costs associated with selling the home and the estimated net after those costs are paid.

The second occasion is each time an offer to purchase is presented to the seller. A seller should never accept an offer until they have a written accounting of the estimated net profit they will realize at closing.

Costs that should be covered when estimating the net proceeds include:

Real estate commission, Transaction fee, Doc stamps, Closing fee, Search fee, Estimated payoff of all mortgages, Recording fees, Home Warranty policy, Buyer closing cost paid by seller, Proration of real estate tax, Misc. prorations.

Acknowledging the net proceeds at the time you receive an offer will leave few surprises when you are at the closing table.


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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

What are my options when I receive an offer to sell my home?

1. Accept the offer. Receiving an offer that meets your terms and conditions is what you expected when you listed your home. You should review the offer and when you are satisfied, accept it and immediately have it delivered back to the buyer.
2. Reject the offer. If the offer you have received is nowhere near what you are asking or expecting you have the option to do absolutely nothing. Let your agent know that you do not intend to accept or counter the offer.
3. Counter the offer. Perhaps the offer you received is not quite what you are looking for, but it is close. Your option may be to counter the offer, in other words let the buyer know in writing what you will accept. This countering process can go back and forth between you and the buyer in writing until you both have agreed to acceptable terms.

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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Do I still have to pay a commission if I list my home but then decide not to sell?

This year over 6,000 homes have been withdrawn from the Orlando area market. 6,000 plus home sellers who for a variety of reasons have decided not to sell or are unable to sell their home after signing a listing contract with a real estate company.

Perhaps they simply changed their minds and decided to stay put, or they rented their home or condo, or they made arrangements with their lender that put them in a better position to stay current on their mortgage or in the worse case scenario they lost their home to the lender in foreclosure.

When a seller decides not to sell, after entering into a legal contract with a real estate firm to list their home, they usually have choices. You should check with your listing agent and/or the broker or owner of the real estate company that you have the contract with prior to asking to be withdrawn or released in order to find out what their company policy is.

At our Watson Realty office when a seller has decided not to sell we will consult with our seller to make sure that their decision is thought out and in their best interest Satisfied that the seller has no other option we will usually withdraw them from the MLS and immediately suspend our marketing efforts for their home. We will not, in most cases, release them from their listing contract.

The seller will be advised that as long as they are under contract with us as per their listing agreement they will owe us a commissions should they sell their home. This means that if they change their minds and wish to sell, they are obligated to honor their contract with us or if someone approaches them and makes an offer on their home a commission will be owed at closing regardless of the company involvement with the transaction.

Additionally your agent may have included a cancellation fee in the listing contract that covers the cost of the agents time and marketing should a seller decide not to sell. You should contact your agent to discuss any outstanding fees that may be owed if you decide not to sell.

We encourage everyone thinking of selling their home to carefully review the listing contract prior to signing and to make sure they are committed to the process once they have signed to selling their home.

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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Free report on why your home did not sell.

Have you tried to sell your home only to find yourself in the same position as hundreds of Central Florida homeowners who were not successful? Did your home languish on the market with no buyers making offers or even interested in viewing?

What happened? Was it the advertising? The marketing? The price? The staging?

We may be able to help you determine what the reason or reasons were that prevented your home from selling. Nothing is more frustrating than wanting to sell your home only to find that no one is interested.

Our free report will include our examining:

• Market conditions surrounding your specific location.
  
• How your competition fared compared to you during the same time period.
  
• Effectiveness of the advertisement used with your home.
  
• Online exposure your home received.
  
• Exposure created by direct mail campaign.
  
• An in-depth price point analysis.

Our report will thoroughly examine the previous promotional, marketing and prospecting techniques used to attract a buyer for your home. We will then provide a written report outlining suggestions, recommendations and include a complete marketing plan that, when implemented, will put you in a better position to sell your home regardless of market conditions.

The report is free. If you are still interested in selling your home then I strongly encourage you to take advantage of our free report.

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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Seller home disclosures may need updated prior to selling

When an agent first meets with a seller and has them sign the listing paperwork, part of the paperwork the seller completes and signs is a “seller property condition disclosure”.

This disclosure alerts potential buyers of repair and maintenance issues affecting the home of which the seller is aware of at the time of the listing. Home buyers should always ask to see the seller disclosures for a property they are considering buying.

Today’s real estate market has created a situation that many agents and sellers need to be mindful of. With the average days on the market extending past 4 months or longer, the home may face new repair or maintenance issues that have developed since the initial listing period.

The seller should acknowledge these new issues in writing. Listing agents should have the sellers update their original disclosure document when conditions within the home change.

Keeping information current and accurate regarding a home is critical as the time a home spends on the market increases. Make sure you have fully disclosed all known defects and issues about your home or property throughout the listing period.


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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Do you provide a CCMA for your home selling customers?

A CMA or comparable market analysis is what an agent will provide a seller at the initial listing appointment. This report provides recent real estate activity in the neighborhood, sub division or city to use as comparable for the seller’s home in order to determine a property market value.

In normal times the initial CMA is all that is needed to confidently place a home on the market with legitimate expectations of procuring a buyer.

Today’s challenging market requires additional effort on the part of the agent and seller in order to be sure that the current pricing of the property is keeping in line with the changing market. As the average days on the market increase and sales prices decrease, real estate agents should be providing a CCMA or continuous comparable market analysis.

Continuously updating the original market analysis for the seller may provide data that will help the seller make an informed decision as to the pricing and price enhancement direction they may need to take. Has a larger home come on the market for less money? Have similar homes in pricing and size expired with no offers? Are there new pending homes to report? Is there new sold data to consider? Not knowing what is happening in the market since the initial listing appointment can be costly to a seller.

If you have your home listed and you are in a market slow down or market correction area, ask your agent to provide you with a continuation of your original comparable market analysis in order to be confident your home is still being offered at a competitive price.


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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Communication is a key ingredient of a successful real estate transaction

For those who hire a real estate agent to assist them with selling their home, it should be expected that their agent would keep them in the loop throughout the process.

Unfortunately this is not always the case.

Communication is one of the vital keys to realizing the goal of selling a home. Here are a few examples of the communication that should take place between a real estate agent and their customer.


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- Greg Staker - Watson Realty Corp. - 407-304-0255

Sellers are going the extra mile to help sell their home

Realtors appreciate a seller who keeps a tidy house during the listing period. A home that is staged, clean and appealing will have a better chance of attracting a buyer. With the real estate market the way it is in several areas of the country, every bit helps.

However......

This caused me to tilt my head curiously. Here is the quote:

"Putting what I deemed as “smelly” trash in a bag in the freezer until trash
pick-up day. (We don’t own a garage, and it seemed like a “logical” place to
contain the smell that’s out of sight of any potential buyers. Yes, further
evidence of my craziness.)"

To read more about this seller's experiences, check out Tootie's Place.

You need a home warranty when buying or selling a home

Home Warranty

Sellers with Watson Realty are making the right choice by offering their prospective buyers an American Home Shield Home Warranty.

April 2007 statistics recorded a 91% customer satisfaction ratings. A home warranty reduces stress and makes a seller's home more valuable in a buyer's market.

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- Greg Staker Watson Realty Corp. 407-304-0255

Home not selling? What does your agent say?

Have you had your home on the market for 30 days? 60? 90? Maybe you have been on the market waiting for the "right" buyer for over 4 months or longer. What does your agent say when they provide you feedback? Let's examine some of the feedback you may have received.

• No buyers have viewed the home. Well it could be that your home was never placed in the MLS, or no advertisement was ever done or no open houses have been held or time as we know it stopped at the exact moment you listed your home....OR....it could be that with over 26,000 homes for sale in the 4 county area of Volusia, Osceola, Orange and Seminole that there are homes of similar size, quality and location as yours priced better. Real buyers are buying. They are not missing out on homes that are priced to sell. If your real estate agent has not shown you recent pending and sales in your area since you listed the home, make them show you. Homes are selling.
• The agents all say it is priced ok. This is one that I heard today. An agent in office said that their listing cannot be over priced because feed back from all the agents who showed the home did not indicate it was over priced. News flash, the agent is not buying your home! The buyer who is with the agent is and if they did not ask their agent to present you with an offer, then they have made a decision on your price. I wanted to dig deeper with my agent who made this comment so I asked, "well then if it is not the price, why haven't the buyers made an offer"? The yard is small and the 4th bedroom is not functional was the reply. BAM, that is value speak for, "The home is not priced correctly". My associate was viewing the home as if those items were not a problem. Today’s market dictates more that just a square footage/location analysis. I pointed this out and they finally got it. Hopefully we will be seeing a price reduction this week.
• It takes time. Don't take this at face value. Here is where a company with a strong marketing plan coupled with proper pricing will prove that statement wrong time and time again. Homes are selling within a day, a week, a month and well within the average days on the market statistic of 90 days in this area. Make sure you have your home positioned to take advantage of the available buyers in the market place today.

It is true that the market is much different than it was in 2004 and 2005. A savvy homeowner and real estate agent know that testing the waters with pricing needs to be done so with caution. Carefully watching the market and making the necessary adjustments to price can be all the difference from a home selling to a home getting "stale" on the market.

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- Greg Staker Watson Realty Corp. 407304-0255

Selling your home tips

Selling your home tips

A new promotion that requires you to relocate, a new baby on the way, perhaps you are downsizing or you are now in the position financially to purchase or build your dream home, whatever the reason for deciding to sell, the following home selling tips should be useful to you during the process.

• Make the commitment. Life offers its fair share of stressful situations. We counsel home buyer and sellers that this is often the single biggest financial transaction they will be involved in during their lifetime and as such, this transaction requires a total resolve and commitment by all parties involved to help ease or eliminate stress during the home selling process. Everyone who has a say in the decision to sell should be 100% behind the effort. Negotiations of offers, signing of addendums, responding to inspection, environment, appraisal and other legal documents and forms are all items that need to be dealt with in a timely, precise and informed manner. Those who have made the commitment to sell should have no troubles meeting these guidelines.

• Hire the best. In order to hire the best you will need to interview those real estate agents you are considering. Successful companies and agents leave secrets to their success. The best companies will often have been in the market area for many years and the best agents will choose to align with these companies. The best companies and agents will have clear, defined marketing strategies that can be custom fitted to your home selling needs; they have been successful and in place long before you even considered selling your home. The best companies and agents will be readily accessible to their customers, knowledgeable on local market trends and continuously seeking the training and education that will insure a smooth, stress-free transaction that will last long after closing. Ask about those qualifications when interviewing agents to sell your home. Take your time. Choosing the best agent and company prior to listing your home will save time and money.

• Sell the best. In a market with so many homes to choose from in any specific price range, size and location, your goal should be to offer the best possible home to prospective buyers possible. Stage your home so it presents itself in the best light to each and every prospective buyer. Grab a can of paint and do some touching up, clean the carpets and deodorize to eliminate pet and/or tobacco smells. Make the deal attractive. Buyers not making offers? Make them an offer. Offer concessions, offer to pay buyer closing costs, buy down their mortgage rate, offer a reduced price for quicker closing if they agree to purchase "as is" or if they agree to some other contingency of importance to you. To be the best, you need to beat the best. Ask your agent to take you on a tour of other homes similar to yours that are currently on the market. Afterward compare the plus' and minuses and implement the changes needed to make your home the best home on the market.

With over 40 years in the Florida real estate business, we can provide a proven track record of our success during any market conditions. Call or contact us today for a no obligation free market evaluation of your home or property.

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- Greg Staker Watson Realty Corp. 407-304-0255

Price reductions - Price improvements - Price correctly

Regardless of what you call it, proper pricing is the key to homes that are selling and homes that are sitting for month after month, frustrating Realtors and sellers. Back in the fall of 2005 I had started blogging about reaching the ceiling of value in our marketplace. I likened what was happening to a baseball runner getting caught between bases.

Well guess what? Here we are. I have seen agents and managers scurrying around this year trying out any gimmick they can think of in hopes of selling their listings. Builders and sellers are offering cars, trips and more in hopes of attracting buyers and sales. All of this to entice buyers who, according to most surveys, are primarily motivated by a home's price.

Statistics this past week of 11-20 to 11-27 provides additional proof. I checked the MidFlorida MLS and according to my research, 222 homes went under contract within the time period in Seminole and Orange County. 61% of those homes had at least 1 price reduction. Amazingly, of those homes that went under contract during the 1st 30 days of listing, 21% already had at least 1 price improvement. 84% of those homes on the market for over 90 days that received an accepted contract had at least 1 price reduction.

It is that simple. Not sure where your home should be priced? Call one of my top associates for a free market evaluation.


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- Greg Staker Watson Realty Corp. 407-304-0255