 | Robert Cobb is Managing Broker/Owner of CENTURY 21 Cobb Realty in Pittsburg, KS. He is a life-long resident of Pittsburg and a PSU graduate with a BS in Business Administration. He has been in the real estate field for 23 years. He is currently a KAR Director and the President of the Pittsburg Board of Realtors. |
Real Estate
2011-04-01 10:42:00
What does a realtor do to market my property that I can’t?
Question: What does a realtor do to market my property that I can’t?
Answer: Generally you’re trying to sell the biggest investment you’ll ever own; so where to begin. Some basic questions might be: How will I market my property? Where’s the best place to market it? How much will it cost to advertise my property? How much is my property worth? What if someone wants to see it, and I can’t be there? How safe is it to have strangers go through my house? How long will it take me to sell my property? Lastly, do you have 112.5 hours in your schedule to sell your property yourself? (In 2007, an estimated average, a realtor spends from beginning to close of a transaction, 16 weeks, per realtor and real estate author Jim Lee in a 2007 Realty Times article).
Most people think if they run an ad in the local paper, put a sign in the front yard with their phone number and put it on the internet you’ll generate instant interest from buyers. Popular “For Sale by Owner” online sites purport these are the simple steps for selling a property by yourself. Let’s look at a few marketing statistics for using these methods of selling property to give you an idea where your efforts may have the most results. The internet has come to play a very valuable role in marketing real estate, phenomenally expanding initial exposure of your property, to not only local potential buyers, but also to an international market that has never existed before in history. Per a June 9, 2010, article from Enhanced Online News (EON), 58% of U.S. online consumers begin their day interacting with companies on email, compared to 20% who start their day on search engines and 11% on Facebook. Ninety-three percent of U.S. consumers subscribe to email marketing messages. Nearly half (43%) of all online consumers are either fans or followers of at least one brand on Twitter or Facebook. Narrowing down what these statistics mean for you as a home seller: according to a 2007 NAR (National Association of Realtors) study, almost 90% of homebuyers start their home search on-line, 36% of those purchased a home they first saw online; they generally start 6-9 months in advance of contacting a realtor or starting a serious search. Eighty-seven percent of people starting their search online buy through a realtor. Here’s the rest of the breakdown for the success of these marketing techniques. Twelve percent of home buyers purchase a home they first saw due to a yard sign; 8 out of 10 of those buyers used a real estate agent to purchase the home. Two percent first saw their home in a print or newspaper ad; less than 1% a home book or magazine; 2% learned about the property directly from the sellers; 6% through a friend, neighbor or relative; and 5% through home builders. NAR research shows that in 2010, fewer than 10% of properties sold were sold as a For Sale By Owner (FSBO), of those 36% knew who their buyers were upfront, without marketing the property to the general public. So let’s see, after you digest and calculate these statistics, how large is the market scope you will need to reach to be able to target the buyer you need for your property? Where will you start?
How do realtors find buyers for properties? In short, “marketing power,” and daily experience. Real estate doesn’t sell due to advertising alone. In fact, a large percentage of real estate sales come as the result of a realtor’s daily contact through previous clients, referrals, friends, family and other real estate and business professionals they have relationships with because this is their daily business and field of expertise. Realtors, like stock brokers and other professionals, observe and participate in the real estate market daily and have current familiarity with all aspects of marketing a property for the best results to benefit you. Each property is unique. Working in close relationship with the seller to discern the unique aspects of a property and formulate a custom marketing plan to reach the right, willing buyer takes knowledge of marketing resources and access to resources and relationships is often available only to industry professionals. Lastly, according to statistics drawn since 1991, homes sold by realtors sell on average for 28% more than those sold by owner. Is marketing your property yourself really as simple as you might think or have been led to believe? Are you really saving money and time marketing your home yourself?
Narrowing the scope of these facts down to a local picture, what can the difference be in marketing your property yourself, or using a realtor? As an example of the power of a realtor network, let’s look at the local Century 21 office marketing power, only because I’m personally familiar with this particular network. Our website, www.cobbrealty.com, currently has over 1,000 hits a day, reaching over 1.45 million hits since it began. This is just a brief description of what comprises the value of using a realtor’s “marketing power” and expertise to assist you in marketing your property. If you do decide to use a realtor to sell your property, ask them what their marketing plan will involve. How will they get exposure for your property? What you can do to increase that marketing power even further?
Hopefully, in reviewing just these few factors involved only in the marketing of real estate, you can better navigate your way through this process to maximize the results you are looking for.
