List, List, List!

The good news in the market recently is that the inventory of well-positioned, well-priced homes has been selling like you know what and is way down, driving up competition even further.  And the bad news is that, well, the inventory of well-positioned, well-priced homes is way down, stifling the market!  We’ve all heard how good homes—whatever the price range—are often selling quickly, sometimes with multiple offers, and even for list price or above.  Ah, a whiff of the good old days!

So how do we take advantage and build our business for the rest of this year as we sell through our inventory so quickly?  How about some tried and true, as well as some unique approaches to prospecting for those new listings?

FSBO’s and Expired Listings come to mind, those methods as old as the hills, and most often left in the drawer for most agents these days.  Yet these approaches do work, and at least the owner has some level of motivation to sell.  So, given the low interest rates and tight inventory, along with the end of school and rising humidity and temperatures, maybe you can be that magic agent who can help position and price that unsuccessful listing just right.  For minimal investment of time and postage, maybe it’s time to dig out and target some of these homes to add to your inventory.

Next, another trusty old approach that most agents no longer use, Farming, may be just the thing.  If you can focus on a neighborhood or zip code where you’ve achieved success in units sold, or Days on the Market, or percentage of list price, maybe a targeted mailer, reminding folks of the tight inventory and low interest rates, could net you an addition to your listing inventory.  And remember, yard signs and open houses net as many closed transactions as the internet.  Yes, from a recent NAR study, our old friends the listing and the open house still bring us the biggest leads to grow our business.

Finally, here’s where your Sphere of Influence—those folks with whom you’ve built and maintained a relationship of trust in you and your expertise—can really work for you.  An email, or better yet, a phone call or a round of golf, or a glass of scotch and a cigar, reminding your friends of the potential opportunity the tighter market reflects, and asking them to let you know if they have other friends sitting on the fence about selling their home, is the best way to make use of a warm contact and increase your inventory.  One agent even posted an article about the market on Facebook and netted a few new listings from friends and their referrals! 

The key, of course, is to set a regular time, every—yes, every—day to prospect in whatever forms you prefer.  It’s pretty simple, really: No prospecting, no seeds planted, no harvest.

And one last trick:  send folks three recent sale comps from their neighborhood—without the prices—and ask them to rank the comps and then decide where their own house fits in with them, then call you to see what the prices were.  Everyone loves to see what their house might be worth, and what better way than to let them determine it themselves! 

So lets get creative and go after those new listings and enjoy the tighter market this summer!

David M. Hassler

Director of Coaching