Treasure Coast Real Estate Blog

Have you ever wondered what a “pocket listing” is? Learn a little bit about this trend in hot markets and how an agent familiar with pocket listings can help you sell your home faster or find homes which haven’t hit the market yet.

If you’ve been searching for a home or have been considering selling your home, you may have heard the term “pocket listings” from real estate agents or even friends and family. What is a pocket listing? Where did the term come from? How are pocket listings being used today to buy and sell homes?

Pocket listings are homes which are for sale but not yet widely advertised or entered into typical MLS databases. Often an agent will enter into an agreement to sell a home, but will first reach out to their personal and professional network to see if anyone may be interested in a quick, private purchase. Ideally, the agent knows someone or another agent who has a client interested in the home and the whole process of listing and marketing the home is bypassed.

Originally, pocket listings were typically used for extremely high-end luxury properties with a limited pool of buyers, or with celebrities or other buyers/sellers who wished to avoid any publicity surrounding their transaction. But that’s changed a lot in the past few years, especially in competitive markets where there are eager buyers and relatively little desirable inventory.

You might think pocket listings would restrict the sale price of the home. After all, won’t a good home publicly listed attract lots of buyers, resulting in competitive bids? It depends. Once a home is listed in an MLS database, the home is officially on the market. The longer a home sits on the market (i.e. the higher its “days on market” number is), the greater the possibility the home will see price reductions or low-ball offers.

The pocket listing can be a very useful tool for exploring the level of interest in a home. A savvy agent with a good network will often reach out to their database in order to get a sense of whether the listing has real potential. It’s also a great way to drum up excitement about a house, especially if the agent conducts small, exclusive broker showings of the pocket listing.A pocket listing also gives a wary home seller the chance to see if it’s likely the home will sell for a price they can accept.

Experienced agents with deep connections in the community are the go-to choice if you’re interested in discussing the possibility of buying or selling via the pocket listing approach. 

Thinking of listing quietly? Want to see if there are any homes out there which are just about to come to the market? I am happy to help you navigate a pocket listing situation. Get in touch today!

This post has been authored by Eric Slifkin, REALTOR® serving South Florida’s Treasure Coast. You can reach me at 888-288-1765, or visit my Web site. As your resource for information on new or resale homes throughout the Treasure Coast, please be sure to contact me about any home you may find on the Web, yard sign or ad and I will research the property, arrange showings and handle all the details.

How Zillow's Premier Agent Program Supports the Slifkin Team

Eric Slifkin is a Treasure Coast real estate team leader who uses a stock-market-like system to manage leads for his agents. Slifkin, a licensed real estate professional since 2003, sits at a desk with a bank of computer monitors to ensure prompt response to client inquiries. He watches as leads from Zillow, Trulia, and his own property search sites flow across the screens as buyers and sellers explore listings. As leads come in, Slifkin assigns each one to whichever agent he thinks is best-suited for the job, making sure his best people are working on the best opportunities.

There’s no doubt, though, that a team leader finds activities like this tedious at best. But Slifkin manages the process by leveraging systems designed by Zillow specifically for real estate teams. Eric recently joined Zillow's Premier Agent program, which offers a suite of tools to support his team of six agents and the hundreds of home buyers and home sellers who visit his sites every day.

This includes, among other tools, the Zillow Concierge Program, which uses Zillow employees to qualify phone leads before the call gets routed to an agent. The Zillow concierges ask leads if they’re interested in buying or selling and whether they’re already working with a real estate agent. If the lead is a valid buyer or seller who doesn’t have an agent, the Zillow employee will ask to transfer the call to the next available agent.

Zillow Concierge leads are also routed to Slifkin for review. If he decides that the agent who’s claimed a lead might not be the best fit for that particular consumer, then he can move that lead to a different agent.

Eric has been using Zillow's Premier Agent Concierge Program for more than a year, but he’s most excited about Team Profiles, Zillow's latest enhancement that lets consumers view team members' profiles right on the Zillow site. “Our agents can showcase their skills and personal reputation on their team profiles. This enables consumers to understand who they are connecting with on a personal level.”

Slifkin understands that building a real estate team requires an ongoing investment in the best talent, tools, and systems to improve his business and help his agents succeed. His team is a top producer in Keller Williams' Treasure Coast Market Center, having completed over 100 transactions in 2016.

This post has been authored by Eric Slifkin, REALTOR® serving South Florida’s Treasure Coast. You can reach me at 888-288-1765, or visit my Web site. As your resource for information on new or resale homes throughout the Treasure Coast, please be sure to contact me about any home you may find on the Web, yard sign or ad and I will research the property, arrange showings and handle all the details.

Earnest money is a great way to show a seller you’re serious about the offer you’re making on their home. By placing a portion of what amounts to your down payment on the table to demonstrate your commitment to follow-through on the contract, you’re saying “I love this home and I’m ready to go.” But there’s a real risk involved: If you make a mistake, you might just be out a chunk of cash.

Ways to Avoid Burning Your Home-Buying Bankroll in Lost Earnest Money

1. Make sure it’s the home you really want. Seem obvious? Sure. But it’s easy to get swept up in the moment. Recognize that you’re about to enter into a legally binding contract and that the money you’re risking will hurt if you change your mind. While you may not be able to drag your feet on the decision, check your gut to see if there are any reservations lurking there before you go all in.

2. Don’t sacrifice contract contingencies. Don’t let your desire for a home cause you to blindly remove contingencies which are built into contracts to protect buyers. Common ones include loan contingencies, title search issues, appraisal, and insurance obstacles. Waive these at your own peril. 

3. Avoid committing to a home “as is.” If you’re putting earnest money on an offer for a foreclosed home, don’t be too eager to accept any problem the home may have. Take the time to understand the home’s issues before you write the offer.

4. Read the contract timelines. Look at closing dates and other dates related to the process leading up to closing. Violating the timeline could cost you your earnest money as well. 

5. Ensure you have recourse to get some or all of your earnest money back. If the sale doesn’t gel, you and the buyer will need to sign a document voiding the agreement. Don’t sign this until you understand how it will impact your earnest money refund. The seller’s title can be negatively impacted if you don’t sign off, so keep your leverage handy until you’re sure you’ve been fairly treated.

Ready to buy? Protect yourself and your down payment by playing smart with your earnest money. If you have questions or concerns, ask your agent to help you understand everything in plain language! 

This post has been authored by Eric Slifkin, REALTOR® serving South Florida’s Treasure Coast. You can reach me at 888-288-1765, or visit my Web site. As your resource for information on new or resale homes throughout the Treasure Coast, please be sure to contact me about any home you may find on the Web, yard sign or ad and I will research the property, arrange showings and handle all the details.

Keep Your Lawn Hydrated

Higher temperatures are on the way. Now is a great time to have your irrigation system inspected so it's ready to keep your lawn at its greenest. You've spent a lot of time and money making sure your landscaping works for you and you home. Proper irrigation is the key to making sure it stays that way. Inspect for yourself or have a pro come out to make sure it's functioning properly.

Like this reminder? Sign up for our maintenance reminders and access our list of Treasure Coast service providers with our new HomeKeepr App.

We are now marketing to Chinese overseas property buyers through our partnership with Juwai.com, the #1 Chinese language international property portal. Through Juwai.com, we reach high-net-worth Chnese buyers both within China and living abroad.