Last month a client of ours wrote a great article titled Valuation: Price per Square Foot is only Part of the Answer.  In this post, Mary Pope-Handy discusses how too much emphasis on price per square foot can lead to an inaccurate view of home values.  She explains that although square footage is a factor that should be considered, it is only one of many that will impact the value of a home (click here to see her list of other important factors).  I especially love Mary’s explanation of why online and automatic valuations can not be trusted for the value of homes, and why these inaccurate values can cause both buyers and sellers problems in their home search/sale. I highly recommend that all (agents, buyers, and sellers) read this piece as it re-iterates how important a knowledgeable agent is in the valuation of a home.  With all the real estate tools available online, so many people believe they don’t need a real estate agent.  In their minds, the ‘internet’ can price, market, and sell their home. But as Mary points out, there are many factors that must be included in the pricing of a home and therefore it is next to impossible for online evaluations to produce spot-on pricing.  Having a real estate expert on your side is key to a positive real estate transaction – no matter what side of the transaction you are on. So agents – take the time to educate your prospects and clients on your value as a local real estate agent.  And to all those buyers and sellers out there, take the time to find an experienced real estate professional who can guide you through your local real estate market.

I recently came across an article on CNNMoney title 7 Questions for Your Next Real Estate Agent, which provides prospective buyers and sellers direct questions they should ask an agent before deciding to work with them.  As the article advises prospects, “Pairing up with the right real estate agent can help you close the deal at the price you want.”  I couldn’t agree more, as finding the right agent is imperative to having a successful transaction.  And, I also agree that all buyers and sellers should come up with a list of questions to ask their prospective agents to ensure they share the same expectations.  And likewise, agents should be receptive to the questions a prospect asks during the 'interview' time.  As an agent, it’s advantageous to prepare yourself for these types of questions so you can enter your listing or buyer presentations with confidence.  Start by taking a look at the 7 questions recommended by CNNMoney and think about how you would answer the same questions from your prospects:

Every so often I speak with a client who wants to send a marketing email to their entire database.  Whether it is a listing update, homeowner tip, or a local announcement, they want to hit “send to all” and be done with their email.  While I do understand that hitting send to all is the easiest and quickest way to send an email, I must advise clients that it is not the most effective way to disperse a marketing message (nor is it the legal way )…  To authenticate my point, I ask my clients to think about all the businesses and service providers currently housed in their database – phone providers, MLS companies, hostmasters, credit card companies, etc.  By hitting “send to all”, these contacts will receive a marketing piece that does not pertain to them and, most importantly, that they did not give you permission to send to them.  This, by definition, is spam. And, what many then don’t understand is that spam doesn’t just cause problems for the recipient, but also the sender.  Being marked as a spammer can result in you being blocked from email hosts, such as yahoo, Gmail, msn, etc… For example, if you get blocked by Gmail, you would be unable to send to ANY @gmail accounts.  As you can imagine, this would cause major issues in your day-to-day communication with prospects and clients.  Don’t put yourself in the ‘spammer’ category - take the time to verify who you are sending to before you hit send.  And check out my previous post, 5 Ways to Avoid Being Sent to Spam, for more ideas on how to prevent the sending of spam!