Congratulations on Listing Your Home! Thank you for listing your property with The Toril Sells Houses Team. We are honored and excited that you chose us to work with you on selling your home. We have the same goal –“to get you the best possible price in the shortest possible time with the least amount of inconvenience to you.” Along the way, Toril and Judy will guide you as well as each and every team member as if she were selling her own property. Although this letter is lengthy, it is very important as it outlines the process for your transaction. We believe communication is the key to a satisfactory business relationship so we have developed a team to support you in each step of the process to ensure all aspects of your transaction are given our utmost attention. We find it helps to give you a detailed overview of what to expect while your property is on the market. If you have concerns about any of the items in this letter please, please express them – we will listen! Nothing is carved in stone and we work very diligently with every seller in the way that is best for them. Our relationship is a partnership. We will use every available resource to get your home sold, and your collaboration in this process is the most valuable. The most important thing to understand in selling your home is that we are looking for market value. Market value is what a buyer is willing to pay for your home based on its condition, the competition and the current state of the real estate market. Many agents and sellers alike, assume that the price we list your home at is automatically market value. The fact of the matter is “it might be and it might not be.” The determining factor is the buyer and what they are willing to pay for the home. Our initial listing price is our “best estimated guess” which is just like an appraisal. In a perfect world our best estimated guess will match up with the buyer’s perspective and market conditions. If all of the factors do not match up, then detailed feedback will provide the information we need to make any required adjustments. We will educate and guide you so you can make the best decisions for you and your family. While serving our clients, we base all of our decisions by utilizing our company vision statement and core values.
Our Vision and Core Values OUR VISION is to be the team of choice that cares about making a difference by being experts in real estate, exceeding our clients' expectations in educating and communicating in order for them to make the best decision for their families and themselves, creating the best possible experience in their transaction, and growing a friendship long after the transaction is complete. We are a remarkable real estate company that is debt free and profit sharing. We are growing with the right team members that share the same vision and who, both personally and in business, have fun achieving their goals, live by our core values, and are there for each other, their families, and the community...working hard so we can all play harder! OUR CORE VALUES are Stability – We strive for congruency mentally, physically and financially at home and work so that whatever happens, we can sustain our high level of performance as a team to feel secure and peaceful and make our clients feel the same, Integrity-We will always
do what is right, even if it is hard, because it is the right thing to do. With being honest and having strong moral principles, comes a higher quality of life in business and personally, Win/Win-We ask ourselves “What is best for everyone?” We come up with a strategy and we resolve conflict, Persistent-We will not give up. We will continue firmly on course in spite of difficulty, Optimistic-We are always confident about the future ~ expecting the best and remaining positive, Sincere-We care. We tell our clients what they need to hear. We express how we genuinely feel and believe, Be Humble-We believe that humility is the most modest estimate of one’s own importance. We will always show respect and remain grounded, and Love What You Do-“Do what you love and you will never have to work a day in your life!” ~Confucius.
How do people know my home is listed? Your property will be entered into the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) within 24-48 hours after it is show ready and pictures are taken. This means the information on your property will be immediately available to any broker in our area via internet. If a broker is actively searching for a new listing with the attributes and/or special features that your property has, then it is conceivable that your property could be shown within the first day it’s on the market. Sometimes, however, things get started slowly. The thing to remember is that we are looking for a minimum of four to eight showings in the first three to four weeks and should have an offer in that amount of time. If we do not have four to eight showings, generally the market is telling us the home is priced too high. If you do receive an offer in the first week or two, don’t think you priced your home too low. This actually means it was priced right. Getting an offer that quickly is not chance! It is the result of years of experience that has taught us how to sell your home quickly for the highest price possible. Remember that the list price of your home is an educated guess based on all available information on current market conditions and backed up with our years of experience. As we evaluate feedback from showings, we will begin to get a more accurate picture of the market. Reacting quickly to this picture is essential! One of the biggest mistakes sellers make is having the mindset of “I’m in no hurry to sell.” However, statistically, the longer your home is on the market, the less and less and less you will get for it. If we ignore the market once the market has told us what we need to do, we are wasting your time. We have found that we get all the feedback we need to make an educated decision in no more than three to four weeks. If we stay at the same price after that, 99.9% of the time we will keep getting what we have been getting, no offers. The key is listening to the market and then responding accordingly. Lastly, remember that, if vacant, utilities must remain on in the home until the home sells.
When will my sign be installed…and why in the heck is there no price on my flyer? A sign will be placed on your property which has several unique features that benefit you, the seller: • We use a sign installation company to install your professional and reflective sign. The sign has our office number, which is answered by a live person at The Toril Sells Houses Team Monday through Friday (Calls are returned on Saturday and Sunday as we are out in the field selling houses!). Our web address, where prospective buyers can view a photo display of your property, is also on the sign. Photos will be posted on torilsellshouses.com within 48 hours of putting your home on the market. Your home is not posted on other websites by our office, but by the website itself. Because your home is posted on hundreds of websites, this can take up to 10 working days. However most take 24-48 hours. Please keep in mind that some sites only allow a certain amount of photos and are very limited in the information that we are able to post about your property and they write the blurb about your home. We always check the sites for errors and will report to the sites to correct them.*If your sign is not up within 72 business hours, please call the office immediately and we will follow-up on this matter right away.*
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Along with your sign, within five to seven business days, an eco-flyer will be attached to your post with specific information about your property. This flyer is designed specifically for your property, so it takes a little longer for production. Eco-flyers are better for the environment and stand up against all the rain Washington is known for. We will also send a personalized email with a copy of your eco-flyer and a link to your home on our website. We recommend that you send this to everyone on your personal email list and post it on all your social media sites for even more exposure! On the front of your eco-flyer are a few pictures of your home along with our office number. By not revealing too much information about your property, we are making the phone ring. Our brokers are trained and certified to ask the right questions to qualify the right buyer for your home. We are, also, able to track activity on your home much more accurately by making the phone ring.
Other Marketing Along with our full marketing strategy we may also include your home in email campaigns, telemarketing, direct mail, ads, blogs, and numerous social media sites. We are constantly monitoring what works and what doesn’t and are always looking for new ideas in order to ensure that we are using the best forms of marketing with the maximum exposure for our clients.
Showings and Feedback Generally, if your home is occupied, brokers will call you in advance to schedule a time between 8am8pm for their clients to view your property. It would be rare for a broker to show a property past 8pm. If you seem to have a large number of “no show” appointments let us know so we can try to figure out the reason. Generally “no shows” are because buyers change what they want mid-stream and the Broker is unable to cancel their appointment. There may also be multiple brokers who do not call for an appointment but stop as they are driving through your neighborhood. If at all possible, please allow them to view your home – just ask them to wait 5 minutes while you “tidy up.” A little clutter or preparation of a meal in the kitchen will not prevent the sale of your home. While you “tidy up” make sure to turn on all the lights (light sells!!), turn off televisions, and put away anything that could be extremely distracting. Let the broker know they may walk around the outside of the property while you are getting the inside ready. For safety reasons, make sure they are a broker by requesting a business card. Be sure that they use their hand held remote on the keybox to access the key. This tells us that they showed your home, giving us the opportunity to follow up and then, you don’t have to let us know about the showing…even on weekends! We will already know, request the feedback, and give you all the details on your Friday update. Remember, if the broker does not use their electronic key and is let in to the home by you or anyone else, we won’t know they showed your home and won’t be able to get valuable feedback. It is best for you to leave home every time a broker makes an appointment. It is better to be out of the way as potential buyers view your property to give them privacy for discussion without any discomfort about your feelings. Be cautious in talking to potential buyers, casual remarks that you feel are harmless could possibly cause them to eliminate your home. Your emotional attachment to your home can be a “turn-off” to some potential buyers as they will feel as if they have intruded on you. It’s best if you let us follow up with brokers that have shown your home. If you follow up you could appear desperate and turn off the potential buyer or give them information that would benefit the buyer in negotiations! So let us call other brokers. Remember we are working for you! We have noticed a new trend in the market where brokers are calling our sellers directly and asking them questions that are inappropriate. Per the Broker Code of Ethics, a Showing Broker is required to take all communication through the Listing Broker. Showing brokers are using the excuse that they are not able to reach one of us, which is never the case. If a broker calls you for anything
other than setting up a showing appointment, please tell them to call us at the office and we can give them all the information they need. You are welcome to leave for a weekend, vacation, etc. Brokers should still leave a message to let you know when they will be at your property. Our keybox is the only way they can get in and it will tell us exactly when they were there. One thing that needs your attention is protection of valuable articles, jewelry, cash, guns etc. during all showings. The Toril Sells Houses Team is not responsible for losses during the listing period. While the risk is minimal (We have never had anything stolen in 17 years), I strongly urge you to lock away all items of value in a safe place.
Voicemail In an effort to assist you in facilitating showings of your property by other Brokers, you may want to include a message such as the following on your answering machine or voicemail. “Hi, this is your name. We are busy at the moment and cannot come to the phone. If you are a broker and are calling about showing our property, please leave your name, office name, phone number and what time you plan to be here. Please remember to speak slowly. If you cancel your appointment, please call us and let us know. Thank you for your cooperation.”
Merchandising Your Property Just like any other showroom, your property needs to appear in “perfect” condition EVERY DAY! This is difficult and we understand, especially when you have children. But, a property remaining unsold on the market for months is more trouble than keeping it tidy initially so it will sell faster. Remember, if buyers aren’t drawn to the image created by the front of your house they may never see the inside. Fresh paint on your front door, touched up trim, colorful flowers in the front – all these factors communicate an “I care” attitude to potential buyers which translates into “this property must be in great repair/condition.” Now is the time to keep the front yard well-trimmed and green in the summer and clear of snow in the winter. We pride ourselves in also being staging experts and would be more than happy to give you tips and guidance on staging your home to show in its best light….just ask us!
How Often Will We Personally Show Your Property? Many homeowners use this as a barometer to judge whether a Broker is doing a good job. Most of our buyers come from four sources: the “For Sale” sign, advertising and referrals and other brokers. Most of the time people who call from the “For Sale” sign are looking at property above their price range. When we get a call from a “For Sale” sign there may be many specifications the buyer is looking for that your property doesn’t offer. If we find a buyer looking for a home just like yours, we will qualify them and then show them your home. We sell more real estate than most brokers in the area and a very high percentage of those are our own listings’ but it is possible that we could go through a listing period without having the right buyer for your property. We may not be the selling broker (the broker representing the buyer) but our marketing will definitely be the reason your property sells when a buyer comes through another broker!
Does No Showings Mean That No One Is Seeing My Property?
In today’s technology driven world, most of our showings are virtual. So, while you don’t have people walking through your home, know that they are walking through online. Your home is on hundreds of sites and search engines all across the web! We are tracking all website hits as well.
Feedback & Weekly Updates We know you will be excited to hear feedback right away. Please be patient as there is an exact science to communicating with brokers. We will send feedback requests more than once to brokers starting immediately after the showing. Sometimes brokers are eager to respond, but other times they may take a while or not respond at all. We will accumulate this feedback to share with you in your weekly updates we send on Fridays. If you hear from us sooner, it means we probably have an offer or something vital that needs to be addressed right away. Rest assured, the communication “ball” will never be dropped while your home is listed and we appreciate your patience during the process.
About The Toril Sells Houses Team All of us on The Toril Sells Houses Team are available to you to assure you the best service possible. We all have specific duties and we have numerous systems set up so we can make sure we stay on top of all the details involved with marketing a property. We will be there to advise you on each step of selling your home: market, feedback, offer contracts, negotiations, and making sure all the details of the final contract are completed before closing. As Listing Brokers, we are always available to you, but whenever possible, please let our team handle whatever they can. We are in constant contact with them throughout the day and speaking with them is communicating with us. If you need us, just tell one of our team members and they will make sure we get the message. Toril has taken special care in choosing the people on her team and is confident that they are what allow The Toril Sells Houses Team to be one of the most successful real estate teams in Washington. Again if you need to speak directly with a Listing Broker, we usually return calls as soon as possible and no later than 24 hours. If you do not get a response from us within that time frame, please call again as on rare occasions a message may get misplaced, or the voicemail could malfunction.
Trust in The Toril Sells Houses Team One of the most important factors in our working relationship is the trust in our ability as your real estate team. We are updating your Craigslist ad weekly and tracking the action from our sign, brochures, internet traffic, website inquiries, calls, etc... To listen how the market is responding to your property. If the market is not responding like we want it to, then stress and frustration can increase. In these times it is important to listen to the market and let us guide you with our years of experience in helping hundreds of families. Doubting our abilities, blaming the market, shooting the messenger or taking advice from someone with little or no experience is of no benefit to you and will just lead to more frustration. Please realize that a crooked sign or no price on a flyer is not going to impact the sale of your home but our proven marketing strategies will. We know the market better than anyone, but nobody knows your home like you do. For this reason, you are a very important asset in selling your home. We may reach out to you from time to time with questions from brokers or to confirm various details about your home.
Once again, this letter is to assist you in becoming familiar with what to expect while your property is on the market. I have been through this process myself and know it can be difficult, but by working together we will get your property sold quickly for top dollar and with very little inconvenience!
What Happens Next? After the listing contract is signed, we will successfully place your listing in the hands of our Listing Managers. They will be in charge of following the sale of your home. Once your home is listed, you will receive a welcome email from them introducing themselves, explaining where you can find your listing online and providing you with copies of all your paperwork for your personal records. Every Friday, until we receive an offer, our team will update you on showings and feedback. We meet daily to discuss our market and pricing strategies and will make recommendations as the market speaks to us. When we receive an offer, your file will be handed to Colleen, our Offer and Closing Manager, who has a plethora of experience on negotiating to make it a Win/Win for all parties, and of course, net you the most money! She and our entire team will be here to answer any questions or concerns you may have, as well as help you schedule inspections, appraisals and signing appointments. Once again, this letter is to assist you in becoming familiar with what to expect while your property is on the market. We have all been through this process and know it can be difficult, but by working together we will get your property sold quickly for top dollar and with very little inconvenience! Sincerely,
Toril Schoepfer – CEO, Judy Jackson – Listing Partner and the Entire Toril Sells Houses Team… “Your best friends in real estate!” 16124 64th St E Sumner, WA 98390 253.826.7508 866.743.3484 - Fax www.TorilSellsHouses.com We Love Referrals!