Hello,
What you have done lately for your listing to get a contract? Common ones we know are offered:
Closing Cost
Prepaid HOA/Condo fees
Selling agent bonus
Mortgage payments for certain period of time(example 3-6 months)
When offering incentives you have to keep something in mind.
Did you add the incentive into the listing price? Most agents recommend this to sellers to off-set cost of the incentive.
The biggest problem with this approach is if buyers are looking into a certain price range, your listing my not even show up in order to show your listing or incentives.
Also, incentives have to be well advertised so buyers can see the value your sellers are offering.
My experience is to make sure the home is priced correctly and maybe added a Home Warranty as an incentive.
On the subject of agent bonuses, most agents I know don't consider the commissions to much. Their goal is to show their buyers service, no matter want the commission is offered.
These type of agents, I noticed, tend to have long relationships with their cilents which generate future business.
Whatever avenue you choose, I wish you luck.
This will probably be off topic but I recently lost a listing because I expressed that most of the time a bonus gets converted to closing costs for the buyer. I also felt that putting everything the seller was willing to give ( ie bonus, lowest price, paint allowance) in immediately would leave the seller with no leverage to negotiate. Any thoughts on giving up all the information or how soon to put on a bonus?
My thoughts on Bonuses....
If you price the home correctly from the start you shouldn't have to offer a bonus. It's the first to dissappear in the negotiation. Are you going to loose a contract because they don't want to pay you a $2,000 bonus?
The incentives, closing costs etc.. (except a home warranty) seem to tell me it is somewhere in the price of the house.
My buyers are much to educated now not to see that closing costs and other incentives are meaningless if the price of the home is to high.
It's not rocket science! If a house sold three months ago at $250K and the same home comes back on the market is it worth more now???? We have to educate our sellers that we are in a price driven market right now and people are going to buy the biggest bang for their buck!
In a nutshell: Price it right~
I just thought about the daunting task for sellers to find space in the house somewhere to store the extra clutter...what about offering to provide a rental storage space free of charge?
That'll keep the closets free whenever a buyer opens the closet door. Also the seller would appreciate that you're thinking of them since decluttering is one of the biggest stresses for listing a house.
Jerome, I like your suggestion on the storage facility. Most of my seller's have done it. The home shows so much better and they get created in re-positioning the furniture.
For bonus we don't put it as a part of the listing unless seller agrees to pay the selling agent. I recommend my seller's to leave it off, let the contract come in as most of the contract in our area do ask for seller's subsidy.
I just want to brain storm and share ideas what everyone has done or got for their clients to get the contract ratified.
I agree with Mark- looking to add incentives as a way to pick up business is largely a waste of time and you shouldn't have to do it. A well priced listing and giving your clients Professional service gets the seller the most $ in their pocket.