Questions for your real estate agent, Internet marketing.

Unless you are in a cave, with no access to technology, then you know how important the internet has become to all of us. The National Association of Realtors tells us that approximately 92% of buyers start their search on the internet. If this statistic is true then why dont potential home sellers "grill" me about my internet marketing? Here are a couple of suggestions for the home seller as you interview real estate agents. •Ask the agent how the internet marketing works. In other words when the agent inputs your home in a computer how does it appear on other websites. •What are the top websites that are being used for real estate searches? •How do I know if people are seeing my home on these top websites? •How many pictures appear on the internet? •Do you, the agent, take your own pictures or use a professional photographer? What am I doing before a listing appointment? I email one of my listings to my potential client. I send links from four major real estate websites (Trulia, zillow, realtor.com, and yahoo.com) so they can see the quality of my listings. I also email the potential client the professional virtual tour I have done on my homes. I send them links where my virtual tours are located including obeo.com and youtube.com This gives my potential clients the ability to see my product before we meet in person to discuss other details. Final word to the sellers: After you choose your real estate agent, have them send you the links to your home on the internet so you can see the finished product. I say this not to bash my fellow agents. However I am amazed on how bad some homes appear on the internet. A picture of ceiling fan, an open toilet, or a picture so dark that it is a mystery, is doing the home seller a disservice. If you find yourself in the North Atlanta, Lake Lanier or North Georgia area, look us up. We are The Wells Team, www.randywellsteam.com

Is There a Time Not to List Your Home???

It is that time of year when I hear the following from our clients: • Time to take my home off of the market. • Don’t want my home on the market during the holidays. • Nobody looks at homes this time of year. • I will wait until spring to relist the home. I decided to run some statistics from my home county, Dawson county. I took the two slowest back to back months and compared them to the two busiest back to back months Nov-Dec July-Aug Homes for sale Avg 267 Avg 339 Homes sold Avg 20 Avg 35 Percentage of sale/vs sold Avg 7.5% Avg 10.32% In other words a mere 3% was the difference between the busiest back to back months and the slowest back to back months. During the busiest time 3% LESS in sales would have resulted in 1.05 less homes being sold During the slowest time 3% MORE in sales would have resulted in .6 more homes being sold So what I want to convey to my clients is this: The difference between the slowest time of the year and the busiest time of the year is very small in terms of statistics. And: IF YOUR HOME IS NOT LISTED YOU HAVE A 0% CHANCE OF SELLING! If you are in the North Atlanta, Lake Lanier, North Georgia area look us up. www.randywellsteam.com

Keller Williams Community Partners, Forsyth County, #1 in Sales

Know your Pipes!

How well do you know your pipes? If you know them as well as I do then you need a professional to help. Yesterday a representative from BPG Home Inspections spoke at our KW Team Meeting. He did a quick overview, with pictures, on some plumbing issues that they encounter. His emphasis was the new, and old, types of non-copper pipe that are being used in the home. PBE or Polybutylene “blue pipe”- This pipe was used in the US for a majority of homes built prior to 2000. Because of problems with the pipe it is no longer used in the US for home building. Numerous lawsuits took place because of the failures of the pipe. This appeared to be caused by a chemical reaction between the pipe and chlorine in the water. PEX or Cross-linked polyethylene- Used as an alternative to copper pipe, this pipe is flexible and cheaper. It continues to grow in popularity because it can be used easily in home construction. PVC or Polyvinylchloride-Also used an alternative to copper pipe, this pipe is less expensive to install. A good home inspector should educate you on the type of piping in your home and the potential benefits/pitfalls associated with it. The moral of the story: Do not hire a home inspector based on the cheapest price. I have seen this many times before and the results were not good. Call the inspector; ask for their qualifications and experience. Ask for references. Make this one of the most important factors in purchasing a home. If you find yourselves in the North Atlanta, North Georgia, Lake Lanier area, give us a call. www.randywellsteam.com