An article Sunday on the CBS news website talked about using the Internet to buy or sell a home.  “These days, it’s not a luxury to use the Web to buy or sell a house, it’s a necessity, says Regina Lewis, AOL’s consumer advisor. And it’s about how savvy you are about marketing your home online that can make all the difference in the end result. It’s log on or lose.” A savvy real estate agent will know how to use the web to help making your home buying or selling process easier – and more successful.  At MyPhoenixMLS.com, for example, we offer free access to our Time Saving HomeFinder program (http://www.myphoenixmls.com/hot-new-listings.asp), which helps homebuyers find the right home for them in minutes a day.  Forget scouring newspaper classifieds and spending the entire weekend driving around town to find the right house; now you can have the best listings sent right to your e-mail inbox. 

And if buyers are on the web looking for homes, then sellers better be there, too!  There are a number of online listing sites that homeowners and their real estate agents use to market their homes for sale, including:

The fact is that only 1% of homes are sold at an open house.  Open houses are important, yes, but they’re by far the least effective marketing tool.  If you’re relying solely on a sign in the front yard and open houses, your chances of selling your home are quite low. Likewise, if the only way a prospective buyer can get information about your home is by calling and speaking with your real estate agent, buyers will be less likely to actually call.   To successfully sell your home – especially in today’s buyer’s market – you have to approach prospective buyers from all angles – open houses, toll-free hotlines, print ads, and online.  At MyPhoenixMLS.com, for example, we use a number of tools that have proven successful in getting your home in front of as many prospective buyers and buyer’s agents as possible.  For example, we:

  • Write an engaging description of your home and place it on Arizona Multiple Listing Service (MLS)

  • Showcase your home as a “Featured Listing” on Realtor.com

  • Feature your property on MyPhoenixMLS.com

  • Offer prospective buyers a toll-free number to call for recorded information about your home, available 24-7

The Internet is one of a group of tools that home sellers and buyers should use to sell (or buy) for the best price in the shortest amount of time.  But – like any marketing tool – the Internet shouldn’t be the only way you market your home.  The right real estate agent will use a variety of marketing tools to make sure that the most buyers possible see your listing.