Of course, they would also like that to happen as quickly as possible, and for as high a price as the market will bear!
Accomplishing this mission, however, in NOT always a simple task. Many times it takes a month to just prepare the house to go to market. There are pre-list inspections to do, to ensure there is nothing “hidden” that needs to be remedied before the buyers find it; perhaps a total cleaning, carpets to be shampooed/replaced, massive purging and/or decluttering, windows to clean, gardens to groom etc etc….Those are the details that are time consuming and can cause some sellers much angst…Some sellers don’t care about the details…they want the RESULTS! Both types of sellers want something else until the completion of the mission…..they want COMFORT AND ASSURANCE that everything is being done to achieve the optimum result.
Effective COMMUNICATION is the LIFEBLOOD of any business, whether in Real Estate or in Corporate America. So just as I supplied status reports to the President of my company when I worked in the Fashion Industry, so I supply weekly report to my Sellers…I report to them as I reported to the boss! They ARE my boss.
Each report contains:
*A summary of my marketing efforts…# of showings, feedback on Agents’ Open houses, feedback on Public Open houses.
*A summary of internet hits on my website, on my Brokerage’s website and I can tell them the # of Views of my listing on MLS!
*A summary of how many emails of the listing went out to my data base and to other agents.
*A summary of the social platforms where the VIDEO I make of their home is displayed.
I call each seller at least once a week to touch base and afford them the opportunity to express their thoughts or concerns. If there is new competitive product out, which is adversely affecting our listing, we discuss it.
No one likes to tell their client we need to drop the price, and thankfully, that is a rare occurrence for me; however, when I do have to, my clients are fully informed about the market and are READY/PREPARED to hear it.
Successful strategies are a TEAM effort between Agent and Sellers and they are best created and executed when the Sellers are fully aware of the pace/stats in the market and when they know you are doing everything you promised (and more) to deliver on the successful sale of the property. My sellers know how hard I work for them…I see it in the testimonials. My results in terms of selling the vast majority of my listings at or above the asking price and in a shorter time than the average days on market for the industry are not coincidental OR accidental. My results are proof of my understanding the link between detailed preparation and strategic market opportunities producing the planned results for my clients.