Series: About to Sell in Addison or Farmers Branch? Preparations Prior to Listing - Part 4

About to Sell in Addison or Farmers Branch? Preparations Prior to Listing

When you are about to sell in Addison, or Farmers Branch, or anywhere in the United States, there are preparations prior to listing that both the homeowner and the real estate agent should complete.

In Part 1, I gave you some background about this property about to be offered for sale and some of the initial steps that were taken, up to and including my first visit to the house. In Part 2, we took a look at some of the exterior maintenance and enhancements that the sellers completed to improve curb appeal. Part 3 dealt with the interior improvements.

While the sellers put the finishing touches on the exterior and exterior of the home, I've been preparing for the day (and days after) the house will appear in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

• I gave the sellers pamphlets from several Residential Service (home warranty) companies and suggested that they choose one offering seller coverage.
• A "coming soon" sign is in the front yard to generate buyer interest.
• Just Listed postcards are prepared and will be mailed to the neighbors when the house is in MLS.
• Color flyers have been prepared with details about the house and photographs.
• Connections have been made with other agents who have listings in the neighborhood with plans for a multiple open-house weekend.
• I suggested a pre-listing inspection so there will be no surprises about the condition of the house.
• At the weekly office meeting, I announced this "hip pocket" listing to the agents in my office to get them thinking about which of their buyers might be interested in this property.
• The domain name for the microsite (website) for this address has been acquired and is ready to go live with information and virtual tour once the property is listed.

Once the property has been added to MLS, other marketing efforts kick in, such as:

• distributing the listing information to multiple websites
• adding the open house information to DFWOpenHouse.com
• delivering color flyers to other real estate offices
• running a Reverse Prospecting search in MLS and contacting agents who have client searches set up meeting the criteria of this house
• blogging about the house
• posting on craigslist

So, if you are About to Sell in Addison or Farmers Branch, you now have a better idea as to the behind-the-scenes Preparations Prior to Listing. To customize a plan specific to your house, please give me a call. I list and sell all over the Dallas Metroplex, including Addison, Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Plano, Coppell, Flower Mound and North Dallas.

Lorrie Semler, e-PRO, GRI, SRES
Addison Resident/Addison Specialist
Keller Williams - Dallas North
972-416-3417
www.LorrieSemler.com