Anna-Lena Rosen is, together with her husband Peter, head of Nordica Sales & Rentals. Anna-Lena and Peter are real estate agents in Nueva Andalucia, in the south of Spain. With more than 30 years of experience they have grown Nordica to become one of the leading estate agencies in the Marbella area, with a team of multilingual sales and rentals agents, as well as support staff. This is despite Spain having suffered one of the worst recessions in modern history.
Clients include both holidaymakers and residents looking to buy, sell or rent their home, as well as private and institutional investors looking to invest in the Spanish real estate market. The key to their success has been to focus their business on one area, in their case, Nueva Andalucia, rather than trying to be a jack-of-all-trades trying to sell property everywhere to everyone.
As Rosen explains, “Whilst we are part of a network of agents servicing the Costa del Sol and have access to a database of over 16,000 properties that we can offer to our clients, over the years we have found that it is simply not possible to serve either your buyers or your sellers properly if you cover such a large area. Indeed too often agents show properties to clients that they have never seen themselves before.”
If an agency focuses their team on a specific area they will get to know it like the back of their hands. They can then advise buyers confidently and knowledgeably on all aspects of buying a property in that area and have the resources to know each property that they list intimately.
For Anna-Lena, “The role of an estate agent is to add value to the selling and buying process by matching the right buyer with the right property. The only way that you can do that is if you have an in-depth knowledge of each property that is on the market.”
The vendor is looking to sell his property at the highest possible price and within the shortest time frame. The real estate agent’s job is to know what that price is and how to achieve it. If the agent puts the property at too high a price, it will never sell, too low, and the vendor will lose money.
In addition, it is the agent’s job to advise the vendor on any improvements that could be made to the property that could help the sale. As Anna-Lena points out “Only recently an owner, whose house had been on the market for over one year, with absolutely no interest, followed Nordica’s home staging recommendations. Within one week the house was sold, with three competing buyers, without reducing the selling price.”
From the buyer’s perspective, the buyer is looking to purchase a property that meets his needs—this could range from a small lock-up-and-go holiday rental apartment to a luxury mansion as a permanent home. In all cases, purchasers are looking for value and only an agent that has an in-depth knowledge of the area, and the properties that are on the market can provide that value.
Rosen feels that an agent does not need to list every single property on the market, but to have listings of the very best properties in terms of value and price. As Anna-Lena points out, “Vendors need to feel confident that when they list a property it will be sold. At the same time buyers should be confident that, when they purchase a property, they have made the right choice. In my experience the issue is not one of listing the cheapest properties as price has to be related to value, in fact we have properties ranging from 100,000 Euros to 15,000,000 Euros. Indeed many vendors can achieve their selling price if their properties match the needs of the buyers.”
Anna-Lena believes that a real estate transaction should be a win-win situation with the vendor achieving the best possible price for his home and the buyer obtaining the very best value by matching his needs. The key to success is focus. By dedicating resources to a specific area, agents can spend more time with vendors and more time with purchasers, so creating that perfect match between the two.
By providing value to the marketplace, agents create trust and trust is the foundation of any real estate market. As Rosen states, “Here at Nordica, we believe that we have been part of creating that trust, thanks to our focus on being the very best in just one area – Nueva Andalucia.”
If you would like information on buying or selling real estate in Nueva Andalucia, Anna-Lena can be contacted personally by email at annalena@nordicamarbella.com, by telephone on + 34 952 811 552 or visit their website Nordica Sales & Rentals. You can also visit her personal website at: http://www.annalenarosen.com.