January 23, 2008-Inman Real Estate News
Roost jumps into real estate search scene
A new real estate search site rivaling the likes of Realtor.com, Trulia and Zillow, has pounced on the scene. Roost.com launched its public beta today.
The site appears to mirror Trulia in the way that property listings search results show photos, price and other basics, then lead consumers over to the brokers' Web sites for additional details.
The company is gathering listings via partnerships with brokers who have IDX data feeds in place, according to Roost's Web site.
The real estate listings aggregation space is quite crowded these days, but as Joel Burslem points out over at FOREM, it's never too late for a company to eye a space and think they can do it better. His case in point: Kayak.com, a search site in the travel vertical. Kayak launched much later than Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity and others, but ask anyone who's used it and they often say they are fanatics (among my sphere anyway).
An interesting connection between Kayak, Roost and the "latecomer" approach is that Greg Slyngstad, director of Kayak, sits on the board of Roost.
More later on how the site works with brokers and agents.
Technorati Tags: Kayak, listings search, online real estate, real estate property search, Realtor.com, Roost, Trulia, Zillow
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Friday, February 29, 2008
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sellers Tips in a Buyers Market
House prices are falling in much of the country, and more than 4 million dwellings are on the market. That’s bad news for sellers, because buyers feel free to make lowball offers and then just wait.
It’s a buyer’s market, but don’t despair.
You can increase your chances of selling your house in a reasonable time by following a few good guidelines.
First, play the cards you’re dealt. A successful home sale begins before the house is listed, when you decide not to expect to make a killing.
“All you can do in a falling market, if you have to sell, is have the best possible product out there at the price it should be,” says Diane Saatchi, an agent with Corcoran Group on Long Island, N.Y. “Not what you wish you could get, not what the neighbor got two years ago, but at the price you should get now. That’s the reality.”
It takes discipline to face that reality. Humility, too. For many sellers, “the only disappointment is that their friend, six months or a year ago, got more then they’re getting,” says Bill Christiano, a loan officer with MortgageIT in Westchester, N.Y. “ego gets in the way when they’re trying to sell. Or stubbornness, I should say.”
Second, break through your ego and stubbornness by looking at the good deals that your neighbors are offering. “The most important thing is to really shop the competition on the market right now,” says Elizabeth Razzi, author of “The Fearless Home Buyer,” published in 2006, and “The Fearless Home Seller,” to be published in February. “Get out in the car and spend a weekend looking at everything you can. Visit some weekend open houses. Just get a feel for what your buyers are looking at.”
Third, make it a turnkey, not a turkey. The word “turnkey” is used in commercial real estate. It means a property that is ready for immediate use. Your house has to be that way when buyers have a cornucopia of houses to choose from. “You have to make it a 100 percent turnkey situation,” Razzi says. “Everything has to be ready to roll, because buyers never want to buy a house that needs a lot of work unless it’s an absolute bargain. You have to take away all their opportunities to say no.”
Fourth, offer incentives. Besides a low price, incentives for buyers include paying discount points to lower the mortgage rate, paying closing costs or providing flexibility about the move-in date.
Consider offering a premium to the buyer’s agent. Add a half-point or a point to the commission, or give the agent a cruise or big-screen TV. “It may not cause the deal to happen, but it can just attract a little more attention and make your deal stand out.” Razzi says.
Fifth, and most important, price realistically.
“Don’t get greedy,” says Pam O’Connor, president and CEO of Leading Realty Estate Companies of the World, a national network of 650 regional and independent brokers. “Just because it went up to some astronomical value and it went down from there, you have to be realistic that there has been moderation in the market.”
It takes research, often conducted by a real estate agent, to come up with a realistic asking price, and discipline to abide by it.
“It’s not enough just to throw out a figure,” says Mario Villena, vice president of HomeKeys, a Miami-based online real estate brokerage.
Using tools on sites such as HomeKeys, Zillow, and Redfin, buyers can get an idea of your house’s market value. You and your agent can’t bamboozle buyers because they have so much information about comparable house values.
In a seller’s market, sellers typically ask for 10 percent to 20 percent more than they expect to get, Villena says. You don’t have that luxury in a buyer’s market, and Villena suggests asking for just 3 percent to 5 percent more than you realistically expect to get. Setting an aggressive asking price attracts more prospective buyers to your door, discourages lowball offers and saves negotiating time. “You’ll know fairly quickly whether they’re willing to meet your or not,” Villena says.
In a market where prices are falling, asking prices must fall, too, “which is a whole new concept for sellers right now,” Saatchi says. For example, if the Smiths sold their house early this year for $700,000 you might have to ask just $695,000.
An agent has to have tact to break the news, Saatchi says: “When we tell our clients this, they think we are the devil.”
It’s a buyer’s market, but don’t despair.
You can increase your chances of selling your house in a reasonable time by following a few good guidelines.
First, play the cards you’re dealt. A successful home sale begins before the house is listed, when you decide not to expect to make a killing.
“All you can do in a falling market, if you have to sell, is have the best possible product out there at the price it should be,” says Diane Saatchi, an agent with Corcoran Group on Long Island, N.Y. “Not what you wish you could get, not what the neighbor got two years ago, but at the price you should get now. That’s the reality.”
It takes discipline to face that reality. Humility, too. For many sellers, “the only disappointment is that their friend, six months or a year ago, got more then they’re getting,” says Bill Christiano, a loan officer with MortgageIT in Westchester, N.Y. “ego gets in the way when they’re trying to sell. Or stubbornness, I should say.”
Second, break through your ego and stubbornness by looking at the good deals that your neighbors are offering. “The most important thing is to really shop the competition on the market right now,” says Elizabeth Razzi, author of “The Fearless Home Buyer,” published in 2006, and “The Fearless Home Seller,” to be published in February. “Get out in the car and spend a weekend looking at everything you can. Visit some weekend open houses. Just get a feel for what your buyers are looking at.”
Third, make it a turnkey, not a turkey. The word “turnkey” is used in commercial real estate. It means a property that is ready for immediate use. Your house has to be that way when buyers have a cornucopia of houses to choose from. “You have to make it a 100 percent turnkey situation,” Razzi says. “Everything has to be ready to roll, because buyers never want to buy a house that needs a lot of work unless it’s an absolute bargain. You have to take away all their opportunities to say no.”
Fourth, offer incentives. Besides a low price, incentives for buyers include paying discount points to lower the mortgage rate, paying closing costs or providing flexibility about the move-in date.
Consider offering a premium to the buyer’s agent. Add a half-point or a point to the commission, or give the agent a cruise or big-screen TV. “It may not cause the deal to happen, but it can just attract a little more attention and make your deal stand out.” Razzi says.
Fifth, and most important, price realistically.
“Don’t get greedy,” says Pam O’Connor, president and CEO of Leading Realty Estate Companies of the World, a national network of 650 regional and independent brokers. “Just because it went up to some astronomical value and it went down from there, you have to be realistic that there has been moderation in the market.”
It takes research, often conducted by a real estate agent, to come up with a realistic asking price, and discipline to abide by it.
“It’s not enough just to throw out a figure,” says Mario Villena, vice president of HomeKeys, a Miami-based online real estate brokerage.
Using tools on sites such as HomeKeys, Zillow, and Redfin, buyers can get an idea of your house’s market value. You and your agent can’t bamboozle buyers because they have so much information about comparable house values.
In a seller’s market, sellers typically ask for 10 percent to 20 percent more than they expect to get, Villena says. You don’t have that luxury in a buyer’s market, and Villena suggests asking for just 3 percent to 5 percent more than you realistically expect to get. Setting an aggressive asking price attracts more prospective buyers to your door, discourages lowball offers and saves negotiating time. “You’ll know fairly quickly whether they’re willing to meet your or not,” Villena says.
In a market where prices are falling, asking prices must fall, too, “which is a whole new concept for sellers right now,” Saatchi says. For example, if the Smiths sold their house early this year for $700,000 you might have to ask just $695,000.
An agent has to have tact to break the news, Saatchi says: “When we tell our clients this, they think we are the devil.”
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