Real Estate Hindsight: Analyzing Your Successes and Failures

A recent NAR report indicates that the hot housing market is starting to cool off. This is triggered by rising interest rates, a weaker economic outlook and an increase in inventory. This means you must use all the tools at your disposal to stay in the game. It's time to take inventory and analyze the real estate mistakes you made over the past year. It is also a time to look at your successes to understand the important role technology has played.

Everyone has an opinion about the optimal time to sell a home, but selling a home is more than just timing. Getting a house sold requires a well-thought-out marketing plan, accurate information and capturing the eyes of potential buyers. So how can you focus on increasing your leads to keep your listing inventory and sales up?

What went wrong

Whether you are new to real estate or are a seasoned agent, you can avoid repeating mistakes by learning from them. Keeping up with the latest TikTok social media trends may have had you spending time and energy on the wrong demographic. Home sellers are not looking for an agent with the most followers in the 16-24 age group. Your seller is concerned with getting the attention of qualified buyers. Real estate strategies that work focus on the buyer's needs, like finding the right floor plan with accurate measurements. 3D virtual tours can make all the difference when the consumer is choosing a property. If you haven't been including these marketing tools, you are missing the mark.

How you can improve

Education benefits everyone. Understand why it is important to include floor plans and accurate measurements with every listing. The recent implementation of RMS (Residential Measurement Standards) in some jurisdictions focuses on a standard of measurement for all residential properties. Having a standard removes discrepancies in how and what is to be measured. You will note that Fannie Mae has recently mandated that all home appraisals in the United States are required to adhere to their ANSI-Z765 2021 measurement standard when calculating and reporting gross living area. Real estate agent strategies going forward can take advantage of the changing landscape regarding measurement requirements and get a step ahead of their peers. Choose to include floor plans that comply with the new standard to speed up the mortgage approval process for every sale. Time is valuable for the seller, buyer and everyone involved in the transaction.

What was a success

3D virtual tours are the biggest success stories of the past two years and continue to be the top technology trend in demand for both home sellers and buyers. Not only does the virtual tour provide benefits to the consumer, it also helps you win listings and sell your listings faster. Statistics from Redfin, Realtor.com and multiple brokerages all report that virtual tours receive up to 87% more views than listings without. From the seller's standpoint, the 3D virtual tour showcases their property in an easy-to-use format, pre-qualifies potential buyers and saves time. Buyers can determine if the property matches their search criteria before in-person viewing. The ability to virtually walk through the property at any time day or night provides flexibility for both sellers and buyers.

Sure, you will still make some mistakes, but if you want to stay successful in the years to come, focus on using technology from cutting-edge companies like iGUIDE. Not only can you use analytics to track your listing views, you can also share the data with sellers to highlight your marketing efforts.

What can you do differently?

Change is good. Without it, you would still be measuring homes with a retractable tape measure and handwriting listing agreements and memorandum. Changes in the real estate industry are happening due to the demands of the consumer and to provide accountability. Your strategies should continue to be adjusted to meet the requirements of your clients and drive engagement with buyers. Using technology keeps you at the forefront of the consumer's mind, offers ease of use and is current. Your brand becomes synonymous with professionalism when you demonstrate value by using virtual tours, floor plans and analytics to share information in every real estate transaction.

Hindsight is 20/20 and can give clarity to your mistakes and successes. In the real estate industry, numbers account for every aspect of a property listing. From accurately measured floor plans and square footage to days on the market and 3D virtual tour analytics, iGUIDE can help.