- INITIAL CONSULTATION AND PLANNING
- Determine your needs and priorities
- Confirm decision to sell with all persons on title
- Review agency choices and select appropriate working relationship
- Discuss marketing plan and establish pricing strategy
- Discuss home improvement recommendations (repairs/staging)
- DEVISE & EXECUTE MARKETING PLAN
- Complete home improvement recommendations if needed
- Agent places home on market and on the MLS
- Proceed with scheduled marketing activities
- Show the property to brokers and prospective buyers
- Monitor and evaluate results of marketing activities
- Communicate progress to you on a regular basis
- Revise marketing plan and pricing strategy as necessary
- REVIEW OFFERS & REACH AGREEMENT WITH BUYER
- Agent presents offers
- Discuss and clarify proposed terms and conditions
- Negotiate offer, including possible counteroffer
- Reach final agreement
- COMPLETE TRANSACTION PROCESS
- Open ESCROW; deposit buyer’s earnest money
- Receive ESCROW instructions and sign documents
- Title search; preliminary title report to buyer
- Review inspections and disclosures
- Complete any needed repairs
- Removal of remaining contingencies
- Final inspection and walk-through by buyer and seller
- Loan funding/remaining funds deposited to ESCROW
- Record deed of title
- Seller moves; buyer moves in
- AFTER-SALE SERVICE
- Help you find your next home
- Assist you with relocation needs
- Provide resources for after-sale homeowner needs
Your property’s market value is determined by many factors, including the home itself, comparisons with other homes of similar age, quality, and location, and current financial market conditions. But the main factor in determining your home’s market value is the property’s specific attributes and its location. These are the factors that buyers consider when viewing your home for possible purchase:
- Number and type of rooms
- Amenities such as a pool, spa, or guest unit
- Curb appeal and landscaping
- Condition of interior and exterior
- Remodeling, updating, or special features
- Lot, location, and view
- School district
- Proximity to shopping, recreation areas, and parks
Another way to determine your home’s market value is to examine comparable properties, most notable the price and number of days it spent on the market. This includes homes currently on the market, home recently sold, and homes that were listed but did not sell.
Based on the range of factors discussed above, the following is an analysis of the limits of your home’s value.
UPPER LIMIT
By taking into consideration the selling points of your home, the top of the triangle is a figure that represents the upper limit of your home’s market value.
MIDDLE RANGE
The center of the triangle is the mid-range value of your home. Within this range is the most realistic market value of your property and the most likely final selling price.
LOWEST LIMIT
At the base of the triangle, you’ll find the lower limit of the market value for your home. Our goal is to achieve the best possible price and terms without under-pricing your home.
Before diving into the market as either a buyer or seller, it’s important to take a look at the most current trends in real estate. Interest rates, competition from other properties, economic factors, and consumer confidence all influence the purchase or sale of a home. While these overarching trends can last for years, small monthly changes in our local markets can affect your transaction just as much.
The Bay Area real estate market is one of the most competitive in the world, and every few years, we experience large fluxes in price appreciation and demand. Over the past quarter, our marketplace has been returning to a place of normalcy and stabilization, indicating a sustainable and healthy market.
Regional trends include the following:
The East Bay market is growing fast despite low inventory; there are higher market values and fewer days on the market. Appreciation is increasing.
In Marin County, there are signs of strong demand, although the number of sales has dropped year-over-year perhaps due to a perceived cool down in the seller’s market. Prices continue to increase, but no longer at the rate of Marin County’s peak in 2013.
Competition in the condo and single-family home markets in San Francisco remains strong, especially in the west and south sections of the city. The years of astronomical annual appreciation are behind us. Condos specifically have seen an increase in days on the market, from five to seven days extending to three to four weeks.
Inventory levels in San Mateo County are improving and have begun to contribute to the normalization of the real estate market, meaning good news for buyers. The median sales price has risen year-over-year and is still very beneficial for homeowners and sellers, but all in all, the county is experiencing a calmer and much healthier real estate market.
Sonoma County continues to be the most affordable location in the Bay Area, where competition for increased inventory has created sustainable price increases due to healthy supply and demand.
To expand your listing’s coverage, it is essential that your property is showcased digitally, using virtual tours, high-quality video and photography, and single property websites. APR takes pride in staying on the cutting edge of the newest technologies and digital marketing platforms, and the robust online exposure we provide showcases your property to millions of potential buyers worldwide.
VIRTUAL PROPERTY TOURS
Your property’s virtual tour offers potential buyers an interactive view of your home, highlighting distinct characteristics, community photos, and videos that offer a taste of your neighborhood. Your virtual tour will link to apr.com, and your professional photos will become a video slideshow that can reach countless prospective buyers.
PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY
High-quality photography ensures your property is always shown in the best light. Your home will be professionally photographed for perfect presentation and included in large photo displays on apr.com, national and global real estate sites, in print advertising, and in your property’s marketing materials.
SINGLE PROPERTY WEBSITES
A single property website allows you to provide interested buyers with a comprehensive representation of a home that includes high-quality photos, detailed property descriptions, printable flyers, property maps, school and census information, and the ability to schedule a viewing. It is also possible to include downloadable property documents such as plot maps, floor plans, and disclosures.
MOBILE OPTIMIZATION
In this day and age, it is crucial that your listing be mobile-friendly and fully responsive on all smart devices. Ensuring it displays beautifully enables potential homebuyers to view your listing and connect with your APR agent on-the-go. To gain additional exposure, your mobile property website can be easily shared on Facebook and Twitter as well.
When placing your home on the market, obviously you want to sell it quickly and fir the highest price possible. Great staging can help you and your APR agent achieve this goal. In simple terms, staging is the process of arranging the interior and grooming the exterior of your home to welcome potential buyers and showcase its full potential.
Staging plays up your home’s good features, such as enhancing a great view or drawing attention to particularly spectacular wood floors. If you’re in a neighborhood of similar homes for sale, it will set your house apart.
To successfully stage your home:
- Un-clutter and organize your home so it is absolutely immaculate
- Neatly arrange drawers and cabinets, as buyers often look inside to evaluate storage
- Keep pets outdoors or off the premises, preferably not inside if possible
- Play soft music
- Place fresh flowers throughout the house
- Light a fire in the fireplace, if appropriate or in season
- Eliminate unpleasant pet, cooking, or smoking odors with potpourri, scented soaps, or candles
- Leave lights on and open all room doors for a spacious feeling
- Minimize family photos, religious or politically affiliated items, and personal trinkets or collections
Your aim in staging is to help potential buyers visualize living in your home. A welcoming appearance is worth extra attention.
Often, it makes good financial sense to hire a professional to do the staging for you. Professional staging companies thoroughly understand the concepts of space, lights, and color, and they know how to exhibit a home’s full potential. Additionally, they have no personal attachments to the home, so they are able to make practical, impartial suggestions. The cost of professional staging varies with the size of the house and amount of work involved, but a well-staged home should sell quickly and for more money, which makes the initial expense a wise financial investment.
