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SERVICING THE LISTINGCHAPTER 7

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OWNERCOMMUNICATIONS

The greatest failure: agent doesn’t notify the owner about what is going to happen when he takes the listing. The owner/agent communication should start with the interview for the listing. The agents need to notify the seller about what is going to happen.

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Tell the seller:

1. It will take a couple of days to put the listing on the MLS.

2. Within the next couple of weeks, I will have an office preview and a MLS preview.

3. In the MLS preview, I will ask other realtors to give their evaluation of the home to see if we are all in the price range.

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SLIDE SHOW

After the agent procures a listing, he or she might wants to make slide show of the property. The agent can have running this over and over in the office on his computer.

Click on the show to stop it.

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Today many agents place the new listing on their own web–site or office computer.

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Broker Introduction

You should send a letter to the owners thanking them for entrusting the sale of their home to your company (firm). The letter should state that the listing agent is the owner’s contact person with the firm but if any problems arise, they should feel free to contact the broker.

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Postlisting Meeting

At the postlisting meeting, go through the house again and make recommendations to the owners of things they should do to help market their home. Impress on the owners that marketing is really a team effort.

Constant communication with the seller is important.

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HOMEOWNER HINTS FOR A SUCCESFUL SALE

Usually at the post-listing meeting (usually after the preview caravan, and after you receive a list of suggested value) you provide this information to the seller.

You should review the following items with the owner of the property.

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EXTERIOR

1. Grass & Shrubs 5. Bird feeders

2. Pets 6. Paint

3. Fences 7. Lawn Furniture

4. Flowers 8. Roof

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INTERIOR

1. Housekeeping. 6. Drapes

2. Odors & Aromas 7. Lighting

3. Paint 8. Garage

4. Plumbing 9. Temperature

5. Shades & Blinds

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SHOWING SAFE GUARDS

Hide or lock-up all valuables.

Hide or lock-up guns and other weapons.

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WEEKLY ACTIVITY REPORT

The listing agent should give the seller a weekly activity report. Tell the owner(s):

1. What you have already done and the results.

2. What you are doing.

3. What you will be doing.

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If you have a web site, make sure the seller is aware and knows how to log on to your site and find his property.

You also may have all of your properties showing in your office. Tell your client you use the most modern techniques to present their property.

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SUNSHINE REALTY

THE PROBLEM SOLVERS

Seller gets the highest price for the home.

Buyer pays the lowest price for the home.

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SUNSHINE REALTY

Call Joe Anderson at:

555–845–2600

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PROPERTY 1

1,525 sq. ft.

3 bedrooms and 2½ baths

Lot size: 100 ft. by 75 ft.

This home has many amenities. All furnishings to stay with the home.

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Property #1 $459,500

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Living Room

19Spacious Dining Room

20Master Bedroom

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CONVENTIONAL FINANCING

Down Payment $76,000

Loan $367,600 at 6% amortized over 30 years

Monthly principal and interest $ 1,823

Monthly property taxes 396

Monthly casualty insurance 111

Monthly PITI $ 2,330

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PROPERTY 21,780 sq. ft.

5 bedrooms and 3 baths

Lot size: 125 ft. by 100 ft.

This home has a swimming pool and slide.

23Property #2

$380,000

24Living Room

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Kitchen

26Dining Room

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CONVENTIONAL FINANCING

Down Payment $76,000

Loan $304,000 at 6% amortized over 30 years

Monthly principal and interest $ 1,823

Monthly property taxes 396

Monthly casualty insurance 111

Monthly PITI $ 2,330

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PROPERTY 3

3,125 sq. ft

4 bedrooms and 2½ baths

Lot size: 1 full acre of land.

You need to see the master bedroom.

This home has backs against a wooded area.

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Property #2

$500,000

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Living Room

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Kitchen

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Bedroom

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CONVENTIONAL FINANCING

Down Payment $100,000

Loan $400,000 at 7% amortized over 30 years

Monthly principal and interest $ 2,661

Monthly property taxes 521

Monthly casualty insurance 146

Monthly PITI $ 3,128

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The End

THANKS FOR VISITING

Call Mr. Anderson at:

555–845–2600

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VIRTUAL REALITY HOME TOURSTechnology has evolved so that it is possible to offer virtual home tours while seated before a personal computer. A specially trained photographer usually takes 360° photographs of the interior, exterior and even the neighborhood. Today, software programs are available that allow an agent to prepare a Virtual Reality Tour using a plain digital camera and a software program that costs around $300.

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Virtualtour.com is a relatively easy program to use. We were impressed with Photo Vista Virtual Tour available through z-sawsoftwareinfo@z-law.com. This program can produce film or digital photographs.

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SHOWINGS

Notify the seller of a showing of his property prior to the actual showing and see if the house can be vacated for the showing.

Keep a record of all showings. Make a record sheet for each listing, to help you report of the progress on the listing.

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Weekly Progress Report

Property:

Number of Inquiries:

Number of Showings:

Advertising:

Open House:

Number of Visitors:

Comments:

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ADVERTISING

Help your sellers to understand your advertising policy and the media that you will be using.

Advertising other properties can help sell their property.

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A NEIGHBORHOOD INFORMATION REQUEST

Ask the seller to help you understand his or her neighborhood.

Ask the sellers to collect the following information on their home and neighborhood.

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NEIGHBORHOOD INFORMATION

1. Best Neighborhood features.

2. School districts.

3. Youth activities in the area (if buyer has children).

4. Public transportation.

5. Churches.

6. Shopping centers.

7. Professionals in area (doctors, banks, etc.)

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If you obtain a listing in your farm area you should have the following information already.

If it is a new area, you have to collect the following information to help the prospective buyers understand the neighborhood.

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LISTING EXTENSIONS

If the property has not sold and you feel that the seller is now in a listening mood and you are near the end of the listing period, you will want to renew the listing.

If you have been diligent in your labors to market and sell the property, you will most likely obtain a new listing or extension.

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FOR

SALE

Rob Rooks

SignsWhen you obtain the listing, put up a For Sale sign immediately after leaving the house.

Info Box,Flyers

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Rider Strips.Have a rider strip on the sign with your name and telephone or cellular phone number.

If you use talking signs, prepare the message as soon as possible and install the broadcasting machine at the home within a day or two of taking the listing.

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Information BoxesAll of the real estate supply houses as well as some Boards of Realtors® stores carry information boxes or tubes that can be attached to your yard signs.

PhotosPhotographs of the home should be taken as soon as possible after the listing is taken. Most agents carry a digital camera with them.

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FLYERS

Give to the clients.

Use them at open house.

Use them in your farm.

Use them as mail out.

These flyers are sometimes called property briefs.

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Roger Kelly Presents123 S. Main St.

Priced to Sell $395,990

Call Roger at 568-123-4567

10 Room Home

Lovely Kitchen

4 Bedrooms Spacious

Master Bedroom

3 Baths

Pool

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LOCKBOXIf possible, install a lockbox, used by your multiple-listing service (MLS) right after taking the listing. If there is going to be a delay, inform the owners when a lockbox will be installed.

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Today most boards are using Supra key and lock box. Each box will run the agent about $98 per box. The key will cost about $125 and needs to be up dated on a regular basis. Check with your board for the updating requirements.

The lock box will keep a record of each key that has been used in order to trace the agents who have entered the home.

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THE MLS

To provide greater market coverage for their listings, a group of brokers often conduct a cooperative listing service (MLS).

Most boards use a 50/50 commission split. But this can change from property to property. Listing broker obtains 50% of the commission and the selling broker obtains 50% of the commission.

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After the commission is split between brokers, the commission is split between the individual broker and agent. This split is negotiable.

Example:

Agent “Y” listed a property for sale with a $6,000 commission and works for Broker “A”. Broker “A” and Agent “Y” agree to split the commission 50/50. Agent “Z” brings in a buyer, and works for Broker “B”. They have a 70/30 split. The agent receives 70% of the commission and the broker receives 30% of the commission.

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Agent Y $3,000

Agent Z

$4,200

Broker A $3,000

Broker B $1,800

3% or $6,000 3% or $6,000

THE COMMISSION SPLIT

$200,000 6% – $12,000

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AdvertisingAfter you have given the listing to your MLS, prepared a property brief and posted the property information and photograph on the Internet, prepare at least three classified advertisements on the property, as well as one open-house ad.

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OFFICE CARAVANS

The owners should be told in advance about the office caravan and the MLS caravan.

At this caravan the listing agent should collect business cards or some type of evaluations from office and board members.

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Different agents will use different methods of gathering information from these caravans.

Some will just ask each agent to write what they think the home will sale for on the back of card or piece of paper.

Another method is to develop a questionnaire as found in your text book.

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OPEN HOUSE

Owners must be encouraged to have the house as presentable as possible for a standard open house. Treat the buyer open house as you treated homes for caravans and agent open houses.

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You will want the home to appear light, bright and as fresh as possible. Most of the time it will take a lot of patience to get the owner to cooperate with you.

Before the open house put out signs and flags to to get to the property. Make sure you ask permission to use people’s property, or you may lose your signs.

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After selling a property, the agent might want to send out an announcement to the neighborhood of the sale of the home. Here is an example.

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Mr. Dwight Murphy

987 E. A Ave.Greenville, CA.

99999

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A HOME

SUNSHINE REALTY123 W. 5th St.

Greenville, CA. 99999