FAQ

Every agent at Brooklyn Properties is fully versed in the buyer qualification process. We will, of course, manage all co-broke applicants to insure their qualifications as well.

Brooklyn Properties will work hand-in-hand with appraisers to assure that the units appraise at the accepted sales price; not always an easy task, in a rising market.

We will manage the buyer’s communications down to the final punch lists and walkthrough before closing.

Our agents will contact their active buyers early on in the process. Our extensive database of condo buyers will receive an email announcement inviting them to a special preview.

All our agents will be available at all times to show your project to buyers. We will send out announcements to over 2000 active brokers with Brokerages focused on Brooklyn.

We will hold weekly Open Houses. All of our agents will be involved in helping to host your open houses. Full company involvement provides a wide net to interface between you and every potential buyer.

We’ll work with you to prepare and design your marketing campaign, using our in-house advertising staff to create a name, a logo, and specific graphic design to give your project a unique and memorable personality in the market place.

Let our in-house decorator furnish your model unit. Properties sell faster and actually appear larger and more inviting if properly furnished with real furniture. A model unit serves as an ideal place to show the “finished product”, even if the other units are still under construction.

Our professional in-house photographer will take photos of the model unit, along with important building features and amenities, and will provide you with high resolution, quality prints for your portfolio. By special request, our photographer would be available to document your project from start to finish.

In addition to floor plans, our in-house architect can create or amend blueprints.

Brooklyn Properties will design signage for the building exterior and wherever deemed appropriate to reflect who you and your project are, not who we are.

Not only will your development have its own website, it will be featured on brooklynproperties.com. We will advertise in a wide range of on-line venues, such as the NYTimes.com, Streeteasy.com, Trulia.com, Brownstoner.com, and Zillow.com.

The standard time from contract to closing is approximately 3 months.  Both the buyer and seller can negotiate longer or shorter target dates for closing.  Usually there is a target date with flexibility at the end of the process, dependent on the needs of the seller, the buyer and the bank.

The less predictable question is “How long will it take to find a buyer and have a signed contract?”

Market intensity + Sales Price + Market Strategy = Speed of Sale

We look forward to formulating a strategy that will get you the highest price in the shortest time.  This is the art of real estate.  Sometimes the right approach is counter intuitive.  An asking price too high may result in a lower sale price over a longer period of time, as the price may reduce the number of buyers who decide to look at the property.  Often a lower asking price will attract a high volume of qualified buyers who will drive the bids higher, maximizing the outcome both for price and speed!  We will recommend a personalized market strategy for your sale, on your timetable, appropriate to the ever changing reality of the market.

Internet advertising is step one: “That’s one click for the buyer, one giant leap for the seller!” – If only Neil Armstrong was alive today!

Your property will be seen internationally, instantly!  Never mind the 5 boroughs, Brooklyn is now an international destination and our name, Brooklyn Properties and brooklynproperties.com, are a major contributing factor that sets us apart!  Every buyer investigating properties in Brooklyn, from Manhattan to Japan, California to Israel, New Jersey to China (you get the point) will see your listing on their cell phones and laptops; as will every broker who has a buyer for Brooklyn!

How can you maximize the reward with minimum expenditure?  First consideration: correct anything that might cause concern to a buyer. This is not just a cosmetic matter.  We have the in-house expertise to anticipate the reaction a buyer will have to an engineer’s report.  We will advise where it will be worthwhile to spend the dollars for repair and presentation. We will guide you as needed in finding trustworthy electricians, plumbers, builders and painters.

Sometimes repairing a little thing can make a great difference in the buyer’s confidence. Sometimes changing things too much can be an expenditure that will not pay off.  We have decades of experience in buyer’s reactions.  Let’s talk!

Banks look at “comparables.” Comparable sales of properties address the past.  What is actively competing on the market is the real question for a seller.  What else can the buyer find for the same price in a similar neighborhood?  This is the real market.

The price is also affected by the macro economic climate; interest rates, stock market fluctuations, elections… all of these affect buyer attitudes.  Every property is different and every moment in time is different.  Let’s talk!

·         Our amazing photographer works only for us and will be able to have your listing up within 24 hours from the time the photos are ready.

·         Brooklyn Properties can stage your home with our in-house interior designer to maximize how it looks in person and on the internet!

·         Brooklyn Properties can create a 3D digital tour of your property so that buyers all over the world can walk through at their leisure before booking their flight!

·         Brooklyn Properties can create a video presentation for online viewing

·         Brooklyn Properties will have floor plans drawn up

Brooklyn Properties has a culture of team work.  When you list with us you list with the whole company, not just the listing agent.  Open houses will be conducted, as recommended, until the property is in contract.  Every agent at Brooklyn Properties will be able to show and communicate freely about all listings.  Showings are not limited to the schedule of the listing agent!

Buyers, through viewing your property, will be provided with a full color photo/fact sheet containing all of the details about your listing.

This is critical.  We gain knowledge of the buyer’s financial viability, just as the buyer has the right to inspect the property.  We will make absolutely certain that any buyer making an offer is able to get to the finish line.  We review qualifications from mortgage brokers, proof of assets, credit ratings, special situations that might come up in international transactions… any issues that could affect the buyer’s ability to close.  We are very careful in this investigation.

Our work continues after contracts are signed. If the buyer is getting a mortgage, the bank will send an appraiser. The appraiser needs data to substantiate the value to the bank.  They will consider closed sales, in contract sales and on the market properties.  We will gather this information and present it when we show the property to the appraiser.  In a rising market, getting through the appraisal successfully can be tricky, especially if we have achieved a record sale price.  In this case nothing succeeds like excess; an excess of data to support the price.  It’s best not to try this on your own; we have years of experience so that you can avoid an unhappy ending.

One market strategy is to pick an asking price to attract buyers, then the buyers compete with each other, driving the price up.  We would then conduct a “Highest and Best”.  It is called that in recognition that the buyer offering the highest price may not be the best candidate to go into contract with.  The “Best” gives weight to the big picture of the buyer’s finances and specific situation to insure that they will close and in a timely manner.  Our skills in conducting the “Highest and Best” will achieve the best price offered by the best buyer.

Brooklyn Properties has in depth experience about every aspect of house construction and will be able to advise you about the condition of your home early in the process.  We will be well prepared and knowledgeable in dealing with whatever the engineer brings to the attention of the buyer.

The timing of selling a home and then buying another is frequently very difficult.  If we are considering a buyer with a sales contingency, Brooklyn Properties will examine the details of your buyer’s sale to be able to assess and minimize the degree of risk.

One of the initial decisions you will need to make is what unit size will sell best in the current market at your project’s location? We’ll work with you and your architect to consider all the variables; what competing projects are offering, neighborhood demographics, local schools, as well as the local financial environment. Our agents, including our support staff, live in Brooklyn and are familiar with the uniqueness and appeal of each Brooklyn area. We are neighborhood experts with boots on the ground and real knowledge of what motivates buyers to invest their futures in Brooklyn real estate.

Pricing is more art than science. Over-estimating your sale prices will only lead to a property lingering, costing you interest and being devalued by time. Instead of fighting the market, have the market work for you. We consider not only price per sq ft, but also the subjective factors that affect a buyer’s decision: things as variable as a unit’s location in the building, the esthetic, the views. What are the keys to “love at first sight?” Parking, bike racks, storage, washer/dryers, etc. are simple basics, yes, but too often ignored. Let us help. Our agents are in touch with what excites buyers; what gets them from “I like” to “I must have.”

We’ll work with your architect and designer to help determine which finishes, appliances and detailing will best sell units quickly. Will the Subzero fridge and Wolf stove actually add value or will the less expensive Fisher/Pakel fridge and Bertazzoni stove catch your buyer’s eye? We’ll help you make educated choices based on our extensive time spent listening buyers’ wish lists.

We have decades of experience to share with you. We can introduce you to knowledgeable and affordable professionals from attorneys to architects well versed in putting together condo deals. We can connect you to people we have successfully worked with in the past; anything to help you maximize your profits and minimize your costs.