Selling your property Hello, and thank you for wanting to know more about selling your home using me, Alex Kay and Royal LePage Heritage. Most vendors, especially in the Downtown area, are a little cavalier in their approach to selling or renting their house or condo. It is assumed that everyone knows downtown at least a little so using a Realtor who does not usually work in the area should be fine... right? Well, I'll let you in onto something that other Realtors don't want you to know. Most Realtors have only two or three listings if they have any at all, and most of them are spread around the island of Montreal, and often further afield because getting a listing is so difficult, Real Estate Brokerage has become an industry of opportunists. It is also true that most Realtors depend on the listing itself for all their marketing. In other words, they have no clients for your property unless you agree to give them the selling rights, and then only get clients using your condo as a marketing tool. This is a perfectly standard and legitimate method of course, but is it the best one for you? There is a school of thought that believes in working in a specific area. This might sound obvious to an outsider but within the Real Estate profession it is easier said than done, as it takes three things that most Realtors don't have when they begin their trade... Time, Patience, and Resources. Chances are that sometime during the first few months of their career, a new Broker will be seduced by listings located anywhere in Montreal as a means of generating income. There is nothing wrong with that but how does this help you, the owner? When a Broker works exclusively within a specific area, he or she becomes trained in the art of generating clientele for that area. This, in turn, means either a waiting list of clients for when you decide to sell your property, or a continuous exposure and flow of clients even if there were no matches in the waiting list. This is my way. I work and live in the Downtown core. I'm always looking for new properties for sale and as a result, my clients are privileged not to have to do the searching themselves. I have about 40 open houses a year in the downtown area, and most of my marketing is based on effectively attracting buyers looking to purchase or rent downtown. People who list with me will get several things that most other Realtors will not, or cannot offer. 1. Immediate access. If I have a viewing request, I can often show several properties in one go with only minutes notice because I live and work in the same neighbourhood. Never miss an opportunity to sell your property again. 2. Pictures of YOUR PROPERTY on my marketing material rather than pictures of me. The average newspaper page allegedly advertising properties, in fact advertises Realtors, with photos of Brokers outnumbering those of the properties they are trying to sell by 2 to 1. That's because selling themselves takes priority over selling your property. 3. Intimate knowledge of downtown. Living and working in Downtown gives a definite edge in terms of local knowledge and making sure that those wanting to live here don't remove your property from the list of potential purchases because the Realtor didn't know how close the nearest grocery store is. 4. Specializing in an area gives a Broker a greater knowledge of the buildings and the units within. It becomes easier to accurately appraise the value of your home so that you, the owner, can take the right decision with regards to selling or renting, or waiting another year. If you have any further questions, please email me at alexkay@royallepage.ca or call me on 514 979-1976. You may also find me on Facebook under Alexander Kay Realtor and Skype me at alexanderkay RETURN TO FRONT PAGE