Posts Tagged ‘Pros And Cons’
Tough times in the real estate market have made many agents look beyond the traditional residential home sales market to bolster their incomes in a declining market. It has been said that for every problem there is an opportunity and this is as true in the real estate field as any other.
Below are some alternative markets worth taking a look at if you want to add income streams to your bottom line in this difficult market.
oPerforming Broker Price Opinion valuations for banks and mortgage companies. Similar to the traditional Comparable Market Analysis, or CMA, agents are familiar with providing for potential listing clients, they are very much in demand as foreclosures rise. Pay ranges from $40-150 per report and many agents perform multiple reports daily.
oShort Sales. As property values decline in many areas of the country, more and more sellers are finding themselves in the position of being “upside down” in their homes. It is well worth the time and effort to learn the ins and outs of handling such sales successfully and those who specialize in this field are seeing their incomes soar in spite of the slow market.
oREO/Foreclosures. Only a few years ago, this was an almost non-existent niche in most markets. A handful of agents who specialized in this field dominated the market and it remains difficult to break into. REO offers its own special challenges but mastering and establishing yourself in REO can bring very substantial rewards.
All three niches above offer increasing opportunity in the present market and promise to do so for some time to come. The wave of foreclosures is by no means over and market corrections are expected to continue for quite some time.
Before making a decision to enter any new niche, it is recommended that you research the pros and cons as well as prerequisites for success in each.
By: Ellen Mikesell
In the United Kingdom there is a slightly comical distrust of the activities of estate agents, so in this article we’ll weigh up the pros and cons of hiring a commercial estate agents. Despite the reservations some people have about them, they are still the most common method of buying or selling a commercial property.
If you are considering completing a buying or selling or letting transaction without the assistance of commercial estate agents, it is important to do a great deal of research and ask yourself some serious questions about what you know regarding this complex issue.
If you’re looking to buy, then you need to find the time to research a great deal of properties. Commercial estate agents arguably know whether there is a good deal in the offing, and indeed have a wide range of contacts within the industry. They will also be very familiar with all the property jargon as well as the legal terminology.
The truth is that most businesses do not have the time to accrue this crucial knowledge and therefore tend to opt for commercial estate agents. While it is tempting to try an bypass the relatively large fees associated with buying or selling a commercial property, the truth is that the wealth of experience does not come cheap.
One of the crucial benefits of the agent is their ability to gauge a suitable price for a property.
It is common that commercial estate agents are the first to learn about areas where new opportunities are emerging. It is also quite common for very desirable properties to be bought up by those in-the-know – even before they are on the market. The knowledge that property agents have through their contacts means that they often know about properties well before they actually come to market. Having access to this kind of information is crucial for many businesses – who need to be one step ahead of their competition.
It is also worth noting that commercial agents need to be very skilled at negotiating – so if they find you an ideal property they know exactly what the pressure points for getting the price as low as possible. In theory, this skill at negotiating might well account for the fees you pay the agent.
Commercial estate agents remain a very important tool for businesses to buy, sell and let properties, and do not look like they will be disappearing anytime soon.
By: Gino Hitshopi
A conniving pro?
In a real estate agents’ newsletter, an agent shared her secret for getting more listings. She said that when she sees a For Sale By Owner (FSBO) sign go up in a neighborhood, she immediately calls the number on the sign and tells the seller she has a client who isn’t comfortable seeing the home without an agent.
In reality, the agent’s “client” is actually her mother or a friend, posing as a buyer. The agent goes along and says very little, at least in the beginning. All she does is give the homeowner a business card upon arrival, and then she stays in the background, listening and observing. The bogus buyer asks all kinds of questions, and eventually the homeowner begins to feel comfortable with having the agent there.
After awhile, the owner begins asking the agent questions about the market, financing, or the many other things involved in selling a home. According to the agent, she converts a fairly large percentage of such appointments into listings, and apparently has no compunction about the deception involved in getting them.
This is an example of the biggest reason why real estate agents have traditionally gotten a bad rap. Some of them are downright dishonest. That’s why some investors seem to think they should avoid using real estate agents to buy or sell properties. However, I disagree, and I’m not alone. In fact, contrary to popular belief, many of the most successful real estate investors buy and sell properties using agents. My husband and I often use agents to sell our properties. We’ve sold some houses ourselves, but we generally appreciate professional help, for a number of reasons, all related directly to our bottom line.
Why Professional Agents Earn their Commissions
We have several agents who call us when they find bargain properties because they know we’ll call them back when that house has been fixed up and is ready to sell. Those agents can count on receiving commissions on both ends of the transaction, which gives them incentive to keep finding us properties to flip. The more they find, the more they make, and the more WE make in the end. As far as we’re concerned, having reliable, honest agents help us buy and sell properties is simply sound business practice.
Another reason we like agents is because they schedule appointments, show us properties, do the negotiating, and take care of all the paperwork. Not having to deal with all those details frees us up to spend more time on the houses themselves, which is our main concern. For us, the real estate agents we work with on a regular basis are invaluable and make us far more than their commission on every transaction.
By: Jeanette Joy Fisher
