Single Property Wesbites Give Sellers an Edge if Presented Well
Author: Ryan Ward | August 16, 2008
Many of you know that I am a fan of using single property websites as part of my overall marketing plan for listings. But, many agents don’t believe there is any merit to them or even if they do, they don’t know how to implement them in a way that has will help sell houses. Well, they do help and in some cases they can be the determining factor in getting a house to sell, but, if you think any website will do, you are mistaken. It takes a well thought out and well designed website for it to work properly. It also takes an agent who has the skills and ability to get that website found by buyers. Websites don’t magically appear in the search engines for buyers to find them. You need an agent who not only can create one as part of your larger marketing plan, but, will know how to use it effectively to market your home.
Take a look at the search results for this single property website that just sold one of my listings:
- “homes in haynes landing“
- “homes for sale in haynes landing“
- “10605 timberstone road“
- “FMLS# 3738467“
- “haynes landing johns creek“
These are not all just related to the single home that we marketed, but, they are there as well. Since we know that buyers look for homes online, why would you list your home with someone who cannot market to the most targeted buyers? One more thing. This is the only home that sold in the entire neighborhood this year. The buyer only looked at this home after seeing the single property website because it was not - at least they thought - what they were looking for from an architectural perspective, but, after seeing everything on the single property website, they decided they would look at it anyway and now it is sold, to them.
Of course, nothing is magic and there is no one thing that can make a home sell with the exception of price, but, all things being equal, this is a difference maker. There is no reason to list your home with an agent who cannot demonstrate to you that they can out market other agents and if they can’t produce results on the internet that go above and beyond listing in the FMLS and GAMLS along with all of the waste of time websites known as aggregators like; trulia, realtor.com and the like, then they are offering you no real advantage and no added value to their proposition as your listing agent.
We all know how to spin real estate statistics to make us look like we shine, but if you have your house for sale, what you need is marketing. I can’t make it any more clear than that. We work hard for our sellers and it pays off. I apologize if this post sounds like I am tooting my own horn here, but, since I started writing about these single property websites, I have received quite a bit of email saying that it is a waste of time so if you are an agent that is looking for a competitive advantage, please look for results like this when considering amending your marketing and adding the latest and greatest that someone is trying to sell you. Utilize marketing tools that work and do some research before you pay someone big money for something. The single property websites that I use cost $8 dollars a year and they look like this one I use to market Sandy Springs homes for sale.
Topics: Marketing | 1 Comment »
What You Can Get For 1 Million Dollars in Canton, GA?
Author: Ryan Ward | August 13, 2008
Actually, $999,000. How about a 6 bedroom, 6.5 bathroom 4 sided brick estate on 4 private acres with a pool? In some Intown Atlanta locations like, Buckhead and Sandy Springs (these are about the only places left to get 4 acres intown), this home would be closer to 3 million dollars.
This is not just a big home with land. The attention to detail and craftsmanship welcomes you through the front door. You won’t find ornate or gaudy trim and faux finishes in this home. Instead what you will find is simple, understated elegance and a very easy to live in floorplan that works equally well for a large family or for empty nesters that desire to get away from the rat race and enjoy life at home.
The backyard oasis includes a pool that is enclosed by a wrought iron fence so as to not impede the view while maintaing a higher level of security and safety. However, it certainly is not all pool - and you shouldn’t expect that it would be with 4 acres to work with. There are several ways to get to the pool; from the main level of the home, you can exit out through a sunroom, onto a deck and down to the pool and from the terrace level you can exit through either the finished recreation room, one of the three full kitchens with custom cabinets and granite counters, through a second full living room or perhaps the most appropriate way through to get to and from the pool which is through the full bathroom with seperate mens and womens changing rooms.
Speaking of the terrace level, you will be amazed with the space, functionality and useability. The full sized eat-in kitchen has custom cabinets, granite counters and bar area, the recreation room is large enough for 2 pool tables, the living room has a firelplace. There is also an exercise room, full bathroom and storage room.
While this home does have a first floor, second floor and a completely finished terrace level, the upstairs area has what is essentially a quiet sitting area and an oversized bonus room so if the space is not needed, the upstairs could easily be shut down improving the homes efficiency and saving on heating and cooling costs. When the holidays come around, there is more than enough room for out of town family to be quite comfortable with a space of their own.
The main living level is comprised of a gourmet, professional kitchen with custom glazed cabinets, large island and granite counters which looks into the living room, dining room and across into the sunroom which floods light into main living area. The living room features 20 foot high ceilings, a fireplace and a wall of windows. The owners suite is also located on the main level and features trey ceilings a fireplace, sitting area and large bathroom. On the opposite end of the home from the owners suite is a four car garage and complete in-law suite with another full kitchen and living room.
You can view more details of this home located at 555 Stover Road in Canton, Georgia on its own website, view more details, photos and map the property. If you are interested in taking a closer look, send me an email or call me at 404.630.3187 and I will be happy to schedule an appointment.
Topics: Luxury Real Estate, Marketing | 3 Comments »
Atlanta Real Estate Market Statistics
Author: Ryan Ward | August 11, 2008
Here is an update on the Atlanta real estate market statistics from January of 2007 through June of 2008. I had a reader email me and ask that I go back to the beginning of 2007 so we can see a little bit of a longer term picture of what is happening. I’m not sure how this plays out long term, but, there clearly has been an uptick on sold home prices over the last 2 months of complete sold data. Of course these are the summer months and market statistics are typically higher so it’s not earth shattering by any means and the trend line is still pointing in the negative direction.
However, this chart does lend credibility to something that I have been preaching for months - it just simply is not as bad as the media makes it out to be. Is it bad for sellers? Why yes, of course it’s not an easy market to sell a home in, but, it’s not as bad as it sounds on TV!
So you can see from this chart that we are still trending down and there are a number of factors that make it difficult to believe that this upward trend in values is likely to continue. One of the main reasons is the inventory of Atlanta homes which remains at an extremely high level. Below is a chart put together by Steve Palm of Smart Numbers, the company who performs the market analysis for the FMLS.
Please click on the chart to see a full size view
The other significant reason is the continued tightening of lending guidelines which has made it more difficult for buyers to obtain a loan. Combine the tighter standards with rising interest rates and affordability continues to go down.
There are however a couple of things that are, have been fairly constant in the market - especially here in Atlanta;
- Growth - Atlanta continues to have a population that is growing faster than most areas of the country.
- Affordability - The cost of living is lower than most other cities of comparable population.
Atlanta homes and the real estate market is not in as bad of shape as the media portrays, but, from the many factors outlined above, it does appear, at least to me, that it will be next spring at the very earliest before we see enough forces on the market move in a more balanced direction.
Topics: Categories | 1 Comment »
I’m Looking for a Buyers Agent to Start Immediately
Author: Ryan Ward | August 7, 2008
I’ve tossed this idea around for a couple weeks now as to whether or not to post an “ad” on my blog seeking agents to join my group, but, I decided it was as good of a place to do it as any. I consider it a substantial success that in a time where real estate agents are leaving the business and it is very difficult for many to make ends meet, we have been able to foster an environment of growth at a tremendous level. Some experience is required and you should be comfortable using technology. As one of Atlanta’s leading innovators in internet marketing for real estate, you will be well positioned to work with buyers in today’s market. Please call me at 404.630.3187 or send me an email if you are interested.
Update 8/11/08:
I’m actually going to be hiring at least 2 agents immediately and this will likely increase by another 2 within 30 days. I have had several calls and a couple of emails and I have not made a decision as you yet.
Topics: Marketing | 8 Comments »
iPhone For WordPress
Author: Ryan Ward | August 6, 2008
This will just be a quick test post from my iPhone to see how a post would look without being able to really preview it.
Actually, it looks pretty good. This is a sign for a new listing in Canton we just got and the sign is going in later today. List price will be $999,000. More about this home later from a real keyboard. For now, this is a 6 bedroom, 6.5 bathroom home on 4 acres.
We will be doing an intensive online marketing campaign which will incorporate video as well as all of the other technologies we use to provide our clients with more exposure than they could otherwise achieve without us.
For now, it’s off to a closing and then out to shoot photos to upload to the single property website, Canton Luxury Homes.
Much more about this listing and marketing later.
Topics: Marketing | 3 Comments »
Google Maps and Real Estate Related Information
Author: Ryan Ward | August 3, 2008
I’ve been working on creating accurate maps for each of the cities that we serve using Google Maps with overlays showing where the city borders are located. Right now, I’m planning on using these maps to include on the website so that consumers can find points of interest and school locations, but, I’m still in the early stages of coming up with ideas for other uses.
Some ideas that I have considered using in an overlay include:
- Schools
- Churchs
- Points of Interest
- Parks
- Heat maps of pending home sales similar to what is found on Trulia.
Since I haven’t finished developing much more than city outlines, I wanted to throw this out to try and get a few additional suggestions as to what else might be useful information for consumers. If you have any good ideas, please leave them in the comment section.
Some of the other things that I can do with them include adding information in a “tooltip” when the mouse hovers over a particualr city and making each city clickable, like a hyperlink, so that consumers can click the map of the city of interest and be taken directly to the city page.
Any other good ideas?
Topics: Marketing | 9 Comments »
Comprehensive Update on the Alpharetta Real Estate Market
Author: Ryan Ward | July 17, 2008
Those of us in the business know how quickly things are changing in the real estate market today, but, sometimes in nice to do a comprehensive recap with a variety of statistics to get a better feel for what is really happening. For consumers, the drive-by media has really done a disservice in its portrayal of the market. I’m not saying that some of what they say isn’t true, but, it’s just too general and we all know that real estate is local. I’ve put together a some statistics for the Alpharetta real estate market. These aren’t as easy to obtain as it might seem due in large part to the way agents list homes for sale. For this report, we will be talking exclusively about Alpharetta; not John’s Creek or Milton as I have eliminated them from the statistics. For clarification, I’ve custom designed a map of Alpharetta so there will be no confusion. These statistics are for the area shaded on the map below.
Closed Sales Fell Sharply, but are Rising AgainÂ
So, let’s first look at what has happened over the past year or so because the actual number of closed transactions has a direct impact on supply and demand - if no one is buying, supply is going to go up. This chart shows what has happened to sales and dates back to March of 2007.
The next couple of months of data will really give a much more clear indication of where the market is heading. If we see a continued increase, a leveling off or even a slight decline that matches historical declines from previous years, we will likely be able to say that the worst is over. On the other hand, if sales drop back off, we will likely be mired in this market at least until spring.
Values Remain StrongÂ
On the bright side, values have not really been hit - at least not as bad in Alpharetta as in other areas of the city. This chart indicates prices continue to trend up even in a slow market.
So even with the slowdown in actual closed sales, prices have continued to increase -albeit a slight increase, but relative to the Metro Atlanta market, this is an indicator of the true strength of the Alpharetta real estate market.
Supply Continues to Rise
Currently there are 457 homes for sale in Alpharetta. Using the sold homes data from the chart above, it would take 10.4 months to sell all of these homes. Metro Atlanta currently sits at about a 13 month supply.
Alpharetta Real Estate Remains Stronger Than Metro Atlanta as a Whole
A number of reasons contribute to this; Excellent schools, demographics, low crime, low unemployment, responsive city government, great parks and numerous intangibles. If you have been on the fence about buying or selling a home in Alpharetta, I hope these statistics help to build a little bit of confidence in you. It really is a great time to buy.
You can search Alpharetta homes for sale on our website and if you are interested in selling your home, we would love to have an opportunity to meet with you to demonstrate our value. Our marketing plan is second to none.
Topics: Alpharetta Real Estate | 13 Comments »
Foreclosures in Alpharetta, Milton, Roswell, Sandy Springs and John’s Creek
Author: Ryan Ward | June 19, 2008
Somebody’s Got To Say It!Â
A lot of the buzz for buyers these days is centered around the foreclosure homes for sale everywhere and while it may at first seem like there are some real “deals” to be had, there are some things you should know to level your expectations with reality. Contrary to popular belief, you are at least as likely to find resale homes that are at least as good of “deals” as anything that you can find as a foreclosure for a number of reasons. If you are in the market for a home and think you are going to find the next news making deal of the century, you might take a few minutes to read this post before venturing into the foreclosure market.
The reality is that many of the buyers in the market think that banks are giving these things away because they are desperate, well quite frankly, you’re not getting the whole story or at best, you are allowing your hopes get in the way of some of the more fundamental realities that exist in the market. In years past, you might see a foreclosure and offer well below asking price and find that they would just want to unload the property to get it off of their books. It’s not exactly the same anymore and there are a number of reasons why. Before I go into why, let me give you some statistics that support what I am saying because that is probably what you are looking for anyways and if you are still interested in learning why this is the case, you can read on.
It is very unlikely that you are going to buy a foreclosure for less than 95% of what the list price of the home.
Let me repeat that in other terms. Don’t waste your time making offers on foreclosures unless you are willing to pay close to what they are asking. Got it? OK good. I’m not here to try suck you in as a buyer and then lay it out for you. You should know before you begin that the likelihood to walk in with an offer for 80% of asking price and you walk away with the keys is just not going to happen so I’m really doing you a favor here.
Here are the real numbers. Arm yourself with the facts so you don’t end up frustrated later.
Roswell, Alpharetta, John’s Creek and Milton Foreclosures
- Since January 1st, 2008 there have been 96 foreclosure sales in these cities. They range in price from $130,000 to $930,000. The average list price to sales price for all of these foreclosures is 96%
Taking that a little further, you might think that the more expensive ones might offer better deals, but that is just not the case.
- Foreclosures in North Fulton above $500,000 - there have been 24 sales and the average list price to sales price for these is 97.5%
Many sell for full price with multiple offers and some sell for more than full price so please understand the realities of the market as they actually are rather than relying on news reports from sources that are dealing with less than accurate information.
The truth is that the best deals in today’s market are found in the free and open resale market from homeowners who have equity and for whatever reason need to sell.
OK so how about foreclosure in Sandy Springs? Might we find some better luck there? Well, no. This is going to be the same no matter where you look and the reason has to do with what the banks must have as required by law as far as their liquidity is concerned. Many banks are precariously close to the legal minimum limits to remain solvent so if they just start throwing away these foreclosures just to unload them, they might go under. Basically they are caught between a rock and a hard place. You bet they would like to unload these properties, but, just like many other people in the market, they are basically upside down and The Fed sets limits for them here too so they just can’t unload them.
They are however utilizing a different strategy to sell them than they did in years past in that they are actually pricing them competitively now and often times under market value.
As with anything else, it’s best to arm yourself with the facts before you head out on your house hunting ventures. It’s very important to have correct expectations of the market as the market indicates based on real facts rather than on what you heard. Remember, as professionals we as agents deal with these issues daily and it’s our job to know best how this process works.
Edit
Just in case you are interested, here is a link to the closed forelcosures in North Fulton and here is a link to a spreadsheet showing the breakdown.
Topics: Categories | 16 Comments »
Turbo Charge Your Listings With Single Property Websites
Author: Ryan Ward | June 12, 2008
Sellers Love Them and Done Right, They Can Give Your Listings a Real Edge over Similar Homes
The truth is that your average run-of-the-mill single property website won’t do much to help you sell a listing. But a well thought out website, optimized for consumers and the search engines, can give your listings more exposure than any other additional form of exposure.  I have been adding them now for about 2 months and the results have been tremendous. But, how do you even know if people are viewing your tour and where those views are coming from? Instead of making up answers and excuses for my sellers that I couldn’t back up, I sought out real answers to these questions to determine if you could make a virtual tour worthy of being a real part of a marketing campaign rather than just something we do to appease a seller. The statistics may surprise you.
Since buyers and agents can view virtual tours, it’s possible to track how many visits you get and where those visits are coming from simply by adding a tracking code like Google offers for analyzing your own website. I have been testing 4 listings by using single property websites. With over one month’s worth of data accumulated between all 4 listings, the total number of view to the virtual tours by agents and buyers from every real estate website where these homes are listed has returned a grand total of 15 visits, but, I was able to generate over 500 visits by making the virtual tour double as the single property website as well. The vast majority (97%) of views to my “Virtual Tours†were referred by way of my website, through blog posts about the property and direct organic search results.
Certainly you could explain to a client that 3 or 4 views in a month for one property would not justify a virtual tour, but, how about 100 – 250 visits? I think that would not only help you sell a house, but also help you shine and get listings where you might be competing against other agents who cannot produce that many potential buyers to a property. I have had several people ask me if they could use the website I created for the listings and I have finally made it available for download for free to use. The trick is in the configuration of the plugins so you need to read the readme file that I made for the website theme. I will probably offer it in more than one color, but, for now, it will look like this one that I am in the process of putting together for a new listing in Milton. You can see a completed live version I have for a listing in John’s Creek.
The WordPress theme and everything that you need is available for download over at my test blog so if you have any specific questions about getting it to work, please respond there. Here is the location. Depending on when you look at the other site, it may or may not look in the best shape. It’s not called the real estate test blog for nothing. I test things out there before going live on anything.
Topics: Marketing | 12 Comments »
Buyers and Sellers are Not Even Close - Agents to Blame?
Author: Ryan Ward | June 9, 2008
Not totally, but, at least partially. If you are actively working working with buyers and sellers in today’s market, you know how hard it can be to even get a realistic starting point when presenting or receiving an offer. Recently I wrote a post about someone who contacted me and asked that I place an offer almost $500,000 below the asking price of $700,000 and this may have been an extreme, but, more and more buyers are looking for deals like this that just aren’t there. The logic on the part of buyers is based partially on misinformation and partially on the perception that homes are not priced at a perceived value. Fair enough on perceived value and they may have a point in many cases, but, the logic is flawed on another level and as agents we are to blame as much as anyone. I’m afraid fear of potentially losing a client is standing in the way of doing our jobs in many cases.
I’m sure I’m not alone in my recent experience in dealing with buyers. It goes something like this:
You look at some houses above what they want to spend and they find one they like. They look at the price that the home is listed for and decide to offer 75% of the asking price. On a home listed for $400,000, they might suggest that they would buy it if they could get it for $300,000 and for you to make an offer. After all sellers are desperate. More often than not, this logic is flawed as the buyer generally has very little idea of what a fair market value is. There are lots of reasons as to why buyers have this mentality right now and all they know is that buyers have the upper hand and the sellers have to sell. As agents, it’s not responsible to simply say OK and go present an offer. You’re a professional, right? Do your job!
Educate your buyers of market value. Go over list price to sales price - and original list price to sales price, days on market, comparables, etc…Buyers smell blood and there is blood in the water, but the water isn’t completely red just yet. Sellers aren’t giving it away and not everything is a foreclosure. Oh yeah and the foreclosures. They are typically being priced lower and closer to what they are selling for than in the past. Banks have more inventory and can’t afford to leave homes drying up on the vine as in the past.
This year in North Fulton, the average list price to sold price for foreclosures is approximately 96%
 There Are Deals, Right?
 Of course there are. But, not usually off of asking price. The deals are simply homes that can be found that are usually already listed below what we determine to be fair market value. If you have a buyer who is shopping for a home using logic based on offering a number based off of the list price then you are not doing your job as a professional real estate estate agent.
It’s time to step up and explain to your buyers, AT THE BEGINNING OF THE HOMEBUYING PROCESS how to look for a deal and why that logic is flawed. Be a professional, not an order taker. Be part of the solution, not the problem. Win more clients because you know what you are talking about. Don’t get pushed around because you are afraid they won’t work with you. If you are the professional, you need to convery that. Remember, much of the hoopla surrounding buyers and there ceaseless search for the deal that they heard someone else got on the news is not based on sound logic. They will appreciate knowing that they are working with someone who can actually get them a real value, not just something below list price. List price indicates maximum value and it doesn’t mean they got a deal just because they bought something below list price anyway. Remember, you are the expert.
Topics: Categories, Marketing | 10 Comments »