Selling your home is a big decision, and one that you want to ensure is handled correctly. You want to ensure that the process is as stress-free as possible and that you achieve the maximum sale price for your home. The role of a Vendor Advocate is to facilitate that for you – guiding you in the right direction and handling each stage of the sale, working closely with the Real Estate Agent and you to ensure that you get the best possible deal.
What exactly does a Vendor Advocate do?
A Vendor Advocate is typically ideally involved from when you first decide to sell your home. You should engage a Vendor Advocate prior to selecting a Real Estate Agent because an experienced Vendor Advocate can help you ensure that you choose the right Agent – one who can handle the sale of your property properly. There are 10 ways that a Vendor’s Advocate can help you, which we will now explore.
1. Unbiased opinion
A Vendor Advocate can independently interpret the current market conditions and the individual attributes of your property. This means that they can provide you with an unbiased opinion of the current market value, which you can then use to determine whether your property will be placed on the market in the right price range and whether any offers received should be accepted or not.
2. Accurate Assessment of whether to sell or not.
An experienced Vendor Advocate such as our director Paul Murphy who has 32+ years of experience in Real Estate can provide a Vendor who is thinking about selling their property with an impartial assessment as to whether it is the right decision or not. Vendor advocates who are experienced will research the market conditions and advise you with evidence to back up why they are advising you to either sell or keep your property for a bit longer and sell it in the future.
3. Help to maximise the sale price of your property.
A Vendor Advocate who is experienced can advise you on all the important elements you must get right in order to sell your home for the highest possible price. They can advise you on the right presentation for your property (including recommending interior designers and other professionals if required), timing of sale, the most appropriate method of sale (so you can rest assured that your Real Estate Agent is taking the right approach), optimum promotion, ideal terms and professional property services as they are required. Your Vendor Advocate will be there to assist you through each stage of the process, alleviating any concerns you may have and assuring that you make the right moves.
4. Selecting the right Real Estate Agent
A Vendor Advocate can help you select the Right Real Estate agent. An experienced Vendor Advocate such as our director Paul Murphy who has 32+ years of experience in Real Estate including having been a Real Estate Agent for many years can advise you on selecting the right Real Estate Agent because they know what to look for. If you have any questions or concerns about what is happening, the Vendor Advocate will be there to answer them for you and work with your Real Estate Agent to ensure that you understand what is happening at each stage of the process.
5. Negotiate and guide you throughout the process
A Vendor Advocate will negotiate the most favorable commission for you and this can include incentives which encourage the Real Estate Agent to get the best possible price for you. The Vendor Advocate will also advise you on the best strategy for advertising including the right photography that should be used and the budget you should spend in order to maximise the sale price of your home. If you do not understand which decision to make at any stage of the process, the Vendor Advocate will provide you with detailed information about the options available to you so that you can make an informed decision.
6. Manage the entire Vendor/Real Estate relationship
A Vendor Advocate will professionally manage and supervise the Vendor and Real Estate relationship throughout the entire marketing campaign and sale process, through to when your property has settled. This includes ensuring that all paperwork is completed as it should be at each stage of the process (including connecting you with suitable lawyers, conveyancers and any other professionals required to assist you with documentation as you need it).
7. Maximising the property exposure for a reasonable investment.
An experienced Vendor advocate, particularly one who has worked within the Real Estate industry for a while and has been involved with selling property before, will be able to accurately advise you on the right marketing. The can advise you on the right marketing campaign, control costs, maximise exposure and minimise potential problems that may occur due to the wrong promotion being used. The impact of the wrong promotion for a property can be huge. It can result in the property taking a long time to sell or, even worse, not selling at all which is why it is critically important to get the advertising right from the start.
8. Analysing and reporting.
A Vendor Advocate will analyse and report on all market feedback and offers to purchase, ensuring that proper documentation is completed at each stage of the process (including recommending any suitable and trusted professionals to you as they are required). The Vendor Advocate will protect your (the Vendors) best interests and ensure that everything that needs to be completed at each stage of the process is completed in a timely manner, so that the sale of your property is not at risk of falling through or taking much longer than it should.
9. Personally represent the vendor at auction or during private sale negotiation.
A Vendor Advocate will personally represent the Vendor at Auction. The Vendor Advocate can independently watch and assess what the auctioneer is doing, provide recommendations about the reserve price, structure vendor bids and negotiate on your behalf should the property be passed in to ensure you end up with the best possible outcome.
If your property is sold via private sale, the Vendor Advocate will advise on offers you receive and assist with negotiations with the Real Estate Agent on your behalf to ensure that you achieve the best possible sale price, on the right terms and with a suitable settlement date. The Vendor Advocate will liaise with you (the Vendor) and the Real Estate Agent, ensuring that all of the required conditions are met including that the deposit is paid.
10. No additional cost to you (the Vendor)
A Vendor’s Advocate will not charge you a separate fee on top of the fee you are already paying to your Real Estate Agent. A Vendor Advocate instead takes a percentage of the amount payable to your Real Estate Agent. This means that you do not have to pay any additional expense but instead receive additional guidance and support.
At Murphy Jacobs Property Advocates, we will guide you through the necessary 9 steps so that you can sell your property with an understanding of what is happening and a clear indication of when is the best time to sell and what price is possible. As experts in Vendor Advocacy who have over 32+ years of proven experience, we understand the commonly faced frustrations of homeowners and can protect them.
In supporting you to sell your home, our goal is to achieve the best possible price and make the process simple for you, where you can make informed decisions at each stage rather than feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Contact us today for a free consultation where we can discuss supporting you to sell your home! We won’t stop until you have sold your property for the right price with “nothing left on the table.”
Learn more about our Vendor Advocacy services surrounding the Bayside and Brighton area here. If you would guidance on how to sell your home, book a free 45-minute strategy session with Paul.