When you list your home with a real estate company, you are increasing the probability of selling the home for its full market value. This is due in part to the increased exposure which your home receives. Sellers who market their home "by owner" are pretty much restricted to newspaper ads, for-sale signs, and open houses. In many cases this is enough, and sellers marketing "by owner" are often successful. This is more common in times of a low supply-and-demand ratio and in certain established neighborhoods with a tradition for "by owner" sales.

Listing with a real estate company greatly increases the amount of exposure which your home receives. In addition to the ads, signs, and open houses, a real estate company can utilize several effective tools:

•a multiple listing service
•reverse-prospect searches for agents with buyers whose preferences match your home
•searches for agents who have represented buyers of similar homes in your area
•direct contact with corporations which are relocating personnel to the area
•daily contact with agents who are representing current and incoming buyers
•brokers’ open houses 

In addition, the web has become a major tool in the marketing process.   Homes listed with real estate companies are receiving additional exposure through this medium. Such exposure is certain to increase as the internet continues to grow and develop.

You are faced with several questions when planning to sell. Among the questions are:

	•What should we do to get ready to sell?
	•What should our list price be?
	•How long should it take to sell?
	•Should we list with a real estate company?
	•With which company should we list?
	•With which individual agent should we list?

To get ready to sell, we suggest that you simply take a little time, and look at a few builders’ models. The models are usually decorated sparsely and tastefully, and in such a manner as to allow buyers to focus their attention on the home itself. Your goal should be to make your home look as much like a builder’s model as possible.

This is often difficult, especially if you have an active family and an active lifestyle. It always involves some degree of sacrifice and inconvenience in daily living. It does, however, usually increase the likelihood of selling at full market value. One way to look at it is that, when you list your home, you have already decided to move.

So, start moving when you list. Packing many of your belongings, and perhaps placing them in a storage facility, may allow your home to look more like a model. When a home is sparsely but tastefully decorated, buyers are not distracted, and can more easily focus their attention on the home itself. Pantries and closets that are only half full present an image that there is plenty of storage. And, by the way, linen closets should be half full of linens, not half full of shoe boxes!

Remember the model comparison. Many, if not most, prospective buyers will look not only at other resale homes, but at new homes as well. And if your home is the one resale that looks the most like a model, then you have a great competitive advantage.

The selection of a list price is your responsibility. A real estate agent will do a comparative market analysis in order to provide you with information useful in making the selection. The analysis will take into consideration recent sale prices of comparable homes, current supply-and-demand ratios, recent and current appreciation rates, and any other factors unique to the property. The price you select should be neither too high nor too low, but rather the best estimate of the full market value. You owe it to yourself to make every effort to sell your home at full market value.

Market time varies from area to area. Under normal market conditions, a six-month listing contract allows sufficient time to sell. Many times homes sell within a few days. Preparing your home correctly, and pricing your home correctly, greatly increase the probability of selling within a reasonably short time. As a rule of thumb, forty showings in twelve weeks should result in a sale. Often, homes sell with fewer showings and in a shorter time. Sometimes more showings and a longer time are required. This varies from area to area and from season to season.

If the supply-and-demand ratio is low, or if you live in a neighborhood with a "by owner" tradition, or if you have been in your home less than a year and must pay all costs of selling, then you may want to try selling "by owner" for awhile. With aggressive marketing, you may reach enough of the local market to be successful. A major part of the market, however, includes families relocating to the area. In order to reach the relocation market, and in order to utilize all of the tools mentioned earlier, listing with a real estate company is usually in your best interest.

The real estate business in the Indianapolis area is run in a very professional manner. The Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors maintains a high set of standards, and mandatory continuing-education programs insure that members are qualified and capable of serving buyers and sellers in a responsible way. Selecting a real estate company with whom to list can be done with comfort and confidence.

The F. C. Tucker Company has been serving the Indianapolis area since 1918 and is a proud member of the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors. As the largest and most active real estate company in Indiana, we lead the Indianapolis area in marketing services and in relocation services. The individuals at the F. C. Tucker Company must not only meet the high standards of the Board of Realtors, but must also meet the very high standards of knowledge and ethics set forth by the company. The individuals at the F. C. Tucker Company are truly "professionals in marketing" and "professionals in relocation".

We mentioned earlier that a new tool has become prominent in the marketing of homes: the internet. Use of the internet in marketing real estate is a very effective aid if it is done correctly, and if it used in conjunction with the other proven marketing tools mentioned earlier.

This site, IndianapolisUSA.com, is a site which is visited by a large number of people locally, nationally, and worldwide.  The site is promoted not only to prospective sellers, but to prospective buyers. From this site you and others can view profiles of all homes listed with all real estate companies in the Indianapolis area. In addition, all of my listings are eligible for a Virtual Home Tour.  The tours are the most extensive anywhere on the internet.

If you choose to list your home, weI would be happy to have the opportunity to meet with you and to discuss a specific marketing plan for your home.  Feel free to call or email any time.

Ken Gordon