The bottom line to selling your property/home is - the maximum exposure in the advertising market in addition to correct pricing yields the best and highest price possible for your property.  This means you need to pay attention when choosing your REALTOR to who has the best marketing plan and who is the most thorough when providing a Comparative Market Analysis for you. 

Look around and see who is doing the most business and who is the busiest REALTOR in the area.  The two best ways to investigate this is by paying attention to the number of yard signs you see and the amount of advertising on the internet.  The best website to go to and look at the advertising is www.Realtor.com.   Realtor.com is the number one real estate website and generates up to 40 times more traffic than other real estate websites.  Visit this website and see who has Featured Home Listings, who has Enhanced and Show Cased listings and who has up to 25 pictures on each listing. 

Also, check out the individual company’s website.  Who has the best website?  Check out our website - www.EufaulaLakeshoreRealty.com.  It was used by a national lending institution in a seminar as an example of one of the best real estate websites on the internet today!

Once you have chosen an Accredited Buyer’s Representative, it is time to make sure you are financially ready and prepared to purchase a lake home.  Unless you are going to pay cash for your home, you will be contacting a lender to assist you in borrowing the money to buy your home/property.  A professional REALTOR will ask you if you are pre-qualified before s/he will begins to show you properties.  If you need help to learn the steps to become pre-qualified, you can ask your ABR and s/he can/will provide you with resources for lenders and point you in the right direction. 

One of the first things the lender will check out is your Credit Score.  In today’s market it will take a minimum credit score of 620 to qualify for a loan.  This is the score that is required for a lender to be able to sell the loan on the secondary market.  This is just the minimum score to qualify.  It will take a credit score of 760+ to get the best rates.  The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows you to obtain one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax; Experian; Trans Union Corporation).  To obtain a free report go to:  www.annualcreditreport.com or call 877-322-8228.  Find out what your Credit Score is before you take the next step.

1.  The REALTOR that you are considering, how many listings do they have and how much volume have they sold during the current year?  How does this compare to other REALTORS in the area?

2.  Does the REALTOR you are considering work full-time?  Have they earned any designations since they obtained their real estate license?

3. What is the marketing plan your potential REALTOR has to help you sell your home faster? The best real estate agents will have a marketing plan that will cover the main information sources used in home searches:

• Internet - 87%
• Real Estate agent - 85%
• Yard Sign - 62%
• Open House - 48%
• Newspaper ad - 47%
• Home book or magazine - 30%

4. Ask for a written commitment of the services the REALTOR will provide for you during the marketing and during the closing process of your property.

5. Ask for the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the last three (five) Sellers you have represented? Call these people and ask the following questions:

• Was the REALTOR available to you in a timely manner when you needed to get a hold of them?
• Was the final selling price of your home close to the original price the REALTOR suggested that you list at?
• Did the REALTOR live up to their marketing plan?
• Did you feel that this REALTOR was a strong negotiator?
• Did your REALTOR listen to your concerns and do their best to address them?
• Would you recommend this person to your friends?

6. Does the REALTOR offer to do a Comparative Market Analysis before suggesting a List Price?

7. Does the REALTOR know the current rate of absorption?

8. How does the REALTOR handle negotiating commissions?

9. Does the REALTOR’S company have a large market share?

10. Does the REALTOR’S company have a plan for helping you to avoid litigation?

REMEMBER - Choose a REALTOR BEFORE you start looking at houses.  The worst thing you can do is to pick a real estate agent simply by calling the number on the sign.  As you begin to interview REALTORS with an ABR - make sure your REALTOR knows their numbers.  For example, lots of buyers will ask a real estate agent, “How long has the property been on the market?”  However, the response to this question does not mean much unless you know the average Days on Market (DOM) for property in the area.  Once you know this you have a better idea if the property has been on the market a prolonged period of time.  For example, the average days on the market for property in the Southeastern Oklahoma area for 2010 is 132 days.  If you are looking at a property that has been on the market 120 days - that is below the current average.  Also, many buyers will ask you for advice about where to begin negotiations on a piece of property.  If you have a Buyers’ Agent, they can assist you by letting you know the average list/sell ratio.  For example, the current list/sell ratio for the Southeastern Oklahoma area is 90%.  This means you might have a good chance of purchasing a particular property for 90% of the list price.  It is at least a good place to start. 

Now that you have decided to sell your home and are ready to emotionally detach from it and de-personalize it, it is time to get started and prepare your home to sell.  Before you even think about contacting a REALTOR, you need to go over the checklist “What You Should Do to Prepare Your Home to Sell.”  The more of these things you will do on this list, the more you will maximize the price you will be able to sell your home for as well as minimize the length of time it will be on the market.  Take a look at the list and get to work checking the items off.  Go over this list before you call a REALTOR or an Accredited Home-Staging person.

In tip #1 I said the first thing to do is to choose a REALTOR.  Not all REALTORS are the same and you may need to know the facts to help you make the wisest choice.  First, not all real estate agents are REALTORS.  Only real estate professionals who are members of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) can use the title REALTOR.  These professionals have acquired a great deal of knowledge and have made a commitment to the NAR Code of Ethics.  At the very least, choose a real estate agent who is a REALTOR.  Second, choose a REALTOR who is an Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR).  A REALTOR with an ABR designation has taken Accredited Buyer’s Representative training, specialized education offered by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC).  An ABR knows the local market and understands the special needs of buyers.  They have the experience to provide the service you need and will help you make informed decisions.  Karen Weldin 918-605-7405 and Stephanie Fine 918-470-5122 are both Accredited Buyers’ Representatives. Give them a call - you’ll be glad you did!

So you have decided to sell your home.  The key word here is “decided.”  Before you put your home on the market, make sure you have really decided you are ready to sell.  If you have not made this decision emotionally, you will set yourself up to lose money on one of your biggest investments in life.  Staying emotionally attached to your house means you will more than likely not prepare your home to sell, you will not de-personalize the transaction and you will tend to over price your house.  In the long run this will cause you to lose money.  Know that you are ready to detach and let go of the emotional tie to your house.  You will then be in a position to start researching your REALTOR and be ready to listen to the advice of the expert.  How will you know when you have detached and are emotionally ready to sell?  You will know this when you are okay with de-personalizing your house in preparation to sell.  You will also know you are ready when you are willing to find out what a Comparable Market Analysis says the fair market value is of your home and you are willing to list it within 5% of the value.  Then, you know you are ready to sell.

Happy New Year everyone!  It is 2010 and I believe it is going to be a good year in the real estate world.  I have made my New Year’s resolutions and one of them is to write real estate tips for you.  This is the first week of January and my first tip is for real estate buyers. 

TIP #1:  STOP!  Stop - do not pick up your phone and call a real estate person you don’t know just because they have a particular property listed for sale.  Just because you drive by a sign or see a name on a property - do not assume you have to call this person to see the property. If you are serious about buying a home, FIRST shop for your REALTOR.  Not all REALTORS are the same.  Do you know what MLS means?  MLS stands for “Multiple Listing Service.” The MLS is a means by which real estate agents are informed of the properties offered for sale by other agents.  It is also a current and comprehensive listing system for relaying property information to REALTORS. This service offers the widest exposure to properties listed for sale.  REALTORS pool their information on properties and then share their fees/commissions.  The first thing to do once you know you want to buy a piece of real estate is to shop for your REALTOR.  Once you find the REALTOR you are comfortable with and who you believe will work for your best interests, then start looking for properties.  Most REALTORS are members of MLS programs.  Therefore, pick your REALTOR first.  Then s/he will help you research for the best property.  Don’t make the most common mistake in real estate of calling the first name you see off of a real estate sign and then feel stuck with this agent regardless of their skill level.  Worse yet, don’t call five different REALTORS to show you five different properties.  REALTORS know who is bouncing around from REALTOR to REALTOR and their trust level will soon be as low as your initial trust level of REALTORS.  (52 Weeks of Tips will be posted to the Eufaula Lakeshore Reatly website. If you miss one week you will be able to find the tip under the buyer and seller section of our website.)

I hope everyone had a very special Christmas this year.  I was in Dallas and had a white Christmas!  With Christmas over and as we begin to wind down 2009, there is still time to take advantage of the tax credits for first time home buyers and for those of you who have owned a home for 5 years.  We, at Eufaula Lakeshore Realty, will be open Monday, December 28 - December 30th and will be glad to show you property.  Just give us a call at 918-452-3184.  Need help finding out about property on the Multiple Listing Service?  We can help you with that, too.  We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you soon.

During the Holiday Season our thoughts turn to those who make our business possible. A sincere thank you for trusting us with your real estate needs.  May the joys of Christmas fill your home with many happy memories. 

We bring you smiles and laughter with our Christmas song.  We hope you enjoy. (click on the picture to the left)

Merry Christmas from all of us at Eufaula Lakeshore Realty:

Karen Weldin, Broker/Owner, MA, GRI, ABR, e-Pro, AHWD

Susanne Bain, REALTOR/Owner

Stephanie Fine, REALTOR, ABR

Priscilla Bradley, Broker-Associate

Donna McRee, Accredited Home-Staging Specialist