We have seen how technology helps consumers in many areas of residential real estate – from home-price-valuation sites to phone-app mortgage applications. These recent advances offer customized conveniences for people seeking instant results.
Another recent industry advance streamlines a home sale without the fuss of making repairs or marketing the property to the public. Instead, deep-pocketed investors, known as iBuyers, make “instant” offers that forgo the sellers’ need to have the home listed on the MLS and prepare it for buyers on the open market.
That’s where John L. Scott steps up to meet sellers with their real estate needs.
Our Instant Purchase Plus+ program provides sellers the option to receive an all-cash, no-nonsense offer through iBuyers that are currently purchasing homes in their local market. Typically, this approach is used when a seller is more interested in convenience and the need to sell quickly rather than maximizing profit through an open-market sale. Some sellers also prefer the flexibility that iBuyers may offer for a longer closing period amid difficulties in finding a new home.
It’s important for sellers to recognize that iBuyers are ultimately the other half of the transaction and primarily looking for the best deal possible at the lowest price. They do not have the fiduciary responsibility or the duty of care that a listing agent would have with sellers.
To be sure, sellers often want the best of both worlds – a quick (or sometimes extended) transaction without the hassle and a trusted advisor to navigate through the sale of the home. Sellers want someone who can advise them through the process and act on their behalf to help save them money – and that’s an important feature of this program.
Instant Purchase Plus consists of three main areas to help homeowners find the best iBuyer offer.
Offer Optimizer – Using proprietary technology with market-specific data, John L. Scott and its business partner zavvie deliver an estimated price range of instant offers on the home. This allows homeowners to informally compare potential offers and a breakdown of estimated fees, simply based on a home address and a few other pieces of information. Think of this as a starting point, a quick opportunity to compare a price range – as well as an estimated open-market listing price – before starting the process of requesting offers.
Property Profiler – If homeowners wish to pursue bids from iBuyers without obligation, the John L. Scott agent can help sellers complete a detailed questionnaire about the home. This is when the program contacts several iBuyers to measure interest. Offers usually arrive within three business days and are sent directly to the agent. (Agents will first secure a listing agreement with the sellers before contacting iBuyers.)
Confirmed Offer Report – All available selling options are delivered in a side-by-side review of iBuyer offers. The report will not include final fees until an iBuyer representative visits the property to determine if there are required repairs, a cost that sellers would shoulder but left for the iBuyer to complete after the sale. The report will showcase what a seller could net from each offer as well as the amount that may be saved by going through a traditional open-market sale.
If the seller wishes to move forward with one of the offers, a buyer-procured home inspection would be arranged to review the condition of the property. The amount for repairs sought by iBuyers can be significantly higher than seller-led repairs, to address items such as outdated kitchens or bathrooms. Agents, familiar with local costs, can often successfully negotiate with these national iBuyers on preparation and repairs.
The offer comes with a review/accept deadline of about five days. Closing can take place as soon as a week or as long as three months. Once the sale is completed, the homes are typically upgraded and resold on the open market by the iBuyer company.
The process sounds simple enough … because it is.
If time is critical to closing a deal or if homeowners don’t want to be bothered by the need for completing repairs and marketing the home, then John L. Scott has the ideal solution – Instant Purchase Plus. Ask me for more information on the program and its benefits.