026: Skip the Listing Process with Sweetly

I Love Edmonton Real Estate
I Love Edmonton Real Estate
026: Skip the Listing Process with Sweetly
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Today’s guest is Aidan Woodfine of Sweetly Real Estate. Originally from Camrose, he moved to Edmonton when he was about twelve-years-old and has been a realtor for six years. A former poker player, Aidan got into real estate when he realized he needed a new career path.

[2:33] Are there any parallels between poker and real estate?

  • Poker is about seeking value. When you’re working with clients in real estate, you need to provide and seek value in similar ways.
  • In poker, you’re always trying to think about what the other person is doing based on their tendencies. It’s similar to thinking about why clients are making certain decisions.

[5:38] What have you been seeing in the market lately?

  • It’s been slow, and the condo market has been hit the hardest because there’s a lot of inventory.

[6:39] Tell me about the new approach you’re taking towards real estate with Sweetly.

  • We launched Sweetly with the idea of modelling it after the iBuyers in the US.
  • These are websites that allow you to enter your property’s info and receive an offer within twenty-four hours.
  • If you go to our website, you’ll be provided with an offer within twenty-four hours as well. We look at comparables and then send the offer, but another option is to request a private evaluation.

[9:12] Why would a seller want to do this?

  • Our offer is good for ninety days, so they can pick their own closing date.
  • Another huge benefit is that there’s no showings with people going through your home.

[10:48] Where does Sweetly make money in this process?

  • We charge a service fee of 5.5%.
  • We’ll pay 80% market value upfront, and our fee is deducted from the final sale price.

[13:07] What traction have you been getting so far?

  • Seniors especially have been very positive about our model.
  • We’re focusing on homes between $280,000 and $500,000, but we’ve made a few exceptions.
  • If a client doesn’t want to go with the Simply model, we can still take care of them as a traditional realtor.
  • We’ve worked with a few clients where they’ve already bought their next home but haven’t been able to sell their current one.

[15:57] How do you make sure you get top dollar for that original seller?

  • We’ve had discrepancies between what the seller thinks it’s worth and what we think it’s worth. We’ve given them the 80% based on our evaluation, but list it for what they think it’s worth.

[18:52] What is the difference between what Sweetly can bring to that table versus what you have been doing for the past six years?

  • We can do a lot more. It feels really good that I can go into a presentation and provide a solution for people that didn’t have one before.
  • There’s a learning curve, but once they get it, they wonder why every real estate agent doesn’t offer this.

[19:41] What is some of the best real estate advice you’ve ever received?

  • I recently heard “only work with the willing,” and that stuck with me.

[20:53] Have there been any themes with your last few transactions?

  • They’ve been a bit more gruelling. I’m finding that buyers are expecting the world, but sellers are not accommodating to that because their prices have slipped.

[22:16] What should people be looking for in a realtor?

  • Having a few years of experience is pretty important. Picking a realtor with good reviews and that understands the market is important as well.

Sweetly: https://sellsweetly.ca/

780-264-1234
#227, 6005 Gateway Blvd NW
Edmonton, AB
T6H 2H3