Just last week, an offer came in on one our flat fee MLS listings where I do the negotiating. We call this type of listing an ADDvantage Success™ listing because I represent the by owner MLS seller from contract-to-close.

This Realtor, a buyer's agent, called and said an offer was coming. I said great! I quickly asked the agent how much the offer was for. She replied $710,000. I quickly looked at the listing on our system and noticed our listed price was about $770,000. I then asked the Realtor what she thought the "BPO" (which stands for Broker's Price Opinion or fast sale value) was for this listing. She replied $740,000. The reason I asked this question was to catch the buyer's agent "off-guard" and attempt to find out some valuable information to pass along to my ADDvantage Success™ seller.

This BPO statement means if the sale was a short-sale (which it wasn't) you would pursue offers around $740,000 to present to the seller because ultimately the lender decides on whether or not to take the deal. A short sale takes anywhere from 70-110 days to close. Straight-sales (listings that are not short-sales), such as this listing, have more value because a buyer can close and move-in as fast as 20 days if a cash buyer or 45 days if a mortgage contingency. My point is this buyer's agent opinion of value was $740,000 but we were unsuccessful getting this deal done even at $740,000 because I believe too many buyer's agents paint unrealistic expectations for their buyer's about value. Value is in the eyes of the buyer, not the buyer's agent!

While I am predominately a flat fee MLS listing broker, I do work with many buyers throughout Florida because our website GetMoreOffers.com has become a prolific website for buyers. I am successful working with buyers in many cities, not just Tampa Bay where my office is located. I have short-sales pending in Miami for over $3,000,000, short-sales in Orlando for $250,000 and $310,000 and many more. I know my responsibility to these buyers and sellers. I am an "expert messenger". I list properties, I show properties, and I unlock doors and listen to my buyers. And yes, I know value. A CMA (comparable market analysis) is not the only way to gauge value.

Ultimately, very deal must get through appraisal. Whether I represent the seller, buyer or I am a transaction broker for my flat fee MLS service, I am a "professional messenger", not Superman.

Call me anytime, 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week. 727-942-2929.

Our specialty is selling homes without a traditional 6% Realtor fee. We offer excellent service, expansive Internet marketing and provide by owners with the best chance of selling. Choose a flat fee MLS listing service that has earned the trust and respect of thousands of Florida Realtors and by owners, ADDvantage® Real Estate.

We are unlike any full-service or flat fee MLS service in Florida because even though we are a discount real estate service that specializes in listings homes in the MLS for a flat fee, we are a unique real estate company because we deliver more service than any other flat fee or full-service company in Florida, guaranteed.

This is not sales puffery, it is the truth! Over the past 7 years, we have answered every call "live" with real "humans" 7 days a week from 8:00am-8:00pm. Because our service is excellent at ADDvantage®, we now enjoy an excellent reputation with our fellow Realtors and by owners throughout Florida.

A good reputation does matter in real estate, especially in the discount real estate listing business. Many flat fee MLS listing services do a poor job servicing their clients and Realtors. Often, Realtors call the flat fee listing service for help with showing instructions, or need instructions for faxing offers or call requesting a seller's disclosure statement only to get an answering machine. Besides assisting all callers live, ADDvantage® also makes available all important client documents online at ADDvantage®. Every detail at ADDvantage® is important to us. We are determined to be the best flat fee MLS listing service in Florida and our MLS board coverage is the widest of any flat fee MLS listing service in Florida. We list homes on the MLS in the Florida Keys, Miami, Boca, Space Coast and all the way to Jacksonville, across to the Panhandle, Tallahassee, Gainesville, Tampa Bay, Sarasota, Ft. Myers, Naples, and Marco Island.

To briefly explore our commitment to our clients that list flat fee with us, take a look at how we handle calls, buyer leads, Realtor showings, feedback, price changes, status changes, and the degree of our corporate organization.

Every call that that comes in to ADDvantage® requesting information or a showing about a particular property is entered into that clients account. Our system then send an email describing the nature of the call and sends the Realtor an email confirmation confirming their showing request. If it is a showing request, our MLS administrators will record the Realtor or buyers email address and all other info. Our system sends an email for feedback the day after each showing, notifying all parties of any price changes or changes in listing status.

Flat fee MLS listing services in Florida are not all the same. Our attention to detail and our excellent phone support do translate into more showings and a faster sale for our flat fee MLS home sellers. Please read our flat fee MLS listing testimonials and review our past flat fee MLS sales statistics.

We offer three flat fee MLS listing plans at ADDvantage®. Our basic 9 month listing is $349. We also have a Realtor E-Blast marketing campaign called Street Smart ADDvantage® for $599. This plan is reserved for those sellers wishing to offer a 4% or greater buyer's agent commission. Read why this may be helpful when selling. We also have a contract-to-close listing plan called ADDvantage Success™ which is a full-service discount listing. ADDvantage Success™ costs $699 plus ¹⁄₃% at close ($699 min).

Once a client at ADDvantage®, you will enjoy our 100% electronic sign-up and a paperless client experience. No faxing or cumbersome emails. Every change you make to your MLS listing is handled by our experienced MLS staff. As a client, you have your own "seller control panel" to manage your flat fee listing. In your control panel you can change price, lower or rise commission, print brochures, view who has viewed your listing on our site www.getmoreoffers.com, contracts, forms, upload documents and mark the public or private and much more. We do have the most intuitive and advanced flat fee MLS listing service in Florida.

The formula for selling fast in Florida starts with saving 3% over a traditional 6% listing. Flat Fee MLS enables by owners to price their home closer to where Realtors and buyers will be motivated to make an offer. The term "appraisal envelop" is the high and low estimate of where an appraisal will come in once a home is under contract.

In today's Internet driven market, paying 6% to a full-service agent to list a home is unnecessary. Your local neighborhood Realtor uses the same MLS and deals with the same appraisal concerns as we do. These local successful buyer's agents want to sell your home but only within 2 or 3% of the appraisal envelope. So paying 6% commission just increases your cost of selling, but not your odds of selling.

Call us anytime; we are open from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week. 727-942-2929. As well, you may find our smart by owner MLS selling tips to be enlightening.

The simple answer to this question is none of the above. It is the seller who is in control and their listing price determines how fast they will sell. This assumes all other factors that can also effect a sale such as Internet marketing, MLS listing accuracy, effective showing service and customer support are present.

What we do at ADDvantage® is make the process of getting listed in the MLS more efficient, cost effective and provide sellers with all the tools to make selling a home in Florida without an agent more transparent. Our slogan is "Real Estate By Your Rules" and it is truly what we do.

ADDvantage® is the most reliable flat fee MLS listing service in Florida and our testimonials and flat fee MLS sales statistics speak for themselves. We have some impressive sales statistics for the first 4 months of 2010. At the beginning of 2010, ADDvantage® had 172 flat fee MLS listings in various cities throughout Florida from Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville and even very small almost unheard of cities such as Apopka. Because we offer our flat fee MLS services almost every Florida county, we don't have the advantage of market penetration in a single area but we do enjoy success selling homes over a large area. In our case, it is the entire State of Florida.

As of May 3, 2010, we have 23 contract pending homes and closed 42 homes using our flat fee MLS listing service. Our open inventory has dropped to from 172 to 137 listings. We are selling homes faster then we are getting listings. Our flat fee MLS listings are selling fast, in part, because our sellers are in control. We offer many seller tools that are easily accessible from each seller's control panel. Sellers list their property 100% online and make changes to their MLS listings via that same control panel. Our by owner MLS sellers control their our destiny, not a listing agent. The money our sellers save using our service goes into their pockets. ADDvantage® is a sophisticated selling and marketing platform for by owner. We add excellent service offering live phone support from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 day a week service and aggressive and expansive Internet marketing. Of course, we are members of practically every Florida MLS, as well.

Assuming good service and excellent Internet marketing are not missing, then price is the only factor that determines whether a home is sold or not. Is this statement 100% accurate? I believe it is. After 27 years as a Florida real estate broker and 11 as a flat fee MLS Florida broker, I have insight into many transactions and really know how and what motivates the market. From the buyer's agent perspective, their entire motivation is to earn a commission. They only get paid that commission if the house appraises-out and the deal closes. Buyer's agents will pass on every home listed in the MLS that is priced too high above where they feel the "comparibles" will support a sale price or offer. These buyer's agents want just one thing. A deal they can write within the appraisal envelop. If they feel the MLS listed price is too high above that appraisal envelop or after speaking with the listing agent feel that the seller is not willing to negotiate very close to that envelop, than they will likely move on.

One of our most popular flat fee MLS listing plans is ADDvantage Success™ where I negotiate for the seller and close the deal. This flat rate full-service plan costs $699 plus ¹⁄₃% at close ($699 min). It is a fast and effective way to a deal done at the higher-end of appraised value. The value of this service to the seller is I can push the buyer's agent and their buyer to offer more than they would if they deal directly with the seller. In part, because I command the respect of the buyer's agent and this typically results in a higher offer than a self-represented seller could accomplish. Buyer's agents are not a seller's best friend because they want completely the opposite of what a seller wants. By me acting as middleman to negotiate for the seller keeps the negotiations fair.

Call us anytime, we are open from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week. 727-942-2929. As well, you may find our smart by owner MLS selling tips to be enlightening.

What's wrong with this thinking is the flat fee MLS Florida listing broker is called about 40% of the time by Realtors that don't read the showing instructions correctly in the MLS. Realtors simply ignore the comment to "call seller at 305-555-2525 for showing and offers" or call the seller and get no answer.

The fact is these Realtors and buyers do call the flat fee MLS listing service when they need help. If they don't get assisted, they will not show your flat fee MLS Florida listing and you will lose an opportunity to show and possibly sell your home.

What's even more amazing is some sellers that do receive the best flat fee MLS service possible still don't believe how important our 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days service really is. Just last week, a client of ADDvantage® that was over-priced by some 40,k and after being listed with us for 7 months actually listed with another flat fee MLS listing service on the east coast of Florida. I never heard of us ever losing a client to another Florida flat fee MLS listing service. We do lose listing to full-service agents that boast they can bring a buyer but never a flat fee service because our service is exceptional.

By the way, when a $349 traditional flat fee MLS listing is about to expire (after the 9 month listing term) the seller can extend for 50% off the cost. Our ADDvantage Success™ flat fee MLS listing plan is "list till you sell."

Back to the client. I always call our expiring clients and chat about renewing their service for our discounted 40% off rate for another 9 months. This client actually thought they would do better listing their property with another flat fee listing firm. After they paid, they couldn't get that company back on the phone for 14 days...Just gone!!

The client called us back and renewed their old listing but when our MLS Administrator went to input the listing into the MLS we couldn't because that other firm still had the listing active. I called the client and advised them accordingly that they are listed. But, if the company is not answering their phone, you will lose showing opportunities. They agreed. For the past 6 day they have been trying to get that other flat fee MLS listing service in Florida to cancel the listing but the seller can't get them to respond to email or pick up the phone. They emailed me asking for the MLS Realtor Association phone number to file a complaint.

It is common place in the discount MLS listing business to have flat fee MLS brokers not answer their phone. To my knowledge we have never lost a client to another flat fee MLS listing service. We have been offering 8:00am-8:00pm 7 day a week service for 7 years now and continue to do so.

What amazes me is some people just don't get it. Service and reliability does equate to more showings and ultimately a higher offer.

Sellers and buyers want to get the best deal possible when buying or selling real estate. Got to love the Budweiser beer commercials of too light and too heavy because that is exactly what this article is about.

Let's start with the profession everyone loves to bash and that would be the attorneys. While not all attorneys' abilities and demeanor are the same, in general, they should leave certain negotiations to the Realtors and stick with the contract related issues such as which name to take the deed in (trust or individual) and other legalities that can affect their client. But, price is not a subject that attorneys should get involved with because they are too-heavy! When things go amuck, it's generally because the attorney steps on the toes of the Realtors and advises their client on price and negotiating strategies. This is not their forte and when they do get involved, it is a hard-ball negotiating tactic to push the other side. Might this be because they are justifying their services? When negotiating, always leave a door open and never slam one shut or create an obstacle that is impassable. Attorneys…Too-heavy!

Studies show that the general public trusts Realtors even less than lawyers. Supposedly, only 7% of the US population fully trusts attorneys. So where does that leave the Realtors? Why would anyone of sound mind and body allow a Realtor to negotiate a real estate transaction? The answer may surprise you. Realtors are aggressive, smart and most of the time, know their stuff. I can speak from a position that few can do because I have over 200 listings in Florida and negotiate as many as 5 deals a week. I can tell you that while I am a skilled and professional negotiator, so are the other Realtors that I do battle with on a daily basis. Realtors fight hard for their buyer clients, do their homework, and push their cause to the extreme to get the best deal possible for their buyer. I seldom engage a nonchalant Realtor and I find them on their game. Realtors…Just-Right!!

Next in line for analysis on the “Who's the best at negotiations” is the by-owner flat fee MLS seller. Flat fee MLS listings, also known as “limited service”, allow the by-owner to represent themselves in all negotiations. This is completely opposite from having an attorney or a broker/agent negotiate for you. When the by-owner allows someone else to represent them, they remain insulated behind the words and actions of a third-party. Sellers that represent themselves can quickly become trapped in a conversation about price and terms with no “dump-button” as all conversation are “live.” The self-represented seller is on the front-lines and has no back-up. Everything they say can and will be used against them in negotiations. Self-represented sellers…Too-soft!!

My advice to by-owners that self-represent when listed flat fee in the MLS is, don't do it! Upgrade your service to ADDvantage Success™ and allow me to represent you. If you represent yourself, you are exposing yourself without representation to the most aggressive and smart independent work force there is, the Realtors. They know more than you about contracts and you will likely leave money on the table or possibly be going back-on-market with your property after 20 or 30 days because of the buyer's inability to close. As well, you might agree too fast to a deal or not know local protocol and be left with less at closing. There are always issues such as appraisal, inspection reports, addenda, pre-approval letter, dead-lines, and other matters that come up and need to be dealt with promptly and professionally.

In conclusion, my advice is to seek an attorney when you have “tax” or “will” related issues such as closing a property in trust. Use an attorney when doing a complicated commercial deal or to review the language in a residential transaction. But, keep in mind, FAR and FARBAR contracts have been approved by the Florida Supreme Court. FARBAR contracts have been approved the Florida Association of Realtors and the Florida Bar. If you are going to represent yourself, do it for the right reasons. Some flat fee MLS “self-represented” sellers are builders, investors and others that are apt at contracts. Even the most experienced self-represented sellers need to be careful about what they say and how they engage a buyer. I see “back-on-market” all the time with even the most experienced investor-type clients at ADDvantage®. ADDvantage Success™ costs $1050 more than our $349 self-representation plan but well worth the money!

Most people are concerned and confused about the credit impact of a short sale, whether the lender will come after you for any deficiencies and if the lender will accept you (and your credit/assets) as a short sale.

These questions are somewhat easily answered. First, your credit will take “a hit” for about 4 years but far less than a bankruptcy or a foreclosure (10 years credit impact). The reason lenders prefer a short sale to a foreclosure is the turn-a-round time for liquidating their ‘bad-asset’ is rather fast for a short sale when compared with the high costs of a foreclosure.

Lender will not seek a ‘deficiency judgment’ against the homeowner for the short sale ‘short fall’ which is the difference between what you owe and the lender net return from the sale. No one will be coming after the sale like a bill collector. If that were the case, short sales would not be a viable option. We get a full release and satisfaction of debt from the lender. They may seek a promissory note from you for a fraction of what's owed (10-20 year note and a low interest rate) but not a judgment for the short fall. This is the primary reason why you would ‘short sale’ as opposed to getting foreclosed upon.

Lastly, not everyone is suited for a short sale because if you can't prove ‘hardship’ then the lender may take a position that if you want to sell, fund your own short fall and pay this negative balance at closing. Hardship is rather easy to prove for most short sales. For example, under-employed, no money, less than $50,000 liquid assets, no liquid assets, low assets, retirement, age, health, stress or mental health or rapid depletion of available assets or cash. The ones that can't prove hardship and shouldn't attempt a short sale are those people with excellent credit, good income, cash in the bank and enough cash to close the ‘bad-asset-home’ and still have a life.

We (ADDvantage) will run your short sale for free. You can list your home online (100% electronic sign-up) at shortsale.getmoreoffers.com. We list the property as a ‘full-service short sale 6% listing’. The lender pays our commission and all your closing costs. You pay nothing unless they request a note for a portion of the deficit.

As well, the lender will likely not pay us a 6% commission but rather negotiate our fee to 5%. We split that 5% between the buyer's agent and us as the listing agent.

Additional things to consider when doing a short sale in Florida.

Your credit will take a ‘hit’ for at least four years but better than a foreclosure. This may prevent you from buying another home for 4 years with the current underwriting practices. I fully expect these rules to change because there are plenty of excellent credit risks out there that have done a short sale. Greed in lending will return but just not to the extreme of 2000-2004.

The lender may request a note for a percentage of the short sale deficit. These days, lenders are attempting to get a note from everyone...The poor, the unemployed, and the not so poor. The more assets that you have the more they will likely want and get a note. Of course, your retort to them is ‘hardship’ and no!!! If you must give a note to the lender, make it as small as possible and fight the whole way. Notes are usually negotiated between the seller and the lender.

If the home is a primary residence, the IRS will forgive the shortfall deficiency and allow you expunge the loss. The lenders will 1099 you for the loss or deficiency. Seems weird but the IRS looks at losses as money barrowed and not paid back and taxable. The short sale “short-fall” is viewed as “earned income” and taxable. If the home is not primary, the IRS expects to get their share of the 1099 gain/loss. I hope in the near future, the IRS will make deals with short sellers to lessen this tax penalty.

There are many so called “short sale” experts offers their services and often use techniques that I do not believe are in the best interest of the seller. I do not take “any” offer to “get the ball rolling” at the lender. I want an offer that has the following:

1. I want a buyer that will be patient. Ideally, a cash buyer, but that is unlikely. I would prefer my buyer to be investor, but again unlikely. If the buyer is an end user, then I would hope they have 120 days to hang in there. Short sales can take anywhere from 65 to 130 days depending on the lender, how many lenders are involved and the loss mitiagator assigned to the file.
2. I need a buyer's agent that understands short sales especially if their buyer is an end-user because if they don't, their buyer likely doesn't understand what's going on either and that may hurt the deal.
3. I want an offer/contract that matches what the lender will accept. I don't want the lender to counter our offer. I want them to accept it! Seems easy and often it is. The listing broker is responsible for setting the list price and better do their homework. The listing agent needs to do what's called a BPO (Broker's Price Opinion). This is an estimate of value that, if listed at that price, would bring multiple offers in a short period of time.
4. I want a cooperative seller. The seller must be proactive and help with the short sale process. It is extremely important for the seller to be available and helpful. At times, the lender will request additional information and addendums.

Getting a short sale “sold” is our specially and rather easy for us as we are the largest flat fee MLS listing broker in Florida and we sell tons of homes in Florida for many reasons. We have excellent customer service (8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week), give excellent pricing advice to our sellers (we always recommend listing at the ‘market’ and leave no room to negotiate), we are very good at Internet marketing (Yahoo, MSN, Realtor.com, Homes.com, GetMoreOffers.com, BargainNetwork, AOL, Craigslist and hundreds more sites.) We are members of 25 Florida Realtor Associations and list home for sale in Miami, The Florida Keys, Naples, Marco Island, Amelia Island, Jacksonville, Ft. Myers, Tampa Bay, Gainesville, Ocala, Daytona, Tallahassee, The Florida Pan Handle, Orlando, Weston, Ft. Lauderdale, Sarasota, and just about every small city in Florida.

Please don't be concerned that my office is in Holiday, Florida because I represent sellers in every Florida city as all my work is done by email and phone.

Call me any time and I would be glad to answer any questions that you may have. 727-942-2929.

Or, go to shortsale.getmoreoffers.com to list your home free and 100% online!

As one of the founders of the ADDvantage® Real Estate Network and a pricing coach for hundreds of flat fee MLS sellers, I recommend a combination of 4 pricing strategies:

1. To form a basis for pricing your home, search Realtor.com for homes in your neighborhood that are comparable to yours.
2. While I am not advocating wasting a Realtor's® time, I would talk with a few local full-service Realtors® and have them prepare a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) for you. This CMA value will have a range that they will use to suggest a listing price. In a buyer's market, their suggestion is a catch-22 in that they will likely suggest listing at the lower end of the price range which will help sell faster but will also earn them their goal of a fast commission. Because you have the option of flat fee MLS listing your home, you can pass this 3% savings onto the buyer which will help you price your home at the lower end of the CMA range. Another reason to price as low as possible is that as many as 20% of all sales fall through today because short sales and bank owed (REO) properties have moved the price of available “closed sale” comparables to a level that will not support some sales contracts. Therefore, pricing your home for a successful appraisal is a consideration. Another factor is time which is not typically on the side of a seller in a buyer's market because prices have been lower every month for the past 4 years in most areas of the US. But, the good news is this trend appears to be changing.
3. Next, test your listing price for reaction. Wait to see what the Realtors® and buyers do. The first gauge will be the amount of showings and the second will be the quality of offers. When you list you home with the ADDvantage® Real Estate Network, our system sends each Realtor® an email the day after they show your property requesting feedback. Use this feedback to fine tune your price.
4. Next, consider my Buyer's Market Pricing Theory that is working well in cities throughout the US including Miami, Orlando, Naples, Fort Myers, Springfield, Denver, Raleigh, and other cities. I call my theory “How to Win the Sale and Not Give Your Home Away.” Here are my thoughts…

You have made an excellent choice by listing flat fee in the MLS and saving 3% in real estate commissions. Now you can pass this savings onto the buyer.

Next, appeal the competitive nature of the Realtors® by listing your home at a price where Realtors® scramble to be the first one to sell it and earn the offered commission.

I know my price theory works because I have thoroughly researched Realtors® and their motivations. I have also negotiated for 100's of by owner MLS flat fee sellers that have chosen to use our hybrid flat fee MLS plan ADDvantage PLUS™.

Buyers are only willing to pay market prices and at times slightly less than market prices to compensate them for the possibility of lower prices in the nearby future. In contrast, sellers are only willing to sell if they receive a price that they feel is not giving their property away. Sellers may have other restraints such as mortgage balances.

Now, create a situation where there is excitement about your listing by listing your home at your bottom line price! This strategy gives buyers hope that you'll negotiate lower with them into their comfort zones. That is why they will make you an offer. Eventually, there will be some buyer or Realtor® that likes your price and is willing to offer full-price.

Florida has $50,000 homes in Pasco County and $15,000,000 homes in Miami neighborhoods of Coral Gables, Coconut Grove, Star Island, Hibiscus, Fisher and other areas in Florida’s diverse real estate market.

My advice on how to price your Florida home may be interpreted differently depending on the price of your home. But, for this article, I’ll assume we are talking about homes that are $2,000,000 on down.

I know my price theory works because I have helped 100’s of Florida sellers get their properties sold even in this challenging market. I work with Realtors every day in Miami, Tampa, Daytona, Tallahassee, Jacksonville and just about every city in Florida. I understand their motivations.

The premise that I use in this buyer’s market is that buyers are only willing to pay market prices or slightly less than market prices to compensate them for the next drop in price even though prices in Florida seem to have stabilized.

Sellers, on the other hand, are only willing to sell if they get a price that they feel is not giving their property away or have other restraints such as mortgage balances!

Here’s the quagmire as I see it. How do you get the buyers and their Realtors to offer you a fair price? My suggestion is assume for a moment that you are negotiating with a cash buyer. After a few counters, what price would be your bottom line?

Even if you do your best to arrive at a firm bottom line price, often there will remain a gap between you and the buyer. This is the gap where buyers often will not travel to because they think they are paying too much and sellers think at that price they are giving way their home. So, what’s the answer?

The answer comes in two parts. First, get the Realtors competing against one another to be the first one to sell your home and earn the offered commission. It is always about the money! The way I do this is make your home attractive by listing it at the lowest price possible right from the start. Leave no room to negotiate and wait on a smart Realtor or buyer to bring you a full-price offer or very close to it.

This pricing strategy will create excitement and hopefully close that price gap. This strategy will encourage real buyers and Realtors to engage you with a serious or hopefully a full-price offer.

Second, if you decide to list your home flat fee in the MLS in Florida with us, consider our ADDvantage Success™ hybrid flat fee MLS listing plan that is just like a full-service listing. This plan allows me to help you navigate better with the Realtors and I negotiate all offers for you as well. I talk with each Realtor before they show your home and guide them (actually coach them) as much as possible to bring a full-price offer. Realtors often call before showing a home and request this kind of guidance anyway. It is my pleasure to assist!

By pricing your home this way, Realtors have extra motivation to be the lucky one and earn the offered commission.

Call me any time and I will discuss how to best price your Florida home.

727-942-2929

Getting your property sold using the short sale process is one of my specialties because I truly understand the process.

The 3 golden rules to establish an effective short in Florida are:

1. Establish a accurate hypothetical BPO
2. Find the right buyer
3. Ride the short sale processor like your accountant at tax time

You can trust that your short sales with receive the professional attention it needs at ADDvantage. I offer fast professional advice that you need to short sale your home anywhere in Florida including Orlando, Tampa, Miami, and Jacksonville or any city in between.

Below is a recent letter that one of my short sale Florida clients sent to me regarding a phone call to Wells Fargo. It does provide some insight into the short sale process:

The market conditions in Florida in any city such as Miami, Tampa, Jacksonville, and Orlando have created negative equity for many home owners. Short sales provide an alternative to foreclosure where the lender negotiates a sale for less the current amount due.

You can list your home 100% online by going to our short sale website at keith.getmoreoffers.com and look for the tab “start a listing online.”

Once you enter your data, upload pictures and sign the listing agreement (all online for you), I will contact you and discuss strategy or feel free to call me any time at 727-942-2929.

Here are a few things that you should know about a short sale:

1. A definition of a Short Sale is the sale of real property where the market price of the property is valued for less than all mortgages held against that property, or the loan balance. In order to make a sale happen, the lender must approve the offer amount and terms.
2. The IRS treats short sale deficiencies differently depending on whether the short sale is a homestead/primary residence or an investment property.
3. The seller should speak with their CPA or financial adviser before deciding on a short sale as opposed to other remedies.
4. Your credit score will suffer but less than a foreclosure.
5. The seller should call the lender and request a short sale package as soon as possible and ask if they have any MLS time requirements.
6. The listing broker will need to determine value (hypothetical BPO).
7. All contracts/offers are contingent on third party approval as well as any commissions offered in the MLS to cooperating brokers/agents.
8. Short sale “listing agreements” need to have this language to protect the seller…”The seller’s obligation to perform on this contract is subject to the approval of the lienholders on the property. The seller may cancel this agreement prior to the ending date of the listing period without advance notice to the broker and without payment of a commission or any other consideration, if the seller tenders Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure.”

The roll of the listing broker is to set an accurate hypothetical BPO value and bring the most suited buyer (and buyer’s agent…because agents that are seeking a fast commission will not hang in there and will eventually push the buyer away…it takes 65-120 days for a short sale to close).

With ADDvantage’s powerful Internet marketing we will find the right buyer. Our software tracks all the details along the way and our short sale team is organized, knowledgeable and we let no time get away from us.

We work along side another short sale specialist at Al-Day Donaldson.

For more information about ADDvantage handling your short sale, call 727-942-2929 or go to our short sale Florida website keith.getmoreoffers.com

ADDvantage holds membership in the following Florida’s MLS Realtor Associations:

In contrast, all other flat fee services in Florida have taken a different approach to building a reputation with Realtors®…Their approach was often unreliable or a recorded message “Realtors®, if you are calling for showing instructions, look in the MLS under Realtor® remarks and call seller directly.”

While this approach may be OK with some by owners that just want the cheapest MLS listing in Florida, it is not OK with ADDvantage®. Realtors® remember these “flat fee” companies as not accommodating or believe flat fee MLS services are annoying. They may even pass over listings from these companies and not show them!

We at ADDvantage® have always thought we wanted to help the Realtors®. 50% of them don't read the showing instruction in the MLS correctly and call the listing broker. We wanted to blend in as a full-service real estate company and not stand-out like a flat fee service that doesn't care.

Our approach to customer service is highly unusual. Our business model was designed around our clients…We think our clients are Realtors® and our flat fee MLS Florida by owners as our principals.

We view our flat rate MLS listing service as a conduit for Realtors® (buyer's agents) to meet by owner MLS listed on varies MLS Florida Boards such as Mid-Florida Regional MLS for Greater Orlando, Tampa, Sarasota and Naples. ADDvantage® holds MLS membership in 25 Florida Boards, both big and small. We are even member of the Florida Keys, Amelia Island and Marco Island. Of course, well-know ones such as SE Florida Regional MLS for Greater Miami-Dade, Regional MLS for Palm Beach and NEFAR for Greater Jacksonville.

If the reputation of the flat fee MLS service is good, then everyone wins. The seller only pays the buyer's agent a commission saving 50% and the Realtors® have an opportunity to earn that commission by showing a property that maybe a great deal for their buyer because the seller is passing their 3% savings in commission onto the buyer.

But, there is one glitch in the system. Most flat fee MLS Florida listing services have bad reputations for NOT answering their phone when people call. When Realtors® call a flat fee MLS Florida listing service they are seeking showing instructions to view a home.

As ADDvantage® has been answering the phone “live” for 5 years spreading the good word, one Realtor® at a time, of our commitment to excellent service; other flat rate services have done the opposite. Some of these discount MLS brokers are not local or just don't care about helping Realtors®. It's just about the “flat fee” money.

Because of this, these companies now have a bad reputation with the Florida Realtors®. Realtors® that have called and received no answer or no call back for days will never call that flat fee MLS broker again.

This has never happened at ADDvantage®. We have taken customer service and Realtor® support to a level not even offered by the best full-service companies in Florida.

Our hard work is now your asset because when Realtors® see the name ADDvantage® in the MLS when reviewing “showing instructions” they can only have one thought…“I know ADDvantage®, that's the company that is always available and always accommodating.”

Not only do we have the best phone support, we also have the best flat fee MLS listing software. It's 100% paperless and each seller has their own control panel to edit their listing, change pictures, load documents, print brochures, track website hits and view buyer and Realtor® showing requests.

When it's time to sell your home in Miami, Orlando, Tampa, Naples, Jacksonville, Key West, Amelia Island, Marco Island, Orlando, Ocala, Sarasota, Ft. Myers, Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm, Boca, Gainesville, Tallahassee or any Florida city choose the flat fee MLS Florida company that the Realtors® respect…ADDvantage®!

Which flat fee MLS program is best for you? It is simple and worth your time to understand the reasons why we offer 3 levels of service.

Our “traditional" flat fee MLS listing is called MLS ADDvantage® and costs $349. You will be “self-represented" and all "buyer leads" belong to you. This one sentence explains it all! A longer definition would be that you would be responsible to negotiate all offers with Realtors® and unrepresented buyers. You would be handling about 60% of the incoming calls from Realtors® and we would handle all the Realtor.com buyer inquiries. All leads that we receive are transcribed into an email and forwarded to you from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week...This includes Saturday and Sunday. Most by owners understand this traditional type of flat fee listing except for 3 points of significant concern. First, no seller contact information is allowed in Realtor.com, just the listing broker. It is imperative that you implicitly trust that your flat fee MLS Florida broker will answer their phone and forward all emails and calls that come from sources such as Realtor.com. Second, 40% of the Realtors® that see your MLS listing will not call you even though it says in the MLS under Realtor® remarks to "call Seller directly for all showings." Because they don't read these remarks carefully, they often call your flat fee MLS broker. If your MLS listing broker is not reliable to answer their calls (as most Realtors® are not/full-service or flat fee) and help these lost Realtors® with showing instructions then the result will be a lost a showing. Third, the reputation of the flat rate MLS broker is significant. ADDvantage® holds the highest reputation among Florida Realtors® because all calls have been answered live 12 hours a day since 2005. Most flat fee MLS listing services in Florida have dis-serviced Realtors®. Once dis-serviced, Realtors® remember these firms that have been non-responsive and may pass over that listing. Many of our listings at ADDvantage® are ADDvantage PLUS™ and ADDvantage Success™. These two flat fee MLS listing plans comes with a service we call Agent Assure® where we take all calls, schedule all appointments, negotiate and close the deal. Therefore, Realtors® see ADDvantage® as a "concierge" discount MLS broker. We are different from all other flat fee MLS business models. This creates an advantage for our sellers.

Our next level of flat fee MLS is "traditional with contract-to-close representation" added. Our program that offers this service is ADDvantage PLUS™. There are 3 major differences that distinguish ADDvantage PLUS™ from our MLS ADDvantage® "traditional" (above). One, we negotiate all offers and close the deal. Two, all calls go through ADDvantage® (seller's phone number held private) and we schedule all showings. Three, Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast is included, although you must offer at least a 4% buyer's agent commission. And lastly, ADDvantage PLUS™ is inputted into the MLS as an "Excusive Right of Sale Listing" (same as full-service) and not "exclusive agency" which is how our MLS ADDvantage® and all other flat fee MLS listings are inputted. The significant benefits of ADDvantage PLUS™ are: I can often negotiate a better and higher deal than a "self-represented" seller; Our 8:00am-8:00pm concierge phone support gets more showings and presents itself as a more professional listing to outside Realtors®; And, having an Exclusive Right of Sale listing is a better presentation to buyer's agents. (cost Not Available)

The last level is our hybrid-flat fee MLS plan ADDvantage Success™. The difference between ADDvantage PLUS™ and ADDvantage Success™ is the cost of the plan and how we handle buyer leads. With ADDvantage Success™, our local agents work all buyer leads that come our way in an attempt sell your home. They earn the same buyer's agent commission that you are offering all agents. If you are offering 3%, that's what our agents would earn if they are successful selling your home. If another agent sells, then they earn this commission. Only one commission is paid, just like all our flat fee plans. The odds that one of our agents will sell your home are less than 5%. This is the reason why flat fee MLS is a good deal for the Florida consumer because listing agents seldom have the buyer! Regardless of whether our agent or an outside agent has the buyer, you will receive contract-to-close service. ($699).

Flat fee MLS listings are a great deal for the Florida consumer just as long as their flat fee broker delivers what's promised!

ADDvantage® has the best reputation in Florida for flat fee MLS listings. We don't treat your MLS listing like a commodity. Open from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week.

With the success of our Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast, we are now offering new turn-key flat fee MLS listing plan that mimics a full service listing and saves the seller 50% in commissions.

Our newest innovation is ADDvantage Success™. Great name because it truly offers the Florida flat fee MLS seller what they need to be successful.

ADDvantage Success™ is a blend of our best products and services that we have ever offered into one easy to understand, yet highly effective, flat fee MLS listing plan…You pay a low upfront flat rate of $699.

Our Internet marketing package consists of Homes.com, Realtor.com, IDX feeds, GetMoreOffers.com, Yahoo, Zillow, Craigslist, Vast, AOL, MSN, RSS feeds and Oodle…Plus, 100's more real estate sites through the US and national sites such as Coldwell and Remax. More exposure sells homes faster.

Highlights of ADDvantage Success™

9 month Exclusive Right of Sale listing in your local Florida MLS…We are members of 25 Florida MLS boards including Orlando's Mid-Florida Regional MLS, Greater Tampa Association of Realtors®, Pasco, SE Florida Regional MLS, Miami Board, Amelia, Marco Island, Gainesville, Ocala, Naples, Ft. Myers and many more. You can cancel anytime with us and there is never a fee or strings attached.

Agent Assure® is our 7 day a week 8:00am-8:00pm concierge showing service. We schedule, confirm and email confirmations on every request. There is no need to speak with a Realtor®…Just ADDvantage®. Your customized showing instructions will be given to each Realtors® exactly the way you want. This service is more professional than the seller scheduling directly with the Realtor® ($199 value, free with ADDvantage Success™)

Feedback is important to everyone selling real estate. Everyone wants feedback from Realtors®. Our system automatically sends an email to each Realtor® that shows your home requesting feedback. A copy is emailed automatically to you for your analysis. ($99 value, free with ADDvantage Success™)

Agent Activate®…Makes selling your home smarter

Agent Activate® is an optional service where buyers are shown your property by one of our qualified agents. 100's of Realtors® throughoutFlorida have sold an ADDvantage® MLS listed property. We track and rate each Realtor® creating a pool of qualified Agent Activate® agents. Once you list your home with ADDvantage® each Realtor® that shows your home will be evaluated for their “Realtor® etiquette” and buyer skills via our feedback system. When we believe an agent has the right combination of skills, we then include those Realtors® into “your” Agent Activate® pool of available and qualified Realtors®. So when a buyer calls, the best agent will help sell your home and will be paid your "offered" commission, typically 3%.

Broker Assist… Advice 7 days a week. Most offers will not come through an ADDvantage® agent but rather from another outside agent. If this occurs, the ADDvantage® broker with 27 years of experience will consult, review the contract, check for missing documents and assist in closing the transaction. Realtors® always prefer our "Broker Assist" as this facilitates their efforts of getting a deal done. There will be a transaction fee of $0 at close to compensate ADDvantage® until this scenario. (A $799 value)

Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast is the most effective Realtor®-to-Realtor® email in Florida. Since 2005, ADDvantage® has been emailing Realtors® our "high commission Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast" hot sheet. It is now the best read Realtor®-to-Realtor® email in Florida. It is reserved just for those Florida sellers offering at least a 4% buyer's agent commission. Every two weeks, the Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast is sent to thousands of Realtors® that work or live within 35 miles of a Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast listed property. (A $599 value, free with ADDvantage Success™)

An Exclusive Right of Sale Listing in MLS is more effective than an Exclusive Agency (flat fee listing). Limited service listings (a.k.a "flat fee MLS") are at times not shown because some Realtors® consider them more work as compared with full-service listing. Even some MLS systems allow searches excluding limited service listings. While illegal to shun any listing or any company, this does happen. This shouldn't stop you from listing flat fee far because the cost savings far outweighs any possible lost showings. But, with an ADDvantage Success™ listing, we have solved this showing dilemma by using an Exclusive Right of Sale Listing; not an Exclusive Agency or limited service. There is no difference between an ADDvantage Success™ flat fee MLS listing and a full-service listing.

Realtor.com "Showcase" listing allows for 2,400 characters of property description and additional pictures. If you have a Virtual Tour, we will be posted it there and on getmoreoffers.com and Homes.com. ($49 value, free with ADDvantage Success™)

Not one of my friends thought they had a 26% chance of selling within 117 days which is the exact pace that ADDvantage® of Florida has sold its flat fee MLS Florida listings the past 6 months. Typically the 4^th quarter is not a robust time of year to sell so 26% is not bad.

As market conditions improve, in particular more available lending capital and more creative lending programs, so will the odds of selling. Things are tough right now but they have been difficult since 2006.

What is critical today when selling a home in Florida cities such as Miami, Tampa, Jacksonville, Orlando, and Sarasota is how well your marketing plan is executed, the commission you are offering to buyer's agents, your price (but not as much a factor as 2008 as short sales are not your competition) and converting phone calls into showings.

At ADDvantage® of Florida, we excel in every category stated above that we control and we exceed expectations in the last factor mentioned…converting phone calls into showings.

While 26% sold the past 6 months might not seem impressive, I would bet that figure beats Coldwell's numbers (of course they will not publish their numbers) as well as any flat fee MLS listing service in Florida.

The reason ADDvantage® converts more phone calls into sales is because every call is answered live 12 hours a day 7 days a week…Buyers are assisted immediately and given seller contact info and the by owner flat fee MLS seller receives an email detailing the caller info and request. ADDvantage PLUS™ and ADDvantage WORKS™ flat fee MLS programs come with a concierge showing service where we handle showing requests directly. ADDvantage PLUS™ and ADDvantage WORKS™ sellers also receive 100% contract-to-close representation.

If you are selling your Tampa, Orlando, Miami or any Florida home and want to save money on commissions, trust the ADDvantage® brand of flat fee MLS to get your property more Internet exposure on top by owner sites such as Trulia, Vast, Homes.com, Harmon Homes and hundreds more…AOL, MSN, Yahoo, and Googlebase. We were awarded the Realtor.com's 2008 Online Marketing Award so you know your listing will be perfect in the most he popular real estate website in America…Realtor.com.

Call us anytime 727-942-2929 or visit our flat fee MLS Florida listing programs.

ADDvantage is an By owner MLS Internet marketing and sales organization designed to capture all buyer leads and Realtor calls between 8:00am and 8:00pm 7 days a week.

We are the best flat fee MLS listing Florida company because we care more about what we are doing. We spend more of our resources on staffing MLS administrators so we never miss a call. Our exceptional phone ethic pays off for our by owner MLS sellers because we sell more Florida homes.

By owners that list in the MLS need buyer leads and Realtor showings to be successful The gate keeper of all Realtor showings and buyer leads is the flat fee broker. If the flat fee broker provides poor phone ethic, then the by owner MLS seller will have poor results.

The public has a misconception about flat fee MLS listing a Florida property. They seem to believe that all calls go directly to them and the sole purpose of the listing broker is getting them “listed in the MLS”. The reason the public believes this is because 96% of all flat fee MLS websites state this misleading nonsense.

ADDvantage has fielded over 2092 phone calls from Realtors and buyers in behalf of our Florida flat fee MLS listed sellers over the past 12 months.

These 2092 calls didn't randomly occur. They all called ADDvantage for showing instructions or searching for more information after seeing one of our ads promoting a flat fee MLS Florida property.

Since 1913 there has been a Code of Ethic among Realtors that says calling the listing broker's client is forbidden; deal directly with the listing broker. Of course, this is an oxymoron because flat fee MLS is about “self-representation” to a large degree. But, all the same, we receive calls all day long from agents across Florida wondering “how to show a property” or “where to send an offer”.

I just completed my required 4 year ethics class and the instructors mentioned nothing about how to approach a flat fee MLS seller in Florida. Because of this general confusion, we send an email to every Realtor that calls ADDvantage about one of our flat fee MLS listings in Florida that says, “You have my expressed permission to deal directly with seller (Bob Smith). His contact numbers are 305-888-0001 and 305-765-0987. Best Regards, Keith Gordon, Broker for ADDvantage.”

Before you list in the MLS, do the smart thing and list with a reliable, detailed oriented and ethical flat fee MLS Florida listing service, ADDvantage. Call us anytime, 727-942-2929.

We flat fee MLS list homes, condos, land and commercial property from Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville, Miami and just about every Florida City.

Over the past 2 years, short sales have created chaos for everyone attempting to purchase one. This has been a huge distraction for buyer's agents and a thorn-in-the-side for Florida homeowners.

The pendulum has finally swung in favor of Realtors® selling “retail” MLS listings and not “short-sales”. The majority of buyer's agents are on the same page as the by owner MLS sellers.

Each party wants to close in 30 days and have a smooth transaction. This means no waiting for the banks to respond to an offer-possibly up to 90 days, only to reject it and throw the buyers and their agents back to the street.

Initially, buyers were attracted to the irresistible below market prices of short sales. After experiencing the reality of the painstaking process, they are back to looking at the good deals that aren't short sales.

This is great news for ADDvantage and our flat fee MLS Florida clients. This means price is no longer the predominant factor in selling a home in Florida.

December's pricing advice is: price your home competitively but do not attempt to compete with the cheapest house in the neighborhood. Leave some room for negotiations, possibly 5-8 percent.

Consider offering a home warranty to buyers as this cost is deferred until closing. If you don't close, no premium is paid. The cost is $445 and often sellers end up paying for a home warranty anyway because buyer's agents make this request when they present an offer. Sellers might as well receive the marketing benefits of offering a home warranty by advertising such in the MLS, Realtor.com and other FSBO websites. Buyers perceive homes that come with a warranty as being more valuable.

Another consideration for flat fee MLS Florida sellers in Tampa, Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale and Jacksonville is to marketing aggressively to the Realtor's® needs by using our Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast-if you can afford to offer at least a 4% buyer's agent commission.

Our “ultimate” flat fee MLS Florida listing plan is ADDvantage PLUS™ contract-to-close. This plan comes with the Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast, contract-to-close representation and many more by owner benefits.

In short, if you can afford our Not Available ADDvantage PLUS™ flat fee MLS listing program, it is truly the best by owner MLS offer in Florida. It is exactly like a full-service listing in that we take all calls, schedule all showings and I negotiate your offers with you. The only difference is that we don't show Realtors® your home or buyers because you get all our buyer leads. This is better for you because it creates the possibility to sell without paying a commission to the buyer's agent. There are so many benefits to the by owner MLS seller that I highly recommend this flat rate MLS plan. It comes with Agent Assure®, Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast, complete and unlimited contract-to-close representation. I believe ADDvantage PLUS™ sellers get more Realtor® showings and ultimately a higher price for their homes.

Most of our “for sale by owner” MLS sellers use our $349 flat fee MLS Florida plan.

All of our flat rate MLS listing plans come with our legendary 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days live phone support.

ADDvantage is chosen 2 to 1 over all other Florida flat fee MLS services offering a similar service because we pay attention to every detail of listing in the MLS…And there are many details to manage.

The 2 most important factors that affect sellers are buyer leads (who gets them) and phone support. The biggest misconception in the by owner MLS listing business is that live phone support isn't necessary. This couldn't be further from the truth.

Most flat fee MLS Florida listing services mislead sellers by saying all calls go to them when in fact, all calls can't go the flat fee listed seller because the broker of record's phone number must be published in the MLS, by rule. Realtors® call the first number they see in the MLS and it's often the broker of record, not the sellers…Even though the seller's number is published under Realtor® Remarks.

Moreover, phone support is critical when Realtors® and buyers from Realtor.com call the listing broker (no seller info is allowed in Realtor® by rule). Our experience has proven that buyers and Realtors® are calling…we have had over 2092 calls the past 12 months-calls that came to us, not the seller. At ADDvantage, there is someone answering the phone and helping these callers reach their goal…To show your home!

According to a Gallup poll, 79% of both buyers and sellers rate home warranties as one of the most important considerations when buying or selling a home.

Offering a home warranty to buyers allows the seller to advertise such a warranty in the MLS and the 100's of other FSBO websites.

Broker for Florida ADDvantage® says “I believe this is a win-win situation for by sellers because over 50% of the offers that come to sellers from Realtors® representing buyers contains a condition in the purchase and sale agreement requesting the seller pay for a home warranty. If you are going to pay for it anyway, you might as well receive the benefit of advertising that fact and possibly attract more offers and a higher price.”

As the flat fee MLS listing option to sell real estate in Florida continues to grow in popularity, ADDvantage® will be on the forefront of innovation bringing by owner MLS sellers more listing options.

ADDvantage® leads the way in Florida for creative marketing with its Street Smart ADDvantage® Realtor® E-Blast program and its powerful and effective contract-to-close flat fee MLS listing plan, ADDvantage PLUS™.

For more information on the Old Republic warranty, click here.

Why flat fee listing saves you money:

1. There is no listing commission; only a low-cost flat fee in its place
2. Listing flat fee gives a by owner home seller the same exposure as a home seller listed through a traditional Realtor® who charges 6% or more. This includes the MLS and Realtor.com. With ADDvantage, your listing also goes to 100's of well-known real estate home buyer search sites including Homes.com. Therefore sellers need not spend money on multiple ineffective small-time FSBO sites.
3. If a flat fee listing seller finds a buyer who does not have a Realtor® and they make a deal, the seller pays NO commission!

ADDvantage offers sellers choices with custom flat fee listing packages. Each plan is tailored for the individual needs of FSBO home sellers.

Check out the flat fee MLS client testimonials and see how many sellers have saved by using ADDvantage.

This blog post is about whether or not self-represented flat fee sellers get the same price for their homes when they represent themselves verses having me or another skilled Realtor® negotiate for them.

I have been actively involved listing homes flat fee in the MLS in Tampa, Miami, Orlando, Jacksonville, Ft. Lauderdale, and other Florida cities since 2000.

When self-represented sellers negotiate for themselves, they have a 50/50 chance of getting in right.

I have listed over 2,400 properties in Florida and have spoken with at least 1,600 of my past flat rate MLS clients. I have negotiated over 100 contracts for our contract-to-close flat fee clients.

I have taken over 7,000 calls from Florida Realtors® over the past 8 years requesting showing appointments in Orlando, Tampa, Miami and other cities in between.

I have received feedback from at least 100 Realtors® that have negotiated directly with my flat fee listed clients in Florida. Some have complained that they do not like dealing directly with sellers and wished I was doing the negotiating for the seller. While others, that have worked directly with my flat fee clients, would never complain because they succeeded and earned their commission.

I am an experienced on the pros and cons of being flat fee MLS listed in Florida.

When self-represented sellers negotiate for themselves, they have a 50/50 chance of getting in right.

Flat rate MLS sellers are at a big disadvantage when negotiating against a skilled (or unskilled) Realtor® for 5 reasons:

One…The Realtor® usually knows more about real estate contracts than the self-represented seller does. Sellers have a limited knowledge base to draw from of many elements of a real estate contract.

Two…When flat fee sellers "self-represent", there is no 'messenger' to help mediate the deal. This is where things go wrong with 'self-representation.' When I negotiate for a seller, I have the opportunity to interview the buyer's agent for 'deal clues.' Clues such as what the buyer does for a living, where they are from, motivation and other nuances that will give me clues as to how they are thinking. The self-represented seller can not get this same information because the seller is perceived as the adversary when dealing directly with a Realtor® and I am just the messenger.

Three…Emotions can stop a deal. When a seller deals directly with the buyer's agent, their buyer is in essence sitting at the negotiation table with the seller. That is a disadvantage. When I negotiate, the buyer perceives me as a semi-impartial professional that understands real estate which ads reassurance, subliminal as it may, that they are getting a fair deal.

Four…Is the ability to be forthright with my seller and the other Realtor®. Like an attorney would negotiate with another attorney, all I want is to have a meeting of the minds as quickly as possible.

Five…And last, but not least, is the final sales price. Sellers need to help buyer's agents quickly understand what they want and why their buyer should pay that price. That may entail different 'countering' strategies and psychology to arrive at that price. Knowing how to handle the buyer's agent is the key. You need to speak their language and help them to keep on track which is to earn a commission by closing this deal. Buyer's agents single goal is to find their buyers a home at a price and terms that are 'market reasonable' and not 'market unreasonable.' When that is accomplished, they get to earn a commission.

Flat fee MLS is an effective by owner marketing approach in Florida. It can save by owners from paying any commission if sold without a Realtor®. If a Realtor® finds the buyer, then the by owner seller pays just that agent.

Saving money is one thing. Representing yourself is a completely different story and at times a dangerous proposition.

I recommend ADDvantage PLUS™, our hybrid flat fee MLS listing that acts and looks just like a full-service listing. The cost is Not Available. With ADDvantage PLUS™, we take all calls, schedule all appointment for the seller, negotiate all offers and close the transaction. The seller enjoys the cost savings of flat fee and the benefits of having a professional negotiator handle the buyer's agent.

Call us anytime, 727-942-2929.

While not everyone shops at Wal-Mart, everyone loves a bargain especially when it comes to saving $10,000 in real estate commissions. Depending on the sales price of your home, a flat fee MLS seller can save at least 3% over a traditional MLS listing.

The mechanics of listing on the MLS by owner are rather simple. The seller pays no listing commission which saves the seller 50% off a 6% listing. Sellers only offer the buyer's agent a commission.

Besides the commission savings that flat fee MLS affords, the other major benefit is that your listing is being promoted by a network of websites and not just a single listing agent. Listing by owner MLS with ADDvantage gets our entire network of 100's of FSBO websites all working for one goal…getting your home sold!

The ADDvantage Network will send your listing to hundreds of FSBO websites like Google, MSN, AOL, Harmonhomes, Craigslist and Homes.com. And the marketing doesn't stop there as there are hundreds more MLS data-driven websites such as Realtor.com, Coldwellbanker.com, Remax.com and GetMoreoffers.com. Even many local Realtor® websites will help promote your MLS listing through what is called an IDX feed.

In today's economy, saving money makes everyone very happy. When listing in the MLS through the ADDvantage Network, by owners will receive state-of-the-art MLS listing software so editing a listing is easy and fast. Each seller has their own “control panel” to make listing changes and communicate with their listing broker. No need to call, email or fax. Just click the necessary feature in the control panel and within seconds your listing broker has your change request. Once the change is made, the system will send a confirmation by email.

Now sellers have two powerful FSBO tools to help them market and sell by owner. The MLS and the ADDvantage Real Estate Network. It is the best of both worlds.

Call us anytime! We are here from 8:00am-8:00pm Eastern Standard time, 7 days. 727-942-2929 or compare our flat fee MLS listing plans.

Money continues to flow into good deals and there are plenty of them!

At ADDvantage, we continue to offer excellent Internet marketing and world class client support for our flat fee MLS Florida sellers. We are finding good success from all our flat fee MLS plans. My favorite flat rate MLS listing plan is ADDvantage PLUS™.

ADDvantage PLUS™ acts and looks just like a full service listing but the entire fee to ADDvantage is Not Available. Sellers offer only the buyer's agent a commission saving about 1/2 of the cost of a traditional MLS listing. And, the “by-owner MLS” seller can sell themselves and pay zero commission. Flat fee MLS is the best of both worlds.

Plenty of things amaze me as the broker and co-owner of ADDvantage.

My top 3 things that amaze me are:

One…Why would a by owner sign up for a flat fee MLS Florida listing without first reading a listing agreement?

Two…Why would anyone sign up for a listing in the MLS and try to save $100 knowing they can get guaranteed live phone support 8:00am-8:00pm, 7 days a week from ADDvantage?

Three…Why would anyone list their home flat rate in the MLS without fully knowing that all buyer leads belong to the seller and not the flat fee service.

But, what also baffles me is why more by owner MLS sellers don't choose ADDvantage PLUS™. I know Not Available is not pocket change, especially in this environment, but I truly believe all Florida flat fee MLS sellers would get more for their homes and sell faster if I negotiated in their behalf.

A have a few thoughts as to why by owners choose to “self-represent”. I believe by owner MLS sellers want all offers coming to them directly. Sounds like a control thing or possibly lack of trust for Realtors®, in general. I have been a Realtor/broker for 25 years and I am pretty sure Realtors are at the bottom of the trust list, right below my lawyer buddies. I also believe sellers think we are going to charge them more than our advertised $799 at close. We don't, of course. The last notion would likely be the most correct reason why so many flat fee MLS Florida sellers represent themselves which is they think it's no big deal to negotiate a contract. Some, of course, are being penny wise and pound foolish.

For whatever their reasons are that drive flat fee MLS Florida sellers to choose our MLS ADDvantage® MLS listing over ADDvantage PLUS™, I will continue to promote “contract representation” as the better way to sell “by-owner-MLS”.

Here are my 5 reasons why I believe flat fee MLS Florida sellers can get more for their homes if I do the talking:

First: I talk straight and honest. I do not beat around the bush. I tell the buyer's agent to work that buyer and let's get the deal done.

Two: I talk with the buyer's agent and determine what kind a buyer I am dealing with. But, while the Realtor is singing away about their client and how they have another home down the street that they like as well…I am really sizing up the Realtor. I want that Realtor on my side, pronto!

Three: I create a strategy upfront with my client seller and set a benchmark bottom line price that we are going after.

Four: I attempt to convince the buyer's agent to understand “we” are not a short sale and but “we” want to sell at a fair price.

Five: I make sure my seller understands the contract.

Call us anytime; we are here from 8:00am-8:00pm 7 days a week. 727-942-2929