What’s in Your Wallet, A Good Land Broker?

What’s in Your Wallet, A Good Land Broker?

What should you require from your realtor? Is your representative qualified, capable and motivated? Is your agent representing you, him or herself, or the buyer? Can you trust your realtor to do the right thing for you? Lots of questions need to be answered before you list your property. The old adage, “you get what you pay for”, for the most part, is true.

The real estate business has been very interesting since the economic collapse in 2007. Much change has come about as a result of this. As a land broker and forester, I have had to make adjustments like so many others. Competition in our profession is intense but our goal is to provide excellent service and help you realize and achieve your goals. Our services include land brokerage, land & timber management and wildlife management

Competition is a good thing. Competition makes us work harder and stimulates creativity for those of us that strive to be the best we can be. Our work has significantly increased and margins are tight. There is always someone that will list property for a smaller commission and price the property at whatever price to get the listing.

I had a professor from the New England area call me looking for land and his statement to me was

“I have looked at property for months and everything on the internet is priced twice the market value.”

He called me because what I had listed was within reasonable parameters of a true market value.

My clients want results though. If your land broker understands and has knowledge of the market, he or she should be able to provide you with a reasonable assessment of value. No one can tell you exactly what your land will bring, but we can certainly give you a close estimate of value. The length of time to sell will also dictate where we price a property. Since 2007, I have learned to ask if there is some urgency or time frame in which a property needs to be sold.

I utilize photos, maps, market data, forestry knowledge and years of experience to generate a realistic price and marketing plan. To a trained eye, value of the land is what it is. Land value may be a little more or a little less but I can estimate a price within reasonable parameters. Having good knowledge of the property better helps me negotiate my client the best price possible. I can tell you with confidence which offers are reasonable and which should be rejected. Furthermore, if the price is not within reasonable parameters and a loan is involved, the property may not appraise. If this happens, everyone’s time and money has been wasted.

Every tract needs to be evaluated before you can have a real buyer. If a realtor has more listings than he or she can manage, they may not be able sell them and probably cannot service the listings appropriately. Find out about your brokers sales percentage and get references.

In land sales, forestry knowledge is hugely important. We just inventoried a large tract with several thousand dollars per acre of timber. We have also sold considerable timber this year in excess of several thousand dollars per acre. Can you trust your land broker to represent your interest and have the integrity to make the right decisions? Does your agent have adequate knowledge of your product and the ability to market that product? Can your agent actually negotiate the deal and get it closed?

Our goal is to provide you with the best data available in order to make sound decisions about your land and/or timber investment. Our years of experience and knowledge of our specific land and timber market enables us to provide you with the expertise necessary to help you make informed decisions. It is very gratifying to help our many clients and know the best possible results were achieved.