Atlanta Pocket Listings offer benefits for Buyers and Sellers

Atlanta Pocket Listings

There’s a new catch phrase being circulated in the real estate industry and it’s coming to a town near you. Pocket Listings, or hip pocket listings as they are popularly called, are real estate listings that have not fully hit the market, yet. They are not being advertised in the local multiple listing service (mls) and are usually hidden, secretive, or private offerings available to people in the know. You can almost equate them to an initial public offering (ipo) of stock, available at first, to a clientele and then to the general public once they are listed. Atlanta pocket listings are becoming more and more prevalent as the Atlanta real estate market heats up and we prepare for a recovery in 2014.

Why might a seller choose to utilize the pocket listing strategy and not fully expose the property in the mls? Several reasons exist.

Privacy – Home sellers may want to keep their homes out of the mls to avoid unnecessary inquiries by unqualified lookie-loos. Additionally, sellers may want to keep their sale out of the spot light of nosy neighbors.
Staging – Allows seller time to pre-market the home while renovating or repairing.
Pricing – Allows a seller to test a price point, speculatively, without being penalized if it is too high. The longer a home sits on the market, the more buyers believe it is over-priced or there is something wrong with it. Since the property is not placed in the multiple listing service, your pre-marketing “days on market” is not recorded. During the pre-marketing period, you may be able to get an acceptable offer, however, if you don’t, at least you may have a better idea of where your home needs to be priced when it does get listed.
Feedback – The pre-marketing program can ascertain important feedback from prospective purchasers and real estate agents about your home, allowing you to make necessary adjustments prior to hitting the market.
Lower Commissions – Since there are fewer fees associated with marketing pocket listings and there may or may not be another real estate agent involved in the sale, commissions tend to be slightly less if a property can be sold as a pocket listing.
Urgency – Advertising your home as a pocket listing can create a sense of urgency amongst buyers who might be eager to get a jump on the newest available properties that are coming on to the market.
Safety – By not placing a sign in the yard and by limiting exposure of your address, online, the general public won’t know your home is for sale.
Convenience – A pocket listing can save sellers the time and hassle of having to show their home to many potential buyers. Pocket listings can create a sense in buyers that if you snooze, you lose, which may result in a quick offer with minimal showings, necessary.
Market Refresh – For some homes that have been on the market and that have not sold, moving forward as a pocket listing will give you some down time in the MLS. You can continue to market the home as a pocket listing. If updates or repairs need to be made this affords you an opportune time to complete them without adding additional days on market to your MLS history. After 30-60 days of pre-marketing, you can hit the MLS with a new face and a renewed vigor.

Buyers of homes may want to explore Atlanta pocket listings as an option, as well. If you’ve been considering purchasing a home in metro Atlanta, I’m sure you have run into some frustrating road-blocks during your home search. A lack of adequate housing inventory to choose from, homes selling once they hit the market, competing with numerous other buyers and investors in multiple offer situations, all can be disenchanting. If you can become part of a pocket listing network or group or you can find a real estate agent that comes across these hidden gems, your chances of scoring a home that has yet to hit the market increases, substantially.

Websites like PocketListingsAtlanta.com and PocketListings.net are great places for Atlanta home sellers and buyers to begin their pocket listing journey.

Having been licensed since 1994, Craig Levine brings to your real estate deal a world of experience, cutting-edge technology, negotiating savvy, and exemplary service. With Century 21 in Atlanta, Craig was the #2 agent in the #1 office in Georgia in 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001! He repeatedly received Century 21’s highest honor, The Centurion Award, in each of these years. In 2002, Craig joined Re/Max Greater Atlanta, the Nation’s #1 RE/MAX office and has consistently been one of the top agents in the office. Additionally, Craig got licensed in Florida to bring his arsenal of skills and resources into the Emerald Coast’s 2nd Home and Investment market. He holds a Florida Broker’s Associate License which resides at Baywalk Real Estate in Beautiful Destin, Florida.

Craig is an avid hiker, camper, boater, golfer, traveler, biker, and reader. He has written for numerous print magazines including The Seasonal, The Gazette, Cobb Living, Cobbonline, The Cobb Times, Atlanta Nation, Cherokee Nation, North Fulton Nation, Gwinnett Nation, The Southeast Business Journal, Lake Lanier Herald, Revue and News, John’s Creek Herald, Forsyth Herald, North Atlanta Business Post, as well as various online real estate related web sites. Craig is also frequently quoted in Georgia Realtor Magazine, Florida Realtor Magazine, the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, and the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

-Realtor Serving Thousands of Clients Since 1994
-Associate Broker in Georgia and Florida
-Graduate of the Realtor Institute (GRI)
-Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS)
-Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE)
-Accredited REO Agent (AREO)
-Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource Specialist (SFR)
-Real Estate Property Management Specialist (REPM)
-Top 1% of Realtors Nationally
-Non-Performing Asset Specialist
-Member REOMAC (wait list), FiveStar, Equator Gold Certified, RES.net AMP Professional Certified, REOConnection, REO Network

RE/MAX Greater Atlanta (Atlanta) – Associate Broker
Southern Disposition, LLC – Broker/Owner
Baywalk Real Estate (Destin/Panama City Beach, Florida) – Broker Associate

678-784-4493 (Office)
888-8-LEVINE (Toll Free)

Visit Our Arsenal of Award-Winning Real Estate Web Sites:

http://www.CraigSellsHomes.com

http://www.AtlantaMansions.net

http://www.AtlantaForeclosures.net

http://www.PocketListingsAtlanta.com

http://www.GeorgiaHomes.me

http://www.GeorgiaRealEstate.ws

http://www.RealEstateGeorgia.info

http://www.GeorgiaReoAgent.net

http://www.GeorgiaShortSale.net

http://www.AtlantaForeclosurePrevention.com