New This Month
Print Article Archives
Reprints / Subscriptions
Editorial Calendar
Media Kit
Popular Features
Architecture Guide
Cost vs. Value Report
Good Neighbor Awards
Handouts for Customers
Top 100 Companies
Take a Quiz
30 under 30
Young Professionals
REALTOR® Emeritus
Architecture Guide
Cost vs. Value Report
Good Neighbor Awards
Handouts for Customers
Top 100 Companies
Take a Quiz
30 under 30
Young Professionals
REALTOR® Emeritus |  | WARM CALLING (Part 3) | | ||
|  Income-Planning Worksheet Advanced tip: Permission Marketing Warm Calling Advanced tip: ABCs of Prospects Broker tip: Add Rehab to Your Business Prospecting Buyers Call-Ins Advanced tip: Use Personal Assistants for Prospecting Advanced tip: Public Speaking Community Involvement Prospecting in Print Tracking Prospecting Results Advanced tip: Lead Analysis Quiz: Prospecting Bright Ideas: Prospecting Code of Ethics: Prospecting More Resources: Prospecting | Note: Due to the implementation of the National Do-Not-Call Registry on Oct. 1, 2003, this article needs to be revised and edited to conform to the new rules. This page should remain "not live" until these changes are made. Expireds (expired listings) 6 Steps to Listing Expireds 1. Call the day a listing expires. 2. Focus on proving to the sellers that you are different; remember they’ve just been disappointed by another real estate salesperson. 3. Provide some value immediately; a comprehensive market analysis will convince sellers you are serious. 4. Promise and provide a marketing plan within 48 hours. 5. Provide a list of what you will do in the first two weeks to sell their home. 6. Promise to communicate with them within 12 hours of every showing, plus once a week for a general round-up of activities. TIP: Call early; if you are the first caller, you will gain the advantage. Vacant, Stigmatized, and Neglected Properties · Find owners by checking deeds at city hall. · Write or call the owner to see if they are interested in selling. · Determine why the house is stigmatized—environmental problems, lawsuits, or insufficient funds. · Verify the causes of problems if you can; check for pending suits, liens, environmental reports, and foreclosures. · Determine if and at what cost the problem can be corrected. Environmental problems can be resolved, although the cost may be more than the house is worth. Ask if the owner has gotten an estimate for remediation. If the house is neglected, suggest selling it as a fixer-upper or even a teardown if the price is adjusted accordingly. Check back with owners periodically to determine if a lawsuit has been settled; don’t attempt to market the property until the dispute has been resolved. TIP: Seniors are often willing to sell once they realize that their equity can be translated in to a smaller, more easily maintained house. The sale is particularly easy if they will walk away with extra funds to invest. --Tim Corliss, RE/MAX Westside Properties, Santa Monica, Calif. Homebuilders Homebuilding has been at record levels across the country for several years. Many of these are spec houses built for later sale. Rather than spend time on sales themselves, homebuilders may prefer to work with a qualified real estate professional—like you. · Learn about home building from a course or by following a local builder around. Understanding builders’ terminology and processes gives you credibility. · Find out who is building in your area. Pull building permits down at city hall, check ads for new construction, or drive around the neighborhoods you cover. · Stress that you intend to focus part of your business on new construction. · Offer to take a reduced commission on your first few sales. 4 Other Hot Seller Sources · Personnel directors—assist transferred employees who need to sell or buy a home rapidly. · Investor and landlord groups—might be interested in buying homes to hold and rent. · Government agencies—need to dispose of properties acquired in tax sales and drug seizures. · Probate and divorce attorneys—assist in home sales from estates and for the division of assets during a divorce. --Courtesy of sales expert Ralph Roberts, Ralph E. Roberts Real Estate, Troy, Mich. TIP: Where appropriate and legal, offer to pay referral fees to sources of leads. Always include these sources in your customer appreciation events. For the Advanced Salesperson Partnering with Homebuilders · Be a land scout for homebuilders. Look for vacant lots, potential teardowns, and large lots ripe for subdividing. Offer to notify builders about possible sites with the understanding that you will sell whatever is built there. · Be a market consultant. Your clients give you insight into the most popular features, floor plans, and options. Offer to meet with builders to keep them updated on changing preferences in the market, if they will agree to list completed houses with you. TIP: Pre-qualify builders the same way you pre-qualify buyers and sellers. The goal is to find out how they stack up in terms of quality, financing, and ethics. · Look at what they've built in the past—ask homeowners if they’re satisfied. · Check the Better Business Bureau for complaints. · Talk to subcontractors and vendors to gauge a builder’s financial stability and ethics. · Ask for a financial statement to ensure solvency. · If in doubt, spend $35 on a credit check of the company. —Courtesy of David D'Ausilio RE/MAX Heritage, Southport, Conn. Brokers: Add Home Renovation to Your Business, next page > | Keep It Ethical Be sure to wait until the listing has expired to make the call. When you offer your services, don’t criticize expireds' former agent; instead focus on what you will do for them. Article 15 Keep It Ethical Always be honest with prospective buyers about problems associated with stigmatized properties. Article 2 |