Best Practices to Help You Manage Listings

NEW YORK – Over the last few years many of us have worked in a unique market. If you got your license after 2020, you most likely learned real estate in a world of over-list-price offers, waived inspections and appraisal gaps. As the ground shifts in 2024, we are slowly starting to see increased inventory, in some areas more than others.

Although we sharpened many skills over the last few years, we will now need to reach into the toolbox and hone our ability to manage listings.

Rising inventory means more choices for buyers. It also means homes will sit on the market for longer. Communication and transparency will make the difference in a changing market. Sellers need to understand the changes and the need for patience.

It takes time for the collective conscious of the consumer to catch up to the realities of the market. It is our job as real estate professionals and advisors to help our clients navigate the sale of their home, while navigating the circumstantial changes of the market. If you augment your marketing approach and communication this process can be seamless. Following simple best practices can make all the difference.

Best practice #1: Professional photography

Make sure the best parts of your seller’s property shine through with professional photography. Doing so will set the property apart on the MLS and on all the consumer facing syndicates. Depending on your budget and business model, you can offer virtual staging to step up the property’s presence. Many buyers have a difficult time furnishing a room in their mind. Remove the guesswork for them so they can visualize themselves in the space

Best practice #2: Aggressive marketing

Reach out directly to any agent who has sold a similar property within a mile of your new listing. Contact neighbors personally and invite them to bring friends and family to your open house. Send ‘just listed’ cards to the neighbors. Use social media marketing, video and online marketing to help maximize the property’s online presence. Look for additional ways to introduce the property to as many potential buyers as possible. Research the tools available to you and leverage them to help sell the property.

Best practice #3: Detailed updates

Send detailed updates on all your marketing activity to your customer weekly. You will want to use real metrics as well as anecdotal evidence. Sellers do not always understand the work that goes on behind the scenes. It’s up to you to explain it to them. You want to prevent your seller from worrying, and this can be achieved by establishing a regular check-in so you can explain everything you’re doing to help them sell their property. If you are not consistently reaching out, the easiest assumption is that you are not working diligently. If you leave room here for miscommunication or guesswork on the customer’s end, the relationship could sour quickly, especially once the property is on the market for longer than expected.

Best practice #4: Pricing transparency

In this changing market, it is always important to remember that our responsibility is to arm our sellers with the very best information available and to always let them make decisions for themselves. Consistently providing information on comparable listings, pending sales and recently sold properties to your seller allows for open conversations about pricing decisions. This honest dialogue can help them be realistic about offers by letting the market speak for itself. Using market information helps establish objectivity that allows a seller to make better decisions around pricing and various points of contract negotiations

Best practice #5: Re-evaluate your marketing plan

Every 30 days, update your seller on all metrics regarding their property. You should be doing this weekly, but once a month you will want to take it a step further. Use the metrics you have gathered over the last 30 days to revamp your marketing plan. Create a comprehensive plan to overcome any challenges, negative feedback or other lackluster results. Discuss price reductions. Use the resources available to you from your brokerage or local real estate boards to enhance your listing; we all have access to an array of marketing tools. This plan can be as simple as decluttering the property or something a little more complex, like hosting a series of open houses.

Listing management is an integral skill to operating a successful real estate business as the market adjusts. If you implement these best practices today, you will be prepared for anything. On the surface, these are all very easy adjustments to make, but it will certainly set you apart. Anticipating what your customers need from you without them having to ask is the key to future referral business and customer satisfaction.

© 2024 National Association of Realtors® (NAR)