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The Market is Changing

The Market is Changing

What a difference a few months make.  With the rise in interest rates and inflation, we have seen homes go from selling almost before the ground is broken for the sign, to now homes are sitting on the market for days, if not weeks.  For example, according to Altos Research, while one Seattle bedroom community, Sammamish, is still listed at the edge as a strong seller’s market, 37% of homes durinng the first week of June had a price reduction.
Sammamish Market Profile

Courtesy of Altos Research

Seattle has also seen 24% of listings with a price decrease, despite there being less than 500 listings overall and it being an extremely strong seller’s market.
Seattle Market

Courtesy of Altos Research

In contrast, another hot market, Austin, has seen 32% of the listings with a price decrease on close to 1,200 active listings.
Austin Market

Courtesy of Altos Research

And even a market like Fairfield, CT, with less than 100 listings, is seeing some downward price pressure.
Fairfield CT Market Profile

Courtesy of Altos Research

Or over in the Southeast, Charleston has also seen 31% of it’s 202 listings with a price decrease.
Charleston, SC Market

Courtesy of Altos Research

 
So, what are the implications?  Well, the market is obviously in a correction period and we can expect properties to sit longer.  The question is, how do you adjust?

Our view is you increase the marketing exposure for your listings, and you. Leverage the listing you have by differentiating yourself online, which is where buyers and sellers are going, and stand out, with an outstanding marketing presentation for your listing – the FloorPlanOnline virtual tour. It has been proven to get agents more business.  And it can increase the traffic to your listing, just like Laurie experienced with her first listing put into FloorPlanOnline.

reece logo

Game Changer.  

That’s what you say when something new comes along and shifts how you do something, and I can honestly say HomeDiary and their 3D Walkthrough Tour is a Game Changer. The photos are amazing, that is the first thing online buyers see, and they leave a lasting impression.  They are backed up with the immersive 3D walkthrough and 2D & 3D floor plan tools that can even get converted into a video to complete the ultimate marketing presentation. 

My first listing with HomeDiary had over 400 social media video views of the 3D WalkThrough Video, much more than I ever had in the past. The results also speak for themselves. Most properties in the immediate area sell for 106% of sales price over list price. My listing sold for 114% over list.  Average days on market for the area is 12 days, this property sold in 36 hours.  

Let me say it again.  Game Changer.

Laurie Jorgensen

REALTOR, Jorensen RE Group, ReeceNichols

Also, create more and better content.  If you have just photos or a photo tour, upgrade to add a floor plan.  If you have a FloorPlan Tour, upgrade to the 3D Walkthrough Tour.  According to Zillow’s own internal data, listings with 3D tours are saved 53% more often and they get 81% more traffic, as our previous blog post detailed. And, because our patented process we call Brandkeepr (patent #11,328,374 ) can keep your brand on your virtual tour on the top sites like Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin and Trulia, you have an opportunity to get more leads from more places, for free.  So leverage the tour you already have into a lead capture machine.

At the end of the day, you never know who is looking at your listing, and for what purpose.  It could be someone looking to add to their rental portfolio, and they are sitting in a $3 million home that they want to sell in a year.  Or, it could be an older seller who is looking to downsize, and they have both a home to sell, and one to buy.  So leverage your listing to differentiate yourself online, and it will lead people back to you.

What if you don’t have a listing?  Use the free Demo Tour you have in your account and create a Facebook post on your Facebook business page and show people how you would market their home.  Boost it to convert it into an advertisement and target your market.  It is this tour but with your info on it.  It should have an active Matterport 3D tour so you can show prospective sellers how you will market their home but the best tech available and the best photos for the money, hands down.   If for some reason your Demo Tour does not have an active Matterport, see this post or contact customer care and we can add it on for you.

The post text can be something like this:

Inventory is still low, so list now before rates climb higher.  I use the best technology to sell your home faster, safer and with less hassle, as you see in our example tour.  We can do the same for your home.  

It would look something like this.  When you boost the post you then have an opportunity to pick and area and budget.  Or do this with an existing listing, showcasing a real example and help your seller at the same time.

example facebook boosted post

Virtual Tour Spotlight in Redding, CT

Virtual Tour Spotlight in Redding, CT

Exemplary Colonial Farmhouse
REDDING, CT

See The Story of This Home

Wood Haven Exemplary c.1920 Colonial farmhouse, superbly and expertly renovated and updated – state of the art appointments, stunning architectural details, amenities, new systems, generator and with all the original charm, character and integrity of its vintage heritage. A sparkling Gunite pool, breathtaking perennial gardens and landscape, pond views and 6.48 pastoral acres complete this perfect picture- A wonderland in the Winter, a resort in the Summer and a fabulous home year-round – New York chic with all the cozy-in warmth of a country retreat!

 

 

 

Professional HDR photography by Roy A. S., j.r.
.

 

If you are interested in listing your home or have questions, please contact:

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roni Agress

William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty

470 Main Street, Ridgefield, CT 06877

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Spotlight Tour- Week #141

Spotlight Tour- Week #141

Stunning Contemporary Home
MONROE, WA

See The Story of This Home

Modern Sophistication blends with state-of-the-art features & finishes! Perfectly sited on a ½ acre+ sunny lot with valley views. Enjoy a bright, open layout with high ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows & masterfully created for entertaining indoors & out. Inviting great room has a dramatic fireplace & dual sliders open to the outdoors. Gorgeous epicurean kitchen displays all the upscale features. Expansive dining area. Desirable main floor office/den opens to deck. Sumptuous owner’s suite has a lavish bath & fabulous closet package. Expansive Bonus room opens to bedroom suite. Sunny, level yard offers covered deck, firepit, expansive lawn & raised garden beds. Great storage. A/C. Minutes to all amenities & the best outdoor activities!

 

 

Professional HDR photography by Rikki L.
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If you are interested in listing your home or have questions, please contact:

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Julia and Mark Krill

Windermere Real Estate

3933 Lake Washington Blvd NE, Kirkland, WA 98033

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Post the Unbranded Video to Your MLS

Post the Unbranded Video to Your MLS

How to Tip – Post the unbranded slideshow video link to your MLS.

One of our customers wanted to post the unbranded slideshow video to their MLS as one of the 3 virtual tour fields.  While we do not show the video link in your tour links section, you can easily grab the video url right from the unbranded tour.  See the video below on how to do it, or just mouse over the 3 dots on the lower right, right click and select copy the video address, and then paste that in as a virtual tour link into your MLS.  Just make sure you are on the unbranded tour when you grab the video URL.   We always suggest putting your FloorPlanOnline tour as the first virtual tour, Matterport second, and a video as third, if you have more than one option, or use the FPO tour link if you only have one field, since with Brandkeepr, we keep your brand on your tour on the top search sites.

Spotlight Tour- Week #140

Spotlight Tour- Week #140

Your Oasis Awaits!

AUSTIN, TX

See The Story of This Home

Beautiful, nearly-new and extensively upgraded home in close-in Wooten Park. This spacious property offers 5 bedroom and 4 full baths between the main house and detached casita. You will be welcomed into the main living space and drawn to the custom 10’ x 20’ French doors that overlook the outdoor entertainment area and sparkling negative edge pool and spa. Perhaps you will immediately transition to the outdoors where you will quickly notice and appreciate the low maintenance turf grass, extensive landscape and the cabana which is nestled between two large palm trees. You and your family and friends will enjoy many hours around the pool and lounging in the outdoor entertainment area grilling and watching a football game on the outdoor TV. Indoors you will be congregating around the updated, light-filled kitchen; just off the living area, with its large center island with ample seating. You will notice the new black stainless appliances, granite counters and modern tile backsplash. When you need some alone time to work out or study, head upstairs to the welcoming bonus room. When it’s time to work, make the short trip across the driveway, glimpse at the beautiful pool and enter the detached casita where you are sure to enjoy the quiet needed to make calls, attend your meetings on Zoom and work in peace. And when it’s time to retreat for the evening, relax in the private, first floor owner’s suite with fully remodeled bath.
This property is special. Your oasis awaits!

 

 

 

Professional HDR photography by Andrew L. of Twist Tours
.

 

If you are interested in listing your home or have questions, please contact:

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Molly Friedrich, Broker

Friedrich Realty LLC

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

3D Tours Increase Exposure 81%!

3D Tours Increase Exposure 81%!

According to Rich Barton, CEO of Zillow, listings with 3D Tours far exceed other listings in terms of engagement.  Internal Zillow user data has shown that homes with a 3D Tour were saved 53% more frequently, and they got on average 81% more views than listings without.

More exposure = more demand = higher sales prices

How does this translate into higher prices?  Its about supply and demand.  We know supply is low, but as an agent, you can increase demand to create a perfect storm for you and your seller.  Check out this new testimony from Laurie Jorgensen, an agent with ReeceNichols in the Kansas City area, on how 3D tours can increase the demand, and final sales price.

 

reece logo

Game Changer.  

That’s what you say when something new comes along and shifts how you do something, and I can honestly say HomeDiary and their 3D Walkthrough Tour is a Game Changer. The photos are amazing, that is the first thing online buyers see, and they leave a lasting impression.  They are backed up with the immersive 3D walkthrough and 2D & 3D floor plan tools that can even get converted into a video to complete the ultimate marketing presentation. 

My first listing with HomeDiary had over 400 social media video views of the 3D WalkThrough Video, much more than I ever had in the past. The results also speak for themselves. Most properties in the immediate area sell for 106% of sales price over list price. My listing sold for 114% over list.  Average days on market for the area is 12 days, this property sold in 36 hours.  

Let me say it again.  Game Changer.

Laurie Jorgensen

REALTOR, Jorensen RE Group, ReeceNichols

Matterport and others have lots of data on how 3D content can drive engagement and increase sale activity, selling for up to 9% MORE than the market average.  Hearing it from one of our customers just hits it home.  When you look at Laurie’s specific data, selling for 8% more than the market average means Lauie effectively saved her seller the 6% agent commission, and made another 2% on top of the market average.  And sold it 8 times faster.  Talk about looking like a hero to your client!

The good news is “3D Tours” do not have to be Zillow’s own 3D tour.  In fact, the content FloorPlanOnline creates can qualify as a “3D Tour” on Zillow and get a special 3D Tour icon, especially if Matterport is added as the secondary virtual tour link in the MLS (if your MLS only has one spot we recommend our tour – see below on Brandkeepr).  In a recent search in the Seattle area, most of the “3D Home” listings were not Zillow’s version.  Plus, per FPO discussions with Zillow personnel, it looks like they are interested in getting more and more content, regardless of source, embedded on Zillow.  Why?  It increases their engagement stats and they can monetize in other ways via online advertising.  Increased engagement is why Redfin has been pulling in all kinds of content and embedding it on their website for several years now. Click on one of these screenshots to see how a listing on Redfin looks so much richer with all the different content options.

While we do have an upgrade option for the Zillow 3D Home tour, we limit it to buckets of 5 360 image locations per bucket.  Why? So we (collectively) do not give Zillow all the data of a home.  They already own more than 50% of the market using the industry’s listing photos.  What if they had 360 tours and floor plans on homes as well that they have exclusive rights to, which they do if you read their terms of use?   Since ZIllow is a brokerage, why give them content they can use against you down the road? It would be like a Keller Williams agent using a Remax app to create content exclusively for remax.com.  Why would you do that????  So if you really want a Zillow 3D Tour benefit, we can shoot 5 shots and upload the 360s via the app, and you get the badge on your listing.  Or, do Matterport and get it without giving them any content!

Now, we hear from some agents that they don’t like Matterport, because it makes them dizzy or just takes too long to view.  One thing we do is automate it, so the user pushes the play button, and we walk the user through the home in a few minutes.  It takes a lot less time to do this than to get in the car and drive to a listing.  Plus, it is safer for your sellers, and it is much less hassle, because they and you have an “always show ready home” via the virtual tour, 24.7.  This convenience is extended post sale as the buyer can use both Matterport and our floor plan tools to measure for paint or flooring estimates, count door knobs or windows, or share with their contractor for remodel planning.  This saves everyone time and effort up through close.

At the end of the day, it really should be about what your customers want.  And your customers are both buyers and sellers, and they want 3D Tours:

  • 99% of sellers think 3D Tours make their home more competitive online
  • 88% want to work with agents that offer 3D Tours
  • 55% of all buyers, 64% of Millennial buyers, say they would by a home sight unseen if the listing had a 3D Tour.

Again, more demand (driven by anyone with an Internet connection) = higher sales price

Leverage our tour with Brandkeepr. Finally, with our newly patented Brandkeepr feature, we keep your brand on your tour on the top sites people use most, including Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com and Redfin.  This is a breadcrumb left back to you and it has helped our clients be differentiated to win more listings, and as you have seen above, to win the sale by selling it faster and for more money.  See the video for a quick Brandkeepr overview, as well as how Redfin is really doing a nice job with embedding content, driving more users to their site and increasing engagement as well, moving up to a solid number 3 spot in the most recent consumer website rankings.

Photos in the context of the floor plan sells!

image of a 2D interactive floor plan

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