It doesn't take any skill whatsoever to give away business for little or no fee. In fact there is no skill at all in running a business like that. Discounts, rebates, do-it-yourself realty companies catering to For Sale By Owners / FSBOS...are the buzz word! Since real estate right now is having a moment of reckoning in many markets, perspective is needed to take it all in so we can develope survival strategies. Some agents that believe menu pricing, low fees will make them survivors. I'd don't. The markets have changed. Agents that believe otherwise still believe they are in a market that existed a few years ago, and are about to meet the same fate as the dinosaurs! They've failed to learn the most important thing about real estate...Discounting will not pay the bills!
Discounting services / fees, and offering major rebates does not earn you enough to pay board fees, or provide enough money to top off a tank of gas, or enough to pay for your next open house ad! Face it. we are in a market that most agents have never seen! I am not talking commission here, I am referring soley to common sense. We are in markets where we are accumulating of lots of inventory, there are not as many buyers, we have higher interest rates, days on market are increasing, so are our marketing costs! The longer it takes to sell a home, the more costs are involved!
If you or someone you loved were ill, and someone were to recommend a Doctor for that illiness, you would employ their services without asking price whatsoever. Why? Because they were a specialist, and you received a recommendation that they were recognized as professional, and have demonstrated specialized skills! So why would you look further? It is not a time to look for rebates, cash back, E-Z terms, it is about hiring the best!
With sellers possibly looking at major equity losses in the current market, it make sense to hire that professional that can deliver not only results, but the best possible results! I believe that is the market we are in right now. Some may think it is the end of the world, while others that can demonstrate they offer real solutions will not only survive, but to the contrary will do very, very well for themselves. That is why they call real estate a profession!
The person that does it for nothing or almost nothing - sells the point that there is no skill involved and that all you need to do is list your property in the MLS. This is PASSIVE MARKETING. Those that employ a strategy, skill, a custom marketing plan are involved in the process of ACTIVE MARKETING.
I've written several articles for http://www.realtytimes.com/ that share some insights:
- Back to Basics: Common Sense Real Estate 101
- Changing Times in Real Estate - Location, Location, and Location?
- Awareness: The Challenge Of Changing Real Estate Markets
- Increase Your Bottom Line By Adding Value
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"But what about the house that will sell simply by putting it in the MLS. " I am not disregarding that possibility, I am not referring to the odd sale, I am referring to doing business this way as a way of business.
Jim,
Thanks for the post. I am aware of a "discount Brokerage" closing its doors in the Hudson Valley area of New York. The business model of placing listings in the MLS and little else did not work. The company could not sustain itself without the core component of service.
William,
Thanks for your response. In our lifetime, we will probably never see a repeat of the real estate boom that just past. Historic lows in interest rates, and a belief that real property was safer than many other investments led to a stupid storm of sorts. Anything worked. Now we are returning to a normal market. Our dads had to roll up their sleeves doing a days work, so do we. The coffee break of the last few years is over, and now it is business as usual.
We keep forgetting in real estate is that consumers drive the markets, we don't. We accommodate the needs, and the demand and allow it to come to fruition. Now, with more homes on the market, and softer buyer demand a new need has appeared. If your listing is now competing against 50% more homes than in the last few years...how do you get your listing noticed, under contract and sold before the others? That is where experience, diligence, and hard work will accomplish the task.
So it is about being paid for providing service, earning your commission, paying your bills, and having enough left over to put aside for your needs. It will not pay to give away your skills, and talents for free.
Jim, I've noticed in our area that the number of FSBOs have greatly gone down. If professionally marketed properties are slow to sell, FSBOs don't have much of a chance.
Sandy