Here is the simple truth… any house, with some targeted marketing, regardless of its age, location and condition can receive multiple offers with or without the use of a real estate agent. But on the other hand, unless there is a buyer already lined up, without targeted marketing, and realistic pricing you will be lucky to receive any offers based on the same criteria.
If you couple any house with good marketing, that house can attract multiple offers. I know it’s a bit cliché and to be honest it does happen more often than you think. Houses, like any other product, attract buyers if the value proposition matches up with the houses location, condition and age. Buyers intuitively make offers and sometimes compete to get the house that they want. Every time I hear a real estate agent say that with some marketing “we could attract multiple offers in a sellers market,” I cringe because most of them are not marketing gurus.
So, dont take the bait, hook line and sinker… because not all real estate agents and not all houses are created equal. If there is one thing that I have learned in business over the past 40 years, its that it’s all about the people and the product. When you align both of them, magical things can happen. It works for selling houses as well.
Who is Doing the Marketing
So, the question is… who is going perform the marketing and that is the gotcha in real estate. Most sellers dont give it a second thought and act as if their real estate agents have a masters degree in marketing and it couldn’t be further from the truth. Listing a house is not a marketing plan, it’s a component of the plan. Much like planting a sign in the front yard is. Likewise, a plan is not a brochure with great statistics or a comparative market analysis. A plan is a way to target possible buyers that would be interested in your house. A plan is taking action to make that happen. A plan has strategic components like sending an email blast to all of the real estate agents in the bay area that routinely show houses to their buyers in Sacramento. It is targeted open houses and mailers, etc.
So why is it that most homeowners thinking about selling their houses just take it for granted that any real estate agent would be better than they would be at selling the house themselves. It drives me crazy because the statistics show that 78% of all sellers hire the first real estate agent that they talk to. No reference checks, no performance criteria, they just hire them on the spot. What’s really scary is that nealy 87% of all real estate agents wash out within the first 5 years. They dont quit because they are selling lots of houses. They quit because they are not making money. So the question that I have for the sellers that hire the first real estate agent that they talk to is… “is your real estate agent in their first month or last month”?
“Therein lies the rub, because sometimes I think that real estate marketing is better at selling the concept of using a real estate agent then is the marketing employed by real estate agents to sell houses. Part of that is the effort that real estate agents make in marketing houses and the other part of it is the flaw in the design of the model that 99% of a real estate agents employ. ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL”. Peter Westbrook
Selling Real estate is a numbers game. Every month new houses come on the market and every month houses come off the market. Some of that is very natural as sellers change their minds and cancel listing agreements, and other houses are sold, etc. But did you know that over 38% of all listing agreements to sell houses expire before any offer is accepted? That is a big number.
Imagine almost 40% of all houses quietly falling by the wayside because the house did not sell? I for one think that real estate agents should have that as their primary statistics printed on their business cards. How many Sold and How many Expired listings?
Multiple Offers Does NOT Mean a Bidding War
So what is the value of multiple offers. I know to a lot of people that believe that it means a bidding war, or offers that come in over asking price, but it really doesn’t. Multiple offers are actually quite common and come with a lot of conditions and contingencies that buyers are looking for. Certainly, when multiple offers are present, there are more attractive offers than others.
Offers are based on what a buyer perceives as the value. But above all else, sellers must set the stage when they establish a price… that is the first part in the plan… that means that the seller needs to be realistic about the house and its ability to compete.
So, Selling houses is more about numbers and then targeting rather than it is selling. If you target the right buyers you will be able to sell your house fast and get pretty much the value of the house as it sits. If you are thinking that your house is worth more than the offers that you receive then you misunderstand the real estate market and the value of your house.
What Sellers Need to Know Going In
Simply put… EVERYTHING! If you really want to maximize the equity that you have in your house while at the same time spend as little as money as possible to put as much as you can back in your pocket at closing, then you need to be a willing participant of the process. If you are going to sell your house with a real estate agent and pay an ungodly amount of your equity in commissions, then you need to know what they are asking you to do every step of the way. And if you go that route, remember that it is your equity and you are the only one with skin in the game. It is your money they are spending every time they recommend a repair or update to your house. Shouldn’t you be the one to ask them the hard questions everyday until the house sells?
What you as the seller need to know:
- Know the Market (Buyers vs Sellers)
- Know your Product and its ability to Compete (Your House)
- Hire the right people
- Target the right buyers
- Make the Product stand Out
- Show the Value and Price it right
My name is peter Westbrook and I am a real estate investor in Sacramento, Stockton and Modesto CA. I make a living buying and selling houses and I have learned that there is only one person that can protect your asset… YOU! Selling a house in Sacramento, especially in Sacramento in this sellers market means that you have the advantage. Don’t relinquish that advantage by giving control to anyone. Maximize it by knowing just how your house can compete. If it is old tired and suffers from years of neglect and deferred maintenance, market it accordingly… so that leads to the next big topic.
What About the Condition of the House?
Exactly… that is what every buyer is going to ask, so don’t you think that you need to decide how you are going to deal with the house itself in advance? So this conversation is about positioning your house so you can effectively target the right buyers.
Taken one step further, if 98% of “interested buyers” are going to want up to 3 inspections, don’t you think it might be a good idea to get in front of that freight train and order at least one inspection in advance.
Once you have that report you can sit down and assess the condition of the house as it sits today. Information is king and if you can ascertain what the cost to repair is in advance and compare it to what the house would sell for if you just sold it as is, you will be in a better position to know if and what you need to do.
Real estate is no longer a one size fits all sales approach. Let’s look your house from two perspectives:
- If you have the prettiest house on the block with all of the upgrades in a great location and you are ready to sell, find the best real estate agent you can and sell that house for top dollar. It’s a sellers market push it to the brink. You will get multiple offers and in some cases a small bidding war will occur.
- If however, you have a house that is challenged and suffers from years of deferred maintenance, has not been updated and needs a lot of work consider this. For every dollar that you have to spend on repairs and updates to the basic structure of the house (windows, doors, roofs, fencing, settling foundations) you will be robbed of equity. Instead… target the right buyers and then the offers will start coming in.
Sellers markets help all houses in all neighborhoods attract multiple offers. While it is true that houses that need a lot of work are worth less to potential buyers, there is a pool of cash home buyers in every market that see your house as an investment opportunity. All you need to do is target them.
It is a myth that houses that need a lot of work have considerable value, especially in a sellers market.
Either way just because you naturally have an advantage in a seller’s market, doesn’t mean you’re house will automatically .
Here Are 5 Simple Ways To Attract Multiple Offers In A Seller’s Market In Sacramento
#1. Know Your House and it’s Limitations
Another way to attract multiple offers is to stand out in some way. Take your property to the next level by making it beautiful, memorable, and desirable. Perhaps even paint the door a dramatic color so that it stands out. This will make it memorable in people’s minds and they may add their offer to your growing pile of offers.
#2. Price Your House to Sell
Even though you might ask for and even get a high selling price, asking for a slightly lower price to attract multiple offers could be a better strategy.
#3. Open Houses Every Weekend Until it Sells
One way to attract multiple offers is to have an open house. If it’s marketed properly you’ll likely get several people looking at your property within a very short period that could increase the number of offers you’ll get at once.
#4. Create a Deadline for Offers
I am not fond of this it comes with a risk… One way to attract multiple offers is to only accept offers at a certain time. That way, if someone wants to make an offer, they have to comply with your time-frame and you may get multiple offers all at once.
#5. Target the Buyers
A very powerful way to attract multiple offers (although it’s often overlooked) is to identify who might be the perfect buyer for your home and then laser-target your marketing to reach them. For example, if you determine that first-time homebuyers are ideal then stage your home for that buyer and then laser-target your marketing to reach them.
Bonus Tip: Act like its a Buyers Market
Summary
In a seller’s market and depending on the neighborhood, you might normally attract multiple offers anyway – but the more offers you get, the more options to be able to negotiate a sale in everyone’s best interest. better. Use these 5 ways to attract multiple offers in a seller’s market in Sacramento.
Selling in a seller’s market might seem like the best option but one way to get another offer is to have us give you a cash offer for your house. We’re buying properties in the Sacramento CA area and we’d like to make an offer too. Click here now to fill out the form or call us at (209) 481-7780 and we’ll get in touch with our best cash offer.