Q. How Do I Get Started? A. It's easy. 1: Call 815-229-7257 for an appointment.
2: Complete the "On-Line House Information Form.
Q. Do you have a magazine? A. No. There are several major problems with having a magazine. The cost to produce a magazine is very high. You're going to pay more and worse yet, you're helping to subsidize someone else's ad! This is just one of the reasons we can keep our costs low to you.
Magazines are not produced every day. They are often 4-6 weeks between publications so, again, you're likely paying for something that you can't have full advantage of.
Besides giving you advertising on Rockford For Sale By Owner and RockfordLink.com we create for you your own unique web site which means people go directly to you. In a magazine you're competing with every single ad there. You're just "one of the crowd" and that dilutes your exposure.
The bottom line is, web advertising is part of your overall marketing effort. That being said, you can't get more exposure that you can on Rockford For Sale By Owner (4 Million-plus hits per month). If web advertising is going to be part of your marketing, then you owe it to yourself to be on the most visited site in northern, Illinois. You simply can't beat the price or value on Rockford For Sale By Owner.
Q. Why do you charge flat fees and no commissions? A. Two reasons... First, we purposely don't hold a real estate license, therefore avoiding any conflicts of interest with licensed agents and secondly, anyone who works on a commission basis benefits by selling at a higher rate as opposed to the correct rate. Their loyalty might be to the dollars and not the results. That can cost you valuable marketing time and more money in the long run. Ads run by the National Association of Realtors state that houses listed with realtors sell for more than those by own. What they don't say is that the extra cost may or may not cover the commissions you have to pay.
Q. What if I want realtors to stop calling me? A. Register your phone number with the national do not call list. Registering you number is easy and free. Do it by logging on to: National Do Not Call Registry. Once you've registered you can then ask the realtor and his/her company not to call you again. Doing so violates federal law and you can file a complaint via the same web site at: National Do Not Call Registry. The monetary penalties are quite high and will quickly stop these calls. If you've established a business relationship with the realtor/company this law will not apply. Just tell them:, "Please don't call again and remove me from your solicitation list." Their next call to you is a violation.
Q. Can I advertise on your site if I'm listed with a realtor? A. Absolutely.
We get this question a lot. Recently we've had a rash of these questions from current and potential advertisers as a result of local realtors suggesting that someone can't be listed with a realtor and advertise on this site (or any other site) at the same time. Our customers tell us that these comments are originating from RAAR (Rockford Association of Realtors). Many have said that their realtor was told by RAAR that the realtor's name could not be listed on the site. If true that would be a rule RAAR has placed on their association realtors, but that does NOT mean that you can't advertise someplace else, on your own. You are free to purchase advertising here, with the newspaper or with any other web site or advertising medium that you choose. The only exception would be if you've signed a listing agreement with a realtor/realty firm that specifically bars you from advertising your property while under contract with them. We haven't heard of any of these types of agreements, nor has our attorney. This is why we always suggest conferring with an attorney (we can recommend one for you) PRIOR to signing ANYTHING. And we would never recommend utilizing a realtor who would place such restrictions on you leaving them to be your sole marketing source. We could certainly recommend some realtors who wouldn't place you at such a disadvantage. Remember, even if you have your house advertised on Rockford For Sale By Owner and your house sells while under contract with a realtor/agency the realtor/agency still gets paid. The biggest advantage of Rockford For Sale By Owner is the 4 million-plus hits we receive each month making us the most visited site locally AND the exposure you won't get anyplace else. So, there are good real estate agents out there, but unfortunately, like in any business, there are some who either don't understand their own business or purposely mislead in order to profit. If you feel you've been mislead it's always best to seek relief. First, contact your attorney, secondly, file a complaint with a governing authority. Have a complaint? Here are some resources for filing a complaint about a realtor and/or their company. If you don't complain they will just keep taking advantage of others: |