(888) 893-2165With over 5.95 million homes sold last year in the U.S., it’s clear the American dream is still alive and well. That’s good news for realtors, but the job does have its fair share of challenges.
The real estate process can be frustrating and full of back-and-forth negotiations between agents, buyers, and sellers. Knowing the ins and outs of the selling process helps you manage your time, close deals faster, and support buyers and sellers throughout the process.
Each step of the sales process requires knowledge, skill, and patience. There are a number of ways for a real estate agent to improve the process for everyone involved.
Here’s a look at six ways to master the real estate sales process.
1. Preparing the Sales Listing
You want to prepare a winning sales listing, no matter what property you’re selling. This typically involves three core components.
- Interviewing the seller
- Preparing the property
- Marketing the property
Listing and preparing a house for in-person and virtual sales are critical skills for a real estate agent. This involves writing a perfect description, taking photos, and building a virtual tour.
Professional staging is a great way to showcase a home and can help motivate buyers to make an offer. A good listing should speak to prospective buyers and help you receive acceptable offers quickly.
When the property looks its best, and the photos are ready, it’s time to get the word out about your property. Be sure to promote it through online channels, your realty website, and social media platforms.
If you need assistance with real estate marketing, consider enlisting the help of a professional outsourced sales team.
2. Naming Your Price
The next step involves valuing the property and setting a selling price. This involves reviewing comparable sales and current market conditions to better estimate the property’s worth.
Begin by looking at listings in the area. Get a good idea of what similar properties are selling for. This provides a benchmark to start from. You’ll want to review:
Active Listings
Look at local live listings that don’t have offers yet. Remember, these prices don’t reflect the true market value until they sell.
Active listings offer insight into what price buyers are hoping to get for their properties.
Pending Listings
Pending listings are under contract but haven’t sold yet. Unless you have a trusted source, listing agents usually won’t disclose information about the offered price.
Pending sales give you a good idea of how the market is performing. Once the sale closes, you can see the final selling price for comparison.
Sold Listings
Sold listings give you a true picture of market value. Look at the last six months of data.
Sales beyond this time may skew your market analysis. Withdrawn listings are properties that have been taken off the market for one reason or another.
If there are multiple withdrawn listings above the average market value, you can use this data when valuing properties to sell.
Consider properties that are similar in age, size, and location to the properties you’re selling. This can provide valuable information to gauge what your property is currently worth.
Use a real estate CMR tool to compile data and track listings.
3. Conducting Property Viewings
Once your price is set, your marketing efforts begin. There are a wide array of methods to get your listing out to would-be buyers.
You’ll want to arrange an open house and schedule private viewings. Develop a list of interested buyers who have responded to your online listing. Reach out to them to promote your open house events.
Reach out after open house events to get feedback on the property and see if they’re interested in making an offer. Schedule private showings with promising buyers.
Continue promoting the property until the deal is pending.
4. Negotiating the Sale
After receiving an offer, the negotiation process begins. The goal is to get the house sold as soon as possible and at the terms agreed on without rushing anyone involved.
For real estate agents, the negotiation stage can be stressful. You’re going back and forth with offers and counteroffers and trying to keep each party happy and informed.
You can strengthen a buyer’s trust by providing all the information they need, along with any support they need addressing loan procedures, inspections, repairs, and more.
Buyers often ask to visit a property multiple times during the buying process. Make sure you have a serious, qualified buyer before investing your time and energy in finalizing a sale.
5. Conducting an Appraisal
It’s a good idea to attend the house appraisal of your seller’s property. You’re already familiar with the property, which is helpful if the appraiser has questions or concerns about the property.
You should notify the appraiser of any enhancements, upgrades, or remodeling the seller has done that could affect the price of the property.
6. Closing the Sale
Closing the deal is the ultimate step of the real estate process. This step depends on all the steps you’ve taken along the way.
A few essential tasks are associated with this final step. These include:
- The Final Evaluation
- The Final Round of Negotiations
- Finalizing the Paperwork
The last step involves celebrating the sale and removing the property from the market once the final paperwork is complete.
Mastering the Real Estate Sales Process
Selling a home is thrilling, but as a real estate agent, you know how much work it takes to get there. Understanding the real estate sales process and how to make it work to your advantage is key to success in the real estate industry.
One popular option today is outsourcing marketing and sales to a reliable team who can help you reach the sales goals you’re shooting for.
At JumpCrew, our all-star sales team would love to help you reach and surpass your current sales goals. Let us save you time, money, and stress in the process.
Contact JumpCrew today to get started.
