Orlando Saves Over 50% in Real Estate Commissions

Our Orlando Flat Fee MLS listings are selling faster than we are getting new ones

Over the past 4 months, buyers and sellers in Orlando are coming closer together with their expectations of value. This narrowing of these “price-expectations” along with the added urgency of the expiring tax credit deadline has depleted our inventory of available MLS listings homes in Florida by 21%.

I see the real estate market in Florida completely differently now as we move into the second-half of 2010. I am Keith Gordon, broker and co-owner of a Florida flat fee MLS listing and full-service discount real estate firm, ADDvanatge®. We are a state-wide flat fee MLS listing service that specializes in being “available” for sellers, buyers and Realtor 7 days a week from 8:00am-8:00pm.

As a flat fee MLS broker, I primarily work with sellers so I have a unique and accurate view of how they are pricing their homes and I see a dramatic change in their expectations.

There remains a few “hold-outs” that bought right at the top in 2005 and possibly 2006 that remain 12-15% over-priced. But, unlike past years such as 2008 and 2009 where there were more over-priced MLS listings than well-priced ones, I see the reverse now.

It is not uncommon to to a new flat fee MLS listing at ADDvantage® sell during the first 2 weeks of being active in the MLS. This means that seller priced their Orlando home within a few percentage points of appraised  value. When a seller does this, every Realtor that has attempted to negotiate a home with their buyers and failed due to over-priced and inflexible sellers pounce of these well-priced listings.

Listing with one of ADDvantage’s® flat fee MLS listing plans helps the seller price their homes better because we don’t charge 6% to list but rather a flat fee starting at $349. This saves the Orlando home owner at least 50%.

Every poorly price home we have at ADDvantage is still active. I can recall about 10 homes out of our 147 we currently have listed in the MLS that are over-priced. They have been priced poorly from the start and continue to be priced behind the curve. The typical scenario of this type of listing is “we aren’t selling if we can’t get “x.” But “x” has nothing to do with current market value. I have yet to see one of these listing sell.

At ADDvantage®, we are the messenger, albeit a good one!. We list Orlando homes in the MLS, we market aggressively on the Internet and I represent many of the sellers ar ADDvantage® who use our full-service discount listing service ADDvantage Success.

There are two distinct advantages of listing flat fee in the MLS with ADDvantage®. The service and marketing are excellent and you save at least 50% in real estate commissions.

There are also two distinct advantages of using our full-service discounted flat fee plan ADDvantage Success. If you going to sell a home in today’s market, you must sell within what I refer to as the “appraisal envelop.” Every successful seller at ADDvantage® gets their deal done somewhere within this envelop. What I do for the sellers that I represent is get a deal done faster and at the high-end of this envelop. The extra cost to the seller over our traditional flat fee MLS “self-representation” plan is $350 up-front and a additional 1/3 of 1% at close or $330 per $100,000 in sales value. My value to home sellers is professionalism from start to finish. I do expect to get my sellers a sales price at the high-end of appraised value and I make sure no buyer’s agent takes advantage of one of my sellers or that no buyer is engaged that can’t close.

If, by chance, I push the buyer’s agent too far in value and we don’t appraise out, then the seller can always opt out of the contract, negotiate the difference by meeting in the middle, the buyer can agree to pay the original contract price or a combination of asking the buyer to take some or all of the seller’s closing costs such as documentary stamps on the deed or title policy.

My best advice to sell a home today is get the most for it and go buy another home at these bargain prices. 

Call anytime, 1-877-232-9695 or 727-942-2929. Might check out of smart home selling tips.

Near 25% of ADDvantage listings are ADDvantage Plus. The sellers that do choose the ADDvantage Plus flat fee plan say the service they received was the best they have every experienced from a Realtor.

There are 5 reasons to consider using ADDvantage Plus to sell your Orlando, Florida property.

First, an ADDvantage Plus listing uses an Exclusive Right of Sale listing in the MLS. This type of listing looks and acts just like a full-service listing without the 6% cost. ADDvantage Plus cost is $799 and $500 at close. Sellers save about 50% off a traditional MLS listing. Unlike a basic flat fee listing, when using ADDvantage Plus, we take all calls, schedule all Realtor and buyer showings, and negotiate all offers with you. More contracts get done when I negotiate with ‘fellow’ Realtors. I go right after what my seller client wants and I have the advantage of being able to be more direct with the buyer’s agent. My 25 years as a Florida real estate broker and professional negotiator go a long way in getting the most out of every offer.

Second, our 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week live phone support ensures no calls or appointments will be missed. We do a better job of phone support than any Orlando real estate company. We schedule all appoinments for the seller, confirming each one with the seller and then send an email for a record. Because the seller is not directly communicating with Realtors, ADDvantage Plus adds a professional touch that Realtors prefer.

Third, when listing flat fee with ADDvantage Plus, our Street Smart ADDvantage Realtor eblasting program is included. The seller must offer at least a 4% buyer’s agent commission to opt into Street Smart ADDvantage eblast. The eblast contains details about each property and every Orlando Realtor within 35 miles of a Street Smart listing receives the eblast. Our website tracks all hits from the Street Smart Eblast so sellers can measure the results. The eblast is sent twice a month and is recognized as Orlando Florida’s most well-read Realtor-to-Realtor email.

Forth, I believe Orlando flat fee MLS sellers benefit greatly when I act as the contract negotiator. Two Realtors working together often can get the deal done faster and possible at a higher price for the seller. Real estate contracts can be tricky and Realtors can be aggressive with self-represented sellers because they know more.

Fifth, is that all buyer leads from Realtor.com, Homes.com and other FSBO websites go to the seller. Sellers remain “by owner” when it comes to paying a commission. Sellers only pay a commission if a Realtor is involved. ADDvantage never earns a commission.

A note about physically being in Tampa Bay… All offers are handled by fax or email. My physical location does not interfere with the representation process. Even if there are ‘inspection related’ issues, one of my strengths happens to be my knowledge of construction and the ‘trades.’

Call us anytime, 1-877-232-9695 or visit our flat fee MLS Florida website.

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