SELLER’S GUIDE
Let us introduce you to the real estate brand the Twin Cities marketplace had been craving. We are an elite group of real estate advisors who want to personally re-create the perceptions of this industry by exceeding your expectations and be a resource to you, for life.
10,000 advisors & staff 800 locations 30 countries 4 continents In August 2015, Lindsay Bacigalupo and Geoff Bray brought this global brand to our local market and opened Engel & Völkers Minneapolis. As large corporations such as Target, United Healthcare and General Mills continue to headquarter in the area, Minneapolis is emerging as a key residential destination for both domestic and international buyers. At Engel & Völkers Minneapolis, we do more than provide great real estate services. We deliver excellence, and we do it with passion! Our founder and CEO, Christian Völkers, once said “Quality product offerings, premium service and innovative thinking never seem to go out of style.” We take that to heart. These ideals, as well as our own passion to bring something different to this industry, continue to be our daily motivation. Simply put, we are a premium service company with advisors who know and love real estate.
The Best Just Keeps Getting Better!
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Our Advisors Deliver Peace of Mind Real estate agents help their clients buy and sell homes; Engel & Völkers Advisors do more! In fact, we designate our agents as “advisors,” to better define the higher level of guidance and insight they provide. Engel & Völkers maintains consistently high levels of service throughout the world by managing performance at every stage. We are highly selective of the advisors who join us. We approach top performers with proven track records and real estate professionals who are well respected within the community. A deep understanding of client service is essential. Our advisors start out great and always strive to be better. You can be sure that our advisors are experts who can provide unique insights about the real estate market and accurately place your home in the context of both historical and most recent market data. They will see to every detail throughout the process and negotiate on your behalf to provide the greatest peace of mind.
More Than Just a Real Estate Agent
Whether you’ve lived in your house for two years or twenty, memories have been made there. From birthday parties and holidays to game days and movie nights, everything about your home is YOU. Now, you’re getting ready to leave and the words declutter and depersonalize are getting thrown at you. When presenting your home to buyers, you want to maximize their ability to see it as their home. This can be as simple as neutral wall colors, great lighting, and making sure everything is clean and in working order. Brightness, horizontal surfaces that are free of clutter, and appropriately sized furniture make spaces feel bigger and welcoming, showcasing each room’s potential. Potential buyers want to see your home, not your stuff. Think, Less is More. The more you prepare by packing away items for staging purposes, the less you’ll have to do when it comes time to move. At Engel & Völkers Minneapolis, we provide all of our sellers the opportunity to meet with a professional stager. They discuss your options, offer advice, help you organize, and leave you a to-do list. With their help, the next steps to listing your home on the market are a breeze!
The Power of Staging
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77% of buyers’ agents say buyers find a staged home easier to visualize as their future home. 49% of buyers’ agents say a staged home increases the dollar value offered. 62% of sellers’ agents agree that staged homes sell faster, spending less time on the market. Staging the Living Room for buyers was found to be most important (83%), followed by the Kitchen (76%), and the Master Bedroom (69%). Copyright ©2017 “2017 Profile of Home Staging.” NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. June 13, 2018. https://www.nar.realtor/research-and-statistics/research-reports/profile-of-home-staging
Staging by the Numbers
Every home has a story. Let us tell yours in its best light! It’s no surprise homebuyers are using the internet as their primary home search tool. This means the first time they are seeing your house, it is through photos. Quality listing photos are essential, and Engel & Völkers Minneapolis is the only brokerage in the Twin Cities requiring professional photos on all our listings. Statistics show homes that list with high-resolution photos sell quicker and often for more money. When browsing listings, click rates and the duration of time spent looking at the listing also increase with professional photography. This includes videos and 3D virtual reality tours.
Getting Ready for Photoshoot Day: The to-do list after your staging consultation can be daunting. Think of it as an opportunity to jump-start the packing process. While you’re decluttering and packing away items from every bookshelf, closet, and nightstand, you can prioritize what you won’t be needing for the next few months. Make three piles: pack, throw away, and donations. This purge can be uplifting. Once you have thinned out the items in each room, be sure it is picture perfect. We realize you still live in your house, so unappealing items can be removed or hidden solely for the photos.
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Professional
Photography
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Photoshoot Day Checklist: ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■
Clean, inside and out Keep driveway clear and sweep deck & patio Make sure all light fixtures work properly Turn off ceiling fans and open all window blinds Remove small floor rugs to showcase flooring Clear off countertops and hide small appliances Hide dish towels and keep sink clean Hide all dirty laundry Remove stacks of papers and clutter from desks Hide remote controls Make beds and clear nightstands, including clocks Put away toothbrushes and other toiletries Remove bath products and hang clean towels Copyright ©2018 “Photography Checklist” SPACECRAFTING, INC.® All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. June 13, 2018.
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Choose Your Advisor
Set Listing Price
Develop Marketing Strategy
notes...
The Selling Timeline
Create Marketing Materials
Live on the Market
Accepted Purchase Agreement
Inspection Period
Appraisal Complete
Closing Disclosure Review
Closing
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Professional photos are a must when marketing your property. At Engel & Völkers Minneapolis, we embrace innovation and stay ahead of the curve as the internet and technology continue to change our industry. Thanks to these advances, we are not limited to two dimensions when viewing properties online. Dive into the 3D experience To offer a virtual reality tour of your listing, we use a 360 degree camera that scans and maps your home’s floor plan. Then, it pieces together an interactive tour that feels as real as being in your home. Whether buyers are right around the corner or half-way around the world, virtual reality enhances the home shopping experience. We are a global brand, and we have great relationships with relocation companies. Being able to share this tour link of your home with any of their potential buyers is a great way for them have a better understanding of the room sizes, floor plan and general flow of your home. Every Engel & Völkers shop in The Americas has a virtual reality camera. Our downtown Minneapolis location is the only one to have a Virtual Reality Theater. It is our way of combining the latest technology with a one-of-a-kind service for all our clients.
Making
Virtual a Reality
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Smart Marketing. Extensive exposure. Not all properties are created equal, yet Engel & Völkers Minneapolis equally values every home our advisors represent and will dedicate the expertise, time and unmatched marketing resources we possess to help you sell your property to the right buyer. Our Extensive Domestic & Global Exposure (EDGE) platform provides unprecedented reach to get your property in front of qualified consumers whether they’re next door, in North America or abroad - because they deserve to see it and you deserve to sell it. We are also able to collaborate with our fellow Engel & Völkers advisors worldwide to strategically handpick and refer buyers for the specific properties they seek... like yours!
Giving
you the EDGE™
It is important to be prepared for potential buyers to be in your home on Listing Day as showings can begin at anytime. Have your home show-ready when you leave that morning - dishes put away, beds made, laundry in hampers, etc. If you have pets, it is typically best to remove them for showings. Game plan with your advisor if you have any questions or restrictions for showings. You will get a notification via e-mail and text, if you’d like. This way, showings are always logged and approval is recorded. In this market, overlapping showings are fairly common and completely fine. Real estate agents understand other buyers may be walking through your home at the same time and will respect the flow of the showings, as well as coordinate who locks up.
Let The Showings Begin!
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As Christian Völkers put it, “We will do all we can to market your property in order to obtain the best outcome for you - the highest possible purchase price and a stress-free transaction.” Open houses are one of our strategies to expose your new listing to a wide range of potential buyers. Laws of probability state the more people to tour a house, the more likely it will sell. If your listing advisor or a member of their team is hosting a public open house, they know the property and location almost as well as you, the seller. This way, a potential buyer gets to speak with someone who really knows your house. We’ve held open houses during rush hour on weeknights, Saturday morning brunch, and Sunday afternoons. The recipe for a successful open house depends on the location, timeframe and marketing that drives the traffic. Keep this strategy in mind and be sure to discuss open house opportunities with your advisor.
Open Houses
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Moving is change. Whether you do it yourself or have it done for you, it is the removal, relocation and replacement of all your treasured possessions to a completely new surrounding. It is an opportunity to shed belongings and to acquire new ones. Above all, moving is a process with many steps.
Here is a checklist you can use to help prepare for this transition.
Three - Four Weeks Prior to Move: ■■ Decide how you’re going to move your furniture and personal belongings. Whether you’re hiring a moving company or renting a truck, do the research. Get recommendations from your real estate advisor, as well as estimates. Be sure to ask about availability and additional costs of materials and tools such as boxes, tape, covers, etc. ■■ Start gathering the necessary moving supplies. ■■ Take stock of your possessions and decide what will be moved and what could be removed. This is an opportunity to sell unwanted items online or through a yard sale.
Moving
Two Weeks Before Moving: ■■ Notify and get refunds from your present utilities: gas, electric, water, garbage, cable and internet. Arrange for services at your new address. ■■ Transfer your address with the US Postal Service. ■■ Begin using up what you don’t need to move like cleaning supplies, pantry food, etc. ■■ Recruit people to help and arrange for someone to take care of your pets and children during the move. ■■ Confirm moving company or rental-truck arrangements. ■■ Transfer your bank accounts. ■■ Draw up a floor plan of where your furniture should go at your new place. ■■ Purchase moving insurance. Your mover’s liability for lost or damaged goods will not equal their replacement cost.
Two Days Before Moving: ■■ Keep moving materials in a separate location from where the packing is happening. ■■ Gather all valuables, jewelry, important papers (birth certificates, deeds, documents) to take with you personally. ■■ Clean out the refrigerator and plan to defrost and dry before move
A Moving Checklist
On Moving Day: ■■ Plan on spending the entire day with the movers. Don’t leave until they have finished. ■■ Record all utility meter readings (gas, electric, water, etc.) ■■ Take a final walk through house, including storage areas and the attic to make sure everything is empty. ■■ Lock all windows and doors and drop off keys with your advisor. If you have been renting, consider taking pictures or a video of the vacant house for your records and proof of condition.
Pro-Tip - Pack an essentials box! Moving is a process and settling into your new place doesn’t happen in one day. Be sure you’re prepared to survive the first few days with some of these essential items. ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■
Toilet Paper All-Purpose Cleaner Dish Soap and Hand Towel Garbage Bags Scissors or Pocket Knife Portable Tool Kit Flashlight
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Snacks and Instant Coffee Mug / Cup / Plate / Cutlery Change of Clothes Shower Curtain Towels Pet Food and Dish Important Records / Docs
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Engel & Völkers Minneapolis Engel & Völkers U.S. Holdings, Inc. 1601 Hennepin Ave ･ Minneapolis ･ MN 55403 Telephone + 1 612-338-3836 ･ www.minneapolis.evusa.com ©2018 Engel & Völkers. All rights reserved. Each Engel & Völkers brokerage is independently owned and operated. Engel & Völkers® and the Engel & Völkers Logo are registered service marks owned by Engel & Völkers Marken Gmbh. Engel & Völkers and its independent License Partners are Equal Opportunity Employers and fully support the principles of the Fair Housing Act.