Category Archives: Realtor

Realtor

What Your Real Estate Agent Should be Doing to Sell Your Home

March 29, 2017

How good is your realtor?

Smart home sellers know there’s a whole lot more needed from a realtor than putting a sign in the yard and waiting. (Click to Tweet) As a seller, you deserve a lot more than this.

Getting a real estate license is the easy part, selling homes is a completely different game. Let’s look at what your real estate should be doing if you want your home to sell.

Perfectly Pricing Your Home

Providing the correct price point is the most important thing that your real estate agent will do to make sure your home sells. The best real estate agents have built a reputation on accurately pricing homes, rather than telling you what you want to hear.

Creating A Killer Campaign

Your home needs great marketing so it appeals to as many people as possible. This should include great pictures of your home from numerous viewpoints, as well as a video walk through.

An outstanding marketing campaign will also have a floor plan and feature sheet, and do more than just utilise multiple listing services. Today’s buyer is likely to find their dream home online and your realtor needs to take advantage of the many online opportunities.

Bring Better Buyers

Anyone may be interested in purchasing your house, but not everyone will qualify for a mortgage.

A good real estate agent will ensure buyers are pre-approved for a mortgage. This way they aren’t wasting time on offers where the financing will not be forthcoming, and potentially losing another buyer.

Terrific Character Traits

If you want your house to sell, these are the traits you should look for in a real estate agent:

  • You need to be able to trust them, and so do potential buyers
  • Professional manners and presentation, because they’re representing you
  • You need a strong negotiator you will always keep your interests at heart
  • A creative marketer with has a comprehensive marketing plan
  • Knowledge of your area and experience with proven results

When you find a real estate agent with these characteristics, the likelihood of your house selling skyrockets! Did you know that 7% of real estate agents complete 93% of real estate transactions? You want one of the 7% working for you!

It can be stressful selling a home. So, find a top-notch real estate agent who can ease the burden and ensure you have a successful outcome.

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Realtor, Uncategorized

How to Pick the Best Realtor (So You Get The Best Price)

March 22, 2017

Selling your home isn’t easy.

It’s a lot of work and it’s critical you get it right. If not, you risk losing thousands of dollars.

And your choice of agent is critical to the process. That’s why we’ve put together this guide to choosing a great realtor – so you can make an informed decision.

That way you’re more likely to have an enjoyable experience, and a great outcome.

Here’s how to pick the best realtor, so you get a great price for your home.

 

1.               Make Them Work

Interview several agents before you decide. Not sure what to ask? We’ve got you covered!

Here are some questions to ask and information on what the agent should be doing to sell your home.

 

2.               Go Local

Make sure your agent knows the local area because people will ask them about the local facilities. Your agent should be able to give people good solid information on the area.

 

3.               Check Their Fees

Some agents may charge different rates to others and it’s useful to know what you’re getting into.

But don’t go for the cheapest deal. Cheap is not necessarily cheerful.

Look for VALUE. This is just like buying any other product or service in that you generally get what you pay for.

You want to be well looked after during this process, so be sure you get value for money. Aim to get the best service, a professional attitude, and you’ll get a better result.

 

4.               Get Comfortable

Make sure you’re comfortable with the person you ultimately choose. If you’re not comfortable selling with this person, you can’t expect people to be happy to buy from them.

 

5.               Check the Small Print

Read the contract and be clear on any cancellation clauses. If you have a contract with a conditional release and you want to change agents part way through the contract, you must wait until the end of that contract.

Opt for an agent who offers an unconditional release so you have the flexibility you need.

At Residencity, we will always offer an unconditional release because we’re confident we can get you great results. Unlike traditional real estate agents we aim to give you the best value for money.

We’re focused exclusively on selling your home and provide services that are designed to maximize your sale.

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Realtor

What Should My Real Estate Agent Do to Sell My Home?

March 15, 2017

Is your agent really looking after you?

When you’re selling your home in the Vancouver area, you need someone who specialises in selling homes. Why?

Because an agent who’s an expert in home sales will provide extra services that will help you get the most money out of your home. Here’s what to ask when you interview prospective agents:

Do You Conduct Pre-Market Home Inspections for Your Clients?

Many real estate agents advise clients to hire an inspector before they put their home on the market. But don’t perform the inspection themselves.

As a result, many clients shy away from a pre-inspection. They may be worried they’ll uncover a money trap or they may not want to pay to inspect a home they won’t live in any longer.

At Residencity, we provide a better solution. We pay for our clients’ home inspection even before their home goes on the market.

We think that your real estate agent should do so, too. After all, knowing your home’s best points, as well as its flaws, can help your agent sell your home more effectively.

Do You Give Clients Tips to Maximise Their Home’s Selling Price?

After the pre-listing inspection, your real estate agent should provide several suggestions to help you get the most out of your home. For example, if the inspector found your gutters clogged, you can make your home more attractive to buyers by paying a few dollars to have them cleaned.

If a few floorboards are loose, tighten them so prospective buyers won’t be turned off by the squeak. You get the idea.

You may not want to pour a lot of money into your home but you can do several things to entice buyers to consider your home over the one down the street. Your real estate agent should give you a list of home improvement tips that can maximise your home’s selling price before it goes on the market.

Do You Stage and Photograph Your Clients’ Homes?

Buyers are more willing to plunk down a good chunk of change when they can imagine their own furniture fitting well into the home. That’s why a staging a home can make or break a sale.

A professional real estate agent should be able to advise you on how to best stage your home, using your existing furniture. They’ll tell you how to position your furniture in a more inviting way, and suggest you store your personal items (like your Canucks banner and your wedding picture).

This way prospective buyers can picture their own photographs and belongings in the home.

After staging, a quality real estate agent will bring a professional photographer to your home to show your home’s best face to the world. Since you’re paying the commission the real estate agent should include these services.

Never let an agent take home photographs with their smart phone. The results will be vastly inferior and your home won’t do well compared to others. (Click to Tweet)

Do You Provide Floor Plans and Specification Sheets to Prospective Buyers?

You wouldn’t buy a car that didn’t have an owner’s manual would you? It’s the same with real estate.

You need to know where to find various amenities, how large the place is, and what condition it’s in. A great real estate agent will provide those things so potential buyers will know everything they need to before they buy.

Yours agent should, too.

Here at Residencity, we provide three things to our clients before we put their homes on the market: a floor plan, a manual, and a specification sheet.

When buyers know that the former owners have taken care of every detail for them, they will be more likely to purchase the home with no worries. Less to stress about, more reasons to buy.

After you find a few real estate agents who will go the extra mile to sell your home, it’s time to narrow down your choices to find the very best one for your needs.

If you live in the Vancouver area and want an agent who will look after you and do what’s necessary to maximise the selling price for your home, contact Residencity today.

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Realtor

4 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Real Estate Agent

March 01, 2017

Do you trust your real estate agent (Click to Tweet)

Deciding which real estate agent to go with when selling you home is one of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make.

You want a high-quality, ethical, conscientious agent who has your best interests at heart. You want them to sell your house efficiently and effectively.

Meaning, you want to maximise the amount of money you get for your home, and you want it sold in a reasonable period. Not too fast (for too little) and not too slow either.

To find the right agent, you’ll need to ask several pointed questions. This will give you a feel for the agent’s level of experience, and let you know that you can trust them.

Here are the key questions to ask.

What types of homes do you typically sell?

You’re looking for an agent with experience in selling homes that are like yours.

Here’s an example. A real estate agent who specializes in selling high-rise condos may not be the best choice to sell your ranch-style estate.

That doesn’t mean that they can’t, but it might not be the best choice. Look for an agent who has experience with properties that are like yours.

How familiar are you with the neighbourhood?

Prospective buyers will have lots of questions about the neighbourhood as well as about your home. Things like how quiet the area is, or where the nearest park or school is located.

Your agent should be able to confidently answer these questions. This way buyers have all the information they need to make an educated decision about your property.

You’ll also want to ensure that your agent is familiar with the local market so that they can accurately price your home for the current market conditions.

How long have you been in the real estate business?

This gives you a sense of the agent’s overall experience. Of course, everyone must get their start somewhere.

Not all agents are experienced but do you really want an inexperienced agent working for you?

This is a personal decision and maybe you’re willing to give someone a chance to wow you. But remember that you’ve worked hard for your property and now you need to fetch a good price for all that effort.

How long do your homes typically stay on the market?

This will give you an indication of how successful the agent will be for you.

Keep in mind that there can be several factors at play when a home sits on the market for a long time. This question is more about gaining a general idea of what you might be able to expect.

Here at Residencity, we are a team of highly experienced real estate agents in the Vancouver area. We would be happy to help you sell your home, so get in touch with us right away to get started.

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Realtor

The importance of real estate awards: not as important as you think

November 01, 2016

You pick up an agent’s real estate brochure. On the back of the 6 page brochure there are 5 awards.  

real-estate-awards

What do all these even mean? They’re not there for you to understand, they’re just there to tell you that the agent can do the job for you. Each brokerage has their own awards and standards and by no means are these indicators of how well they do their job, as there is almost an award for every agent out there.

At this day and age, it is almost difficult to come across an agent without a real estate award. From Rookie of the Year, to Award of Excellence, and the list goes on.. So what sets one agent above the rest? We’re not here to tell you how to distinguish one award from another, but rather to advise you on how not to let awards get in the way of choice in hiring a real estate agent that is right for you.

Or hire Residencity. We don’t present real estate awards to cloud our seller’s judgement, the proof is in the care and pride we take in our work. Listing with Residencity means a standard and an unbiased marketing plan which includes enhanced MLS listings, extended open houses, pre-inspection and professional grade marketing materials. Call us at 604.288.9166 or email us to list with Residencity and see what else we can do for you.

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Realtor

Buying a pre-sale: with or without a real estate agent?

September 27, 2016

There’s a developer that’s planning to build a condo at the end of your block. You’re looking to move into a bigger place and you wonder, is it necessary to have a real estate agent present when you looking to purchase/purchasing a presale condo?

We’re going to advise that it is not necessary to go with a real estate agent. When a real estate agent oversees a pre-sale condo purchase, they automatically get a commission, even if they have not done any consultation or research. All they have to do is bring you to the presentation centre. On the flipside, real estate agents are not that interested in pre-sale condos either since they don’t get paid until the building is completed, which can be several years away as they get paid on closing.

Residencity believes that you should purchase directly from developers when looking to buy a pre-construction condo. It is important to see past the promotions and other distractions that may be present at the presentation centre and really analyze the contracts and details that are presented to you. If you are unsure with your purchase, it is worth noting that a pre-sale contract can also be cancelled within 7 days of signing.

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What Your Real Estate Agent Should be Doing to Sell Your Home

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Realtor

What are the 2 most valuable things to real estate agents?

September 20, 2016
  1. Listing Contract – Where the agents signs the listing with the seller
  2. Sale/Purchase Contract – Where the agents helps facilitate the transaction

 

Everything else in between the two becomes an obligation. This mentality is not limited to real estate but is present in every business that is backed by a commission based structure.

 

The real estate agent’s efforts on marketing, open houses, taking phone calls, setting up and being present at showings are not directly related to their commission, but directly impacts the sale price of your home.As the real estate industry is

 

As the real estate industry is commission based, it’s natural for people to think like this when you relate every task to a dollar.  Everything has bestowed a value and tasks become an obligation when there is little to no value behind it.

 

This is not to say that people are purposely neglecting steps in between, but that it is just in human nature to want to go for things that provide you with the most value.


So how can you prevent yourself?  Ask your Real Estate agent for a marketing plan and clearly, ask them what are investments will they be doing in terms of services and products to sell your house OR call us at the Residencity Real Estate Team.


The true value of your property is closely intertwined with the steps that your real estate agent takes to market your property and your listing price is directly impacted when components are missed.

 

Contact us at 604.288.9166 for a free consultation as well as a pre-inspection and to work with a team that truly values the marketing aspect and the ‘steps in between’ of the real estate industry.

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Realtor

Why are there so many Realtors out there?

September 06, 2016

There’s a perception that the real estate industry is a lucrative one and that you can make a lot of money. While this is definitely true, success in the real estate industry is something that only less than 10% can achieve. Many get licensed and do okay for the 1st and 2nd year but then change career paths after they have finished serving their friends and family and have run out of clients.

It’s not difficult becoming a real estate agent. Here are the 4 steps:

  1. Language Requirement. English is the language used for all real estate documents set by the Real Estate Council of British Columbia (RECBC), and you need to know enough to have an understanding of these documents. This is evaluated by a Language Proficiency Requirement which candidates must satisfy before registering for the licensing exam.
  • Education of 2 courses. You will need to take a Real Estate Trading Services Licensing Course which introduces you to the legal side of things;  
    • how to write a contract
    • how to interpret contracts
    • what to say and when to say it

After taking this course, you will be licensed to work under a real estate brokerage. Taking the Residential/Commercial Trading Services Applied Practice Real Estate Course builds on your knowledge from the first course.

  1. Find a brokerage, and have them sign your licensing application. The BC council approves your application and you become a real estate agent.
  2. Join a real estate board. This way, you can gain access to online Multiple Listing Service (MLS), Paragon (the dashboard to view sold history and perform detailed searches) and standard forms when performing transactions with your clients.

As you can see from the steps outlined above, the bare minimum you really need is to take a licensing course which is approximately a year long commitment but can be done in as quickly as 3 months. Not too difficult or as lengthy compared to some other professions and there is no other requirement aside from taking the course, being able to communicate, read and write in English.  On average there are 10,000 to 14,000 active members at a time registered with the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.  

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What Your Real Estate Agent Should be Doing to Sell Your Home

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What Should My Real Estate Agent Do to Sell My Home?