Expert: Diann Tonnesen - 5/31/2007

Question
Hi,

My husband and I made the initial mistakes of 1.listing with a 3% realtor, who did nothing  2. Significantly overpricing our house.

We are now with a new realtor, and our home has had showings, but no offers.  We found out that Prudential, the real estate that we listed with, was not aggressively advertising our property the way they said they were in their brochure.  They advertised in many online sites, and the MLS, but not in local newspapers.  The only place the realtor told me she was regularly advertising, was Homes and Living magazine.  We contacted the owner, and they are supposed to step up the advertising, but the agent told me she "called too late" to advertise in another paper she promised to advertise in.

They now want us to reduce the price of our property again.  I'm not sure what to do, because the lack of exposure may have contributed to no showings.  I asked for area comps, and there are none like our house - unique.  Should we reduce again or ask for a release and switch realtors?  I was recommended a supposedly 'top' realtor in anothre company. Would this work against me? The realtor we have now said that "if you switch around, realtors know it" - indicating that we might antagonize realtors so they won't show our home.  *We have also added a $1500 realtor bonus to a realtor who brings in a buyer.  Is this a good idea? Should we court the realtor or the buyer, by lowering the price?

Also, since we initially overpriced our house, I read that people then think there's "something wrong with it".  How can I overcome that stigma?

Answer
Hi again, Sharon,

I can hear your frustration! It is doubly hard when there are not properties that are similar to comp your home to so that you know it is properly priced. But if your home has had showings but no offers, that usually indicates it is still a bit overpriced. Especially in today's market, buyers have been scared to death by the media, and unless they feel they are getting a "good" deal, they are reluctant to even make an offer.

There is also the stigma of having been on the market too long. Buyers question their own taste even if they do like it if no one else has wanted a property. There is no real way to totally overcome this. The best way to try is to make it clear in advertising that it has been drastically reduced and that now the seller is motivated. You do have to give your agent permission to market it that way specifically in writing.

You need to court both the Realtors and the buyers. The Realtors determine what the buyers see through the MLS, but the buyers often tell the Realtors which listings they want to see, based on what they find on the Internet. The Internet is actually the number one source that buyers check, followed by magazines and lastly by local newspapers.

Switching agents may or may not benefit you. It really depends on the local conditions. If you are in a smaller town or market area, it may hurt you. But if you are in a large city it probably won't hurt that much. But you need to make sure that other "top agent" really has the Internet exposure. As I mentioned before, that is actually the number one way buyers find property, not through newspapers.

You did not mention open houses? Is your agent doing open houses every three weeks? That is also important and can be an excellent way to find a buyer.

But still in all, the number one way to get a buyer is to price the home properly. It can be marketed everywhere, but if it is overpriced it still will not be shown much. The quality of your agent is particularly important when a buyer is interested, as a good negotiator can get you top dollar when an offer is finally made. Weaker agents often let an offer fizzle out rather than being able to "nudge" the buyer up a bit.

Good luck Sharon!