Robin’s efforts to sell your home go far beyond an ad in the newspaper and a sign in your yard, but even these items get her full attention to detail. Below are the services Robin provides when you decide to list your home with her.
PROFESSIONAL VENDORS— Robin has a database of contractors, handymen and vendors to assist in preparing your home for sale as necessary whether it be replacing a roof, fixing a leak, painting or yard clean-up—she has access to it all!
CONTRACT COMPLETION — The purchase and sale contracts used in our area are also used statewide as of late 2007. Robin has complete knowledge of these forms and their nuances. They are reviewed and amended from time to time but they are not perfect and they are buyer biased. Robin uses her expertise to help protect and promote your best interests.
SIGN — a professional “for sale” sign with easily recognizable Windermere Real Estate colors will be placed on your property alerting neighbors and people passing by that your property is on the market. In municipalities which allow it, strategically placed directional signs will help interested parties locate your property.
DIGITAL LOCK BOX — With your permission, a lock box will be placed on your property to increase showings and to provide you with the security of knowing who has shown your home. This also provides the opportunity to collect valuable feedback from anyone who has previewed your home.
BROCHURE BOX — A brochure box will be placed on the signpost giving anyone passing by immediate information on your home. The flyers will also have all the information an interested party would need to retrieve additional information from the internet and/or to reach Robin to arrange a private tour.
PRICING—As a professional, Robin takes pride in keeping close tabs on our local market. She uses “absorption rate” statistics to help determine market trends over time and to spot market changes at their earlier stages and counsel you accordingly. Using the Multple Listing Service to prepare a comparative analysis and using her statistics, Robin can help you determine the best price to list your home to meet your deadlines and goals. If price or marketing adjustments are needed, she can react quickly to market conditions.
BROKER’s OPEN — If your schedule permits, Robin will hold a broker’s open that will allow area realtors from all real estate offices to preview your home. Light refreshments will be provided and Robin will follow-up with the other agents for feedback.
OPEN HOUSE — At your request, Robin will hold your house open on a day that is convenient for you. To maximize attendance she will place a sign in your front yard promoting the open house 3 – 4 days before. This helps to capture buyers “who happen to be in the area” but also lets people plan to be there as well. Robin will gather feedback from all parties who attend.
WEEKLY CONTACT—Robin will contact you at least weekly to give you an update on the marketing of your home and to answer any questions that you might have. She will provide you showing feedback information as well as updates on market conditions and the “competition”.
SHOWING FEEDBACK—Robin will keep records of all agents and buyers who see your property and will contact each of them for feedback. This is crucial as it is ultimately the marketplace that determines the value of your property. (Whatever a ready, willing and able buyer is willing to pay.)
PROPERTY RESEARCH—Robin will help reconcile issues in advance when possible regarding permits, tax records, septic as-builts, or anything that may be of interest to a potential buyer.
TRANSACTION MANAGEMENT—Robin has tried and true systems in place to manage all the details of your transaction to ensure that you will meet all contractual deadlines without surprises and that your contract closes on time.
Every home is different and deserves to be treated as such. Robin will tailor her marketing plan to best suit your property. She will not stop marketing your home until it is sold! She will employ the following activities as part of this plan:
HOME PRE-INSPECTION — There are many benefits to inspecting your house in advance. The report will reveal issues that could cause a buyer to back out or have concerns. You have the opportunity to make necessary repairs before they become an issue. A pre-inspection reduces the need for 11th-hour re-negotiations and the need to rush repair estimates. Should there be issues reported you do not wish to repair, an allowance for the repair or an adjustment in price can be made as appropriate. Having a home inspection available for prospective buyers who preview your home will give them more confidence to make a serious offer. *** ask for further details
STAGING — The way you live in your home and the way we sell your house are two different things! When you place a home on the market for sale, it becomes a product with pluses and minuses competing against similar products. To gain an edge, your house must be priced right and look better than the competition during the first few critical weeks on the market. Robin will provide a consultation with a home-staging professional to help you arrange each room and the house as a whole to best advantage. *** ask for further details
PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER—Research shows that advertising with multiple pictures sells homes. Robin will schedule a professional to take photographs of your home’s interior and exterior. Over 85% of homebuyers now start their search on the internet before even contacting an agent so it is more important than ever to be sure the first impression of your home is the best one and full color professionally done photographs help ensure that your home will be in the “we want to see it” stack!
MULTIPLE LISTING SERVICE (MLS) -—The MLS is responsible for notifying the area’s real estate brokers about new property, as well as populating the numerous real estate websites with available property information. The MLS is our #1 tool for showing your property to buyers. Robin will gather every bit of information she can about your property and enter it into the MLS with multiple photos and a very detailed description. She will use your input to bring attention to the features that attracted you to your property in the first place. She will also call out the features she knows are in high demand.
BUYER AGENT PACKETS—Robin will create information packets for the agents who show your home which include all the information necessary for them to write a complete offer. These packets include such items as the legal description of your property, the form 17 seller disclosure, the utility providers for your property, the title company with title order number and contact information, the lead paint disclosure form and other items as needed. These packets will also be available on-line for buyer’s agents.
INTERNET EXPOSURE—Internet exposure is increasingly important to the sale of your home. Robin will make certain that your home will be accessible to potential buyers looking for homes matching your property’s profile on the internet. Buyers will see your home both through their agents emailing them your listing information via the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) site as well as through Realtor.com. Your home will appear on Robin’s personal website, YourRealEstateAdvocate.com along with the major company sites such as Windermere.com, JohnLScott.com and ColdwellBankerBain.com. Robin pays a fee to place your home on the StagedHomes.com national website. In addition, your home will appear on the following sites: Google.com, Hotpads.com, Properazzi.com, Zillow.com, Backpage.com,DotHomes.com, Oodle.com, Trulia.com (one of the fastest growing websites in the nation),Yahoo! Real Estate, Cyberhomes.com, Homescape.com and FrontDoor.com—with others being added as the internet grows.
POSTCARDS—High-quality “Just Listed” postcards will be sent to your neighbors and 100 of the local area’s most active Realtors to put your home foremost in their minds.
COLOR FLYERS—Robin will prepare full color, professional brochures to make available to potential buyers. The flyers will highlight the pertinent information as well as your home’s special features. All flyers will include her contact information so that she may answer additional questions or arrange a showing..
FEATURE CARDS—It may seem a small thing, but posting “feature cards” throughout the house to point out benefits that may not be readily obvious are helpful to a buyer (such as “Furnace only a year old” or “Roof installed two years ago” or “Community Park two blocks away”.) It takes a little extra time, but isn’t your house worth it?
NETWORKING—As a listing agent, Robin’s primary responsibility is to bring the attention of the marketplace to YOUR home. She may never actually show your home to a buyer herself. Robin will spread the word and call attention to your property at every opportunity through her networking with Realtors from her company and other companies.
