Not all sales go according to plan.
Case in point: Two very similar suites come up for sale in the same building at a client’s home I’m selling. Using my experience and skills, I make a plan for my client’s property to ensure their home sells for the price they’re looking for.
Enter: a pandemic.
Even though as an experienced realtor, I always plan for contingencies, things I was use to, historical data I could reference, everything – is ALL off the table.
The other agents were busy playing, ‘beat the lowest price,’ a dangerous game where they keep lowering their prices until one sells first, with the goal of hoping other buyers won’t want to pay more for a similar property.
I took a different strategy. In addition to staging and taking quality photos for the listing, I also ensured I was having meaningful discussions with all the buying agents that would come to showings, a technique I’ve adapted from my pre-real estate sales days – it’s old school, but it works. Call it, ‘discovery,’ or call it, ‘communication’ – it can really help when things aren’t going according to plan and you need to find solutions.
Other effective resources I used:
I have a special document I send to the buying agents highlighting special features in the condo before their appointment, things they might not notice right away
I sent photos of exactly where the lockbox was (if you’ve seen my photos of the lockbox hell zones – you know. If they can’t find it – they won’t show it. Gotta make it EASY).
I followed up with every single agent that showed the condo by phone, and text (I’m nothing if not thorough!). This allowed me to handle any possible objections. Believe it or not, I’ve sold many properties by having this discussion.
I shared my thoughts on what the Toronto condo market might look like once the vaccination is rolled out. Sharing information is powerful!
The end result?
We had more than 60 showings. I know what you’re thinking – that’s a lot of showings! And yes – the name of the game is eyeballs in the home. The more people that see the home, the higher the chance of selling it. The other condos had about 1/3 of the number of showings.
Photos matter a LOT. The reason I got showings was because the condo looked good – first impressions matter. It’s what starts the emotional connection with the property.
And more importantly … we SOLD! (Those other properties? Let’s just say the sellers were asking their agents why their unit was lower priced, yet still on the market …)