Market Exposure > Days on Market; When 1 Week on the Market ≠1 Week on the Market I’m a big fan of aggressive, pre-list marketing. One of the easiest (and cheapest!) methods, especially for a home in a high-profile, high-demand location: install the “For Sale” sign early, and attach a “Coming Soon” rider (note:...Read More
Strong Lender = Strong Deal Normally, when Realtors think about financially qualifying a home Buyer, they think about what the listing agent — representing the Seller — does. Stuff like vetting the Buyer’s Pre-approval Letter (and making sure there is one!); interviewing the Buyer’s lender once an offer comes in; making sure the Buyer’s earnest...Read More
Buyers’ Lenders . . . & Sellers’ (Huh??) What’s better than a Pre-Approval Letter from the home Buyer’s lender? A Pre-Approval Letter from the home Seller’s lender. Huh??? In fact, I really should say, “a lender known and trusted by the Seller’s listing agent.” Protecting the Seller When a Buyer shows up with a shaky Pre-Approval...Read More
Complying With The Golden Rule (Still) Admittedly, it’s not a perfect analogy: I’m hardly suggesting that all Realtors are wizards, and that lenders are all witches (sometimes, it’s the other way around). But, at least from the perspective of a Buyer’s agent, clients (especially first-time Buyers) can seem a little bit like Dorothy, and the process...Read More
Not-So-High Pressure Sales The mantra for many Realtors (and salespeople generally) is “Always Be Closing” (“A-B-C”). While closing — pushing things ahead, narrowing down issues, getting signatures/assent, etc. — is certainly a necessary skill in real estate, I actually try to live by a variation of that. Namely, “Always be Qualifying” (“A-B-Q”). What’s the distinction?...Read More
“Top 10” Job Duties In their lifetime, the average home owner may deal with 4 or 5 lenders (perhaps a few more these days, given serial refinancing at ever-lower rates). By contrast, a busy, experienced Realtor can easily deal with 15-20 lenders in a year, on both sides of deals (that is, as both a...Read More
