In a seller’s market with low inventory, the real estate broker who can find off-market deals for their buyers has a serious competitive advantage. Rather than passively waiting for the seller to come to you, make a name for yourself as the buyer’s agent who tracks down off-market homes to give your buyers an edge.
Here are five sneaky ways real estate brokers are finding off-market homes for their buyers in a hot seller’s market.
1. Take Note of Pre-Foreclosures
Pre-foreclosure status indicates that the homeowner has missed multiple mortgage payments and is at risk of losing their home to the bank. This owner might be better off selling quickly to avoid risking foreclosure.
Working with pre-foreclosures presents multiple opportunities. First, you might be able to offer solutions to help the owner keep their home. They might not be aware of options like refinancing or mortgage forbearance.
If you can help the owner stay in their home, you won’t get a listing or an off-market home for your buyers, but you will get the loyalty of the owner, who will likely remember you when they’re ready to sell in the future. If they decide selling is their best option, you can connect them with your buyers for a quick off-market sale.
2. Pay Attention to Divorces
Couples going through a divorce need to divide their assets. In many cases, this includes selling the family home.
Families in this situation are under a lot of stress and often want a fast, low-stress sale. Providing a buyer for the home before the sellers are forced to list it can save the family weeks of showings, not to mention the stress of keeping a home show-ready.
3. Watch for Bankruptcy Filings
Bankruptcy is designed to protect assets, but some homeowners who find themselves in bankruptcy prefer to sell their homes and downsize to a smaller home with a more manageable monthly payment. You can contact homeowners who have filed for bankruptcy to see if they plan to relocate and to offer a ready-to-deal buyer for a hassle-free sale.
4. Check the Obituaries
When a homeowner passes away, the family often needs to make quick decisions about selling the home. In some cases, the home will be willed to a family member who will choose to stay put. But in many cases, a family may wish to sell the home. If there’s a mortgage on the property, the family may want to sell the home as quickly as possible to minimize the required mortgage expense.
This can be a good opportunity for empathetic real estate brokers to provide the family with a quick off-market sale. And, of course, your buyers also benefit from the heads-up on the off-market listing.
5. Do All of the Above in One Step
Monitoring pre-foreclosures, divorces, bankruptcies, and obituaries can be a time-consuming process. But with the right smart tools, you can track all of these areas automatically.
PropStream’s quick search filters does exactly that. You can set your parameters to get a list of homes in your area that are distressed due to pre-foreclosure, divorce, bankruptcy, or the death of the owner. You can even “list stack” to see if any single home fits multiple categories. The more distressing the factors, the more likely the owners are to sell. With List Automator, your list will automatically update as new homes meet your criteria, so you don’t have to run tedious searches every day.
You can even get the homeowner’s contact information by skip tracing, saving you additional time and allowing you to cast a wide net looking for off-market homes.
PropStream is your secret weapon in distinguishing yourself as the broker with the inside scoop on off-market deals for buyers. Start your free trial today.
