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Are your listings moving fast, or are they sitting on market getting stale? This is a seller’s market, but you’re only going to move inventory if it’s priced correctly! In today’s podcast, we’re going to show you how to price your listings to sell with proven, insider secrets of the nation’s top listing agents, and we’re going to start out with a few insider secrets to get you started:
Secret #1: A great Seller Prequalification Script pulls out critical facts so you can be best prepared to not just take the listing, but to price it right in the first place! Not prequalifying is unprofessional and can waste your time and theirs. Always prequalify, 100% of the time! Price it to SELL, not to SIT.
Secret #2: The best price reduction conversation is the one you never have to do. All pricing scripts are best used at the listing table!
Secret #3: Don’t lose the listing of a motivated, have-to-sell-seller over price. If they HAVE TO sell, you HAVE TO take the listing! Someone is going to make a commission. Shouldn’t it be you?
Bonus Secret: Proper Previous Planning Prevents Pitifully Poor Pricing!
Don’t Go Unless You KNOW:
1 What the seller wants, needs or thinks it’s worth! Pricing it right in the first place prevents future price reduction drama! Even if they’re thinking it’s worth more than the comps, you need to know by how much and how they arrived at ‘their price’… BEFORE you arrive to the appointment.
Script: (when they tell you a too-high price): “That’s interesting, Mr/Mrs Seller, how did you arrive at that price? (listen carefully)
Secret: Sellers overprice out of either Ignorance or Arrogance. Ignorance is when they just don’t know how to price a home (square feet matters, bedrooms, baths, views, condition). Arrogance is when they won’t listen to comps and have reasons other than real value to try to justify their price.
2 The Average Days on the Market for properties like your subject property. This helps set both your expectations and the home owner’s.
3 The List to Sell Price Ratio. This helps you combat the ‘price it high, let them negotiate’ objection –or- helps you know if you can price it right on the mark and expect to get slightly more.
4 Know the number of homes competing with your subject property. What are you up against? How would it compare in the eyes of the buyer?
Secret: The next time you have to do Continuing Education, take an Appraisal class. This will help you become a more confident pricer!
5 Is there new construction in the area that competes with your potential listing? Remember when builders provide in-house financing they often can sell a more expensive home for the same payment as your resale.
Secret: A resale home for $350k may be competing with new construction as high as $500k if the builder has buy downs and in house financing with incentives. Know what’s going on with new construction!
6 What the seller’s time frame is. Ideally, when does this need to sell and close by?
Secret: If they don’t actually HAVE a time frame, you may have a problem! The less motivated they are, the higher they may wish to price it…recipe for a tough relationship.
7 What is motivating the sale? When you know why they want to / have to move, you can use this to stay on task during the appointment, referring to their needs and making it more about them than about you.
Secret: When you can highlight what they NEED, you can actually deliver on that. Not knowing what they need or by when is a handicap to the relationship.
8 Are they listing AND buying or just listing? Is there a referral needed for where they’re moving to? Are they already in contract on something?
9 What happens if it doesn’t sell or if they don’t get ‘their price’? Is keeping the house an option?
10 How did they happen to call you? Track your sources of business. Use your white board to track this!
