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Think that FSBOs dread hearing from you? Think again. Studies show that nine out of 10 FSBOs eventually end up hiring an agent to sell their home. Yet, only 5 percent of real estate practitioners say they work with FSBOs — which means there’s an untapped market for you to grow your business, says author John Maloof in The Real Estate Agent’s Guide to FSBOS (AMACOM, 2008). To help you get started, Maloof gives scripts for justifying your fees, advice on avoiding communication blunders, tips on building rapport, and techniques for showing FSBOs why it’s not in their best interest to fly solo.
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From the Book: 5 Ways to Prospect FSBOs
Selling a home with the help of a real estate practitioner will net home owners 32 percent more at closing than selling on their own, according to a 2006 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® study. Still, some home owners try to go it alone. That’s where you come in. Here are some ideas from Maloof’s book.
1. First, find the FSBOs. To create your FSBO prospecting list, scour newspaper classified ads and public ads posted at grocery stores and convenient stores. Record any drive-by sightings of FSBO yard signs. Also, you might subscribe to a FSBO lead provider service, such as www.fsbohotsheet.com or www.fsboleads.com. These companies compile FSBO listings for you on a weekly or daily basis. Another idea: Attend FSBO open houses and then follow up with a card thanking the sellers for allowing you to view their home. In the card, include a list of homes you recently sold in their neighborhood.
2. Be an information source. Create a FSBO package with helpful marketing information for FSBOs. Include your resume, business card, important forms, and tips on staging and holding open houses. Why offer so much valuable information? The S.O.S. package — which can include a sample offer contract, mortgage approval letter, inspection report, and local HUD disclosures — provides a glimpse into the overwhelming amount of work involved in a transaction. That may get FSBOs to realize they’re in over their heads.
3. Give ‘em a call. But first get a copy of the Federal Trade Commission’s Do Not Call Registry to make sure you can call them. If so, in your first phone call, introduce yourself
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Bargain shoppers are on the hunt for foreclosures, so get ready to help them find a hidden gem. But first, you might benefit from some pointers. After all, buying foreclosures can get tricky — whether you’re making the purchase at auction, through a bank, or from an emotional and financially-strapped home owner. In the new book Finding Foreclosures (Entrepreneur Press, 2007), real estate investor Danielle Babb and mortgage broker Bill Nazur take you through the complexities of buying foreclosed properties, from finding the best deals to avoiding common pitfalls.
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From the Book: 5 Ways to Get Good Foreclosure Deals
Foreclosure rates are spiking and brewing up a hot market for investors and buyers. To get the best deal possible, follow these tips from the authors:
1. Timing is everything. Borrowers often are given a chance to avoid foreclosure with a grace period, typically two to three months, to pay off the amount they owe. The borrower may opt to sell the property during this pre-foreclosure stage if they can’t make up their missed mortgage payments. This is typically the best time to strike a deal, as home owners are looking for ways to avoid foreclosure. Another prime time to buy: prior to an auction date.
2. Look in the right places. Follow the foreclosure trail. Title companies, banks, purchase money escrow offices, and credit unions can be good sources to find out about new foreclosures. Online services, such as RealtyTrac provide national information on foreclosures, broken down into such categories as bank-owned, auction, and pre-foreclosure. The Hudson & Marshall Web site has auction schedules and even lets you make bids online.
3. Know when to walk away. For properties that have been left vacant for any amount of time, it’s important to check for any plumbing or electrical issues, vandalism, foundation problems, and mold. Recommend that your clients spend money on a home inspection to ensure they’re not overlooking problems that would be expensive to fix. Even if the property’s price tag has
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In the face of an attack, 60 percent of victims will become paralyzed with fear, about 20 percent will fight back unsuccessfully, and slightly more than 10 percent will use self-defense moves to get away. “What would you do?” author Robert Siciliano asks in his second edition of The Safety Minute: 01 (Safety Zone Press, 2003). With NAR’s Safety Week under way, Sept. 9-15, Siciliano’s book provides a good refresher on ways you can stay safe on the job, full of safety tip lists and diagrams of self defense moves. If you do find yourself in a dangerous situation, you’ll know how to get out of it.
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From the Book: 5 Safety Tips
Pleading and crying have been shown to be ineffective defense strategies against an attacker. Instead, Siciliano suggests the following:
1. Embrace your fear. If you get a feeling that something isn’t right about a situation, trust your gut. Fear can be good for averting danger and it brings an adrenaline rush, providing you with an extra boost of strength. Fear also can sharpen your senses, allowing you to be more aware of your surroundings and acute to anything that seems out of place. Anticipate an assault so you’ll be ready to avoid or counter it. But don’t carry your fear on your sleeve — attackers look for vulnerability. Project confidence and strength. Be aware, alert, and ready.
2. Arm yourself with safety products. Whistles, personal alarms, self-defense sprays, and portable property alarms can offer you some defense. For example, personal property alarms are small and can be attached to a purse strap or belt. If you’re in trouble, you can use the device to emit noises as loud as 110 to 130 decibels, much louder than a whistle. Pepper spray is a more forceful deterrent, since the chemical when sprayed into an attacker’s eyes can temporarily debilitate him and give you a chance to get away.
3. Appear as if you’ve been defeated. If you are being overpowered by an attacker, suddenly stop struggling. This is the reversal technique. As you fall prey, observe every detail of your
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Ever struggle to remember a past client’s name or the precise details of your listings? For anyone who’s had a memory blip, there’s good news — you can train your brain to recall even the most miniscule details, says author Gini Graham Scott. In 30 Days to a More Powerful Memory (AMACOM, 2007), Scott reveals interesting new findings from brain researchers and psychologists. After all, knowing more about how your brain works helps you squeeze more information in (and out) of it. The best challenge: Trying to recall her many clever systems after reading the 266-page book.
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From the Book: 5 Ways to Get More from Your Memory
Before you wake up tomorrow, you’ll have forgotten about 70 percent of what you learned today, Scott says. Some of that information is trivial, no doubt, but other information could be important for your business or customer relationships. To retain more of what you learn, Scott suggests these tips:
1. Make it all about you. If the information seems important to you personally, you’re more likely to remember it — and to remember in greater detail. This method, called “self-referential,” encourages you to be selfish: Will this information increase your profits, or will this person help bring you more referrals? Is there any association, image, or past experience to which you can relate this information? Also, try to spin the information in a positive way; that increases the odds you’ll remember it.
2. Pay attention — for real. It seems obvious, but a weak memory is often a sign you simply didn’t concentrate enough. For example, you meet a new prospect and immediately forget his name. Why? You were so concerned about making a strong first impression that you didn’t really listen to his introduction. Have a mental trigger (such as moving your toe or wiggling your fingers) to remind yourself to listen closely and stay alert. Practice your mental trigger so the association becomes automatic. Another way to get yourself to absorb the information: React and comment mentally or physically to what you’re hearing the other person say.
3. Chunk it with reason. Psychologist George Miller’s “Magic Number of Seven” principle
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Scrutinize national housing trends all you want, but influences in your local market are really what determine whether home values rise or fall, NAR Chief Economist David Lereah says in his latest book (Currency/Doubleday, 2007). He delves into an array of factors that can impact local markets — from success of sports teams to what Oprah says about the city — and provides lists and rankings of metro areas that can help you evaluate an area’s DNA.
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Tips from the Book: 5 Indicators of a Healthy Local Market
The key to finding a good real estate investment is to figure out what’s affecting supply and demand. But the factors aren’t always as obvious as you might think, Lereah says in his book.
1. Youth drive. A community that has a low average age for the population, such as a median age of 35, is a likely indicator of growth. After all, a younger population is more likely to have children, experience more demand for housing (trade-up buying), and an overall increase in the population, when compared to an older community.
2. Shopping choices. Plans for a new mall or supermarket can greatly increase the draw to certain neighborhoods. In turn, stores or businesses that are closing may be indicative of a sagging market. Gather information by ZIP code of new business start-ups at the U.S. Census Bureau’s Zip Code Business Patterns.
3. Investors stake. Too many investors flocking to a market can cause housing prices to dive if
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