Dear Friend,

I just got back from a main event and it seems like the last few main events, one of the things that people are constantly asking about is in this changing market, they have listings that are piling up and not selling. 

The competition is building.  There are more options for buyers, and there are more homes that you have to stand out against. 

So when I really think about it, what I always like to do is to make the distinction when I’m asking people about their situation, is to really ask yourself, are you working with sellers or are your working with listings?  Because there’s quite a distinction there between having sellers and having listings. 

To me just like when we are looking for 5 star prospects and we are talking about buyers, we are also looking for 5 star sellers, and it’s important to realise that listings don’t make you money.  Sellers make you money.

You don’t get paid for having listings.  They are actually a liability.  You are going to spend money.  You are going to spent time.  You are going to get invested psychologically in this relationship. 

It’s going to take up a lot of your time thinking about it, and thinking about what can you do to get this property sold, and what I want to make sure is that if you have got 5 or 6 or 7 listings that you really evaluate that and determine how many of those people are really sellers?  Five star sellers?  Here’s what we are looking for.  If you have got listing that just won’t sell, you should probably take a look at them and see if they meet these 5 requirements.  These are the requirements for a 5 star seller.

Number 1: They are motivated to sell the house. 

The very best seller is someone who has a firm deadline or a firm plan for what they are going to do and that they are going to do it no matter what.  If you have got somebody who is transferred to Cleveland and they have to be there on June 30th, that is a firm deadline. 

So they are up against the fact that they have got to move.  They are going to be the most realistic with what the market is, because people who have firm plans are going to do whatever it takes.  But if you have sellers that may not be as motivated, you have got to kind of look at that and see are they the kind of people that you want to work with?  If a seller says, we are not in a hurry, or we are not going to give it away, or if it sells it sells, you are probably not dealing with a 5 star seller. 

Those kind of clues in their language will jump out at you in your conversations with them, and you really have to take an honest look at your sellers, at your listings and see whether they really are sellers.

Number 2: They are willing to price it at market value. 

Today’s market is today’s market.  You have to deal with what you are given, and your sellers have to realise that their personal situation doesn’t make their house worth any more or less than market value.  The market doesn’t care how much they owe, or how much they paid or how much they need to get out of it.  The market just cares what is market value. 

Your sellers can’t be attached to all of that stuff either.  Your situation is trying to convey to your sellers, or determine on your own, is if you were selling a $100 bill, let’s say that your listing was a $100 bill.  How much are you trying to sell that $100 bill for right now?  Are you trying to sell if for $105?  Because the seller needs $105 for it?  Or are you trying to sell it for $98 to get rid of the competition?  To be the one that will jump out?  If you have got a listing, if you look at it almost like the currency market. 

You know $100 bill goes up and down in what it’s really worth, but it’s always worth $100.  Houses are just like that.  A house is a house and it’s only worth what it’s worth relative to today’s market.  Not what it used to be. 

Not what it’s going to be.  Not what your sellers need it to be, but what it is and the more realistic you can get about that price, the more realistic you can get your sellers to be about that price, the better off you are going to be.  So you have got to ask yourself, are they willing to price it at market value?  If they are, then they have reached our second qualification.

Number 3: Their willing to stage the house to show it’s very best. 

Sometimes the condition of a house is what keeps it from selling and you know exactly what I am talking about.  If there’s clutter, if there’s dirt, little signs of disrepair, squeaky doors, a door off its hinges, all those kinds of things work against you when you are trying to sell a home for top dollar. 

If there are little things that need to be done.  If the carpet is really kind of worn in a bedroom, or it’s worn in a high traffic area, you are far better off to have your sellers replace it at what it really costs to do, because your buyers are going to magnify what the cost of that is in their minds.  So if a seller is motivated to sell, they will be willing to clean up the clutter. 

They will be willing to pack up some of the boxes.  It’s kind of interesting because a seller who has a deadline, a seller who is motivated is going to be more than happy to start packing stuff up and start getting ready for the move because things are happening.  But somebody who is not invested emotionally in moving, if they are kind of sitting waiting to see what’s going to happen.  Well if it sells, it sells, if we get our price we will sell, they are not going to be as motivated to change their environment because it’s just the way that they want it right now.  They are not going to be as motivated to start packing boxes, because what if we don’t move?  They are questioning that and so I always find that motivation is going to determine how much they are willing to do to make the house show its very best. 

And any kind of situation where you are competing against even one other listing, you have got to have a house that will show its very best.  It’s going to be a big competitive advantage for you.

Number 4: There are not marketing obstacles. 

If your seller says, things like we don’t want a sign, or we don’t want our neighbours to know, or we have to be here when the house is shown, or we need 24 hours notice for showings, or we are not willing to put our dog somewhere else, or interrupt our life in anyway.

They are hurting your ability to sell the home quickly and for top dollar because things move fast is there are all these obstacles in the way, if you can’t let the neighbours know, if you can’t use a sign, if you can’t put a lockbox on the property, all those things are handicapping your ability to actually sell the home for top dollar, especially quickly. 

So you have got to ask yourself, make sure that you are not getting into a bad situation right from the beginning.  And I say this right in the beginning because it’s often easier to identify these things before you take the listing, than it is to kind of retroactively go back and fix them, but the truth is you can never go down the wrong road too shortly.  You can never, it’s never too, you have never gone down that road too far to stop and turn around because if you are heading down the wrong road, it’s the wrong road anyway.  So why not turn around and rectify the situation.  If you have got 6 listings and you know that some of them are just not 5 star sellers, is it worth it for you to continue on?  It’s better to know it now and cut your losses and focus all of your attention on your sellers. 

Number 5: They would like you to sell it for them. 

If they pass the first 4 tests and this is really when we were talking about getting new listings, then it really comes down to whether they would like you to sell the house for them.  In my experience most of the time a listing doesn’t sell it’s because you not dealing with a 5 star seller. 

Usually that happens because you spend so much effort and attention on trying to get the listing without really paying attention to see if they are sellers.  It’s interesting because we value listings so highly in our real estate world that we hear all these things that listers last and if you don’t have any listings you are out of business, and there’s an ego gratification that comes from putting that new listings up on the board in your office or having your signs out in the community because listings beget other listings and buyers and activity and it gives you a feeling in your self-esteem that you are feeling good about yourself because you have got listings. 

It’s evidence to other realtors that you are successful.  It’s evident to other people that you are successful, but you cannot cash a listing.  You can’t take a listing to the bank.  What makes you money is getting listings sold.  You are running a business.  You are in business to help people sell their homes, not to list homes.  The more that you are discriminating at the very beginning, or discerning is a better word, the more discerning you are at the very beginning the better off you are going to be.  You are going to avoid taking listings that you know are going to expire as soon as you walk out the door.

You know when you leave and you say to the seller, well we will test it at this price, or let’s give it a try, or we will do our best. 

Let’s see what the market tells us.  All these kinds of things where you kind of let things slide.  You know that you are not doing your sellers a real service, so take a look at all the listings you have right now and ask yourself are they motivated to sell the house?  When do they have to move?  What are their real plans?  Are they committed to those plans?  Are they willing to price it at market value?  Will they realise that today’s market it today’s market and they have to be priced accordingly, especially faced with more competition and more listings?  Are they willing to stage the house to show its very best? 

There’s little things that could make a big difference, depersonalising the house a little bit, making it look like a model home.  Maybe getting a new paint job.  Maybe getting some of the repairs that need to be done.  Are there any marketing obstacles in your way?  Are they helping, making you sell the house with one hand tied behind your back?  You want to make sure that all of those marketing obstacles are addressed.  And number 5, would they like you to sell it for them?  That’s really all we are really looking for before you get to number 5, would they like you to sell it for them and would you like to sell it for them?  You want to make sure that they meet all of the other four requirements first.  Rather than getting into to getting the listing.

Ok, that is going to be a big, big help if you have got a listing inventory right now.  Have the courage to go through that list.  Have the courage to address those obstacles or any of the ones that are deficient in with your sellers and if it comes down to it, sometimes you are better off letting them go.  You will both be happier.  So make sure that you are working with sellers and not listings.

That’s it for this week.  Have a great week and we will be back next time with even more ways to get listings, find buyers and convert leads.