Realtors: The Myths and Legends
-Myth: “Discount” brokers can do an adequate job selling real estate.
-Truth: “Discount” brokers try to attract your attention by focusing on what they cost you instead of what they deliver. We charge no more than the average Realtor, yet we sell homes faster, for more money and more smoothly than the average Realtor (ask to see our statistics to confirm this claim). We are above average, discount brokers are below average – who do you want negotiating on your behalf?
-Myth: Kyle Ashworth sells a lot of real estate. Is he too busy to pay attention to your listing?
-Truth: Just as superior restaurants are busy at dinnertime and superior doctors have a heavy patient load, our success in marketing homes has resulted in our being busy. Like good restaurants and doctors, we have assembled a top flight staff to assist with routine details, which free us up to devote the time and attention you require to sell your home successfully. I have built my business on satisfied clients who spread the word about how well they were served.
-Myth: Open houses are an effective marketing tool.
-Truth: Serious buyers almost always use a Realtor to help them find and purchase a home… in part, because Realtor services are “free” to the homebuyer. Surveys consistently show that most buyers who make it to the closing table worked with a Realtor to buy their home and were not introduced to their home through an open house. Since open houses appeal to looky-loo’s, they are a terrific way for us to meet new buyers to work with. So an open house is only 13% effective in marketing your home and 97% effective as a source of new homebuyers for somebody else. We choose not to waste your time and effort on anything other than selling your home.
-Myth: It takes longer to sell a home in winter.
-Truth: It’s true that buyer activity is heavier in summer than in winter, but listing activity swings much higher in summer and lower in winter. As a result, when you list in summer, you have more competition from other home sellers. In winter, you have less competition, you are dealing with proportionately more serious home buyers (after all, who willingly moves in wintertime?), and your home may enjoy a competitive advantage if it faces south, is relatively close to town, enjoys gas instead of electric heat, or has level, easy-to-access driveway.
-Myth: Empty homes don’t show as nicely as furnished homes.
-Truth: The important consideration is whether a home is properly staged: that it is clean, in good repair and available to show. If you must move to your new home before your old home has sold, simple take Measures to insure your former home shows well empty: repair/replace worn carpeting, oil all woodwork, wash windows, clean walls. In fact, it will probably appear larger without your furnishings and the buyers can envision their belongings in each room more easily.
-Myth: Property condition is not important to buyers.
-Truth: Exactly wrong, a property in superior condition will sell faster and for more money than a home in average condition with a lesser asking price. Many sellers recognize this and repaint and re-carpet their homes in preparation for sale. They know that homebuyers purchase value and will perceive a clean, fresh home as more appealing than an average, lived-in, forgive-the-mess home.
-Myth: Pricing a home for sale is a mysterious process.
-Truth: Your home will sell for whatever the market will bear. Buyers look at what is available in their price range and buy the best value. To determine your value, you need to see what similar homes are selling for. And because every home is unique, your home will probably sell for a little more or a little less depending on its condition. We research the MLS computer and use our knowledge of the market to collect data to help you decide where to set the price. It’s not an easy process, but it’s not rocket science either.
-Myth: I can find more homes for sale by calling lots of agents.
-Truth: If you are home shopping in a specific area, and the agencies belong to Multiple Listing Services, it means they all have access to the same properties. Ask agents what areas they cover. Small-town agents might work a multi-county area. Agents in a city might restrict themselves to certain neighborhoods or subdivisions. If you sign agreements with more than one buyer's agent, make sure the contracts are worded so that areas and duties do not overlap. For instance, Agent X works for you only in County A. Agent Y works for you only in County B. Researching and showing properties is time-consuming, so you'll get better service if you find an agent you like (within a given area) and stick with that agent. Remember, if you work with a particular agent in one area, you may legally be bound to that agent when you sign a broker agreement form.
Are you ready to make that step into homeownership?
Kyle Ashworth- 435-790-2544
Email- kyle@kyleashworth.com
You can also contact my lender Ben Kaufman by calling 1-866-373-4700 or by completing an application now.
