If you are wondering as we head toward the end of 2012 about the health of the economy, one of the most important aspects of indicators of the health of our national economy is the real estate market. What’s amazing is that finally 5 years after the tanking of the real estate market, California — more specifically Southern California– is seeing an uptick in the sales and prices of homes. The foreclosure rate has slowed and thus there is less on the market at bottom-feeder prices. What does that mean to you? Maybe not much but when California has an uptick in sales and our state economy used to be larger than many countries around the globe, it’s an important indicator to the nation as a whole.
The operative question is 1) when is a good time to sell and 2) how should one sell a home? Who can one turn to in these somewhat “iffy” times that people will go — yeah, let’s sell our home and move to another place with more space. It’s a positive indicator particularly here in California as we see double-digit rise in prices of homes and also some real growth in the sales figures.
While you can go the traditional route, there is a new entry into the real estate sales market, REDFIN.
This online brokerage claims they can help you sell your home faster for more money and get more people looking at your home. While I was wrapping my brain around that one, I managed to snag a Redfin Real Estate Agent to answer some questions about how Redfin works!
I was able to send some questions to Corina Galen, Redfin Real Estate Agent
How does Redfin source its information, photos, online tours etc?
Corina Galen
Redfin is a real estate brokerage. As a brokerage, we’re able to get direct access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which we enhance and upload to our site. Since we have the advantage of direct access to the MLS, the data on our site is usually updated within 15 to 30 minutes. A recent study conducted by the WAV Group showed that Redfin has the most complete, accurate and timely information about homes for sale compared to other online real estate websites, primarily because we get our data directly from the MLS. We also get property history and basic info on the homes from public records. The local recorder’s office records the transfer of deeds, along with the sale price and sale date, and we post that information within three to six weeks.
Redfin also offers information that NO ONE else offers including “Agent Insights”, which are home reviews by Redfin agents. Redfin also enables users to search by school, view school ratings, see which homes in a specific neighborhood are the most popular on Redfin.com, view local stats and trends, days on market, sales history, last sale price and more. This comprehensive picture enables buyers and sellers to make better decisions throughout the home-buying process.
What separates Redfin from online real estate brokers?
Corina Galen
Redfin is a full-service real estate brokerage and more. In fact, our technology enables us to deliver more service for a better value. We have more than 500 agents in the 19 markets that we serve, which means you can meet a Redfin agent in person, at a home buying class, or on a tour. Redfin agents are paid a salary and earn bonuses based on your satisfaction. They are not commission based agents, so they are looking out for your best interests. Traditional real estate agents actually spend most of their time looking for new clients. Redfin agents spend 100% of their time serving clients. That results in more experienced agents who are completely focused on their current clients.
How does Redfin get the homes more exposure? Do they use an MLS system?
Corina Galen
Redfin is one of the most-trafficked if not the most trafficked real estate website in each of the markets it serves. Ninety percent of all homebuyers start their home search online. Because Redfin listings show up first in search results, these homes get the most eyeballs. Further, Redfin agents have access to data that no one else has, including which day is the best day to list your home, whether open houses are effective for your type of property or in your neighborhood, etc. For these reasons, on average, Redfin listings sell 15 days faster and for $8,700 more than non-Redfin listings. Redfin pays for all its listings to be professionally photographed, which is proven to fetch a higher selling price.
Redfin states that every home gets premium placement on Redfin site– what does that really translate into in terms of how long a listing is in that premium spot?
Only homes that are being sold by Redfin agents get premium placement on the site. When a Redfin-listed home is in a home buyer’s search results, we now bring it to the top of the list and highlight it. When it matches all of the filters a buyer puts in regards to location, beds, baths, and square footage, the Redfin-listed home will be the first one that the buyer sees. We also promote our listings in a dedicated section of the page beside the map that appears when buyers are searching in the same area as the home. This puts a photo and a compelling message about the home’s best feature right beside their search results. In addition, Redfin listings have a featured spot in instant update emails that home buyers can sign up to receive.
How long is the average home on the market (pick one particular market and let’s use that for comparison) on Redfin compared to MLS?
Corina Galen
Redfin pulls data from local MLSs, meaning all homes on an MLS in our markets will also appear on Redfin.com. The difference between Redfin and other brokerages is that we use technology to allow our agents to be more efficient, and only Redfin pays agents based on customer satisfaction, not commissions—so we work hard to get the right result for you, not just the easy deal. Redfin buyers receive a refund of up to half of the agent’s commission. Sellers save up to 1.5 percent of the agent’s fees– an average of $5,000 dollars.
We recently compared how quickly Redfin listings sell vs. homes listed by other brokerages. In San Diego, Redfin listings sold an average of 35 days faster than homes listed by other brokerages. You can read more about that on the Redfin blog.
What about homes that take more time to sell like high priced homes (luxury, beachfront, gated communities)?
Corina Galen
The fact that Redfin listings sell 15 days faster doesn’t change based on the type or price of home. For each Redfin listing that came on the market in 2010 or 2011, we looked at a group of listings of the same home type, in the same zip code, that were similar in original list price, square footage, and list date, to make sure we were making an apples to apples comparison.
What services does Redfin offer that most others brokerages don’t?
Corina Galen
Redfin is different in three key ways:
1. Redfin pays agents based on your satisfaction.
Redfin Agents are paid a salary, and then receive a bonus based on customer satisfaction, not on commission. So, we never just go for the easy dollar – our agents tell you everything, rather than just push you towards a sale. We’ll even tell you when to walk away. This also means we can give you a no-pressure experience: if you’re buying, take as long as you need; if you’re selling, you’re never obligated to keep working with Redfin. When you’re ready, we’re experienced at negotiating the right deal for you.2. Redfin has powerful, convenient online tools so you can make better, more informed decisions, as well as have a more stress-free, convenient home buying or selling experience.
Our website has the most listings and the most accurate information online. If you’re looking for a home, you can schedule tours, sign documents, and track your deal online. When you sell your home with a Redfin Agent, your home will be viewed by twice as many of today’s serious buyers, and you’ll sell 15 days faster for $8,700 more on average. Our technology can make the whole home-buying and -selling process more informed and convenient.
For example, our Deal Room feature gives home-buyers a guide to the whole escrow process, laying out the big milestones — when an inspection response is due or when the lender needs to appraise the house — with an emphasis on the tasks for which the home-buyer is responsible. For each task, we provide local documentation on how it all works.3. Redfin gives you a better value at a lower fee.
Redfin refunds homebuyers up to half of the buyer’s agent commission. The average refund is more than $5,000. Redfin listing clients save up to 1.5 percent in fees, depending on the selling price of the home, with an average savings of $8,500. Redfin promotes clients’ listings on its website, mobile tools and via e-mail, delivering double the traffic and exposure that other listings get on Redfin.com. The additional exposure and the accountability created by Redfin’s review system are the main reasons why Redfin, on average in 2011, sold homes 15 days faster than the other brokerages, for a price that was, compared to the asking price, $8,700 higher. Redfin technology makes home buying and selling more efficient, and technology is the reason Redfin can refund customers thousands of dollars.
Explain how the Home Price Tool works and the home report functions? Isn’t that pretty much a comparable sales report?
Corina Galen
Redfin’s Home Price Tool helps homeowners determine a fair price range for their home, using the same process and data that professional agents use. For any home, this tool automatically assembles similar homes that have recently sold nearby. It uses up-to-the-minute data drawn directly from the same databases used by real estate agents to record sales. You can review photos of each home sold and decide which are actually comparable based on differences in size, condition, age or home improvements, adding and removing comparables to and from the list. The result is a price range based on current market activity that you can use as a guide in understanding what your home is worth, or even to price your home to sell.
Do sellers have the ability to go in and tweak their listings? How is the accuracy of the listing versus what the home really is?
Corina Galen
Since we pull data directly from the MLS, an agent could update the MLS in order to update the listing on Redfin.com. Agents must enter the home data into the MLS within 72 hours, and they may be fined if they fail to provide the information or don’t keep it current, so it is as accurate and up-to-date as possible.
( Check out the video on youtube.com about the online home tour. )
Redfin provides professional photography– which is pretty awesome. Does the photographer or agent make recommendations on how to stage the home for those photos?
Redfin Agents offer advice on what should be done (and what shouldn’t) to prepare and sell your home. Redfin pays for professional photography in order to show your home in its best light. We can also recommend top-rated professionals for staging, landscaping, and painting in our online directory, Redfin Open Book, in case your home needs a little extra TLC to fetch a better price.
Who makes the recommendations on what should/could be updated in the home to make it fresh and give it street appeal?
Corina Galen
Redfin Agents are experts in their market: they go on hundreds of home tours and view even more listings on Redfin.com, so they know what sells. Being completely transparent is a key value for Redfin; our agents will be honest and tell you what improvements your home needs to sell it quickly and price it competitively.
As you can see, Redfin has some significant differences in how they handle real estate sales than traditional agencies. However I am not going to say one is better than the other since I have not spoken to any homeseller or buyer that has used Redfin. I am suggesting that if you are looking to buy or sell a home, check them out too along with the other tradtional agencies. It doesn’t cost anything and you might be very pleasantly surprised at how fast your home will sell or how easy the process is to buy the home that you are seeking!
Thanks to Corinne Galen for her time and her insightful answers!
Stevie Wilson,
LA-Story.com
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Thank you for sharing this information as I am a real estate investor and any extra networking that is shared is of importance and help to me.