Dan Mitchell

...subdivisions out here in the East Valley with 'Ranch' in the name?

It's Wednesday, so I figured I'd throw in a little levity for hump day, but it is something that I ponder more and more the more houses I look at out here. There are a LOT of subdivisions/master planned communities named '__________ Ranch'. Off the top of my head, I can think of:

Morrison Ranch

Chandler Ranch (one of my favorites, as some ne'er-do-wells absconded with the 'C' and the 'R' from the west sign, making it now read 'Handle Ranch')

Copper Ranch

Cooper Ranch

Power Ranch

Sonoma Ranch

Gila River Ranch

Clemente Ranch

Cameron Ranch

Parkwood Ranch

Augusta Ranch

Harmon Ranch

Willis Ranch

Dobson Ranch

Allen Ranch

San Tan Ranch

Ray Ranch

This site has a pretty comprehensive list of all of the subdivisions in Arizona; in looking at it, I guess 'Ranch' is not as pervasive as it seems, but they sure stick out. I know I'm not the only one either- everybody I know has commented on the naming.

Are they trying to evoke the wild west? Because I don't know if that's exactly the type of image that would make me want to settle down somewhere- bandits, desperados, gunfights in the streets; yep, a great place to raise a family!

If I had better comic instincts, I could channel Jerry Seinfeld and turn this into one of those observational humor bits. "Didja ever notice...?" Without a punchline, though, I'll just leave this as an observation that puts a little smirk on my face every time I see (yet another) one...

Q. Is it important to include photos with your listing?

A. Well, according to my own experience, and information provided by the NAR, as well as several op-ed pieces written by people from all walks of life that I have read by they are...

So why is it that there are still so many listings without photos?

I decided to take a look at realtor.com this morning. No, I do not currently own a home. Yes, I'm in the market, albeit passively at this time. I have a realtor, but sometimes, I just like to see what else it out there. The only criteria I entered was the city- Chandler, AZ. Realtor.com came back with 2,431 listings. Realtor.com lets you sort the results by Price (high to low, or low to high), 'Featured Tours', and 'Number of Photos'. I was curious, so I sorted by number of photos, and was pretty amazed by what I found.

121 Listings had No Photo. None. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada.

181 Listings had 1 Photo.

53 Listings had 2 Photos.

76 Listings had 3 Photos.

1,180 Listings had 4 Photos. This apparently is the magic number, as listings with 4 photos were the vast majority of the listings.

A full two thirds of the listing in Chandler, AZ (1,611 out of 2,431) had four or fewer photos.

Those figures run the gamut in style, from single family homes to condos to vacant land, as well as price, from the $29,900.00, 500 square-foot house built in 1931 to the $10,000,000.00, 12,000 square-foot mansion built in the 1980s. Some 'land' had a photo or two, while some houses did not. Some 'photos' were actually artists' renderings and/or floorplans, but that's another topic.

I did notice a few with the 'New' starburst, indicating a new listing, but it was not a significant number- I'd say well under 50%. Admittedly, I did not look at the date of every listing, but even if half of the listings were 'new', that still leaves over 800 that are not. And for every one that I did look at, there were others that had been listed for anywhere from 34 days to 122 days to well over a year.

With that being said, on the positive side, when you sort by number of photos, the listings with the most photos spring to the top, increasing the likliehood that the listing will be seen.

76 Listings had 25 Photos.

Just 143 Listings had 20 or more Photos (including the 76 that had 25 Photos).

That is less than 6% of the total.

Now I have heard before that Realtor.com isn't the most accurate site, that if you really want to know, you should talk to a realtor, etc., but there are a lot of people (myself included) who start their search online. Maybe they are passive lookers, or maybe they are moving to another city or state, and don't know anyone in the new area, so they just want to 'see what's out there'; the point is Realtor.com has name recognition, and it's easy, and the american people in general like easy.

So maybe a shopper will notice a listing on realtor.com, and if they like what they see, maybe they email or call the listing agent for more information. BOOM! That listing is not just an opportunity to sell that particular home, its also your calling card as a realtor. Treat every house as it was your only listing and do everything you can to get as engaging a listing as you can posted on as many sites as you can. The more time a prospective buyer spends on your listing, the better, not only for that listing, but also for you. You may not end up selling that house, but you have improved your chances of selling a house, and in this market, you need to give yourself every advantage you can.

So include as many photos on your listings as you can. If you don't have the time or equipment to take the photos yourself, hire someone to do it. Hiring a home photographer is no longer something only for 'luxury' listings (although if you want arty 'twilight' photos, be prepared to pay for them). Do it for your clients. Do it for yourself.