Why should I pay you when everything on the market is selling like that? Probably one of the biggest objections I get from sellers when I go to their house and we sit down to talk about why they should choose Julie Winter-Paez and the JWP Group to sell their home. And they say it a lot; everything is flying off the shelves right now, why do I need a Realtor. And I wanted to share with you that you are not really paying me for my marketing in this particular market. You are paying me for my ability to negotiate and navigate the market as well as navigate the traffic.

I've got the spreadsheet from the last set of listings that I had go live on a Saturday with over 25 showings in the first weekend and up to 7 offers within the first 48 hours. And really, my job is not only to get you one qualified buyer but is to get you as many as possible, but to find the one that is going to close on your property. I tell my agents all the time that in a typical market, pre-Covid or where we are right now, the average fallout ratio for a home buyer to walk away from a project or from a transaction was about 4.8%. Well, in the last two years, that's jumped up to about 15%. Why? Because buyers get buyer's remorse. They are so competitively trying to win in negotiations that they are losing so many times that when they do win, they wonder why did nobody else like the property? I must be overpaying.

So the psychology of the buyer has changed a lot, and it puts sellers at risk in the beginning part of that transaction when that buyer could walk away. Is the earnest money due within 7 to 10 days of acceptance? Well, that 7 to 10 days before you as a seller have that earnest money leaves you open to it not showing up. And that buyer walking away without any skin in the game. Is the inspection out 21 to 30 days? Well, if you have to wait 21 to 30 days for somebody to inspect your home, what does that time mean when something else could come on the market that they might like better? Are they locked and loaded with their financing? Did your realtor call that lender to find out how qualified they are? Is there a gap to cover the appraisal in this competitive market? We're seeing some people come in $100,000, if not more over listing price to try to win in negotiations. Do we actually know that the buyer has that money to bring to the closing table, to close in a timely fashion for you as a seller? Are they writing cash using a financing contingency, but they're not making the offer contingent upon it? Again, that opens a whole another set of problems for you as a seller.

So again, it's not just about getting the offer. It's about all the other pieces and parts that get you to the closing table. I like to tell my sellers that you're not necessarily paying me for the marketing and the offer on your home. You're paying me for the 19 years that I've been doing this and my skill to negotiate what's best for you and what's in your best interest as a seller. I like my sellers to be King of the Hill, I like them to be on top and know what all of their options are. And feel educated so that when they pick an offer and they pick a buyer to go to closing with, they feel informed enough to make the right decision.

Again, if you're on the fence at all about selling, please give me a call. I would love to sit down and show you what this looks like from my perspective and with my team. We look forward to seeing you in the Northwoods.