The Steps to Effectively Market and Sell a Property Need advice on what it takes to sell a home in Santa Fe? Effectively putting your property on the market and creating a great sale is all about the details. Once your property is listed with the Neil Lyon Group, what happens? Quite a bit, as you will see. Please read on. STEP ONE
STEP THREE
Broker Meets with Seller
Prepare and collect needed documents
● To understand the circumstances driving the desire to sell, to establish timing for the sale, consider any possible referrals in the destination market and any other important considerations. ● To view the property and understand it’s major attributes in order to determine value and the most effective listing price.
gather marketing and advertising information, property history, construction details, past repairs and renovations and what aspects of the property have been the most important to the owners.
● Title Commitment and Recorded
● Sotheby’s International Realty (SIR)
Listing Documents: They include the Listing Agreement, the Neil Lyon Group Performance Guarantee Amendment, the Property Data Form, the Waiver of MLS Benefits, the Adverse Material Facts statement and Lead-Based Paint documents (if the house was constructed prior to 1978 or if the exact construction date isn’t known but prior to 1978 is likely).
● To
● Determine if a “pre-marketing inspection” would be beneficial or necessary, and if any work is required to prepare the property for the market.
STEP TWO
Determine the market value and recommend the most effective listing price ● We review recent and relevant sales to hone in on the expected market value of the property ● We determine which available properties represent competition and how those properties impact our listing price recommendation.
● Owners’ Documentation:
In addition to obtaining the documents required by SIR, most owners possess important documents that can be useful to the sales and marketing process. If available, we’ll want a set of house plans or an accurate floor plan, a property survey or site plan, a past title insurance policy (which could reduce the cost to the seller when a new title insurance policy is issued for the next owner), and a well-drilling record and/or septic permit, if the property has a water well or septic system. If applicable to the property, we’ll want a well-sharing agreement, a road maintenance agreement, and a complete summary of past repairs and renovations that have been completed during the ownership of the property. Any information that can be provided regarding the roof warranty (whether it is transferable and, if so, how to complete the transfer), will serve to expedite your transaction.
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Documents: We will contact our preferred title company and order a title insurance commitment and the recorded documents. If the commitment reveals issues of concern, we can address these issues early in the marketing process to avoid the impact of their presence on a possible sale. Timeliness in dealing with title issues can be the difference between a closing that is right on schedule, or a delayed closing or contract termination. STEP FOUR
The three initial marketing tools ● Photos: After we receive the executed listing documents, we will engage one of our professional photographers to produce over 50 interior and exterior photos of the property. We typically have the images within 4-5 days. ● A Matterport 3-D Virtual Tour:
will be filmed and produced within the same time frame. This process requires that the property is staged and camera-ready and that only the videographer is present at the time of filming (2-5 hours depending on the size of the home and the number of levels). Our videographer will then edit and produce the film so that within 48 hours it is ready to be posted to our Matterport-ready websites.
The Steps to Effectively Market and Sell a Property STEP FOUR CONTINUED ●A
Color Luxury Brochure: The NLG Marketing Team will visit the property to experience the environment and collect first-hand information for the text and to create an extensive list of property features. This will be combined with images selected from the photographs to produce a 4-page brochure.
● neillyon.com: Neillyon.com will feature your property and it will also provide a conduit for your property to link to many other websites created by individual real estate brokers which will significantly expand exposure for your property. On neillyon.com, your property will show on the Home Page on a rotational basis in a variety of ways: as a “Featured Property” and on the NLG blog that provides fodder for many important search engines.
STEP FIVE
Going live to the world ● The
Santa Fe Multiple Listing Service (MLS): Just a few hours after the marketing tools have been uploaded into the SIR marketing system (Atlas), your listing will go live on the MLS which immediately pushes the property information out to over 1,000 area brokers and affiliates. The reach of the MLS is extensive and from that platform it will be syndicated to more than 150 national, regional and affiliate real estate websites that participate in its network. Millions of viewers can tap into your listing from sites that include Realtor.com, Homes.com, wikirealty.com, HomeSpotter.com, homesandland.com, HomeFinder.com and Home2Me.com and many others.
● Email Blasts: We
create customized email blasts for each of our properties that are pushed out to three important audiences: the 1,000-plus brokers who are members of the Santa Fe MLS, our personally cultivated list of SIR agents and brokers from around the globe met and courted at the SIR conferences and professional events, and to a highly valuable list of our prime contacts. This third group has been developed over many years and includes past clients, local influential business owners and highly productive real estate brokers from around the country who have been important sources of business to the Neil Lyon Group. All year long, we are communicating with these many important contacts on a weekly basis with email announcements, market updates and special real estate content.
● SIR Listing Management System:
By virtue of the property information being entered into the SIR system, listings will be linked to our SIR company and partner websites as well as to other internationally recognized sites which include: WSJ.com, NYT.com, Real-buzz. com, JamesEdition and PropGoLuxury.
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● SIR’s Marketing and Public Relations & Publicity Department in New York City: This professional staff is always on the lookout for newly listed special and unique properties. When they receive information that one of our luxury properties is about to go on the market, they will determine if it is marketable to prestigious US or international publications and websites. The competition for these very limited and exclusive placements is significant, as we are vying with unique and special properties being newly marketed by SIR offices around the world. ● HOME Magazine: Periodically your property will be advertised in our monthly full-page ad, which is produced and distributed by the Santa Fe New Mexican. Distributed on the first Sunday of each month, HOME offers a full month shelf-life with strong distribution. HOME is reaches over 50,000 readers and 3,000 overruns are placed in front of real estate offices, chamber commerce, visitor centers, hotels, restaurants and shops around town. ● Sunday Edition of the New Mexican:
On a rotational basis, properties will also be advertised in this publication. These placements are selected and funded by the company. When we learn that one of our properties has been selected, the owners are notified. We also feature properties in periodic full color inserts within the New Mexican such as “We Are Santa Fe” which appear concurrent with big events such as Indian Market or Balloon Fiesta.
The Steps to Effectively Market and Sell a Property STEP FIVE CONTINUED
● Immediate Showing Feedback:
● Wall Street Journal: We
When a showing is over, we close the property and secure it. Promptly afterwards, we contact the owner (with a phone call, text or email) and let them know what we observed during the showing. If the owner is in Santa Fe, the call or text will also let them know that they can return to their property.
advertise in Sotheby’s Internation Realty’s standalone WSJ inserts. These pieces showcase the extraordinary properties we represent and includes distribution to over 55,000 WSJ subscribers in prime key markets including: NYC, Greenwich, the Hamptons, Houston, Boston, Cape Cod, Palm Beach, Santa Fe, Los Angeles, Pasadena, Greater Ventura County, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez, Monterey/Carmel, Sonoma, and San Francisco.
STEP SIX
Showings to possible buyers ● Preparation: When
we receive a showing request, we promptly notify the owner of the day and time and seek their approval to confirm the appointment. If the owner cannot accommodate the request, we’ll determine when it will work for all parties involved. Once the appointment is set, a member of the team will handle the showing. We will be at the property well in advance of the showing to open window coverings, turn on all lights, and make sure everything is ready for the viewing. In the warmer months, this may include opening doors and windows, as well. During winter months, we will shovel walkways, if necessary.
● Buyer’s Broker Feedback: When showings are logged into our showing management system (ShowingTime), a showing feedback request is automatically emailed to each showing broker so that the broker can tell us how productive the showing was. After we receive this feedback we forward it to our sellers. Occasionally, a broker will not use this platform to give us feedback. On those occasions, we will follow-up with them personally and let our sellers know what we learn.
STEP SEVEN
Reporting In addition to the feedback calls and reports each owner will get after each showing, there are other ways we stay in touch and keep our owners current on all that we are doing to expose their properties and what is happening in the general Santa Fe marketplace. ● Monthly “Homebase Insight”
Reports: These reports generated by SIR tally website “hits” from the key real estate internet sites (such as SothebysHomes.com, SothebysRealty. com, the Zillow Group sites, Realtor. com, WSJ.com and Homes.com) that have uploaded our property listings. On a monthly basis, we email these reports to our clients so they can view the number of total views of their listings from these sites on a daily basis, along with the number of weekly and all-time views.
● Property Oversight: While
we are showing our listed properties, we keep an eye on maintenance issues that may become evident, especially if our clients are not full-time residents. Whether it’s a new roof leak, a leaky toilet, a door that now doesn’t properly close, we will contact the owners if we discover anything is awry.
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● Quarterly Market Update Reports:
These informative newsletters are emailed to our owners and to our key contact email list. In addition to keeping our owners updated on what is happening in the residential real estate market in Santa Fe, these publications demonstrate our expertise in the world of Santa Fe real estate. Buyers are often directed to us by one of the hundreds of recipients of these publications.
The Steps to Effectively Market and Sell a Property STEP SEVEN CONTINUED ● Consultations: We are also in contact with our property owners on an “as needed” basis. Perhaps a home that is rarely occupied needs some attention. or the market is indicating the need for a price change. This can occur if, after a significant number of showings, there have been no repeat showings or we receive feedback indicating that the asking price is too high. If we show a property many times resulting in few or no repeat showings, this is critical information that we will discuss with owners. If there are very few showings over time, this will also necessitate the need for a conversation about price.
STEP EIGHT
The purchase agreement At the time a property goes “under contract” we enter a new, critical phase of the selling process. ● The Contract Checklist:
Contracts are long and complex. The standard purchase contract is a 16-page document accompanied by as many as 40 pages of disclosures and other related documents. To make the process of monitoring the contract contingencies and their related time frames manageable, we promptly produce a contract checklist that summarizes every contingency and the related deadlines.
This provides a practical tool that the owner can use to monitor the escrow process. This summary is sent to all parties related to the contract as a reference tool to the many details of the transaction as it moves towards closing. ● Constant Contact:
The NLG Operations Manager also delivers regular updates to owners to highlight upcoming milestones as the escrow process moves forward. There will be appointments to manage that will include inspectors, appraisers, insurers, the buyers, contractors, architects, surveyors, well and septic inspectors (when applicable) and a host of others who are involved and will request access to the property.
● Bringing the Transaction to Closure: Once all the contract contigencies are cleared or waived, there will be closing details to attend to at the end of the escrow period: we will review the closing statement for accuracy, assist with the buyer’s re-inspection if required, orchestrate the buyer’s final walk-through, and assist with the transfer of utilities. There are bound to be details unique to the transaction that we will make sure are properly closed. Finally, we will be at the closing table to provide any 11th hour support and the resources for any last minute questions or concerns.
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● Extraordinary Expertise:
To be sure, the hardest work begins once the purchase contract is executed and the escrow process begins. As a team that handles upwards of 30 to 50 transactions a year, we have seen just about every contract pitfall and challenge imaginable. We take great satisfaction and pride in managing and negotiation this complicated process from start to finish.We take even greater pride in our record of successful closings and satisfied customers. We know our team’s talent and experience can optimize your marketing and sales experience and we work tirelessly to realize that goal.