The Home Selling Process
- SELECT A REALTOR®/ESTABLISH A RELATIONSHIP.
We are full time, professional REALTORS® with extensive market knowledge. We will work together to sell your home with the most effective price and marketing plan.
- WELCOME TO THE TEAM!
Energy – One of our most important attributes is the energy we bring to your home sale. This energy is the direct result of a true passion for real estate.
Experience – We are associated with the most respected and knowledgeable REALTORS® in the area and have enjoyed a phenomenal rise to the top of the real estate field. When you are facing critical surgery, you go to the best surgeon. When it is time to buy or sell your home, trust the expertise of BGM real estate team.
Caring – There is a saying: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” For us this is crystal clear. We are truly connected with the successful outcome of each real estate transaction, have a concern for your best interests, and are always prepared to go the extra mile.
- INITIAL CONSULTATION WITH US TO EVALUATE YOUR NEEDS AND RESOURCES.
We will meet to discuss your needs and analyze your resources. Once we establish your needs, we will provide guidance with regard to the steps necessary to get your home ready for the market. We are happy to recommend various professional services that you may require.
- MARKET STRATEGY / PRICING
You have two choices to make – Market plan and pricing. After extensive discussion about your home and the market trends we will be able to establish the best course of action for the sale of your home. We will also have frank and open discussions about local market conditions and how to best price your home. Remember, location, competition and the condition of your home will all affect value both positively and negatively. We will provide you with a complete and current market analysis based on properties recently sold, as well as currently for sale. Buyers will comparison shop, so the price must be realistic.
- LISTING YOUR HOME.
Once we have determined the best price, marketing and timing for the sale of your home we will assist you with all the documents required to have your home on the market. We will arrange for a professional photographer and videographer to come to your home to capture its value. We will create custom brochures/feature sheets for your home that visitors may take with them.
- ON THE MARKET.
Just because there is a sign on the lawn and pictures on the internet doesn’t mean it is time to sit back! We actively discuss your property with colleagues, clients and the public in general. We solicit feedback from every person that views your home. We are in touch with you personally at least once a week to provide you with that feedback as well as update you on the market for the past 7 days.
- AN OFFER.
We will present any offer to you. You will have three options; accept the offer, counter the offer, or reject the offer. Our knowledge of your needs and will enable us to represent you in the best way possible.
- YOUR RESPONSE.
We will review the buyer’s response with you. Our negotiating skills and knowledge will benefit you in reaching a final agreement.
- CONDITIONAL PHASE.
When the agreement of purchase and sale is accepted and signed by all parties, the conditional phase begins. The buyers will have a pre-determined amount of time to fulfill items including home inspection, final approval on financing, getting a quote for home insurance etc…
- REMOVING CONDITIONS.
Congratulations! You now have a firm and binding agreement for a home. We will supply you with a copy of all your paperwork and make sure all the relevant documents have been sent to the lawyers, and if required, the relocation company.
- CLOSING.
In advance of closing, the Lawyer will be in touch to let you know what you, and they, will need to relinquish ownership. We are always close by if you need us or have questions.
- WE’LL STICK WITH YOU FOR LIFE.
Being your personal real estate advisor is not only our business philosophy, but also a life-long commitment to providing you with exemplary personalized service beyond your expectations. It is also our intention to listen, hear, and truly understand your needs – (a quality of business conduct that seems to have been forgotten in today’s highly automated society). As your personal real estate advisors, it is our job to not only understand your needs, but to respond to them promptly, professionally, and with integrity. It is our pledge to provide you with sound real estate advice, helping you understand the strategies of decision-making and the future implications of the decisions you make. We feel it necessary to provide all of our clients with a relationship they have grown to trust and provide value and service after the transaction so that the changing needs of each of our clients are addressed on a continuous basis.
Marketing Matters
Marketing isn’t just what you see online or in a magazine. We want our sellers to be educated about everything that marketing entails, from public perceptions to what they fell like after they view your home.
MYTH VS. REALTY
Myth #1 – “BGM real estate team are too busy to pay attention to my listing”
Reality – Just as superior restaurants are busy at dinner time and superior doctors have long patient lists, our success in marketing homes provides us with many more homes to sell. Like good restaurants and doctors, we have set up a top-flight office goddess to assist with the routine details so that we can devote the time and attention required to sell your property successfully. We have built our business on one satisfied client at a time. Our goal is for you to be another satisfied client who spreads the word about how well you were served!
Myth #2 – “You should select the REALTOR® who says he/she will get you the highest price”.
Reality – This is the oldest trick in the real estate book! Tell the seller what he/she wants to hear, act excited, and compliment the home to get the listing. Then ask for a price reduction in a few days – or even a few weeks. Don’t buy into that. Insist on a written, well-researched market analysis. Select your REALTOR® based on credentials and track record and then use the market data to determine the price.
Myth #3 – “Discount brokers can do an adequate job selling real estate”.
Reality – While we are sure they are suitable for some folks, promotional costs such as photographs, brochures, newspaper, magazine, TV ads, radio ads, MLS® fees, direct mail, personally distributed newsletters, professional support staff, website maintenance, signs, bus benches and much more are paid for by a full service, full fee agent. Just a few questions to ask yourself;
Will the discount broker offer a complete marketing campaign?
Does the discount broker have staff to personally attend to my specific needs?
Do they have a proven track record of success, or is he/she using the discounted commission to win our business?
Will the discount broker be motivated during difficult times to go the extra mile for me, or will they move on to another deal that doesn’t take so much of their time?
Your home is an asset to a discount broker and makes their phone ring. If your home sells, they lose business. Why would they want to sell your home for a discounted fee when they can make more money selling other properties.
Remember that you only pay a commission IF and WHEN your property sells successfully. The supply of buyers through your home will be restricted if marketing is limited.
THE PRICING TARGET
The Goal: to select a price that is right on target and gets your home sold!
Rule of Thumb: Sometimes marketing your home comes right down to the price you have chosen. Marketing is at its most effective when it is accompanied by a fair maket value. If you are getting showings but no one is writing an offer, it generally means that you are in the range of 4 – 6% above market price.
If your number of showings is low and you’re experiencing a lot of drive-bys but the buyers don’t come in to see the home, then your home is 6-12% overvalue.
If no showings are happening at all, then the house is likely priced 12% or more above what the market will bear.
It is imperative that you have an experienced and trusted source to guide you through this process so your marketing is 100% effective in making your property SOLD!
INDUSTRY STANDARD VS. OUR STANDARD
INDUSTRY STANDARD MARKETING
- Property listed on MLS®
- Sign on your lawn
- Open Houses
OUR STANDARD
- Pre-listing marketing strategy
- Preparation & staging for maximum value
- High definition Photo & Video session
- Lockbox & sign
- Measurement and appointment processes
- Gathering necessary information about the house for the potential buyer
- Personalized communication plan
- Home presentation book
- Home listed on myottawateam.com
- Home listed on realtor.ca, remaxottawa.com, globalremax.com, 1 2 3rd party advertising websites
- Custom social media plan including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google+ & Pinterest
- Weekly feedback and market update
- Complete document filing from us right through to the lawyer
WE OFFER 10 TIMES THE MARKETING OF THE INDUSTRY STANDARD