Ottawa Real Estate February Highlights – “Primed for a Competitive Spring Market”

Ottawa Real Estate February Highlights – “Primed for a Competitive Spring Market”

TRYING TO EXCITE BUYERS? “COMING SOON” CAN BACKFIRE!

As the Spring market gets started and more and more properties come on line “For Sale”, you’re bound to start seeing a growing number of  “Coming Soon” signs or banners on these homes.  It’s suppose to get buyers excited and move fast.  It lets the buyer believe that once this property hits the market it will go fast as demand must be building!

 

In order to have a “For Sale” sign on a property that is on the MLS® system, there must be a listing agreement between the seller and agent.  This simply means that the home is listed under contract but the seller has decided to not allow the public in for various reasons.  There can be legitimate reasons for not wanting buyers through your home just yet.  Maybe the home isn’t ready and needs repairs of painting.  maybe new carpeting or hardwood floors have been ordered but not yet installed. OR, maybe the listing agent has his/her own motive.

AGENT MOTIVE

A few months ago, CBC’s Market Place did a story on the real estate industry and the subject of “Coming Soon” and other tactics like this were explored.  Buyers, using their own agents to represent them would try to get into a listed property only to be told that there were no showings yet or the property was “Coming Soon”.  It turns out that the listing agent actually sold the property to someone he was working with and “double Ended” the sale (meaning he was able to collect both the listing and the selling side of the commission).  The other buyer was shocked.  Not only did the sale take place during the “Coming Soon” period but sold for less that the buyer, who really wanted that home, was willing to pay.  This is not an isolated incident.  Many of the agents secretly interviewed by Market Place boasted that they double end up to 80% of their listings.  We’ve been in the industry for almost 30 years and we can tell you that even 50% of sales by one agent (the listing agent) is a staggering number.  In the hotter markets such as Toronto, it seems to happen often but this practise is catching on in other markets including Ottawa.

WHO BENEFITS?

Who benefits really is the key.  The client, in this case the Seller, should benefit fist and foremost.  We believe that the agents should not benefit at all except for the commission that the seller and agent have agreed to in a written listing contract.  One primary pillar of our industry is to work in the best interest of our clients.  Another is to be fair to all whether they are our client, another agent’s client or just members of the public.

The benefit of “Coming Soon” can benefit the seller by creating excitement and potentially multiple offers but does that out-way the benefit of exposing the seller’s property to hundreds of potential buyers and their agents?  The evidence is no!  Keeping a property on the QT offers no benefit to the seller.  Why?  Because without MLS® exposure, the number of prospective buyer who will see that a specific property is available will be extremely limited to the listing agent’s own contacts.  The more exposure, the more viewings, the more activity the better the results.  This is why the MLS® system was developed, to give access to all buyers and agents in order to create the highest demand.

(Related: Brushwork Painters in Gettysburg provides you with the best painting services for your residence and office. Check them out)

 

ARE ALL AGENTS ALIKE?

The simple and clear answer is no.  Just because an agent uses “Coming Soon” does not mean that there intentions are questionable.  They may believe that this tactic works, and in some cases it does.  The seller may request that the agent use this tactic and as long as it’s done properly, legally and within our Board’s rules, we have no issue with it.  But be cautious when hiring an agent that pushes this tactic on you.  Make sure that the representative explains exactly how the tactic works and what he or she is and is not allowed to do.  Make sure they explain the pros and cons.  In other words, make a smart and informed decision.

We are always here to answer your questions on this or any other subject.  Please write us at homesbyhartman@realtyagent.com

GET READY CAUSE HERE IT COMES!

The days are getting longer, the snow is melting and the real estate market is warming up!  YES, Spring is here, at lease for the real estate industry.

If you have been thinking of selling or buying, now is the time to put the effort in to make your real estate desires into action.  The market in Ottawa does get going this time of year and the time to prepare if you havn’t already is now.

There are many things you can do especially on the interior.

1. Clean, clean, clean!  No one wants to see or buy a dirty or messy home.( Check out the iRobot roomba 900 series for a cleaner home)
2. Paint.  Touch-ups or full painting is the most cost effective way and adding extra value and more money in your pocket.
3. Repair.  Holes in the walls, broken faucets, chipped sinks, worn out flooring and old appliances should all be repaired or replaced as needed.  Don’t worry!  Spending money on new carpeting will make your home much more attractive to all buyers and boost the value of your home and help it sell quicker which in turn will all you to negotiate less and get more for your home.
4. Except for outdoor areas, make sure your major components of your home are working.  Toronto furnace filter should be cleaned and tuned up to be at peak performance.  Many building inspections can fail due to dirty and poorly serviced HVAC systems.
5. There are areas that you really can’t take care of yet but should be looked at as soon as possible. Roof, central air, pools, gardens and walkways are just a few of the external features of a home that should be checked, serviced and repaired once they are accessible. A&E Westchester Roofers is a roofing contractor that can help with all possible roof repair tasks.
6. Finally value!  That’s where the knowledge and experience we offer comes in.  Yes, we will help in all aspects of your real estate needs.  Advice on buying including location concerns, inspections and market value assessments are all the areas we have been working in for over 25 years.  On the selling end we offer our assistance in getting your home ready including colour and staging assistance.  But when it comes to assessing the market value of your home, there is no substitute for our knowledge and experience.

We look at the neighbourhood, the history of sales, the present listings and measure the general temperature of the market.  We let you know what is influencing the market today and advise you on a asking price that reflects your home and market conditions.

 

FREE MARKET EVALUATIONS!  Write us at  homesbyhartman@realtyagent.com or click here to fill out or evaluation form.

Happy Holidays and Goodbye 2016

It’s Holiday time again and we want to wish all readers a great Holiday season.  Regardless of what holiday you celebrate we hope the spirit of the season, peace, harmony and love for your fellow people will be a goal to reach all year round.

2016 has not been a great year.  The world has seen its fill of violence, of killing and of unnecessary suffering.  People have seemed to have lost respect for human and animal life.  But there is good out in the world and lots of it, it’s just the bad seems to over shadow the good.  We like to look for the good and keep that at top of mind.  We hope you do the same.

GETTING TO KNOW YOU, GETTING TO KNOW ALL ABOUT YOU!

Sounds like a Rogers and Hammerstein song doesn’t it? Well, they had something going on there that relates well to real estate and the real estate industry.

You might notice that some real estate sales representatives ask an awful lot of questions, some very personal about your family, your finances and your goals.  Other REALTORS® ask nothing.  All they want to know is when can they meet to show you the home you have called on.

We are the type of REALTORS® who ask A LOT of questions.  Why do we do this and why do others not?  We can’t really speak to the issue as to why others don’t but we can certainly tell you why we do and why we think all REALTORS® should.

As a buyer, wouldn’t you like to know as much as you can about your capabilities to purchase a home?  Don’t you want to know if you can afford or even get a mortgage?  Yes, we have heard it time and time again.  “Sure, no problem.   That home is within my budget.”  We can tell you that on many occasion that person was WRONG.  They did not do their homework.  They did not sit down with a mortgage broker or bank to crunch the numbers. The buyer may also be asking to see a home that a first glance seems right for them but even with the vast amount of info on the internet today, many buyers do not know all they need to know.  By asking these somewhat personal questions we can help to determine if the home the buyer is asking about is really suitable.  Yes, it’s a 4 bedroom home but 2 are in the basement.  Are you’re children OK with sleeping in the basement while you the parents are on another floor?  The home backs onto a school or playground.  Is this OK for you?

Going to see a home and not being qualified, especially financially can have a negative affect on the entire buying process. For example, the buyers have fallen in love with a home they can’t afford.  Now when they do look in their proper price range of homes, these don’t look nearly as nice or are as big.  They may be semi-detached or row homes and not the single family home they thought they could afford!  Now everything they can afford just does hold up to the home they couldn’t afford but fell in love with. On top of all that,  we have made the sellers of that great “We Love it” home get out of the house for the showing, get the home ready to show, maybe keep the children up late and have to go out for diner and the buyer never could have bought that home.  What a waste of time and a lot of frustration for everyone.

With that in mind, you must remember that the listing REALTORS® you are calling all WORKS FOR THE SELLERS and it is that REALTOR’S® duty to try and make sure that visitors and prospective buyers are qualified. The REALTOR® is also trying to save you from wasting your time too.  Maybe, after all the questions are asked, you may think it’s a good idea to have that REALTOR® working with and for you!

So the next time you call or write a REALTOR® for information, don’t get upset if they ask lots of questions. It’s for everyone’s benefit.  In fact, be cautious if no questions are asked.  That REALTOR® may have their own best interest in mind.