Must have’s items for your real estate on-line advertisements

Writing a good ad could mean the difference in your home selling or not…. This is especially true for the “for sale by owner” seller who relies on their own marketing efforts. There are many great homes offered online that lack pizzazz in their ad delivery. Think of your ad as well rounded meal one that includes an appetizer, main course and desert.

Appetizer: Ad Header
Start your ad with a tasty short header that grabs the reader’s attention and wets their appetite. You need to grab the viewer and give them a reason to further peruse your ad then follow it up with a call or appointment.

Start with a compelling heading, something that grabs one of the best features of the home. This could be; the view, an over sized lot, location, price, new kitchen or the number of bedrooms. When writing the header, think of the feature(s) that are the most important to buyers.

“South Chicago, 2 bed condo with amazing lake views”
“Central Memphis colonial on huge lot”
“Phoenix 3 bd cottage, lowest in town”
“Des Moines jewel completely renovated”

Main Course: Ad Body
The body should be the meat and potatoes of your ad. You want to fill up your viewers with just enough information to keep their interest and qualify your property to their needs. Your home may be perfect for someone, but it’s not for everyone. Highlight the obvious. If the buyers reading your ad are looking for a 3 bedroom and yours is only a 2, it just won’t do. Don’t withhold important information such as price, bedrooms, baths, square footage, etc.

A commonly withheld item is the address. Too many on line sellers withhold the address of the property with the hopes that it will entice the buyers to call. This is a faulty strategy…..and what’s the big secret? No one has ever purchased a home and didn’t know where it’s located. So many homes are being offered online, you don’t want the buyers to pass yours up due to your ad being incomplete. Buyers have thousands of homes to sift through; they will pass over the ones with missing details.

Try to personalize your ad body with statements like; “You’ll love the view”, “we will miss the neighborhood”. Go further in describing the item you mention in your header. Your ad body should talk about the other wonderful features of your property. Remember, your goal is to create an emotional response that will cause the reader to contact you for more information or an appointment.

Keep your ad simple and keep the sentences short. Don’t write a book, it won’t get read. Insert “white space” (a blank line) between your short sentences. Descriptions that run on and on in one long paragraph are difficult to read.

Dessert: Pictures and Contact information
Pictures, pictures, pictures and more pictures, …..the “eye candy” of your ad. Don’t place your ad without desert. Every on line publisher allows its customers to submit pictures. Properties without them are overlooked. Everyday more & more free advertising opportunities are presenting themselves to homeowners. Places such as Craistslist.org, Poslets.com and Owners.com all offer free online listings, with free pictures.

If you are still living in the 90’s and don’t own a digital camera, borrow one. Post multiple pictures of the attractive features of your home and the neighborhood. Use at least six pictures. If you can’t find six interesting shots, then include neighborhood qualities like; the nearby lake, a community club house or your neighbors broken-down pickup truck in the yard, (just kidding). Use your imagination.

Make sure you top off your ad with a “cherry”, an effective way for buyers to reach you. If your ad is on Craigslist or somewhere similar, (where your identity and contact information may be withheld) regularly check your email, not just once per week. I’m also firm believer in posting a phone number. Sure, you may get solicitors, but so what, will also get buyers. You are selling one of the largest financial investments of your life, be available to respond to the inquires.

A well put together ad is a real treat and the buyers will gobble it up.

About the Author:

Greg Sullivan is the President of http://www.byownermls.com/, a For Sale By Owner MLS service, the leading real estate search engine of homes for sale by owner, FSBO. For more information, please visit http://www.byownermls.com/.

Why Staging Works!

Staging is about emotion. It’s about creating a sensory experience for buyers that will so impress them, they don’t just like or desire your property; they are in love with and have to have it. Staging doesn’t just tell the buyer about the home or ask for a little imagination; it puts all the pieces in place, leaving no detail out. It makes it easy for the buyer to make an offer; in fact, it makes it hard not to.

If you’re unfamiliar with the world of staging, this may sound too good to be true. But trust us: it’s a fact.

Effective staging turns a house into a home, a home that radiates warmth and comfort. It creates a magnificent first impression and encourages a higher asking price.

If you’re interested in selling your home faster and for more money, think about staging. According to at least one study, a staged home is usually on the market for less than half the time.

Staging is, in fact, the secret weapon of home sellers. It’s the incredibly important, can’t-be-overlooked tool to making your home stand out to potential buyers.

Article source:
BuyOwner.com (ByOwnerMLS.com Partner) http://www.buyowner.com/learning/blog_article.asp?id=69

About the Author:

Greg Sullivan is the President of www.ByOwnerMLS.com, a For Sale By Owner MLS service, the leading real estate search engine of homes for sale by owner, FSBO. For more information, please visit www.byownermls.com.

What is Home Staging?

What is Home Staging?
The general idea of “home staging” is that it is a method of preparing a home for sale to make it appealing to a vast audience.

There are many levels of staging; from do it yourself quick fixes to hiring a professional who specializes in this type of trade. It can be done using limited funds, to spending thousands of dollars with a professional, to going as far as renting or buying furniture, making a vacant home feel homey. Each method is used in different degrees to make the home more attractive to potential buyers.

The professional “Stager” will promote the home’s “living area” with the goal of getting potential buyers to imagine themselves living within its space. By many this is considered an art, it is the art getting buyers to look past the “stuff” we all collect (occupied homes) and view the assets of the property while downplaying its negative features. In vacant homes it is the art of giving potential buyers a vision of how a room could be laid out or where your sofa or TV is going.

The do-it-yourselfer “Stager” or the home seller on a limited budged can undertake some “staging” of their home by removing all clutter, painting a room a neutral color, keeping the home clean, the landscaping manicured, removing personal items from counter tops, shelves, kitchens, laundry rooms and dresser tops. The object is to create a neutral, spacious, and inviting atmosphere. No matter how cute all your stuff is, unless its going with house it won’t be the selling feature that gets it sold. Remove clutter.

The differences between de-cluttering or cleaning a home and one that is professionally staged are huge. Creating that inviting “model home” look takes a true professional.

Don’t get me wrong, homes sell every day without staging professionals and will continue to do so, however if you are like every seller who has ever existed, you want to get the highest possible price in the shortest amount of time. Some level of staging should be considered by every home seller. Staging could make the difference between your home selling or the “neat and tidy” one around the corner. About the Author:

Greg Sullivan is the President of http://www.byownermls.com/, a For Sale By Owner MLS service, the leading real estate search engine of homes for sale by owner, FSBO. For more information, please visit http://www.byownermls.com/.

ByOwnerMLS.com Property Trends for December 2007

Most Popular*

Top Cities 1. Chicago, IL 2. Tampa, FL 3. Miami, FL 4. Orlando, FL 5. Philadelphia, PA 6. Fort Lauderdale, FL 7. Atlanta, GA 8. Pompano Beach, FL 9. Greensboro, NC 10. Houston, TX		Top States 1. Florida 2. Texas 3. North Carolina 4. Illinois 5. Georgia 6. Pennsylvania 7. New York 8. Tennessee 9. New Jersey 10. Virginia		Most Viewed Properties 1. Log Cabin - $219,000 - Towanda, PA 2. Log Cabin - $195,800 - Cuba, NY 3. Log Cabin - $45,000 - McVeytown, PA 4. Acreage/Land - $140,000 - La Follette, TN 5. Cabin/Home - $255,900 - Orwell, NY 6. Single Family - $599,000 - Key Largo, FL 7. Farm/Ranch - $139,500 - Creston, NC 8. Acreage/Land - $119,500 - Chechotah, OH 9. Condo/Townhome - $200,000 - Brandon, FL 10. Single Family - $190,500 - Buford, GA
*Based on property views on ByOwnerMLS.com in December 2007.

About the Author:

Greg Sullivan is the President of www.ByOwnerMLS.com, a For Sale By Owner MLS service, the leading real estate search engine of homes for sale by owner, FSBO. For more information, please visit www.byownermls.com.

What Makes a Home "Green"?

Green is the new black, so to speak. Everybody is talking about going green and even building green. So what does it really mean to build green?

Defining green has been a challenge, even for those who are as green as you can get. To sum up green, the question would be – what type of environmental impact does the materials you are using have?

Assessing impact can mean on the front end or the back end. For example, in some instances, the product you use in building your home might not be green to build, but the results of that product can be beneficial. A good example would be if a window is installed in a way that maximizes the collection of low winter sunlight and blocks the summer sun, this saves energy and is green.

Because defining green is difficult, standards are starting to be organized and listed in the GreenSpec directory. This directory bases decisions about products on categories such as energy-consuming appliances and VOC-emitting paints, specific thresholds can be established relatively easily. But for many criteria, the lines are much fuzzier and judgment calls are required.

It is important also to note that multiple criteria often apply—in other words, a product may be considered green for more than one reason. Take recycled plastic lumber, for example: it’s made from recycled waste, it’s highly durable, and it can obviate the need for pesticide treatments. Straw particleboard products are made from agricultural waste materials, and they are free from formaldehyde off-gassing. A product with multiple benefits could qualify for GreenSpec on the basis of its overall environmental performance, even if it doesn’t meet a threshold in any one category alone. Conversely, a product with one or more green attributes might not qualify if it also carries significant environmental burdens. For example, wood treated with toxic preservatives has advantages in terms of durability, but it would not be listed in GreenSpec due the health and environmental hazards it represents.

The primary intent with any green building products directory is to simplify the product selection process.

Another way to build green is to conform to what is called LEED Standards. LEED or ‘The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design’ is a Green Building Rating System™ that encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria.

There are many resources available for consumers so that they can adapt their building materials and design to LEED standards. Building this way is probably the simplest way to go and there are many resources available to assist you.

So should you build green because it is popular? Not necessarily. You should build green because it is what will ultimately provide a ‘green’ future and not a black one.

About the Author:

Greg Sullivan is the President of www.ByOwnerMLS.com, a For Sale By Owner MLS service, the leading real estate search engine of homes for sale by owner, FSBO. For more information, please visit www.byownermls.com.