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Take Your Listing To The Next Level

Are you a real estate agent who has taken on several listings and has been working for weeks or months to get them sold? After a long period with no results, your sellers are likely to start calling you. Why hasn’t their property sold? What are you doing to market it? What else are you planning to do to make the sale? 

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We would like to share with you a few effective practices and ideas that we have learned over the years, and hopefully these tips can help you, too—whether you need to revive a stale listing, or you need to convince a new seller why they need to list with you.

It all starts with the Listing Appointment

First impressions count, ​prepare and educate yourself on the property so that you'll have all the ammunition you need to close. 

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Get as much information from the Town as possible, including:

  • Deed

  • Verify legal names of owner(s) in county’s public property records.

  • Open Permits/ Leans

  • Obtain copy of the plot plans/complex layout. 

  • Research property’s public record information for lot size and dimensions. 

  • Research property’s land use coding and deed restrictions.

  • Research property’s current use and zoning. 

  • Title V (inspect it before listing the property as it will affect the final net price if it needs to be replaced) 

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Declutter

Decluttering is incredibly important to do before you put your listing on the market. Removing unnecessary items will make it more marketable to buyers by creating a peaceful and organized space. It also emphesizes how much storage space the property has when it is well organized.

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  • Remove all personal items: Family photos, large collections on displays (think knick-knacks, books, movies) and unusual decor

  • Remove excess and worn furniture that's crowding the rooms 

  • Keep surfaces as clear as possible (magazine, paperwork)

  • Kitchen: clear everything off the fridge and counters, excessive baking supplies)

Curb Appeal

Giving a bit of extra attention to your listing’s street side can inspire love at first sight via excellent curb appeal. Sprucing up a home’s curb appeal doesn’t have to be expensive. A handy man for a day and a few easy projects will ensure that your next listing isn’t a drive-by — but rather a must-see.

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  • Lawn and yard clean up

  • Clean the gutters 

  • Rotted trim (FHA)

  • Fix broken window seals 

  • Hand rails 

  • Exterior paint/ power wash

Stage your listing
to make it stand out

In those days when properties are flying off the shelves, sellers might be reluctant to consider the option of staging their home for sale, as it can be significant up-front investment. However, if you have a higher end property where competition is fierce, can you really afford to not stage and let the empty property sit on the market for months?

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Home staging expert, Betsy Wilbur, told Forbes that “a staged home will sell for 17% more on average than a non-staged home, and 95% of staged homes sell in 11 days or less. That is statistically 87% faster than non-staged homes.” In addition to that, staged homes make for beautiful real estate photos that can increase click-throughs to your listing.

From the moment a buyer discovers the home online to the time they walk it during the showing, home staging provides many benefits:

  • It creates an impeccable first impression in professional photos.

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  • It highlights the best features of a property (and can help to hide its shortcomings).

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  • It allows the visiting buyer to connect with the home on an emotional level and imagine themselves living in it.

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  • On a completely practical level, the presence of furniture allows the agent and the buyer to sit down and have a conversation, and remain on the property longer.

Use eye-catching Real Estate photos

As it turns out, first impressions count when it comes to real estate listings, with research showing that 75% of consumers believe that professional photography helps a listing stand out.

 

Meanwhile Wall Street Journal found that 95% of people viewed the first photo of a listing (usually the exterior of the property) for a total of 20 seconds before their eyes started wandering. This means that you have 20 seconds to entice prospective buyers to click-through to your listing before you lose their attention.

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That’s why it’s worthwhile to invest in professional photography to showcase your listing in the best light possible. Online listings are all about the photos. Don’t compromise on quality.

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Tips:

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  • Focus on creating a life style, take photos of the area, beaches and amenities 

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  • Know that there's no such thing as too many photos, take a minimum of 24 photos — at least 36 is recommended, 50 or more for luxury homes.

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  • Keep it simple and clean, clutter equals anxiety. And no buyer wants to feel anxious while scanning through photos of your home for sale. Simplicity sells, photos can only be touched up so much, so remove the personal photos, the knickknacks, and the clutter. Makes the space look more polished, inviting, and clean, so that buyers can envision their things in your home

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  • Chose the right time, If you have the opportunity, schedule a photo shoot at the daytime. This way, you will get a lot of natural light and bright, saturated colors in your pictures. However, you should consider one very important aspect. The sun should be behind the house. Thus, you will get really good lighting in this position.

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  • Open blinds/ window, remember that natural light is the best option. No artificial light sources can replace the sun. Natural light will make your photos as realistic as possible, and the clients will see how the house actually looks.

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  • Turn on all the lights, the additional light will give some warmth and coziness to your pictures. Nevertheless, you should remember that such photos require light temperature correction during further photo editing.

MLS Description and Features
Highlight your listing's best features

Another way to make your listing stand out is to really direct attention to the listing’s best features. This not only makes the property more memorable but can also draw attention away from the property’s less desirable features.

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For example, if your listing has beautiful natural light or a newly renovated kitchen, be sure to highlight these attributes in both the listing description and imagery. These images should also appear earlier in order of the listing photos to reinforce the copy and create a point of difference.

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Know your key words

To make your listing description and title stand out, it’s crucial that you include keywords that potential buyers would look for. These might be feature keywords that highlight your listing’s proximity to amenities or descriptive keywords that trigger the audience’s imagination.

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Here are some examples of feature keywords: 

  • Air conditioning

  • Proximity to the beach

  • Close to the public transport

  • Hardwood floors

  • Stainless steel appliances

  • High ceilings

  • Views

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Here are some examples of descriptive keywords:

  • Beautiful

  • Low maintenance

  • Brand new

  • Spacious

  • Stunning

  • Luxurious

  • Newly renovated

  • Impeccable

  • Easy one level living 

  • Light and bright

Reminders:

When adding your listing on MLS give the Agents and potential buyers as much information about the listing as possible. This will help avoid unnecessary phone calls and will make sure that every showing counts. 

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  • Add measurements

  • Room features (First floor master)

  • All property updates 

  • Condo rules and regulations: pets restrictions, vehicles, parking, fees,

  • Be mindful of what you put in the Public Remarks (indicating the home is vacant in the Public Remarks is a safety issue)

Stand out visually with a floor plan

50% of consumers said that a floor plan makes a listing stand out.

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Essentially, a floor plan provides a bird’s-eye view of the property. It shows the layout of the property including the number of rooms and their position as well as how big each room is. This allows prospective buyers to visualize the property’s flow and picture how their furniture might fit in each room.

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Alternatively, if you wanted to go the extra mile, you could invest in a 3D floor plan, VR walkthrough or video tour to give prospects an even better idea of the look and feel of the property. Not only will this appeal to remote buyers who can’t attend an in-person walkthrough, but it will also make your listing far more engaging and memorable.

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