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How Should My Agent Be Marketing My Home?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

If you’re selling a home in Orlando…or anywhere else for that matter, one of the single most important factors besides pricing it correctly is to do a proper marketing campaign.

Since my real estate career began back in 2004, one of the biggest complaints I’ve heard from unhappy home sellers over the years is that they didn’t feel that their real estate agent is marketing their home properly or that it was getting enough exposure.

Top Orlando Realtors utilize a whole arsenal of marketing techniques and strategies. Some of these techniques are a direct approach in which the home is directly promoted to buyers, while other techniques are more of an indirect or passive nature but can be just as effective and sometimes even more so… depending on your audience.

Working as one of the top listing agents in Orlando, I feel that it’s of the up-most importance that my listing clients know exactly how, where their home will be marketed, and why.

If you or someone you know are thinking about selling a home and wondering what your agent should be doing to market your home then continue reading below…

Local Publications

Some agents… especially the younger generation of agents, feel that print advertising has become completely obsolete and just doesn’t work anymore. This isn’t true… While print advertising has decreased substantially over the years in every industry known to man, there are still people that prefer to read from the actual paper. And yes you guessed it… It’s the older generations that happen to be a large part of the buyer’s pool.

By advertising your home in local newspapers, gazettes, and even penny pinchers, you are ensuring to reach an audience that wants nothing to do with the internet… probably because they don’t know how to use it correctly.

Direct Mail

Another popular strategy that’s been increasingly overlooked by realtors is good old-fashioned direct mail campaigns. Postcards, for instance, are a great way to inform everyone in the neighborhood, subdivision, or zip code that you’re selling a home right in their area.

This can be an effective marketing tool for selling real estate primarily because the residents who receive the postcard might know a friend or relative who’s looking to move close to them.

Like placing ads in local publications, this technique requires the agent to spend money they haven’t earned yet. However, it could pay off big time!

Online Marketing

It probably won’t surprise you to know that over 90% of ALL homebuyers across the nation begin their search online. Your listing agent should also be aware of this staggering statistic… If they aren’t then you may be with the wrong agent. It’s vital that when selling a home that it’s being exposed everywhere online. The best listing agents will have a very strong internet presence making them very easy to find.

Here are some of the most important online strategies to maximize your real estate marketing campaign

Real Estate Website

In this day and age, I imagine it would be hard to find a real estate brokerage that doesn’t have a website. You should know that just because a brokerage has a website, it doesn’t mean that YOUR AGENT has a website. Pay close attention to this…a successful listing agent should have their own, user-friendly website. Not only that, but it should be ranking on the 1st or 2nd page at least on all the major search engines.

A top-quality Realtor website should be loaded with user-friendly tools like a home search tool, home valuation tool, mortgage calculator just to name a few. In addition, it should have also have community pages as well as a blog where consumers can get all the information they need to help solve their problems.

Quality Photography

Because the internet is the starting place for most potential home buyers, listing agents must use only high-quality photographs in their marketing materials. A seller should expect their agent to take photos that are nothing short of spectacular.

As a listing agent in Orlando, I first started by hiring a company to take photographs of all my listings. As time went on I chose to invest in the proper equipment to take all the spectacular photos I need whenever I want.

A good tip when looking to hire a listing agent is to look at some of their listing photos…do they make you say WOW!? or does it look like they used their 1st generation iPhone to take the pics?

Believe it or not, quality pics can make a huge difference in how much your home sells.

Videos

I just love videos… I love to shoot them and I love to watch them… period. Whether I’m learning how to build a cardboard boat or I want to view a house listing. The video makes everything better!

Most listings will provide a virtual tour automatically by compiling the listing photos together, and that’s better than nothing. However, if you want to make a huge impact on the marketing of your home, then your agent should take things a step further.

For every single listing at ORC, we create a highly creative, informative, and fun video showcasing the home’s best features along with all the important information that goes with the listing. Our YT Channel “Top Orlando Realtors” hosts hundreds of listing videos as well as information and institutional videos and we have become well known for it.

Social Media

We now find ourselves in 2017 where social media and real estate are like bread and butter. Homeowners should expect their agents to be using social media to their full capacity.

Top real estate agents should be on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and even LinkedIn making it easy for them to spread the word to thousands of people instantly about any homes they have listed.

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8 Reasons Why Your Home Isn’t Selling

Posted on by Jenny Zamora


When a homeowner decides to sell their home, then that’s exactly what they want… to sell their home.

Every motivated seller’s worst nightmare is not being able to sell their home for the price they listed it at before their listing agreement expires… Then it becomes an expired listing [basically a cuss word in the real estate industry].

There can be a thousand reasons why a home isn’t selling, some of the more common than others.

Working as A real estate agent in Orlando since 2004 I’ve seen firsthand why some homes have more trouble selling than others. If your Orlando home isn’t selling and you’re not sure why then make sure one of the following reasons in this article isn’t causing your home to not sell.

1- Over-Priced

One of the most important reasons which determine if a home will sell or not is the listing price. “Did I price my home too high?”… is the first thing you should be asking yourself. Also known as “the kiss of death” in real estate, over-pricing a home is mostly caused by mistakes made when doing the market research.

An experienced realtor will provide you with a detailed comparative market analysis also known as a “CMA” on your home to help them determine what the real market value is. A CMA is a report that compares your home to similar homes that have been sold in your neighborhood. Positive and negative adjustments are made when necessary when comparing homes with different features, upgrades, etc.

2- Not Enough Exposure

Another reason why your Orlando home may not be selling is a lack of marketing exposure. Marketing your home to the right buyers can make a big impact… not only whether it sells or not, but on how much it sells for.

Top Realtors in Orlando use proven real estate marketing strategies when marketing their listings. This includes much more than just listing it on the MLS. Your home should be easily found all over the Internet and it should stand out from the crowd in more ways than one. Here at ORC, we promote our listings through the use of video, social media, postcards, email campaigns as well as our Orlando real estate blog in addition to traditional methods like the MLS and good old fashion direct mail campaigns. It’s also extremely important that your agent use high-quality photography in every single marketing piece.

3- In Need of Repairs

If a retail buyer is what you’re after, then make sure your home is in tip-top shape. Leaving your home in poor condition is the absolute fastest way to scare off any potential home buyers. Things like missing shingles, stained ceilings, damaged flooring, and even overgrown grass can send potential buyers running for the hills.

If you don’t have the budget to make the necessary repairs, you may have to lower your listing price to reflect the damage making the purchase a worthwhile investment.

4- Doesn’t Show Well

As the old saying goes…” you only get 1 chance to make a good first impression”. This is especially true when it comes to selling a house. One reason your home may have trouble selling is that your home is not showing well. One of the biggest hassles about selling a home is preparing it to be shown. Your home must look the best that it can and you should know exactly how to prepare a home for a showing.

If your house is messy and it smells like a locker room then this will seriously deter your chances of finding a solid buyer. De-cluttering, cleaning, and deodorizing your home before showing it will go a long way in helping you find a buyer.

5- Undesirable Location

Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do about this one…here’s an example. Recently, we went to see a potential investment property in Orlando that sounded like an amazing deal [on paper]… we couldn’t believe the price! When we got to the home everything still looked like a sound investment. Once we opened up the back sliding door blinds, however, it was obvious to us why it was so cheap. There was a rundown old 2 story motel about 100 ft from the back door! We were forced to walk from this deal solely because of the home’s location.

6- Treating Buyers Like The Enemy

As a Realtor in Orlando, one of my biggest frustrations is trying to show one of my buyers a home where the seller makes it nearly impossible to show their home. It’s as if they’re trying to deter a buyer from buying their home.

If you’re truly serious about wanting to sell your home in Orlando, then be flexible and realistic. Making your home difficult to show, ignoring repairs that came upon an inspection, and not being willing to negotiate price will surely cause your home to sit on the market longer than it should… and possibly cause it to not sell at all. Many times when a seller makes everything difficult is because they truly aren’t ready to sell.

7- It’s A Buyers Market

This is another situation where there’s nothing you can do. If your current local housing market is a buyer’s market, it means that there are a lot of homes for sale right now for whatever reason. In this market, buyers expect big discounts and lots of upgrades. If you’re in the position to wait until the market comes back around then you’re probably better off waiting. If not, then get ready to negotiate on your asking price.

8- Listed By The Wrong Realtor

This should reason should rank much higher on the list because if you hire a top Orlando Realtor to sell your home, then they will make sure that everything gets done properly from marketing and negotiating until the closing. Hiring a top realtor is paramount to the success of every home sale. Before choosing your Realtor, interview at least 3 and be sure to ask the right questions like how many homes they’ve sold, are selling, etc… and be sure to ask to speak with some of their past clients, Google reviews, etc…

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New Listing in St. Cloud! 736 Chamberlin Trl

Posted on by Jenny Zamora


Commuter-Friendly Home in the St. Cloud, FL Resort Location

If you have been looking for a single-family home for under $250k in the beautiful area of St. Cloud and you have been disappointed, then you should stop what you’re doing and schedule a showing for 736 Chamberlin Trl

Just minutes away from 192, this commuter-friendly home is great for people traveling to any of the many places to see
in Central Florida, you won’t find a more affordable, well-maintained home that doubles as a tranquil getaway spot.
With this home, you can experience a resort-style way of living all year round!


When you consider all the upgrades this home has, its affordability, and great access to everything, you don’t want to miss out on an opportunity like this.

Peaceful, Resort-Style Living Every Day Of The Year
Think about those long weeks… months at work that makes you just want to get away for a while… With this home, you’ll find your perfect escape every time you come home!

Right in your backyard, you’ll have several ways to relieve stress and enjoy all the benefits that come with living in this wonderful community in St Cloud. With beautiful lakes a community resort-style pool a tennis court and miles of scenic trails, it’s impossible for you to get bored.

Home Features:

  • 1,650 sq ft
  • 3 Bedrooms
  • 2 Bathrooms
  • Bonus Room
  • Travertine Tile Floors Throughout
  • Custom Cabinetry Throughout
  • High-End Granite Throughout
  • Inside Laundry Room
  • Screened-in Porch
  • Community Resort Style Pool
  • Fishing/ Kayaking Dock
  • Tennis Courts

For information on this or any other of our Central Florida properties visit us at https://orlandorealtyconsultants.com

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Benefits Of A Short Sale

Posted on by Jenny Zamora


What Are The Benefits of A Short Sale?

A short sale in Orlando is a real estate transaction where the sale price of a home is less than the full amount the homeowner still owes on the mortgage. Both the seller of the property and their mortgage company must agree to a short sale. Most lenders these days will agree to the terms of a short sale and also agree to release the lien they possess on the property.

Depending on what the lender agrees to, a short sale doesn’t guarantee that the borrower will be released from the obligation to pay the remaining balance on what’s owed on the loan AKA the “deficiency”.

This is why it’s extremely important that when you hire a Realtor to do your short sale, you don’t hire just any Realtor. Make sure you hire an Orlando Short Sale Specialist. This will ensure you have the best chance at success when doing your short sale.

By agreeing to do a short sale, lenders avoid a drawn-out and costly foreclosure and the homeowner can walk away free of their debt. Before deciding on a short sale, we recommend that you find out all the options that are available to you to see what works best for you.

Benefits of A Short Sale

Less Credit Damage Than Foreclosure
When you compare the impact of foreclosure vs. a short sale on your credit, a short sale harms your credit much less than a foreclosure will. For example, you’ll be eligible for either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac home financing after only two years following your short sale. However, after a foreclosure, it will take you at least 5 years to be eligible for the same financing.

This is because of the way the mortgage underwriting rules were changed after the financial crisis of 2008.

Cash Back To Sellers

Just about all short sales in Orlando are sold “as-is” which means you won’t have to spend a dime on fixing the place up. In addition, all lender fees, commissions, property taxes, etc. on both sides of the transaction will be paid for by the lender.

In most cases, we’re able to get our clients anywhere from $3,000 to $30,000 at the closing for relocation costs

A Fresh Start

A successful short sale gives distressed homeowners a clean break from their financial hardship. Over 50% of homeowners that opted for a loan modification instead, wound up going into default again and ultimately ended up doing a short sale. Loan modifications are usually modified to benefit the bank in the long term and most of the time you still end up paying the entire amount of what you owed in the first place.

The Sale Date Can Be Negotiated

If a homeowner is in active foreclosure, the lender together with the judge will eventually schedule a sale date of the home at the hearing. You should show up for this hearing with written proof from your Orlando Realtor that you are actively pursuing a short sale on your home. Have your Realtor go with you and provide an MLS printout of the listing, contract, as well as any communications you’ve had with your lender thus far. From my experience as a short sale realtor, they will almost always push the foreclosure sale date a maximum of 120 days giving you ample time to close the transaction.

Easier To Rent A House

Foreclosures, bankruptcies, and evictions are all red flags to landlords who will probably deny you as a renter. However, while your short sale is being negotiated, you’ll have plenty of time to find a rental to move into.
Remember, landlords are creditors also and if they see that you’ve been proactive in doing the right thing in your situation rather than just letting your home gets foreclosed on your chances are much better for them to approve you for their rental.

If you or someone you know needs short sale services in Orlando FL, Call us at 407-902-7750 or visit our site. There’s never a charge for our services and most of the time we can get cashback to sellers.

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Real Estate Team vs Solo Agent… The Pros and Cons

Posted on by Jenny Zamora


If you’ve had your ear to the ground in the Orlando Real Estate industry, you’d know that real estate “teams” are on the rise. All of a sudden real estate teams are being created it would seem almost daily and usually range from just a few agents that have joined forces to teams of 40-50 agents recruited to form a team.

Most of the time these real estate teams are formed to bring in more sales to the Real Estate Brokerage.  I believe that inflating sales numbers is the wrong reason to put together a team. However, if the team was formed to provide better customer service then I’m all for it.

If you plan on buying or selling a home in Orlando FL, you must understand who you are hiring to help you through the process. Whether you are interviewing a Realtor to sell a home or help you find your dream home, it’s important that you know whether this Realtor is a one-man [or woman] show or if they work with a team.

Like anything else in life, there are pros and cons to both sides of the coin. In this article, we’re going to talk about both the benefits as well as the drawbacks of both. you have to have a strong understanding of the pros and cons of both to make an educated decision.

So What’s a single Agent Vs a team of Agents?

Before I start discussing the pros and cons of working with a team versus a single agent, let’s talk about the difference between the both of them.

Single Real Estate Agent

A single real estate agent is just what it sounds like… It’s a Realtor who works with a seller or buyer directly from beginning to end and does everything in between.

This is the kind of real estate agent that you will see on the initial consult, provide you a CMA, take photos, inspections, and throughout the rest of the process of selling your home.

Successful single agents usually use some type of CRM, aka customer relationship management, which helps them stay organized by setting up appointments and alerts for important deadlines like inspection periods, etc.

Real Estate Agent Teams

A real estate agent team can have a lot of different people involved and can often get pretty complex with hundreds of moving parts.  It can be made up of just a few single agents or several dozen agents complete with administrative staff. Many times real estate agent teams are broken down into different departments consisting of buyers agents, listing agents, transaction coordinators, admin assistants, and of course a marketing dept.

Not all teams are created equally

If you hire a team of agents to buy or sell a home, what to expect will depend a lot on how that team is being run. You should have a deep understanding of how a team works before committing to them.

Here’s an example… If you’re buying a home in Orlando, the last thing that you want to have to happen is to find out that the agent who gave you the listing presentation and the agent you’ll be working with are 2 different people. Then once you get a house under contract or receive an offer on your house, you might be working with yet another agent…

The Pros of Hiring A Single Real Estate Agent

Building a relationship…
Selling or buying a home can easily be one of the most important events in someone’s life. There is a lot of stress involved and it’s very emotional, especially if it’s someone’s first time. A crucial part of a successful real estate transaction is that you…the buyer or seller…are comfortable with the person or persons you’ve hired to represent you.

Probably one of the biggest advantages of hiring a single agent is the opportunity to build a relationship with a single person that will stay with you until the end.  Buying or selling a home sometimes involves openly discussing your financials. That’s why you need to be able to trust your Realtor and feel comfortable talking about these things with them.

Single Agents are responsible and accountable for everything that happens. When you decide to hire a single agent to help sell or buy a home, that agent will be fully responsible for the entire transaction. There is no “passing the buck” for this type of agent, they are fully aware that their job moving forward is to protect your best interests.

The Cons of Hiring A Single Real Estate Agent

Limited availability- A Realtor who works by themselves can’t be in 2 places at one time. This is one of the biggest drawbacks of hiring a single agent to buy or sell a home.

Here’s an example… Let’s say you’re a buyer and a new listing, which is perfect for you, hits the market. You’re going to want to see that home ASAP, especially if it’s a hot market. If you’re working with a single agent and they are already booked for that day with another client, then you could potentially lose that deal because you didn’t go see it on time.

A good way to try and avoid running into this sort of problem with a single agent is to find out how many clients they are currently working with. A successful Realtor who works alone should be able to handle 10 – 15 clients at once with the proper systems in place.

The Pros of Hiring A Real Estate Team of Agents

Several Realtors for the price of one
Probably the single biggest advantage of hiring a real estate team as opposed to a single agent is that it costs no extra money having access to several people instead of one. You can potentially have a listing specialist, buyers agent, closing coordinator as well as a marketing specialist depending on the makeup of the team.

Assignments or tasks are delegated
Since teams will usually have various systems in place, certain tasks will be assigned to different agents. In this scenario, everyone should be a specialist at what they do.

The Cons of Hiring A Real Estate Team 

Communication breakdown
Like the old saying goes “too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup”. Probably the biggest disadvantage you may face with working with a team of real estate agents is failure to communicate. Sometimes having too many departments increases the chances of someone dropping the ball.

There are so many moving parts throughout the home selling or buying process that good communication is crucial. A failure to communicate can cause a deal to fall apart from one day to the next.

Team leader goes MIA
Some real estate teams in Orlando have a bad reputation is because it’s extremely hard to reach the leader once a contract is secured. It’s hard to believe, but it does happen sometimes. This kind of team usually has a very high turnover with employees and rarely gets repeat business.

How Do You Decide Whether To Hire A Team Or Single Realtor?

This is an important decision and should not be taken lightly. Hiring the wrong Realtor for the job can turn your home selling or buying experience into a disastrous event. Here are some tips that will hopefully help you decide which situation suits you better.

At the end of the day… you hired an agent, not a company

Realtors that are all part of the same team will have different levels of experience as well as work ethics in all areas of real estate. When it’s time to decide whether you want to work with an agent or a team just think about what suits you better. If you’re the kind of person who wants to deal with the same person who sold you a particular service or product from beginning to end then you’re probably better off finding a great listing specialist or buyers agent that works alone.

If you do decide on hiring a team instead of a single agent, make sure you are aware of how their process works. Who will be your next point of contact? Who will be in charge of marketing? Who will be in charge of negotiations? etc…

Closing Thoughts

When you’re involved in a real estate transaction either as a buyer or seller you need to realize that the Realtor that you hire can be the difference between a good experience and an awful one.

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