According to the US Census Bureau, there were over 650,000 new single-family homes sold last year. With this segment representing over 10% of the sales market, how can you leverage this niche to grow your business?
Get to know the new home buyer — and what they need to know
Buyers of new homes are often on their second or third property. So the purchase will most likely include the sale of their existing residence. Since a new home purchase may involve choosing from multiple builders, half a dozen floor plans, and an endless variety of options, new home buyers naturally have a lot of questions.
Buyers of new homes may wonder if they even need a Realtor. Digital platforms are where you show them why they do need your help. Establish yourself as an expert on new homes in your area and demonstrate fluency in the communities and builders using your web site and social media.
For example, the YourWayHome team is rolling out a national website featuring the new home communities in every state, including each builder, floor plans and specialized hyperlocal content curated by its team of local agents. This empowers buyers to self-serve while connecting them to one of their agents that can help after the research phase.
“Our strength lies in our team of agents and their local knowledge of the new home communities,” said YourWayHome Founder Andrew Batson. “Because we assign an exclusive agent on our team to each community, they become a true expert. As a company, we build the tech, spend the money on marketing and generate all the buyer leads, but it’s our agents and their intimate knowledge of the community, builders, and options that resonate with the homebuyers.”
Mr. Batson continues, “Our website’s mission and our agent’s focus is to serve as an unbiased source of information for the new home buyer. For example, maybe the community has an amazing recreation center, but we are also going to explain the impact of the special metro district and how that will affect the homeowner’s taxes.”
Don’t get cut out of the transaction
The first challenge of new home sales is the builder’s sales office on site, where any buyer can simply wander in and sign a contract without fully understanding the implications. That’s why it’s critical to demonstrate your value as an agent early on.
Colorado broker Eric Morris can attest. “Often, homeowners have heard nightmare stories about buying a new home. Because our team specializes in new home sales, our clients recognize early on the value we bring to the process. Our knowledge of what is reasonable to expect and our good working relationship with the home builders brings them comfort.”
Another way to demonstrate value and provide top-level service is to offer sales support for the buyer’s existing residence.
Agents like Claudia Archuleta with the YourWayHome team feels this is a differentiator. “We’re a full-service brokerage, offering dedicated marketing support, an ISA team, the best technology, professional photography and a long term commitment after the sale,” she said. “But we’ve found it’s good business to offer new home buyers a compelling value with a 1% listing side commission on their old home when they buy a new home with us as their Buyer’s agent. If they buy a new home without an agent, they lose the valuable representation we provide, and they’ll likely end up paying a higher commission to sell their existing home.”
Build relationships with the builders themselves
Even though the builder’s sales personnel are more than happy to work directly with buyers, most builders do value relationships with agents that actively promote their community.
That means you need to look out for your buyer’s best interest while also understanding the realities of new home building.
Andrew Batson explains, “Don’t expect to go into a builder’s office and renegotiate the sales contract. Your job is to make sure that your client understands the terms of the builder contract and then work with the builder to ensure they deliver what was agreed to. When the builder sees you as a pragmatic partner in the process rather than an adversary, you’ll be more successful and your client is likely to benefit from a more responsive builder.”
Batson also owns a small custom home building company and understands the challenges that builders face. He knows first hand that when you treat a builder with respect, they are far more likely to go out of their way to accommodate special requests.
New home sales are an exciting opportunity for agents. Creating a solid digital presence that demonstrates deep knowledge of your area and establishing relationships with local builders are both critical to growth. An experienced agent can help keep projects on track, resulting in a more cooperative builder, a happier client, and a full pipeline for your business.
YourWayHome is a national expansion team with Fathom Realty serving both new homes as well as resale buyers and sellers. Learn more about how the team provides agents with exclusive new home sales territories and over 30 company-generated leads each month. Visit careers.yourwayhome.com.