The Biggest Reason Why We Fail Or Succeed

successful realtor mindsetThere is one thing that has a huge potential to impact your failure or success personally and as a real estate agent… It’s your MINDSET, and if it isn’t in the right place, well, YOU probably won’t be either.

Why is mindset so important?

It shapes the way you see the world, and as the old Henry Ford quote says “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.” I constantly tell the agents that are part of my coaching program, the first step to increased success in their business as a REALTOR© and life starts with their thoughts! We all know what you focus on and think about expands. Getting a handle on your mindset means you can fight back the fear, take action, and achieve the success you deserve. The enemy of success is Fear and Anger so here are some powerful tips to help you take on the mindset for success:

#1: Self Visualization

If you can dream it then you can create it. Are you using visualization techniques? Visualization is a tool used by top performers ranging from athletes to business people. Essentially, you are creating a vivid picture in your mind of what success looks like. For example, when you meet with a lead, visualize these three things:

1. What do you need to do to help them get what they want?

E.g. Find the perfect home, help them sell their current property, etc.

2. What does the best case scenario look like?

E.g. They commit to working with you today, you list their property, etc.

3. What objections will you hear?

E.g. “Now is not the right time…” “Will you take a lower commission rate?” “I’m thinking about working with my friend who is an agent…”

Having rehearsed these scenarios in your mind means you can mentally prepare for when they actually occur. Furthermore, having the right mindset in place allows you to take this one step further to develop a plan and solutions ahead of time.

#2: Avoid The Negative Self Talk

Your head can be a scary place to be. The mental chatter that goes on in all of our heads is negative by default. The good news? You CAN change it, and it makes all the difference for improving your mindset. Start by being aware of the negative self-talk and changing the pattern. I do this every day with affirmation statements. Your affirmation statement doesn’t have to be complicated and it could be as simple as saying, “I’m a lean mean appointment setting machine!” These affirmation statements will condition your mindset for success! Positive affirmations and words of gratitude are the defenders of anger and sadness because none of us can be sad or mad when we are grateful or thinking positively.

#3: Enhance Your Environment

In addition to visualization and affirmation statements, changing your physical environment is a fantastic way to reset your mindset. Like Tony Robbins says “Motion creates emotion.” Get up and move around! Breathe! If you’re making sales calls stand up. Move around and breathe deeply to create a state change and physical and mental energy in your sales calls. I’d even recommend keeping a small mirror at your desk. See yourself smiling in the mirror and I can tell you your mindset will change right away! You can also play music in your office. I’d recommend something that makes you happy and keeps you motivated.

So there you have it. It’s Up To YOU. Your mindset is everything. Just taking a few steps to improve your mindset can set off a chain reaction to improve your business, your personal life, and even how you feel on a daily basis!

What steps will YOU take to improve your mindset today?

Strength and courage,
Wade

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The Truths About Real Estate Buyers & Buyers Agents

buyer agent and real estate buyer relationshipWe have all heard or said the comment “Buyers are liars” and personally that is the furthest thing from the truth if we really took the time to understand them better and how they really want to be served. Let’s look first at the common buyer agent and their issues buyers say about them.

1) They don’t listen

2) They don’t understand our needs & wants

3) They have no process, they wing It and they are reactive

4) They wait vs. create a buying opportunity

5) They get us to buy what they think we should buy

6) They can’t communicate their value proposition

This week we are sharing the 10 easy and effective steps to better serve your buyer in today’s market. Taking the time to follow this step by step process will allow you to convert more buyers than you have in the past…….

10 Step Buyer Process To Get The Commitment Every Time!!!

STEP 1) The Initial Meet & Greet

Option 1 – Meet Buyer At A Listing

Option 2 – Meet Buyer At The Office (TIP – Prepare and coach receptionist to greet buyer as follows: “You must be [Customer’s Name]. We’re really glad you are here. [Agent’s Name] is looking forward to meeting with you.”

The Critical First Two Minutes – Connection & Control. Your goal is to get the buyer to like and trust you and not to rush this process. Here are simple tips on “How To Connect”

– Step 1: “How are you today?” Then listen and engage with their response.

– Step 2: “Thank you” or “welcome” or “compliment”

– Step 3: Introduce yourself

– Ask rapport building (F.O.R.D.) questions

– “How much time do we have together today?”

Once you feel you are connected (nod and see if they nod back) take control of the process. “If it is alright with you, what I’d recommend we do first is sit down and get acquainted. I would like to ask you a few questions that will help me help you find the right home. Will that work for you?”

STEP 2) The Meet – Choose a different location (fresh energy)

– Office (Like Bringing Them Into The Death Star)

– Meet Them Where They Are At

– Easier To Get Them To Meet At Coffee Shop

– Presentation On Tablet

– Offer a gift (drink? Pen?)

STEP 3) The Buyer Interview:

– Tip (Have a file made up with their name on it.)

– “I would like to ask you a few questions that will help me help you find the right home. Is that okay with you? Is it okay if I take some notes?” (Power of the Note Pad)

– Follow the proper question sequence: Did You Know??

  1. a) Rapport questions
  1. b) Foundational (prior learning) questions
  1. c)  Diagnostic questions – who, what, when, where, why, how?
  1. d)  Solution (closing) questions

STEP 4) Pre Buyer Packet

“I prepared a packet of information for you that has everything you need to buy real estate in [place].” Briefly review packet, point out contracts and finish with agency disclosure. (Confirm they are not under contract with another REALTOR®.)

STEP 5) The Funnel Process

“Our goal is to help you find the right home and, at the same time, make sure you don’t miss anything or pay too much. We have a process called “The Funnel Process” that will help us accomplish those goals. Would you like to see how it works for you? Great.”

“Let’s start with what you have so far. “Do you have a list of homes you have found you are interested in?” Review what they have. “Have you gone inside any of these homes?” “If it’s alright with you, let’s start by putting these homes into what we call the ‘funnel’. (Draw a funnel) To make sure you don’t miss anything, let’s also put into the funnel any home you might consider. Will that be okay? Discuss: o MLS o New Listings o New Construction o For Sale by Owner

“Once we have everything in the funnel, we’ll start a simple process of elimination to remove those properties that don’t work for you. We’ll use the comfortable process of elimination versus the often frustrating process of selection. This way we’ll make sure you don’t miss anything.”

“We’ll go from 1,000’s of properties in the funnel to 100’s and then to dozens as we begin to eliminate those that don’t work.” “Some we will look at on-line, some we will drive by, and some we will decide to make an appointment and go in. You will be in control of the decisions.”

“As we go through the process, our goal will be to find our top three favorites that could work for you (and this can be a rolling top three).” Once you have identified your favorites, I’ll do a simple market analysis showing you sold properties to help you get a feel for value. Our goal is to make sure you don’t pay too much.” “Does this look like a process that will work for you?”

STEP 6) Scale of 1 To 10 Technique

“Just for fun, to give me an idea of where you are in the process, on a scale of 1 to 10 (with a 1 being you are just starting the process and a 10 being you would like to find a home today) where would you rate yourself?”

“What would have to happen for you to be a 10?” Drill down on each item – ask questions and listen (3 Deep)

– “What specifically about…?”

– “Why is that important to you?”

– “Tell me more about that.” – Take notes. (Power of the Note Pad!)

STEP 7) Pieces Of Paper Exercise

(Give each person a piece of paper) “If it is alright with you, I would like each of you to make a list of the things you want in a home. After you have made your list, put stars beside the three things you can’t live without.”

STEP 8) What & Why?

Features and benefits.

(What) Features

(Why) Benefits

Remember: People buy their “whys” (benefits) not their “what’s” (features). Explain the concept of the “85% perfect home”

STEP 9) Cash? Loan? House to sell?

“Will you be paying cash for this home or will you be getting a loan?” If getting a loan: “Do you have a loan arranged? Do you have a lender?” “While I’m doing the computer work for your MLS® search, would you like to meet with my [Name of Lender] for a second opinion?” “There is absolutely no obligation to use [Name of Lender]. However, it will give you a second opinion.” Benefits to them of second opinion? Do the preliminary MLS® search while they meet with the lender.

STEP 10) If we find it… What will you do? (story)

So there you have it the 10 simple powerful steps to convert and get a commitment from a buyer in today’s market. I challenge you to try changing up how you are dealing with buyers today and follow this tried and true buyer system and see your experience with buyers go to a whole other level.

Strength and courage,
Wade

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The Biggest Challenge Today Is An Agents Most Valuable Asset

realtor time managementThere is one valuable asset I see agents wasting every day. It’s a HUGE drain on your business and your personal life. The good news? It’s easier to fix than you might imagine… I’m talking about your most valuable asset, your TIME!

We all have a limited amount of time to use every day and then it is gone. How you spend your time is vital to the success of your real estate business and your life outside of business too.

Here are a few powerful time management tips that will help you get the most out of every day…

Top Realtor Time Management Tips

1. Focus on H.D.P.A.

One of things I’ve used to help me make the most of my time is H.D.P.A.

That is a fun little acronym that stands for the Highest Dollar Productive Activities. You see, there are those big things you should be spending your time on. This is the time you spend calling your database, working on your deals, etc. Then those little tasks come along and steal away your focus. Maybe you’re great on the phone and not so good at graphic design. Do you think spending a few hours trying to make that perfect image for a Facebook ad is the highest and best use of your time?

Simply put, if you can outsource those little tasks to a third party company or someone else in your office you are freed up to work on the things you are good at and really matter most.

2. Eat The Frog

Within your H.D.P.A. will be a list of priorities you’ll need to get done. Write these priorities down somewhere you’ll see them (a paper notebook, Evernote, whiteboard, etc.). You’ve probably heard what legendary speaker and my mentor Brian Tracy had to say about this… He would tell you to eat the frog first! This means the one big priority you’re dreading is the one you need to get done first.

3. Schedule Your Time in Blocks

While you already know it is important to schedule out your day, what you might not know is you can make your schedule even more effective by scheduling out time in blocks. So for example, I’ve spoken with the top agents around the country and asked them how they spend their mornings. They put a block on their schedule every morning to do MRAS. That stands for Marketing, Role Playing and Appointment Setting.

Getting things done and maximizing your time is important, but remember there is a balance too.
When you are working, be sure to stay focused and use your time wisely. Those rules also apply outside of the office on your personal life too…

It can be easy to be constantly checking email and busy on your phone, but make it a point to not be stuck in that work mode when it is time to spend time with friends and family.

4. 3D Test Everything

Every time you are going to work on the next activity always ask yourself is this something I should do? Something I should delegate or something I should just dump because it really isn’t that important.

5. Real Time Voice Message, Auto email and text response.

Count how many times in your day you respond and react to emails, texts and calls? We are in constant react mode and not able to focus or ever get things done. I always get push back on this idea but record a message on your phone, set an auto email response and auto text response that you are serving clients and will get back to them and a certain time in the morning and a certain time in the afternoon. If it is time sensitive or urgent then have you paged or contact your administrative assistant. Imagine what happens to your focus and getting things done when you are in this kind of control.

So there you have it. Ask yourself how are YOU going to spend your time today? Take control of your time or I know this someone else or something else will take care of it for you.

Strength and courage,
Wade

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The Secret To Getting Listings In a Market With No Listings

low or no house listing inventory for realtorsMost of your real estate markets across North America are experiencing historical low listing inventory levels. Other markets across North America have good inventory but the agents are struggling to get good saleable house listings in their pipeline. So what if I told you I finally found the secret to getting listings and getting good listings in any market condition in North America? I want to show you how to find those listings in your marketplace which is a really important topic, and one that some agents are scared of…

THE SECRET?…….EXPIREDS.

Some of you are already thinking about not reading the blog post, but I don’t want you to miss out on a lead source that many agents are simply too afraid to use because they don’t know how!

Why Agents Don’t Work Expired Listings…

1. Their fixed/ego mindset tells a story about expireds! Some agents even get mad and blame those agents who do work expireds!

2. Their fixed mindset stops them … Fear! Because they don’t know what to say, and the agent takes the rejection personally.

Remember these are clients who need to be served!

They already own a house.

They already want to work with an agent. They are willing to pay our fees. How could we not want to work with these clients?

When you call expireds you are calling someone who has an unmet expectation and who now has a rise in an emotion because of the whole scenario. You need to understand when you work with expireds and they are upset, it isn’t about you! Just put yourself in their shoes, and use some of these tips…

How to Effectively Work Expired Listings…

1. How Do You Win? Make a choice: You can work all of them or you can cherry pick the ones you want. This means you see the opportunity. You work with the expireds in the areas you know and can bring value to.

2. Use the Right Engaging Questions. Follow a script similar to these examples….
“If I brought you an offer yesterday to sell your home with terms that are desirable, where are you moving to?”

“If I sold your home in the next 30 days would you still like to move?”

“So, if I could, would you be willing to meet with me for 20 minutes to show you how we sold 31 homes? 10 that were previously listed like yours with other agents and sold for 99% of list price in an average of 23 days, and every one of them gave me a five-star review. Would it be worth 20 minutes of your time?”

“What’s important to you in the next agent you choose?”

3. Create a Case Study Marketing Piece Similar to This:

-Picture of the house with all the details (address, previous number of listing agents, days on market, etc.)
-Listed by your team (after expiring)
-Executed our marketing plan
-13,000 online views
-92 agents at preview
-173 buyers at open house
-3 offers
-99% of list price
-Sold in 21 days
-5 Star review

What are the 3 biggest stumbling blocks / mistakes agents make along the way?

1. Not following up enough on expireds that you hadn’t reached on the first try. Recommend you call, door knock and mail for a combined 6-9 touches.
2. Not role playing the scripts and dialogues to build rapport and demonstrate your value.
3. Not developing a mail system sooner to drip out to them and get them to call you.

What are the 3 top tips to someone starting out on Expireds?

1. It costs nothing at first, so you can start tomorrow. Just do it!
2. Role play and know what to say.
3. Come from a position of helping and serving because these people need an agent like you and I who can get the job done!

Take the time and look back at the expired listing. Remember you don’t have to work with all of them, cherry pick the ones you want! Do you have it in your head and do you have it in your heart to serve those clients?

There is your secret to listing success in 2017. Only one thing stopping you is a little work. I dare you to give it a try and add it to your marketing strategies this year.

Strength and courage,
Wade

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Real Estate 12 Days Before Christmas Must Do’s 2017

Effective Real Estate Strategies Just Before Christmas

12 days of real estate ChristmasOn the First Day of real estate my true love gave to me…

Spend some focused time on your real estate database prior to 2017. If you don’t have a database then assemble one. Take the time to build a monthly database touch system for 2017 making specific activities each month to add value and deepen your relationships with your database. This “give to get” activity is the best way to increase repeat and referral business in 2017.

On the Second Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Create a buyer or seller landing page. These landing pages capture a seller who is curious what their current property value is or a buyer who wants to be notified of hot new listings and beat other buyers to them. A nice steady stream of buyer and seller leads from a good landing page keeps you from those peaks and valleys in your business. This is a great way to create more buyer and seller leads all year long while you are busy serving your active buyer and sellers and when you don’t have the time to prospect.

On the Third Day of real estate my true love gave to me… 2 daily hours of power. High-volume agents don’t just service existing business and then start lead generating once they have closed the majority of their transactions. Instead, they block time (usually in the morning so it gets done) to do something each business day that gets them closer to earning a new client. In a nutshell, there are two ways to be successful in real estate: By Default: live in the same area for years where everyone knows you and eventually sends you business; or By Design: time-block a relatively small portion of each business day to proactively generate for new leads.

On the Fourth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Listings is the name of the game. The power of the spin is where a listing can generate up to 15 other pieces of business if done right! If a real estate agent is working more than 65 hours a week and not closing more than 45 transactions annually, the agent either has a time management problem and/or is working with far more buyers than sellers. You can handle four times as many listing sides than buyer sides at the same time. So, top producing real estate agents always focus their lead generation activities on the listing side.

On the Fifth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Face to Face activities and prospects who already want to sell. For real estate agents looking for immediate business, top agents know the quickest conversion ratios come from contacting FSBOs (for-sale-by-owners) and expired listings. They also know conversion is higher when you are face to face and the prospect can tell if they like or trust you quickly and want to do business with you. Although many agents are reluctant to reach out to people they don’t know, these are people who typically want to sell their home right now.

On the Sixth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… A realtor to realtor referral system with other agents working the areas where the people and business is coming from to buy real estate in your market. Contact them once a month and stay top of mind and be that referral agent of choice in your market area. Share tips and ideas with other agents to keep top of mind and make them feel like they want to refer you their clients moving to your area. This is a lucrative business opportunity if done consistently.

On the Seventh Day of real estate my true love gave to me… The power of words. Scripts and dialogs are important. Successful real estate agents understand that whether they use someone else’s scripts, dialogs or their own, they’ll eventually start saying the same things they know will work. Using tested real estate scripts created by others simply eliminates the trial and error process and enables agents to start seeing desired results more quickly. Sound like your planned and engage and attract the clients to want to work with you with your powerful words of persuasion.

On the Eighth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Have powerful sales presentations and visuals. Don’t tell them but show and sell them. Have a visually powerful presentation for listings, buyers and pricing. Don’t just wing it and leave things to chance but engage people to want to do business with you, your company and NOW! Talk alone is cheap. The most powerful visual sales tool is a pad and pen and being able to show prospects and tell them has greater impact than words alone. Remember some of us are visual and some of us are auditory but we don’t know which one they are.

On the Ninth Day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Know your why, purpose and vision. My goal that drives me every day is to impact and improve people’s lives personally and professionally every day. Real estate is the vehicle that makes this happen. We all need to be part of something bigger than ourselves. If your why is big enough then the how takes care of itself!! I love having a vision board with images of the things that drive me, move me, I want and need to experience each and every year. Never underestimate the power of a vision, purpose or why!

On the Tenth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Be a servant and focus on helping others get what they want and you in turn get what you want. Listen for the need and be aware of others fears, challenges and offer to help. So as to not “bother” the general public when prospecting for new business, top real estate agents always tie the reason they’re contacting people in with providing some type of value at the same time. Always come from a mindset of contribution. Helping you is what we do.

On the Eleventh Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Be a lean mean appointment setting machine. The money in sales is in the conversion to the appointments. No appointments then no presentations. No presentations means no contracts or agreements. The lead generation is great but not having the skill to convert to the appointment is a real estate killer. Know what you have and what you can offer for them and engage them to want to sit down and meet with you. What is your value proposition for a buyer and seller? Why you? Why now?

On the Twelfth Day of real estate my true love gave to me… Leverage by systemization and delegation. When real estate agents consistently do not have time to prospect for new business because they are too busy servicing their existing business it’s time to hire someone to help out. The first hire should be an administrative assistant, not a buyer’s agent. Administrative assistants help agents make more money by freeing up time for agents to perform more important revenue-generating activities. 3D test everything in 2017. “Do I do it? Do I delegate it? Do I just dump it?”

I trust your holiday season is full of love, happiness and joy

Strength and courage,
Wade

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How To Make 2017 Your Best Year in Real Estate Ever

3 Reviews to Increase Your Real Estate Biz in 2017

2017 best real estate year everAs we head into the final month of 2016, for most of us, there will be some “downtime”. Downtime driven by both the holiday season, as well as a general slowdown of activity, especially after the first two weeks of December. This is an ideal time to start planning for 2017. I have honed a process for preparing for the New Year. There are 3 reviews you need to complete before you can set a path for growth of your real estate biz in 2017. The three reviews include your transaction history, your prospecting efforts, and your personal marketing efforts.

Review Your Real Estate Business Transaction History

Where do we start? We start with the past, we start with the review of what you’ve done financially, the actual transactions that you’ve completed, and all the elements associated with those opportunities.

Once you understand where you are, you can identify where you are going. Ask yourself, what was your average deal size last year, the year before that, the year since then? What clients did you work with? Which clients were the most attractive to you, both now and in the future? What were the average size deal with those clients provided for you? Where did you get those clients? What was the source? Was it a prospect call? Was it a website, off a lead, a company referral? Was it the same clients? Where were those clients and opportunities located? What market are you best to focus on moving forward? What product type have you really been successful for in the past and what product type is best for you moving forward?

Review Your Prospecting Efforts as a REALTOR

What was your financial goal for net income goal for 2016? Money that you take home for you and your family. That’s something we really care about. What did you achieve, and what was the goal? Hopefully it was greater than your goal. If it was less than your goal, maybe you set too high of a goal. I love goals that push you, but be careful so they don’t demotivate. How many exclusives did you secure? How many listings you got went to closings? You want to explore that. Make sure you understand some of the ratios financially of your meetings, to listings, listings, to close. Look at the numbers. Look back on your efforts last year, and see where those are. Define your average gross commission income. What was your average net commission per closing? Of the listings/representations/assignments you secured, how many were unsuccessful?

When it comes to your clients, think about your top five clients. When I say top five, people go, “Okay so these five made the most money for me, they’re my top five.” Fine. That’s how you want to define top five, look at it that way. Some say, “No, top five really means those that provided me, and will provide me the greatest opportunities moving forward.” In 2016, this may have been one deal, but it’s going to lead to more deals down the road. That’s going to be a top client for you, or a client that always gives you multiple opportunities. Same client opportunities, or refers you. All they did is one or two deals with you maybe historically, yet they’re one of your raving fans. Therefore, they’re your top client. Identify your five top clients based on your parameters.

Finally look at your prospecting efforts. Prospecting is a disciplined act of asking for business. Think about what you did to specifically ask for business. Look back at some of the quantitative, and qualitative aspects of your prospecting. How many prospecting meetings did you hold in 2016? How many calls to you attempt vs. complete, and how many prospect letters (not emails) did you send?

Review Your Personal Marketing Efforts

Prospecting is hard enough when folks know you, or at least heard of your company. Prospecting without a personal presence is downright difficult. Your personal marketing efforts will reflect strongly on you prospecting results. I always focus on three elements of presence, or personal marketing. Personal, Physical, and Digital. Upon your review of your personal marketing efforts in 2016, ask yourself how many personal meetings did you have from a marketing perspective? These are meetings to get to know people. These are not prospecting meetings. These are relationship building opportunities. Maybe it was going to a conference, or going for a drink with the guys, or whatever it might be. How many personal marketing meetings did you hold? Look back at your calendar. This is vital to growing in 2017. Physical marketing efforts consist of tangible items you have mailed, gifted or sent. From the physical side, mailing side, how many times did you mail out? How many times did you send out post cards, or flyers. How many gifts did you send, or articles you shared. Again, look at your calendar, look at your marketing efforts, look at your budget, look at your expenses.

Lastly, think about the digital side. Yes, the tweeting, the blogging, the LinkedIn groups, Facebook interactions, that you actually participate in. Just because you’re a member of a LinkedIn group, and you never participate that does not count. That’s probably 95% of folks out there. Think about the digital efforts. What did you do digitally? Even e-mail blasts, and newsletters.

As noted, the first step in any process of change is always the biggest. Reviewing your transactional history, prospecting efforts and personal marketing activities will take you some time. Potentially several days. But don’t forget you will have several days of “downtime” in the weeks ahead. You can either review and then implement change, or simply do what you have always done in the past. You know, and we know that positive change, and income growth, are not products of simply doing the same thing year after year.

Commit to making 2017 your best year as a REALTOR ever. I dare you!

Strength and courage,
Wade

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25 Staging Tips To Win More Listings and Sell Listings For More

staging tips for realtors

One of the things I ran into when I first started really talking about staging houses with sellers was I discovered I could get a listing against a lot of agents who were better than me — when I say “better,” I mean who were bigger producers than me. This would happen because when they would talk about staging the house they would tell the seller, “Okay, you need to do this, you need to do this, you need to do this,” they would actually put off the seller. They would often make the seller mad because the seller felt the agent was coming in and telling them to spend all this money and do all this work, and the agent was trying to boss them around. They’re going, “This is my house, and I felt like they were coming in telling me they weren’t going to list the house or it wasn’t going to sell well if I didn’t do all this work and put all this money into it.” The seller actually took it personally and decided they didn’t like the agent. Of course, the agent was trying to help them get the property prepared in a way that really works.

Now, when I first started selling real estate back in the 1990s, staging was not nearly as important as it is today. In fact, when I first started selling real estate back in 1993, staging was not even something I was trained on. It was not something in the training I went through, and I was with one of the number one companies in the world and they never talked about staging, really.

Some things have changed in the last 15 years that have made a dramatic impact on the importance of staging a house and getting it really market-ready.

2 Things that Have Increased the Importance of Real Estate Home Staging

  1. Number one: Pinterest – Here’s the reality. Every lady, before she buys a house, she spends weeks, if not months, spending all of her free time looking at Pinterest pictures. They spend an hour at night sitting in bed looking at Pinterest, looking at all the cool pictures. What kind of pictures are they looking at? What kind of houses are they looking at? What kind of kitchens and bedrooms and master bathrooms are they looking at? They’re not looking at the fixers. They’re looking at the perfectly staged, perfectly designed, perfectly laid out, professionally decorated, perfect dream homes. Dream kitchens, dream closets, dream bathrooms, dream master bedrooms, dream backyards, dream front yards, dream flowerbeds. I mean, all of it is like, the dream, and that’s what they’re spoiled with. They’re like, “I want that! I want it!” It’s like a little kid. “I want that!”
  2. Number Two: HGTV – If you watch HGTV you will know most of the shows are on real estate, and most of them are about people taking and finding an ugly house and making it a beautiful house. When they’re done, they’re looking at this gorgeous home and it’s perfectly decked out. Everything’s up to date, everything’s modern, everything has custom, professional interior designers that have come in and made everything match, and it just looks fabulous. They spend all their time watching this, and so they get in their mind, “That’s the house that I want!”

Today, when you’re showing houses, if the house is ugly, it will still sell, but it sells for less because people say, “That’s a fixer,” and they want to get a big time discount if a house doesn’t show perfect.

A vacant house? Oh my goodness… Vacant houses, used to not be a big deal. But now, a vacant house looks unloved. It looks unlived in. It doesn’t feel like a home.

Because buyers are so used to seeing the pictures on Pinterest and on HGTV and on all the other places, social media and on the internet, because they’re so used to that, people have a higher expectation of what they want their new home to look like. All of a sudden, (maybe not all of a sudden, but over time), staging has become a critical part of, not only the high end but even of bread and butter homes… the better a house shows, the more like a model home it shows, the better off it’s going to sell and for a closer to premium price.

25 Staging Tips To Win More Listings and Sell Listings For More:

1) Grimy bathroom walls are a major red flag to buyers. Here is an easy way to get rid of surface mold: Mix a spray bottle with one part water and one part bleach. Just spray it on the wall, and watch the mold disappear. Give it a fresh coat of paint, and your grimy bathroom will go from red flag to red-hot.

2) Don’t replace a yucky shower door: Just scour it. A grimy glass shower door can really wash out your sale. Instead of replacing it, clean it with a mixture of one part muriatic acid and about 10 parts water. Scrub with steel wool. After wiping it down, reinstall the door and you’ll have a shower that’ll help you clean up at the open house.

3) Avoid dated tile by painting. Bathrooms sell houses, but dated tile in a bathroom doesn’t. A low-cost alternative to replacing the tile is to use paint. First coat the tiles with a high-adhesion primer. Next, brush on a special ceramic epoxy covering. For a fraction of the cost of new tile, you will have an up-to-date bathroom that brings in big bucks.

4) A master bedroom should appeal to both sexes. When you are selling, your master bedroom should appeal to buyers of both sexes. Get rid of features that seem too gender-specific. Paint the walls a neutral color, and choose bedding that matches. Then accessorize with items that complement the overall color scheme.

5) Do you have an overpowering brick fireplace that sticks out like a sore thumb? Here’s an easy way to tone it down with paint. Use a rag or brush to rub a light coat of paint on the bricks, one at a time. This will give them a new tone without covering them completely. And, if you use a paint color that matches the walls, your fireplace will go from sticking out to standing out. Updating an old fireplace screen is a cheap (and quick) fix. After removing the screen and wiping it down to get rid of the dust, mask off the windows so you won’t get paint on them. Then, using a can of heat-resistant spray paint, give the screen a facelift. Hold the can about 18 inches away, and use long, even strokes. For less than $5, you will have a fireplace screen that’ll keep your sale from going up in smoke.

6) Stain dated kitchen cabinets instead of replacing them. Dated kitchen cabinets can be a big turnoff to potential buyers. Instead of paying big bucks to replace them, just stain them. First, apply the stain in even strokes, going with the grain of the wood. Add some stylish hardware, and your kitchen will have the up-to-date look that buyers love, for less than $200.

7) Stainless-steel appliances are definitely in with buyers. Instead of buying a new dishwasher, here is a low-cost way to resurface an old one: First, remove the front panels, and clean them. Next, apply a stainless-steel stick-on covering, and cut it to size. For just $20 your dishwasher will go from outdated to ultra-modern.

8) Fill existing hardware holes instead of making new, unsightly ones. Removing old kitchen hardware can leave your cabinets with stripped-out holes. Here is a trick to reusing the existing ones. First, dip a toothpick in glue and place it in the stripped hole. Cut off the excess piece. Once the glue dries, you’ll be ready to put in the hardware that buyers love.

9) Save money on granite countertops. Granite countertops are a huge selling feature, but they can be expensive. Here are a few ways to save on this investment: First, do the demo yourself. Also, ask the vendor for remnants from previous projects. Remember, any money you spend will definitely be returned in the value these beautiful counters add to your kitchen.

10) New kitchen appliances bring high returns from sellers. Studies show that new kitchen appliances bring high returns from sellers, so get rid of old appliances that make the rest of the kitchen look dated. Once you install the new equipment, it will scream “new kitchen,” and you will see that spending a little money will make you even more.

11) Need to dress up a window but don’t want to shell out big bucks for window treatments? Here’s a trick: Use place mats. First, apply a hook-and-loop fastener to the place mats and attach them in a row to a basic curtain rod. Now that the place mats are attached to the curtain rods, pin them together at the bottom, and you’ll have a stylish valance that costs about $12.

12) Adding drama to old hardwood flooring is easier than you might think. First, isolate damaged boards, cut them out and replace them with new pieces. Rent a sander from a local hardware store, and give the floor a good sanding. The last step is to stain the boards with a rich color, and watch your floor go from drab to dramatic in no time.

13) Buyers love built-in bookshelves. There’s a fine line between filling them with clutter and staging them to sell. The trick is to arrange neutral items in clusters. Make sure that no single accessory stands out too much. That way, you’ll show off your attractive built-ins, and not your personal belongings.

14) Curb appeal is vital to attracting buyers. Here is how to stop traffic using color. First, with two tones of paint, add a faux finish to any corner keystones. Next, bring out the color of walkway pavers using a stone sealer. Plant flowers in bloom, and you’ll have buyers swarming like bees to your front door.

15) A nice outdoor deck can be a big selling feature, but an old one is a major liability. To give your outdoor space new life, first sand the wood. Cover it with a light-colored stain instead of paint to give it a rustic, grainy look. Furnish it for entertaining, and watch your open house turn into a party.

16) Breathe new life into a worn patio. Do you have a red-brick patio surface that needs to be freshened up? Here is an easy way to give it new life with paint. First, roll a light coat of paint onto the bricks. Next, lightly spray them with water and then dab them before they dry to give them an outdoor look. When you are done, you will have a patio that looks fresh and reels in buyers.

17) Staging rooms to show off their true potential is essential when selling your home. Clear out clutter or other personal items that will distract buyers. Paint the walls a neutral tone, and furnish the space to show off how functional it is. When buyers come through and imagine themselves there, you can bet an offer isn’t far behind.

18) A shabby wood-panel wall is not a strong selling point. Instead of ripping it out, cover it up. Use wood filler to carefully fill in all the cracks between the panels. Then, use a sponge to wipe away the excess filler. Once it’s dry, paint the room. You’ll see an unattractive wall go from standing out to blending in.

19) Use tape outlines on the floor instead of actually moving furniture around. Rearranging a room to stage it for your open house? Here is a tip to save time and effort: Instead of lugging the heavy furniture around the room to see what feels best, put outlines on the floor with painter’s tape. Arrange the room according to your outlines, and save your energy for counting offers.

20) Vinyl tile is an inexpensive way to update your home. Laying vinyl tile is an inexpensive way to update your home, but there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. You need to avoid laying patterns that look too perfect. Instead, make sure to switch up the direction and placement of the tiles to mix the tones. That way, you end up with a floor that has a natural feel.

21) Stage rooms with one purpose so buyers will know what it is. Potential buyers are confused by extra rooms that have a mishmash of uses. To avoid this problem, first clear away clutter and excess furniture. Paint the walls a neutral tone and then furnish the room with a desk to stage it as a home office in which buyers will want to get down to business.

22) Unpleasant pet odors won’t win over buyers. We all love our pets, but unpleasant pet odors can make a negative first impression. Be sure to get rid of old carpet that can trap offensive smells. Replace it with fresh new carpet in a neutral color. Plus, if you paint the walls to match, your living room will look bigger. It’ll go from designed to smell to designed to sell.

23) Pack up unnecessary items and furniture before you show the house. An over packed living room is a red flag to buyers that your home lacks storage space. Pack up unnecessary items and furniture, and move items to your garage or a nearby storage facility. Clear the way for a sale by letting buyers see your square footage, not your personal belongings.

24) Storage space sells! Potential buyers love homes that have lots of storage space. Since they will open your closets, it’s a good idea to clear out unnecessary clutter, and organize your shelves to show off how much storage you really have. Plus, it gives you a chance to start packing, as you will definitely be moving once buyers see all that closet space.

25) Create a nice flow in your rooms. Buyers are attracted to homes that have a good flow. You can create circulation by replacing square or rectangular dining tables with round ones. Cutting the corners adds room to this maneuver and creates a spinoff effect that adds flow to your home — cash flow, that is. Create a better flow in the house by starting with the floor. Want to create better flow in your house? Start with the floor. Join two rooms together by using the most cost-efficient material in the book: vinyl tile. First, use a snap-line to create a center point between the two rooms. Next, the fun part: Peel and stick the new vinyl tile down, and watch your kitchen and dining room go from old to sold!

So there you have some easy and affordable ways to stage a listing and beat other agents to a listing and sell the listing for more. Take these tips and create your own staging booklet or report as a listing tool with sellers and beat out the competition and sell your listings for more. I dare ya!!

 

Strength and courage,
Wade

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Secrets To Growing Your Real Estate Business and Your Wealth

An amazing source for my business and income came from not only investing personally in real estate but having a core group of investors I could regularly promote investment opportunities to where the phone would ring asking me to show them the property and write up the offer. I would literally have people call saying “we heard you were the agent that knew where the investment opportunities were and they heard I actually invested in properties personally with my clients as well.”

My golden rule was never to buy something for myself before offering it to my investor clientele to ensure I never had the reputation of being the agent who picks up the best investment opportunities for themselves before their clients. I always let the clients know they will get the first opportunity with any property before I buy anything for myself and this was very important to my niche and reputation in the real estate investing market. I spent a chunk of my time looking for the buying and investing opportunities each day and throwing them out to the database of investors I had slowly built up over my career.

The bonus was some of my investment clients became personal friends and I offered to throw my fee into the property for a share in the property investment as well. We had a solicitor draft up a partnership agreement between all of us and when the client could see I was wanting to personally invest in the property then they knew this must be a great opportunity for them. Investment properties can be an absolute nightmare or a huge profit source. It’s your choice, based upon the amount of documentation and systems you implement.

Many top real estate agents also have a management division within their offices. This division is usually started and grows by helping investor clients, or it is necessary because of the properties the real estate agents own themselves. At some point, many top real estate agents might actually semi retire due to their portfolio of real estate holdings.

Being an “insider” allows you to horizontally integrate your business. Being a real estate agent and using “insider” secrets to invest allows you to utilize the tools you developed in putting together a great market niche. This new skill set allows another form of income to be cultivated from the real estate agent’s investors and investments. It is important the “insider” takes management seriously, whether for yourself or for your clients; therefore, I would like to share with you my…

Golden Rules of “insider” Investment Property Management:

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1. Attractive properties in quality neighborhoods, which create emotion, will attract a higher caliber of tenants, rent faster, and receive a higher rent.

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2. The right tenant will always pay more for the right property and take better care of the property. Just any tenant will always want to pay less for any property and cause damage to the property. DO NOT ACCEPT just any tenant!

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3. It is always better to have a vacancy than a bad tenant.

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4. No matter what your gut tells you about a tenant — never trust it. In fact, in real estate management, only trust your mother. Check all tenants records including banks, employment, last landlords, credit records, and any other systems that are available for you to determine the pain probability (and your profitability) of this tenant.

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5. Rent as if you were going to evict, and you probably will not have to.

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6. Courts almost always rule in favor of the person with the most written documents.

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7. Cut your losses early. Left to themselves, tenants usually go from bad to worse.

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8. Long-term leases may not allow you to participate in appreciating rental rates; however, they do cut down on the most expensive aspect of property management — turnover. Also, it makes a purchase through you the least costly alternative for a tenant who wants to end a lease early!

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9. Consider every tenant as a potential buyer. Having them commit to long-term leases and only letting them out of the lease at expiration date upon a successful purchase of a piece of real estate through you will add many dollars to your real estate brokerage business net profit.

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10. Please do not have preconceived ideas regarding how people of certain classes and ethnic backgrounds behave in your rental. I have had losers from all classes and winners from all classes. Only discriminate on the basis of their ability to pay and their references! No other prejudices should ever enter into the decision-making process. We understand this in real estate – carry it through to your management.

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11. Never rent to people unless you have seen where they currently live. I do not care if they are twelve states away. If you cannot send one of your real estate agent buddies out of your local referral directory to go visit their home, I would prefer that you did not rent to them. I guarantee that your property will look exactly like their current abode within three months.

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12. Minimize your expenses through preventative maintenance. It always adds value to the property. A property can be improved in many different ways. The improvement that adds value to the property is always the best. Band-Aids end up costing you more money and are usually always done by owners who have short-term ownership mentality. Since our “insider” real estate acquisition policy requires we own property long term, adding value and repairing items for the long term is the most profitable method to accomplish your goals.

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13. It will always cost you more to have someone else manage your property than if you would manage the property yourself.

Please be aware of the amount of money you make in your real estate business before you give up your real estate business time to manage properties. Property management companies can charge between 6-10% of gross rent to manage your property, and if you believe you would be spending time away from a more profitable business, i.e. real estate business, then you will need to make the decision whether or not you should hire a management company.

If you can hire someone within your own office to take care of the majority of the management duties, this would be a less expensive method. A good rule of thumb, when you own between 1 and 20 units, is for you to have a management company handle them for you while you make commission income. After 20 units, it usually makes sense for you to hire a full-time person to take care of most of the management duties.

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14. Having checklists and systems in your management business is paramount to making certain that all the “i’s” are dotted and “t’s” are crossed.

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Now that you understand some of the golden rules for “insider” property management consider the huge opportunity of adding real estate investment property and investors to your business this year and grow and expand your business. The greatest opportunity for all of us is to be investing in what we do and know and building our fortune by investing in real estate ourselves. My personal wealth came from investing in real estate personally and not serving over a hundred clients with buying and selling their real estate each year. I encourage you to expand in the real estate investor market and slowly build your own real estate investment portfolio starting now!

Strength and courage,
Wade

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Agent’s Guide to Writing a Business Plan

business plan real estate

Business Plan – a written document that describes in detail how a business, usually a new one, is going to achieve its goals. A business plan lays out a written plan from a marketing, financial and operational viewpoint.

FACT: LESS THAN 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN
FACT: ESTIMATED 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS IN NORTH AMERICA DOING 97% OF BUSINESS

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Writing a business plan may seem a daunting task as there are so many moving parts and concepts to address. Take it one step at a time and be sure to schedule regular review (quarterly, semi-annually, or annually) of your plan to be sure you on are track to meet your goals. It is that time of year again when we begin to build our plan for 2017 and let’s look at the key areas of the agent’s solid business plan.

1) Defining Your Mission & Vision

Writing a solid business plan begins by defining your business’s mission and vision statement. Though creating such a statement may seem like fluff, it is an important exercise. The mission and vision statement sets the foundation upon which to launch your business. It is difficult to move forward successfully without first defining your business and the ideals under which your business operates. A company description should be included as a part of the mission and vision statement: what type of real estate do you sell? Where is your business located? Who founded your business? What is sets your business apart from your competitors?

2) SWOT Analysis

Once you’ve created a mission and vision statement, the next step is to develop a SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for “Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.” It is difficult to set goals for your business without first enumerating your business’s strengths and weaknesses, and the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. Do you offer superior customer service as compared with your competitors? Do you specialize in a niche market? What experiences do you have that set you apart from your competitors? What are your competitors’ strengths? Where do you see the market already saturated, and where are there opportunities for expansion and growth?

3) Setting Goals

Next, translate your mission and vision into tangible goals. If your mission statement is to make every client feel like your most important client: how specifically will you implement this? Do you want to grow your business? Is this growth measured by gross revenue, profit, personnel, or physical office space? How much growth do you aim for annually? What specific targets will you strive to hit annually in the next few years?

4) Marketing Plan

You may wish to create a marketing plan as either a section of your business plan or as an addendum. The Marketing Mix concerns product, price, place and promotion. What is your product? How does your price distinguish you from your competitors—is it industry average, upper quartile, or lower quartile? How does your pricing strategy benefit your clients? How and where will you promote your services? What types of promotions will you advertise? Will you ask clients for referrals or use coupons? Which channels will you use to place your marketing message?

5) Forming a Team

Ensuring the cooperation of all colleagues, supervisors, and service providers involved in your plan is another important element to consider. Is your business plan’s success contingent upon the cooperation of your colleagues? If so, what specifically do you need them to do? How will you evaluate their participation? Are they on-board with the role you have assigned them? How will you get “buy in” from these individuals?

6) Implementation & Follow-up

Implementation and follow-up are frequently overlooked aspects to the business plan, yet enormously vital to the success of the plan. Set dates (annually, semi-annually, quarterly, or monthly) to review your business plans goals: are you on track? Were the goals reasonable to achieve, impossible, or too easy? How do you measure success—is it by revenue, profit, or number of transactions?

And last, how do you plan to implement your business plan’s goals? When will you review and refine your business plan goals? What process will you use to review your goals? What types of quantitative and qualitative data will you collect and use to measure your success? So there you have it your guide to building your 2017 business plan. Click here to download your Click here to download your free 2017 business plan template and make 2017 your best year in real estate!

 

Strength and courage,
Wade

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Hey Agents Have You Ever Googled Yourself?

Agent Google SearchI am often reminded of the importance (if you have never done it before), of googling yourself. Actually sit down, open up google and search your name on google and look at what you see or worse, what you don’t see.

So let me ask you a question. When you google yourself, how do you rank?

When you google yourself, what else came up during your search? Anything? Nothing?

When I google myself I gratefully rank on the whole first page of the search but I found a solar company by the name “Wade Solar” and a judge in the mid-west with the name “Wade” in the search.

Wade_Webb_Google

Now more importantly, how many results were about your business and would they make you want to work with you if you were a buyer or seller looking for an agent online? In February of this year, Inman reported that businesses with 10 or more reviews get 3.5x the attention and 6.5x the inquiries. Client reviews and testimonials help boost your incredibility with leads like crazy. They also help boost your credibility with Google.

So, if you’re not getting the results you want when you Google yourself and your business, that means Google doesn’t quite trust you yet. There are really only 3 ways to get traffic to your real estate website (Ads, SEO, and Social). This week we’re going to explore how your social media pages can help you rank better and higher in Google searches.

While Google may or may not use signals on Facebook or Twitter such as the number of followers you have to boost your placement, it’s clear that each platform still ranks and ranks well, at least for broad searches. If your content performs well and is widely shared, it can help drive more traffic and qualified leads your way for years to come. But let’s get back to social media. Social profiles are often among the top results in search listings for individuals and brand names. While your Pinterest page may not have the same impact as a 5-star Yelp review, it’s still a great place to start.

Think about it. If a lead only knows your name, they may start with that as a way to find out more about you and let’s be real – social media platforms are becoming just as much of a search engine as Google is. It’s likely future clients are going to want to learn more about you and the quickest way to connect is through social networks. If you’ve got a stellar Pinterest presence with several well-crafted boards full of useful information and a decent number of followers, you’re well on your way to making a great first impression and achieving your goal of gaining trust with your viewers and Google.

Whether you’re active on two or 12 social sites, here are a few practices that will easily increase your SEO and help push you to the first page of Google. Whether you have 100 or 100,000 followers on any given network, the way in which they engage with you will help establish you as a credible source. Growing your follower base is one way to do this, but they’ve got to be high-quality fans. What does this mean?

Well, for one, that they’re not bought. Buying Likes/followers will do absolutely nothing for you. Do Not Buy Fans. It’s not worth it and will ultimately decrease your chances of ranking on Google. As I said before though, there’s still a lot of conversation happening around whether your sheer number of followers even influences your Google ranking and whether it does or it doesn’t, how you interact with your audience totally matters. When thinking about increasing your reach, I want you to keep these three words in mind – Resonate, Relevant and Reach… let’s quickly break these down.

The way you will resonate with your target audience is by producing relevant content and these two things will increase your reach. Listen to what your viewers are saying. This could be one person or 10. It doesn’t matter. Because if you can help one person solve a problem, chances are there are many more people looking for answers to the same question. Help them solve it to increase your reach.

Optimize Your Posts – Again, this all comes back to content. To make the most of your updates, make sure you’re sharing strong, valuable content consistently. A detailed blog post, video or infographic will help you accomplish this the fastest. Make sure to also say something about the content you’re sharing in the post description and try and include a keyword or term relevant to that search.

You can also focus on optimizing your posts for your local community and having them show up in big search engines. Hint: This is how you can start to compete with portal giants such as Zillow and Truila. It is impossible for you to be a local expert like them, so get out there and make it happen. An easy way to get started on this, aside from making sure your actual profile is up-to-date with your location and services..etc., is to engage other local players. Try Googling “best pizza (your area)” and see what comes up.

Best_Pizza

Choose the top 3 and then check out their social media profiles. Try out each one for lunch or dinner over the next few weeks and write your own guide for newcomers. You can then tag each place across social media and begin engaging them on a more regular basis.

Whether you work with a team or are a one-agent show, you are your brand. The best way you can increase your brand awareness and authority is by publishing quality content regularly. Your online reputation is essentially built upon your social media presence. In order to generate and maintain a credible image, you’ve got to keep active. Your social media presence, though important, is really just a way to give you more visibility online and drive traffic to your site. That’s where the real action happens.

Strength and courage,
Wade

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