Do you know that the average new real estate agent leaves the business within the first 3 years? And those agents that remain in business average only $2 million in transactions annually? Despite these dismal numbers, most broker still teach the old, tired, INFEFFECTIVE home marketing techniques...an MLS listing, a sign in the yard, newspaper advertising, and Open Houses.

These methods are NOT enough...in today's market, an MLS listing doesn't do much for you since there are hundreds of comparable homes for sale in your area and in your price range...what will set yours apart? A newspaper ad? An Open House? No-less than 5% of homes are sold through those methods. If that's all a Realtor can offer you, well that's just SAD!

There are nearly 4,000 Realtors in the Greater Indianapolis area, yet it is estimated that 90%of transactions are handled by just the top 10% of agents. What do these top agents do differently? Some of it as a matter of longevity and personality...they've been around a long time, treat their clients well, and have built a large referral network through the years. The other KEY factor is effective marketing campaigns that get homes SOLD. Marketing is expensive and the Realtor is at risk. He spends all the money upfront and doesn't recover any of the costs unless the home sells. A weak Realtor fears this reality and, therefore, spends very little. A strong agent, however, would be spurred on by this wanting to spend even more to ensure that the home sells quickly and the investment is recouped. Now that I can originate mortgages for my buyers, I can truly speed up the process of a sale because I have a "pipeline" of new buyers weekly coming into the market that I have pre-approved!

This brings me to word about commissions. In Indianapolis, the average commission paid by the Seller is 7%, but most Sellers don't understand where that money goes. Half (3.5%) goes to the buyer's agent (actually, to his broker). The other 3.5% goes to your listing agent's broker. Typically, the broker's cut is about 1/3. So, the commission paid to your listing agent is 2.5%...and that's before ANY expenses have been considered. It's not uncommon for a heavy marketing campaign to consume as much as 1% of the home's list price...this leaves just 1.5% commission for the listing agent! So, what about the agents that offer commission discounts? You can BET that discount is coming out of the marketing budget...that agent might just list your home in the MLS-period-and earn a 2.5% commission. But, over time, smart Sellers see through this, as those homes languish on the market and don't sell. I basically work for that 1.5% commission spending a lot of money on marketing-and gets things SOLD. My volume is high due to my track record, so I can afford to do this!

My Marketing Plan