What Property Buyers Want During and After the Coronavirus Pandemic?

So many uncertain circumstances can affect your property sale in these uncertain coronavirus pandemic times…

But one thing is definitely certain: buyers want SPACE.

As many people work from home now (and quite possible the trend will continue in the future), a room for a home office is required. Also some open space for getting rest is needed – like a terrace, balcony or garden.

Buyers will absolutely adore a park nearby or any similar space for taking a walk with a dog or doing sports, etc.

On the other hand, overcrowded neighborhoods will not be in demand – it seems.

So, don’t forget to mention all good things in your description of a property for sale: SPACE inside and outside is the most attractive feature nowadays.

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Advertisement

How to Write the Best Property Description to Find Foreign Investors?

We have already established in the previous posts that during all those coronavirus restrictions in the world, we mostly can count on real estate foreign buyers who are investors and purchase properties based on the financials.

Yes, writing a home description to attract foreign investors is more complicated than doing it the old usual way everybody had been using for years: size, beauty, facilities, location… (unfortunately, often we can see lots of properties for sale with descriptions missing even some of these mandatory features…)

Now, let’s forget the old rules and start calculating the profit that an imaginary foreign investor could get from your property (if this is possible of course…). Treat the sale of your residential property as if it’s commercial.

There are actually 2 types of profiting from real estate: rental income and price appreciation with time. Look at both possibilities carefully, find the historic data of real estate prices in your area, rental prices and costs now, show some forecast maybe, etc. Calculate approximate financials of your property for sale, and if they look good you might be way ahead of any other real estate seller in these difficult times, and foreign buyers will come to you!

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Who are Perfect Foreign Buyers for Your Property for Sale during Covid-19?

While traveling is restricted all over the world, it’s obvious that just only international INVESTORS are still buying profit-making real estate in foreign countries – as buying for their own families vacations would usually require personal visits and viewing of the property they want to buy.

Let’s look at 2 recent descriptions of condos for sale in South Florida – both are 2 bedrooms/2 bathrooms, more or less the same asking price around $300k AND in the same very rare(!) building in Miami-Dade county that allows short-term rentals:

1. “ALLOWED SHORT TERM RENTALS, 1 block from the beautiful beaches, 2 bedrooms 2 bathrooms. The unit offers open views and very bright natural light, excellent for investors. LOW- EXPENSES WITH HIGH RETURNS, large balcony/terrace, open view of the park, assigned parking. The HOA includes maintenance of common areas, water, waste, cable, and internet. The areas close to restaurants, cafes, supermarkets, and more”

AND

2. “Here comes a great corner unit! These corners are almost never for sale. Now is the chance to acquire one! In absolutely perfect condition and furnished with high quality furniture. Good taste all over. One block to the beach, restaurants, shops, etc. Can make a 3rd bedroom with the den if desired”

So, being an investor, would you consider the first or the second condo??? The answer is obvious – what investor would care about the “good taste” of the previous owner of the second unit while the “short-term rentals are allowed” in the first one!!!

Pay attention to features attractive for investors and you’ll be able to sell your property successfully to foreign buyers even at the times of crisis.

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Foreign Investors for Your Real Estate for Sale during Time of Crisis

Although the world seems to have stopped during these times of the coronavirus outbreak, many people are still making money and looking for real estate to invest it in. And properties are being sold, although the numbers of sales are down, of course.

Let’s see who is buying and what? Definitely the markets for homes where families are going to live in, are on hold due to travel bans and restrictions on social contacts, etc. But what about real estate INVESTORS? They are interested not in viewing a property for sale to discover its beauty, but exclusively in profit it can bring into their pockets, right?

If it was always obvious for commercial properties to calculate CAP and ROI, how about to do the same for your home for sale, for instance, – if renting it out is an option for a new future owner?

Thus, the today’s marketing idea for any property for sale is the following: try and describe it as a profit-making property first of all. (Yes, the seller or his agent should do some research for that – for example, to find out about rental prices, possibilities and trends in the area, etc.)

The profit-making option may attract INVESTORS to purchase your home for sale (and foreign investors including, of course, if you market properly – in the foreign internet too). Remember: while regular home buyers put their dreams on hold, INVESTORS are quietly buying in difficult times.

Later we’ll talk more about creating real estate listings that beat any competition by attracting the foreign investors in these times of crisis.

Happy blog reading,
Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Update on Amazon Books on the Topic: International Real Estate Buyers

As you probably had multiple chances to notice that Amazon search results you receive each time, vary a lot depending on the key words or phrases you try. For example, the list will be different for “foreign buyers” and “international buyers” although for a human being there is no difference in the meaning of these two key words.

 

Ok, let’s search Amazon Books for “international real estate buyers”. There are 100+ books, and approximately 60% of them are e-books with an average price of $10 – very affordable.

As it always happens with any automatic search, some results are not so much on the topic, and you have to decide on their usefulness for yourself looking at particular title descriptions. (I have looked at several, and they seemed to be more about general real estate buyers rather than international ones.)

Anyway, many of the e-books we have found, are right on the topic of marketing and selling properties world-wide (my own e-books including).

And while getting ready for the after-covid19 world to be open again, you might want to read about:

= How to Build Trust with Buyers and Partners: Practical Advice to Achieve Success in International Real Estate Sales

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FZ86G93

= How to Find the Best Foreign Realtors and Make Your Offer of Cooperation in Sale Irresistible to Them

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BDSMM80

= How to Efficiently Advertise Your Property for Sale Internationally  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BTCNYE6

= How to Sell Real Estate to the Russians

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3DOB4M

= How to Sell Real Estate to the Chinese: Overview http://www.amazon.com/dp/B072JYX43F

= How to Plan and Budget for Success in International Property Sales
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CZ1K0XI

= How to Be the First on Foreign Google

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01H0Q2ZGI

= How to Convert Foreign Internet Visitors into Real Estate Buyers
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01H2BA00Y

= How to Use Free Online Translation in Real Estate Business http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01JGQB71Y

= A Case Study of Effective Low-Budget Real Estate Marketing to Foreign Buyers: (Interview with Jessica Marks, Real Estate Marketing Specialist) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LDIEY4U

= The Beginner’s Guide to Selling Real Estate to Foreign Buyers
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MED0JTH

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Update on Amazon Books on the Topic: Cross-cultural Marketing and Selling

Let’s go to www.amazon.com and search for “cross-cultural marketing and selling” in Books (keeping in mind that the results may vary for any individual search depending on the time and position in the world).

There are 15 books, more than half of them are too old or aimed at a too specific topic which has nothing to do with international real estate marketing and selling.

Thus, we see not a lot of books on this very important issue: IF you want to successfully sell properties internationally to foreign buyers, you have to be aware of the fact that whatever you say in your marketing materials to the buyers abroad, most probably will be understood not the way you meant!

And the other way around: whatever the foreign buyers communicate to you, most probably you will understand not the way they meant!

Of course, each nation/culture you want to reach with your marketing message in their own language requires a specific approach.

Note: google “Olga Kellen + cross-cultural marketing selling” (or any similar formula), and you’ll be able to find many of my articles and books on the first page of this organic search – to help you with dealing with the foreign buyers in real estate in general and with Russian and Chinese buyers of international properties in particular.

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,

The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

2 types of Foreign Buyers and How to Reach Both with the Same Listing

There are 2 major groups of foreign buyers: 1. some are looking for the best way to invest in real estate abroad – never mind the area, country and type of property; and 2. others who have already made up their mind on a particular investment and are looking for a suitable property.

Not to waste our online presentation (a listing on a portal or webpage or ad) and to reach the both groups of foreign buyers at the same time, we have to combine in the presentation all the property’s features that are attractive to the both types of the foreign buyers.

Potential foreign investors looking for the best harbor for their money abroad will be definitely interested in what privileges and profits their investment might bring them: return-on-investment for a hotel or rental property, citizenship-for-investment for a property of a certain price, etc. Even for a condo or single family home mentioning their rental possibility (if any existing, of course) must be done.

The foreign buyers who already know in what country and area and what type of property they want, will be interested in all details about the property for sale: location, size, age, renovations, exclusive features, etc. Plenty of photos and video are a must.

So, why not to combine all of the above mentioned in one and the same property presentation? Then both types of the foreign buyers will be yours. 

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

 

Copyright © 2020 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Marketing to Foreign Buyers is a Way to Increase Real Estate Sales in Slow Market

We know that in the Seller’s market realtors and developers do not need to do a lot of marketing actually as homes sell themselves, while in the Buyer’s market the situation is quite the opposite: to sell a home would be a hard task to complete.

We remember the good times about 15 years ago when leaving the door of your condo building in Florida we saw people hanging around and asking whether somebody could sell something here – they were ready to buy anything at all.

Then we also remember the bad times about 10 years ago when the market was down and realtors who didn’t do an adequate marketing went to drive a taxi to make a living.

So, real estate markets go up and down and a wise seller should be always ready for any situation.

One of the best ideas for slow times is Marketing Real Estate to Foreign Buyers.

Of course, to sell a particular property would require some research: is it in demand by international investors and from what country or countries?

An example: there had been a financial crisis in Greece and the locals didn’t buy even when the real estate prices were low. What helped the sellers? International marketing. Some sources say that about one third of Greek properties are being sold to the foreign buyers.

Another example: the number of the Chinese buyers of the US homes went down, but they still had bought American homes for a billion of dollars in each quarter of the year. An intelligent US seller would increase his marketing efforts in China in such circumstances – to be ahead of the competition, right?

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2019 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Tips on Real Estate Cross Cultural Selling

We’ve talked a lot in this blog about foreign languages in marketing and selling real estate to foreign buyers. The language issue is called the number one in all kinds of reports, guides, articles, etc. on the topic of international real estate sales, and I hope we’ve already discussed the ways to overcome the obstacle (see many previous posts tagged ‘foreign languages’ here).

We’ve talked about the cultural differences of the foreign buyers as well, but probably not enough, that’s why I’d like to put together some more general information. The cultural diversity is considered the number two issue by many professionals in the international real estate field.

Some practical tips on real estate cross cultural marketing and selling:

– First of all you may want to visit your local library, consult with a knowledgeable librarian to help you find one or two books on the cultural diversities in general – with the accent on business and selling to customers of a different culture. This way you’d have a feel of the issue and would learn what is important to take into consideration.

– Then you should decide for yourself exactly – the buyers of what culture or cultures you are going to attract to your properties for sale. This way you’d narrow the field to your own needs.

– Now you are ready to find out more about your chosen culture or cultures of the future international buyers. It’s not that huge task as you may think and it’s also fun to do – especially if you limit yourself to proper sources with the concentrated knowledge of the subject.

I can help you with all you need to know about selling to the Russians (personal experience) and Chinese (in-depth comprehensive research that summarizes many sources):

= How to Sell Real Estate to the Russians (E-Series: How to Beat Your Competition Selling Real Estate to Foreign Buyers, Book 3)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3DOB4M

= How to Sell Real Estate to the Chinese: Overview (E-Series: How to Beat Your Competition Selling Real Estate to Foreign Buyers, Book 10)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B072JYX43F

Happy blog reading,
Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2019 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved

Marketing Real Estate to Foreign Buyers: In What Language?

Once a year, when the high winter visitors’ season ends in Florida and realtors may consider assigning more time to marketing, Florida Realtor Magazine publishes an issue entirely devoted to selling real estate to foreign buyers.

It makes a lot of sense, as Florida is the #1 destination for real estate foreign investors in the U.S., and last year they purchased residential properties worth $23B, thus it’s rightly believed that every realtor would want a piece of the pie.

I’ve read this issue from cover to cover to see what’s offered. It’s full of useful interviews, tips, advice, etc. – all about getting into selling real estate to foreign buyers, overseas investors, or dealing with international clients.

BUT there is almost no mentioning of the LANGUAGE(S) in which to market. Only on one of the last pages there is a little excerpt from a NAR’s blog “Communication is everything”. Great, I thought, at last the most useful advice was coming up.

And what a disappointment as it actually says: 1. Learn some basic phrases in your international buyers’ language (Good!), 2. Hire a native foreign language speaker to translate your marketing material (Bad! Not just any native speaker you need, but one with a proven record of writing marketing texts in the foreign language you wish to use), and 3. If nobody is available, use free online translation tools (Awful! Free translation can completely kill your marketing message – we’ve talked a lot about it in this blog already and with real life examples).

Even the article “Reaching Chinese Buyers” doesn’t say a word about the language, although names websites to use for marketing to the Chinese buyers. Okay, how many Chinese do really know English? Wikipedia: Less than 1% (!) Hmmm…

This near-sighted approach to marketing to foreigners reflects the usual American mistake: the whole world knows English. Nope. Do not fall into this trap, but market to foreign buyers in their language!

Happy blog reading,

Olga Kellen,
The Amazon Author
International Marketing Consultant and English-Russian Translator

Copyright © 2019 by Olga Kellen
All Rights Reserved