Investing in real estate has so many advantages that you can leverage as an investor. There is one important area that sometimes gets overshadowed and that’s what we’re going to dive into now … How to maximize all the benefits with some simple best practices for showing your property.

Let’s say you purchase a property that you finance, rehab, and put on the market to sell once it’s been renovated. Just to make that happen, you have acquired debt, invested into materials, and probably paid contractors to do work on your property or maybe have your own time invested on your part if you rehabbed the property yourself, and now you want to sell it to make the most amount of money. It is in your best interest as the investor to market that property so that you can sell it quickly to get the highest return on investment, pay off your loan and to be able to profit from the deal to move onto the next project or to enjoy your newfound riches.

How do we maximize our output on any particular deal? Below you will find 6 helpful recommended practices when showing your property to be sure you can really get out what you put in.

Consider Hiring a Real Estate Agent

It's a common thought to exclude real estate agents when you flip properties for the mere fact that you’ll have to pay a commission and potentially have more expenses out of pocket, but the reality is real estate agents are part of your exit. Real Estate agents can be a great resource to helping get the word out about your property either through their own network or buyers, sellers, and other agents, or by helping market it through the MLS, and other related outlets. They’ll be able to provide additional insight to help expedite your listing by comparing recently sold homes, comparable home and property highlights to showcase your property.

Create Visuals

Pictures and videos well be your best friend when attempting to sell a property. If you hire a real estate agent, they will handle your photos and videos, but if you are doing it yourself, you want to have professional photos and videos taken to really accentuate all the details your property has to offer. Some investors will hire services for 3D walk throughs and drone footage to help showcase the property. If you’re looking to show off your skills, most smart phones have high quality cameras for photos and videos. You’ll want to make sure the end result has proper lighting and views that allow the potential buyer to fully experience the property.

Creating a Story

Telling the story of who, what, where, when, why, and how can really go a long way in your listing. In addition to photos and videos, you’ll want a description that boosts and helps the reader/potential buyer to understand the full potential of what your property has to offer. Highlight the benefits and features and help them see themselves in your property. Make sure your description answers their questions. Where is it located? What’s it nearby? Who would want to leave here? How can they benefit from living here? When should they act on the deal? Create urgency and really explain how this property is better than any other on the market.

Keep it Clean

A dirty house is a turn off. Make sure your photos capture the great parts and exclude all clutter and mess. If the property is still under construction at the time you take the photos, do your best to avoid having tools or materials in the background of photos. Make sure when you go to show your property that it’s free from dust and debris. People usually understand construction can create dirt but if you want them to think as if this property is already theirs. You wouldn’t want someone walking through your freshly mopped floor with dirty, muddy shoes, right? Keep that in mind when you’re showing this property.

Curb Appeal Does Wonders

Landscaping and pavers really can be all the difference between someone liking a property and completely loving it. Clean mulch or rocks, free from weeded flower beds and dying flowers can be a game-changer to someone who really appreciates the aesthetic of a home. Landscaping can cost a pretty penny so if you can minimize that expense by having most of it or at least the base of it done for the buyer, it’s a great selling point for many.

Help Them Feel at Home

When you show the property, make them feel welcomed. A secret to showing properties as a real estate agent is to have freshly baked cookies or a candle burning to give the home that warm, cozy vibe the moment the person enters the front door. This is something you can easily do and is a kind gesture to the potential buyers. Adding those simple additions to the property can help them experience this as their home.

Point Out the Details

When you are physically going through the property with the client/potential buyer, be sure to let them see the features and benefits on their own, but don’t be afraid to point out the things that make this property stand out. If it has unique features, or a special history, or even an upgrade that is extremely desirable, make it known if they aren’t seeing it for themselves. Knowing the age of hot water heaters, A/C units, the roof and appliances are also great selling points when compared to other properties on the market.

You have so little time to make an impression. If there's extra information that a buyer might miss or be unaware of, you can provide informative flyers and they’ll have in hand to refer back to once they leave.

Just because you work hard fixing up the property, it doesn’t mean it will sell itself. You may need to put a little effort into closing the deal. Keep asking simple questions to understand what the buyer is looking for and where your property may align with what they want.

How would they arrange the furniture?

Think about how the property will fit their needs and use it to reinforce the decision later. Remember that people need help making decisions. The more knowledge you have of your customer, your property, your area, and any competition, the better you will handle their questions and concerns. Bring out the good qualities of your property and don’t dwell on negatives, focus the short amount of time you have to help meet their needs.

For any deal you acquire, keep this list below handy to implement for your property so you can maximize your investment.

Below you’ll find the activity to implement each one of the action steps described.

1 Find a realtor with experience—if you hire a real estate agent, they can take care of the rest (what’s listed below) Explain your process below on how you interviewed and or found a real estate agent. You want to find a realtor that has experience working with investors. Remember that time is money and having people on your team to leverage a positive outcome is very important.

• Do you have experience working with real estate investors?
• How long have you been a realtor?
• Have you sold properties in the following area______?
• Do you provide additional services, if so what are they?
• What is the current Days On Market (DOM) in this area_____?
• What are your fees?

2 Find a photographer who specializes in real estate. List below how many photographers in your area that specialize in real estate photography.

• What are the packages or services offered for properties?
• Do you offer special services? 3D walk through, Drone or Other?
• Do you have a portfolio of past listing?
• What is the turn around time from schedule to completed work?

3Use resources online or hire someone to write your property’s description. You will want to showcase and describe your property below are some to consider when outlining the property.

• Specifics of the property:
  • Square Footage
  • Bedrooms
  • Bathrooms
  • Garage
  • Lot size
  • AC Unit
  • Roof
  • Location
    • Things that are close by- Schools, Shopping, Restaurants, Hospitals, Sporting Events, Access to Transportation
• Exterior
  • Landing scaping details
  • Outdoor Features
    • Pool
    • Hot Tub
    • Long Driveway
    • New Trees
    • New Sprinklers
  • Community takes care of maintenance- HOA?
• Interior
  • Upgraded Appliances
  • Bathroom Features
  • Closet Space
  • Kitchen Add-ons
  • Garage Add-ons
  • Flooring- Wood, Laminate, carpet, tile
  • Windows (impact, energy savers etc)
  • Lighting

Research existing listings that match your property as a reference when outlining your property description. This usually will bring in a few things that you didn’t think and will allow you to create an informative overview of your property.

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