Real Estate Talk: Does advertising work? - Westmount Magazine (2024)

What paper ads do mostly is find sellers for brokers

By Joseph Marovitch

Yes, advertising works. Motivated buyers will search the papers at times to find a property, more so for open house ads. However, most buyers do not come from ads or open houses. Most buyers receive listings from their brokers.

Buyer will provide their broker with their criteria such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, garages, location and so on. The broker will then narrow the search to exactly what is available on the market. This saves energy and time as the search is focused and narrowed to exactly what the buyer wants.

What paper ads do mostly is find sellers for brokers. When people want to sell a property and they see a broker’s ad in the paper showing multiple properties, the seller then thinks the broker is pro-active and therefore can sell their property. The broker is pro-active in that the broker is pro-actively searching for sellers. To a degree, buyers do find homes in paper ads, however, in this day and age, everyone searches online via Centris or other sites.

… most buyers do not come from ads or open houses. Most buyers receive listings from their brokers.

For a broker, placing ads in the paper will indicate to their client, the seller, that they are doing their job. However, almost all the time, the buyer arranged a visit with a broker who provided the listing, or they called from an on-line search.

When you see an ad in the paper with many properties, if you have a family member or friend who is a broker with access to Centris, ask your friend to search how many expired or cancelled listings the broker has. A broker with many listings may only be active in acquiring listings, not necessarily selling the listings.

A good broker can effectively manage eight to twelve listings with a hands-on approach. This type of broker will meet with the seller, manage the showings, know the property, take care of the paper work, negotiation and more.

More then twelve listings and the broker requires a staff. There are some very good brokers with excellent management skills who can properly take care of the seller’s needs and insure the staff know the property and provide the intricate service a seller requires.

‘To a degree, buyers do find homes in paper ads, however, in this day and age everyone searches on-line via Centris or other sites.’

However, beware of the broker who cannot properly manage and train staff, the broker who has one goal, which is to get as many listings as possible and let all the other brokers sell for them. This type of broker will take on one hundred listings, knowing that 25% will go by the wayside and not sell.

It can be a tough decision whether to hire a broker who will provide the personal touch and attention a buyer would like, or to hire a broker with a staff, knowing that at each open house, a different person is showing the property. At each arranged visit, there is a different assistant opening the door. When an offer is accepted, a younger inexperienced assistant may be the liaison between the inspector, mortgage broker and notary.

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Have a great week!

Next article: Price reductions! When and why?

STATE OF THE MARKET

There is some good news on the horizon. It would appear that the Bank of Canada intends to place a hold on interest rate hikes. In a recent study by Desjardins, the largest federation of credit groups in Quebec, there seems to be a favourable climate in the Quebec re-sale market.

According to the study, Quebec home prices are expected to rise over time but slower than in 2018. The study also indicates that inflation will outpace rising real estate prices causing an eventual slowdown in rising prices, temporarily. Another indicator of a future increasing re-sale market in Montreal is that housing starts decreased in 2018 from 2017.

‘There is some good news on the horizon. It would appear that the Bank of Canada intends to place a hold on interest rate hikes.’

The rest of North America is experiencing a slowdown in the real estate market which is the reason the Bank of Canada is holding on interest rate increases. For Quebec and more specifically Montreal, this means our real estate market will continue to flourish and prices will continue to rise.

Image: Terje SolliefromPexel

Read other articles by Joseph Marovitch