As a realtor, homeowners look to you for all the answers. They want to know how to sell their house as quickly as possible, and for a good price. While a lot depends on the homeowner and how much time, money, and effort they are willing to invest, there are several things you can do to expedite the sale of any home.
Between networking with other local professionals and using innovative real estate marketing technology, there are countless tools at your disposal.
If you want to sell homes fast, which marketing tactics are the most effective? Which trends have been popularized by the pandemic but are here to stay? And which marketing strategies will help you sell homes faster and for more money?
We are here to answer all of your questions. Keep reading for our top tips on how to help your clients sell their homes as quickly as possible.
1. Try to Get the Home Seller to Move Out or Drastically Declutter
If your ultimate goal is to sell homes fast, understand that this is much easier when the client is no longer living in the house. Talk to them about their options. If they have already rented an apartment or bought another home, this will not be an issue.
However, if not, they may be able to stay with a friend/family member or rent a temporary place.
Unfortunately, getting a client to move out of their home is not always an option. If this is the case, they need to declutter their home as much as possible. The less stuff they have, the more open, spacious, and clean the home will feel.
Just as importantly, the seller needs to depersonalize the space as much as possible. When people walk through the home or take virtual tours online, the sight of someone else's personal belongings can turn them away. The home should be presented as a clean slate.
2. Stage the Home
If your client is able to move out, it is ideal; however, a completely empty and barren home is not necessarily the best selling point either. While homebuyers do not want to see a lived-in home, they need a little substance to show them the potential of the house.
Studies show that staged homes typically sell 87% faster, and for more money. The more buyers can see what the home could look like, how it might flow, and how each room functions, the more they can imagine living there.
Virtual staging is one way in which real estate technology is changing the game. Instead of you or your client paying thousands of dollars to rent high-quality furniture for several weeks or months, you can stage the home digitally for a nominal fee.
Hommati's virtual staging is more affordable than professional home staging services. It is also a more appropriate option for social distancing, though it is bound to outlast the pandemic.
3. Get the Home Professionally Cleaned
Whether you are doing on-site tours or 3D house tours, the home needs to be spotless. Some homeowners are really good about cleaning the home once they put it on the market; however, deep cleaning a home to the standards of most potential buyers takes a lot of time and elbow grease.
It may be a good idea to invest in a professional cleaning crew. The one-time fee will be well worth it in the end.
As a realtor, you have probably seen countless buyers turn their nose up at an otherwise suitable home because it was not clean enough. Buyers will feel more comfortable in and attracted to a well-cleaned and sanitized home.
4. Boost the Curb Appeal
Curb appeal is much more important than most people assume. When homeowners are trying to sell their house, they are also trying to sell an experience and a feeling. The exterior of their home will be a major selling point with potential buyers.
A well-kept yard, garden, and landscaping is a vital part of creating appeal to sell homes fast. The more inviting the outside of the home looks, the more buyers will want to look inside.
The outside of a home should make someone coming home after a long day of work feel welcome, warm, and comfortable. It should not be an image that reminds them that they have a lot of work or upkeep to do on the weekend. Potential buyers will look at the outside of the house and the property and imagine themselves coming home to it every day.
5. Use Aerial Footage of Real Estate
The next question you are probably asking is how to capitalize on curb appeal if most of your potential buyers are taking virtual real estate tours. The answer lies in modern real estate technology.
Obviously, you will want to take high-quality pictures of the exterior of the home and the property; however, at Hommati, we have also found that incorporating drone footage is a fantastic way to give buyers a more accurate perception of the entire property.
It is far better than using Google Maps to find grainy satellite images of the property and gives viewers a unique perspective.
6. Set the Right Price for the Home
One of the biggest mistakes homeowners and real estate agents make is pricing a home inaccurately. If the home is priced too high, it will turn away serious buyers. Furthermore, if a buyer makes an offer and the appraisal comes back lower, it can be disheartening for the seller.
Trying to sell homes fast by undervaluing them is also ill-advised. The home seller may be happy to sell the house quickly but will be losing thousands of dollars in the process. As the real estate agent working on commission, this also means you are missing out on money in the transaction.
Instead, take your time to research the home's value. Get it appraised beforehand and do a comparative market analysis based on other homes in the neighborhood that have sold in the last three months.
7. Create Virtual Tours
As noted above, the current pandemic has changed much about the ways businesses operate, including real estate agents. Instead of giving constant home tours and increasing the risk of spreading the Coronavirus, many real estate agents are turning to virtual real estate tours, including 3D house tours.
Virtual reality is quickly sweeping through the world of technology and business. It is changing the way we watch movies, play games, and tour homes. Using VR equipment literally feels like you are walking through a home, allowing you to experience the space as if you were there.
Hommati's virtual open house tours will outlast the pandemic because they are easier and more convenient for both the buyer and the seller. During the pandemic, of course, it is also much safer than having multiple people walk through their living space.
8. Focus on Digital Marketing
Digital marketing has taken over advertising in almost every industry. The real estate industry is hardly different. While different generations of consumers use online shopping differently, the majority of them look to the internet first while shopping for homes.
This does not mean you should not use yard signs or printed advertising methods, as they can still be effective; however, you should focus most of your efforts on digital marketing. Work with multiple listing agencies, real estate technology providers, and digital marketing professionals to maximize the visibility of your listings to sell homes fast.
9. Expand Your Listing Awareness on Social Media
Though it is a part of digital marketing, social media marketing deserves its own category if your top priority is to sell homes fast. Social media is a great way to connect with potential home buyers, promote your listings, and grow your real estate brand.
You can use organic posting to generate interest in the homes you represent or paid advertising to get the word out to more people in the community. Paid social media marketing allows you to choose who sees your ads based on certain factors, like age, gender, geographic location, and more. It also shows you exactly how many people see and engage with your ads based on comments, likes, shares, and link clicks.
This can help you narrow down your target audience and create more effective ads for future listings.
10. Network With Other Realtors and Local Business Owners
Finally, as a real estate agent, you have a strong presence in your community. Take advantage of your profession and position and network with other real estate agents and local business owners. Work synergistically with the other professionals in your community to everyone's benefit.
You can work with realtors representing buyers when you have sellers and vice versa. You can work with other local businesses to provide referrals for one another. The more you engage in your community, the greater brand awareness you will have.
Do You Want to Sell Homes Fast?
As you can see, real estate technology is changing the way real estate agents sell homes. Within any business, it is vital to keep up with industry trends and consumer habits. Right now, that means using 3D house tours, drone footage, and virtual staging.
If you want to maximize your potential and see how real estate technology can help you sell homes fast, enroll for free to gain access to our exclusive content and Hommati's innovative technology. It was designed to help real estate agent's like you sell more efficiently.