Are You Being Exposed?

Not by this publication!

So you have to ask yourself "How will buyers see my property?" Exposure is one of the keys to selling so where will your home be marketed?

Mid-way through last year the Realtors of the Guelph and District Real Estate Board decided it was in their clients best interest to no longer focus on advertising their clients in the Guelph Mercury. They felt that instead of having their clients' listings sent right to the door of many Guelph homes that they would "Go Green" and cut distribution by 3/4 and that home buyers would search out their paper around Guelph in their Green Boxes. Given that it has been a week since the plows have been out plowing snow it appears that not to many buyers are using these green boxes.

Our clients still have the option of local print advertising with any listing done. Whether it is in Guelph with the Mercury, KW with the Record, Cambridge with the Times or Wellington County with the Advertiser. Mind you our clients also have access, through a partnership, to list their properties on Canada's busiest real estate website along with listing on PropertyGuys.com.

It leaves me asking what do Realtors offer for all that money that you can't get yourself with a little guidance?


M

Using an Agent is FREE for Buyers....

Not a chance!

I hear this regularly. In my opinion, this is one of the biggest fallacies in real estate today!

Just because you don't stroke a cheque to your realtor doesn't mean you are not paying for it. Think about it. If you are selling your house and using a real estate agent your first thought is generally "I need to get $X for my house". Then you figure what the agent is going to cost and tack it on top. Looking at it from that point of view....the buyer ends up paying the ENTIRE realtor commission as the seller has passed it on to you.

I prefer to look at it this way. The cost of selling the home is on the seller and the cost of buying is on the buyer (what can I say...I am a no nonsense kinda guy). In a standard 5% realtor assisted transaction the 5% is split 50/50 between the buyers agent and the sellers agent, 2.5% each.

In a Private Sale transaction the seller pays to market the home with services like PropertyGuys.com and the buyer is responsible to pay for any representation he chooses to use (buyer's agent). Now this can be negotiated into the purchase price, meaning the buyer pays more for the house than without the agent, or the buyer can pay for the agent themselves. We have seen this happen but it is for sure the minority. Our experiences tell us that less than 15% of private sale transactions have a buyer's agent involved and that the BUYER is the one paying for them, even if they are paid through the transaction!

Now what exactly is a "Buyer's Service Agreement"? Below an agent describes what "Buyer's Representation" is. Pay attention to the comment about paying the agent whether they are the ones who find you the house or not. This would mean once you sign the agreement you are on the hook even if they do NO WORK!


M

Golf For Men's Health

OK so we are going to do something a little different....I mean it's my blog right? I can do that if I want!

You may have seen a few men in your community with a lip sweater housed just below their nose. The "mo" (Australian slang for mustache) is a sign of a gentleman. It is also how many men are raising funds in Movember for Men's health, specifically prostate cancer. Both Dave and I (PGWW Partners) are supporting this worthy cause with our lip caterpillars. To date as part of Team Waterloo we have raised over $7,000 locally and over $12,000,000. Now we have pledged that for each listing in Movember we are going to donate $5 to our fundraising campaign, but I think we can do more. This is where the golf comes in.

I am auctioning off a foursome of golf, including carts at Savannah Golf Links in Cambridge AND limo service to and from the course from Brentwood Livery. To bid on this AMAZING item you can comment on the blog, send me a note on twitter or Facebook (where you can also see the progression of my Mo). The final draw will be held at the Waterloo Region Movember wrap up held at Chicopee on Movember 28th.

If you don't get the golf package, or you just don't golf, you can always donate directly to my Mo here.

M :{