In today's real estate market, two distinct types of agents have emerged; the buyer's agent and the listing agent. The typical image of an agent is of the buyer's agent. This is an agent who concerns themselves with assisting a client in buying a new home. The listing agent, conversely is an agent who specializes in the art of preparing and selling a home.

 The primary objective of a listing agent is in the intelligent marketing of the homes that they are offering for sale on the local real estate market. This process goes far beyond putting up a sign and hoping that some interest is piqued. In fact the posting of the sign is merely the start of a long and involved process. Where the buyer's agent deals mainly with prospective home buyers, the listing agent concerns themselves with the marketing of a home to other agents. By this act, a listing agent can create interest in their listing with numerous other professionals and as such, bring more prospective buyers to the home in question.

 

In order to do this the listing agent utilizes a vast repertoire of experience and sales tactics to stir up interest. The most visual and widespread of these elements is their web site. A good listing agent will use the latest in internet technology to market a home to as vast an audience as possible. This part of the marketing plan is vital to the success of a home sale as it will also list the home on the area's MLS service. Once the home is listed, the process of bringing buyers to the home begins. This is a step that has several facets, including open houses, local newspaper marketing, networking with buyer's agents in the community, and utilizing a system of referrals on a nationwide basis. This step also involves the Office & Broker previews where the home is shown to other agents in the same office, and to all members of the local MLS. This includes agents from other real estate firms that conduct business in the same area.

For these reasons it is a good idea to employ the services of a listing agent in the sale of a home. The listing agent is capable and trained in the art of procuring as much attention for a home as they can. If you are looking to realize the highest possible profit in the sale of your home, a listing agent is a necessity.

REW Writers is a collective publication network facilitated by Real Estate Webmasters each article is contributed by a member of our real estate community. This particular article was submitted on behalf of Lee Keadle, your Charleston SC realty expert.

This article is free for republishing
Source: http://www.articlealley.com

 

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By Rex Nutting
From The Wall Street Journal Online

Home builders' confidence in the U.S. market improved for a second straight month in November, an industry trade group said Thursday.

The housing market index improved to 33 in November from 31 in October, the National Association of Home Builders reported. The index had fallen for eight months in a row to a 15-year low of 30 in September.

The index shows that about one-third of builders are optimistic about the housing market. A year ago, the index was at 61 and it peaked at 72 in June 2005.

Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had been predicting the index would remain at 31. See Economic Calendar.

"More and more builders are seeing light at the end of the tunnel," said David Pressly, president of the NAHB and a builder based in Statesville, N.C. "Our members are telling us that the market is steadying after a significant downward correction. We look for sales to stabilize and gradually move up in the coming months."

"The data tell us that the worst of housing is behind us," said Robert Brusca, chief economist for FAO Economics. Realtors also see "signs of recovery."

"It is still too soon to definitively confirm" that a bottom has been reached, wrote Brian Carey, an economist for Moody's Economy.com.

The report comes one day before the Commerce Department discloses data on U.S. home construction for October. Economists are looking for a 4.5% decline in housing starts to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.69 million.

All three components of the NAHB index moved higher in November:

• The single-family sales index rose to 33 from 32.
• The future sales index rose to 46 from 42.
• The traffic of prospective buyers' index rose to 26 from 23.

The index improved in two of four regions, and it fell in the other two.

Specifically, builder confidence in the Northeast improved to a reading of 37 from 35, while the index rose to 40 from 38 in the South. Confidence fell to a cyclical low of 34 in the West and matched a cycle low of 16 in the Midwest

 

 

 

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By Matthew Heimer

From The Wall Street Journal Online

After hurtling along for years, the nationwide real-estate boom has come to a screeching halt. In 2005, home prices in the U.S. rose more than 12%; this year, the National Association of Realtors expects appreciation to reach just 1.9% -- the lowest gain since 1992.

Rising mortgage rates and selloffs by skittish real-estate investors have helped depress housing prices in many metropolitan areas. But there's another factor that many observers miss: the relationship between home prices and incomes.

When the cost of housing in a given area grows far faster than local wages and salaries, the pool of potential buyers shrinks, and prices are much more likely to sink.

For the past five years, SmartMoney magazine has worked with Ingo Winzer, president of the consulting firm Local Market Monitor, evaluating home-sale prices against local income to determine whether a given market is overvalued, undervalued or fairly valued. Mr. Winzer relies on more than 15 years of housing and income statistics to find out where prices are headed.

According to Mr. Winzer, any market that's more than 30% overvalued is due for a correction. In the fall of 2003, only eight markets on the list of 152 fit that description; on this year's list, 37 did. Sure enough, price decreases are beginning to pop up in many of the markets that have shown up year after year as the most overvalued -- especially in Florida and California.

What to do if you're in a falling market? Obviously, that's a promising climate for a bargain-hunting buyer. A savvy real-estate agent can help you craft a bid that's low enough to save you money, but realistic enough to be accepted. When one of Frank Borges LLosa's clients finds an appealing home, the Northern Virginia broker searches the history of the selling agent -- data not available to consumers -- on the local multiple listing service. If the agent frequently sells below the asking price, Mr. LLosa knows he can be aggressive.

Listing archives can also help buyers figure out the right bidding range. Ask your agent to comb the MLS for "pending sales," deals that are in contract but haven't yet closed, to get an up-to-date sense of price ranges in your market.

In an ideal world, you wouldn't sell a house at all while prices were falling. But if you must, experts agree that it's best to act quickly, before prices slide further.

Often, that means gritting your teeth and offering the best price to get potential buyers in the door. Here again, getting your agent to tap pending-sales data can pay off. Pay attention to the pricing per square foot for homes similar to yours, and set your asking price at the bottom of, or even below, that range.

South Florida broker Mike Morgan recommends that his clients take 1% to 3% off the price every week until they get an offer.

Another way to motivate a potential buyer: Motivate his broker. In a typical sale, a commission of 6% is split evenly between the buyer's and seller's agents. But you can ask that a higher percentage go to the buyer's agent, or even offer extra money out of your own pocket, so that she'll steer customers your way.

David Lereah, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, expects that nationwide prices will bounce back in 2007.

He adds that one-third of the country is primed for growth -- a claim that Mr. Winzer's research supports. And if you don't have to sell your home, the short-term turmoil underscores the point that it seldom makes sense to obsess over your home's value the way you'd obsess over, say, your Google shares. Better to sit back, enjoy your mortgage-interest tax deduction, and wait for better days.

 

 

 

 

 

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Ocean County Observer

By Jeff Bater

From The Wall Street Journal Online

An index of pending home sales in October tumbled again, suggesting more softening demand for the housing sector.

The National Association of Realtors' index for pending sales of existing homes decreased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.7% to 107.2 from September's 109.1, the industry group said Monday. Its index, based on signed contracts for used homes, was 13.2% below the level of October 2005.

Although the gauge declined for the eight time in a year, David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, expects a "fairly steady pace" of home sales for the next two months.

"It's important to focus on where the housing market is now -- it appears to be stabilizing, and comparisons with an unsustainable boom mask the fact that home sales remain historically high -- they'll stay that way through 2007," Mr. Lereah said.

"In addition, a temporary correction in prices distracts from the fact that it is primarily the number of home sales that affects the economy, and the number for this year will be the third highest on record," he said.

By region, the index showed a 2.1% decline in the Northeast in October from September -- and a 13.5% decrease since October 2005. It decreased 0.6% in the Midwest -- and was down 15.4% in the 12-month span. The West saw a 2.7% drop -- and a 17.4% decline in the past year. The index for the South fell by 1.7% -- and was 9.3% lower since October 2005.

The NAR's pending home sales index was designed to try measuring which way the housing market is going in the future. It is based on pending sales of existing homes, including single-family homes and condominiums. A home sale is pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction hasn't closed. Pending sales typically close within one or two months of signing.

Last week, the NAR reported sales of existing homes in the U.S. climbed for the first time in eight months during October. The median home price, at $221,000, was 3.5% lower than the level a year earlier, the largest decline on record. The inventory of unsold homes on the market climbed; at the latest selling rate, it would take 7.4 months to clear the backlog; a year earlier, 4.9 months would have been sufficient.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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